Choosing Between Online Publishing Platforms and Full-Service Self-Publishing

Estimated reading time: 13 minutes

You’re here right now because you’ve written a book or you’re in the process of writing one. And there, nibbling at the edges, is that lingering thought that won’t let you truly sleep at night: the one where you ask yourself, “How am I ever going to publish this?”

No matter where you are in your author journey, you’ve got two main paths ahead of you:

Option 1: Online publishing platforms, where you can handle everything on your own.
Option 2: Full-service self-publishing platforms, where you own the material, but a company publishes it (and can design and market it) on your behalf.

Both of these paths will lead to a published book, but the experience and results may look very different. Let’s look at what each one involves.

What is online publishing?

When you hear the words “online publishing platform”, that usually refers to something like Amazon KDP or IngramSpark. These are self-serve options. With these types of online publishing platforms, you create your own files, you format everything, you design your own cover (although there may be online tools to help you lay it out), upload it, and manage your own listings.

On one hand, this gives you great freedom and control to do exactly what you want with your book. On the other hand, if you’re not particularly experienced in interior book formatting or book cover design, your readers will see it in the results.

Pros of online publishing platforms

Oftentimes these platforms are free or have a very low up-front cost (because you’re doing the heavy lifting of nearly everything). If you need to get published online and fast, this is by far the quickest way to do it. At the same time, you have complete control over your content and your pricing.

Cons of online publishing platforms

You’ll need to be your own designer, formatter, editor ,and tech support expert. Any mistakes that come out in printing are 100% on you, and be warned: reviewers can be brutal. Unless you have prior graphic design or editing experience, the end result unfortunately looks amateurish, and this can reflect poorly on your credibility as an author — both now and in the future.

What is full-service self-publishing?

This is where on-demand services like BookBaby shine. Full-service self-publishing means you work with professionals to get the job done right. The good news is, you don’t have to go about hiring an editor, a book cover designer, an interior formatter, or anything else — it’s all handled for you. You keep the rights to your book and have control over the process. You don’t need to figure it out all on your own.

Pros of full-service publishing

With full-service self-publishing you get professional quality at every stage in the process. Your book looks like it came from a major publisher and is virtually indistinguishable on bookshelves from those major publishers’ books.

When you work with BookBaby, you also get support from actual people, not templates or AI. Our team includes editors, designers, and publishing experts, so you’ll have the expertise and knowledge of professionals every step of the way.

Cons of full-service publishing

Because you’re entrusting your book to professionals, there is a higher up-front cost associated with working with a full-service self-publishing company. You also need to decide how much help you want with each part of the publishing and marketing process. Thankfully, we at BookBaby outline our services in a way that makes it easy to pick and choose, so you’re never stuck with services you don’t want or can’t use.

How are royalties handled?

With BookBaby, you earn unmatched royalties by selling books through BookBaby Bookshop: the world’s most author-friendly bookstore. You also get retail distribution with Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and more. Our team can even help you set a strategic price that’s fair and will still attract readers.

What about print quality?

This is where BookBaby truly excels. Not only is BookBaby a one-stop shop for all things book publishing, but it’s also a full-service printing powerhouse. For example, when you choose to use our full-service self-publishing options you can:

• Choose from matte or gloss covers for either a more subdued, elegant look or bolder, eye-popping color
• Choose the type of interior paper for your book
• Choose the binding including hardcover and paperback in a variety of trim sizes
• Trust in the gorgeous, true-to-life color accuracy of professional printing

You can even order advance copies and distribute them to the press and potential readers, confident that they’ll look flawless.

What about distribution?

It’s easy to upload your book to Amazon KDP. You’re prompted through every stage with the ease and simplicity that you’d expect from a behemoth like Amazon. However, getting your book on:

• Apple Books
• Kobo
• Barnes & Noble
• Google Play

…. Is much more challenging. Fortunately, BookBaby handles this process for you. With one single upload, you’ll enjoy full global reach. We can even help you get your ISBN if you don’t already have one.

How do I get help with marketing?

BookBaby doesn’t create or distribute press releases, but we do offer a number of marketing tools that can help you get the word out about your book, including:

Worldwide eBook distribution

BookBaby’s worldwide eBook distribution distributes your eBook to over 60 retailers in 170 countries, including Kindle and Apple Books, Scribd, Kobo, Baker & Taylor and Libby. This large-scale eBook distribution starts at $299.

eBooks converted through BookBaby’s eBook conversion service also go through a diligent quality check. Each file is tested in actual eBook reader devices and proofs are provided digitally so that you can see exactly how your eBook looks before it goes out.

Print On Demand (POD) + global reach

Print On Demand means you only have books printed when an order comes through. No inventory, no stress. At just $199, BookBaby’s Print On Demand service makes your book available in print to Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Walmart, wholesalers, and of course your BookBaby Bookshop storefront.

BookBaby Bookshop promotion

BookBaby’s Bookshop promotion puts you on the Bookshop homepage for a week. It also gives you social media coverage and inclusion in new release emails which are sent out to over 150,000 subscribers. Even if your book isn’t distributed by BookBaby, you can still place your book on Bookshop for a one-time setup fee of $199, giving you access to the entire network and the highest royalty rates in the industry.

Marketing consultation services

BookBaby also offers marketing consultation services for $399 each. These include:

• Amazon title listing optimization – Get your keywords, categories, backend fields, and all the relevant data you need to make sure your book gets found on Amazon.
• Book marketing planner – Create your own personalized book launch roadmap.
• Social Media Promotion – Get advertising support and guidance for platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn.

Ads for Authors (display & social)

BookBaby’s ad experts will run ad campaigns for your book (using your cover and messaging) to targeted book audiences on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and across a wide range of websites.

Metadata optimization

Our metadata specialists audit and improve your book’s keywords, descriptions, BISAC categories, author bio, and more, as well as your cover thumbnails and backend setup. Metadata optimization is designed to make it easier for retailers to catalog your books, which in turn makes it easy for readers to find your specific genre and subgenre. You can think of it like search engine optimization, but for book data.

What about ISBNs and copyright?

Another common concern for authors who are thinking of self-publishing their books revolves around getting an ISBN or copyrighting their book. An ISBN (International Standard Book Number) is an identifier that’s used to sell your book around the world. Whether you’re selling online, through a bookstore, or even putting your book in libraries or schools, you need an ISBN.

ISBNs are typically issued to publishers who then issue them to individual books. You can buy an ISBN directly from Bowker (the entity responsible for assigning ISBNs) at myidentifiers.com. The cost to buy an ISBN is $125. One of the biggest advantages of publishing your book with BookBaby is that you can get an ISBN for your book for just $79.

Keep in mind that if you decide to publish your book in a different language, or you want to publish an eBook, a print book, and an audiobook, each one will need its own ISBN. A pack of 10 ISBNs can be bought from Bowker for $250. If you don’t live in the U.S., you can still purchase an ISBN from BookBaby, or any one of over 160 different ISBN agencies around the world. When you purchase an ISBN from BookBaby, we’ll be listed as the publisher.

What about audiobooks and translations?

If you’re interested in getting your book into the hands (or ears) of an even larger audience, you won’t want to miss the chance to have your book professionally narrated or translated into any of dozens of languages. Here’s how it works:

Audiobooks

Audiobooks are one of the fastest-growing segments of readers (well, listeners) in the book market. BookBaby offers several options to get your book into the ears of eager listeners. You can narrate your book yourself under the guidance and support of our expert audiobook producers.

If you’d rather not read your book yourself, we also offer voice actor-narrated audiobooks. We’ll submit your book for a casting call and let numerous professional narrators audition in order to deliver a superb listening experience for your readers.

We can also take advantage of cutting-edge AI assistance if you’d rather narrate your book yourself, but would like a little help and support making sure that it sounds authentically like you. These AI-supported sessions help you enjoy all the benefits of an author-narrated book without having to have multiple recording sessions over the course of several days.

Translation services

BookBaby’s distribution and publishing services help get your books into the hands of a global audience. But what if they don’t speak your language? Not to worry, our professional book translation service can help. With the help of native speakers, we can translate your book into more than 50 different languages.

Which should you choose?

Before you make a concrete decision on which publishing path is right for you, step back and ask yourself a few brutally honest questions. Your future author self will appreciate it!

“Do I have the skills and time to handle everything myself?”
If you’re a designer, editor, technical pro, or metadata guru, by all means go the DIY route. Having the experience and expertise to work with various publishing platforms can save you money if you’re willing to commit to seeing the project through from start to finish. If, however, you feel overwhelmed at the thought of just formatting a resume or the thought of Adobe Photoshop’s interface makes you break a cold sweat, you probably want full-service support.

“Do I want my book to look like it came from a major publisher?”
Even with the best of intentions, some DIY book publishing projects look decidedly DIY. Although many publishing platforms offer basic templates to help you get the layout right, that’s pretty much where support ends, and then you’re on your own. Keep in mind that cover design isn’t the only thing you’re responsible for. You also need to format the interior and make sure the book is free of typos and other errors. Readers will, unfortunately, judge your book by its cover, and an unprofessional or poorly formatted book can lead to unprofessional and poorly received reviews.

“What is my end goal with this book?”
If you just want to get your book out on the market as quickly as possible and you’re not terribly worried about how it looks or reads, DIY may be the better option. If you want it to sell, be reviewed, land in bookstores, and build your brand as an author, you’ll need more support along each stage.

“How much control do I need over my book and how much am I willing to delegate?”
Online platforms give you complete control over the whole process, which can be both a blessing and a curse. The blessing part being that you get to decide at every stage exactly what to do and how to do it. The curse being…the same. Full-service gives you oversight but still puts you in control of many decisions, like deciding how the cover looks and adding your final say to the edits.

If you trust the experts to handle the heavy lifting, a full-service self-publishing platform is the way to go.

“Do I want to deal with customer service issues, printing problems, or tech updates?”
DIY publishing also means that you get to wear many hats. For some people this is an exciting adventure in and of itself. For others, it means you’re your own tech support, editor, graphic artist, and more. Fortunately, with BookBaby as your full-service book publishing partner, you can talk to a real human at every step, so you’re never going it alone.

“Will I actually market this entirely on my own, or do I need some help?”
If the thought of creating and publishing an Instagram Reel scares you, or you’re not sure how to manage a Facebook ad, you may need a little support. That’s where BookBaby’s marketing consultations can help. At just $399 each, they’re worth the price in terms of the stress and time you save over figuring out how to do it all yourself.

“Do I need global distribution or is just Amazon okay?”
If you only want your book to be available on Amazon, KDP is often a good option. However, most authors want their book to be available on as many platforms as possible, including Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Apple Books, Kobo, libraries, bookstores, and not to mention your own Bookshop page. If that’s the case, go with the full-service option.

Getting started with self-publishing: free guides to help make the decision easy

If you’re still in the writing process or you’re just completed your first draft and are looking for direction, BookBaby has a number of free, downloadable guides to help. For example, in just minutes, you can learn:

How to publish your book in just six months or less
How to publish on Amazon
How to prepare graphics files for book printing
How to prepare your eBook files

These guides are ideal even if you’re considering doing it yourself, as they walk you through the process, so you’ll know what to expect if you’re still on the fence. If you’re still in the writing phase of your book, BookBaby also offers guides on how to create memorable characters, as well as a complete guide on how to write your memoir. If you’re stuck on promotion, you’ll be glad to know that we also offer guides on how to shape your marketing strategy and how to handle early-stage book marketing.

So what do your next steps look like from here? Choosing between an online publishing platform and a full-service self-publishing partner like BookBaby comes down to what kind of experience you want, and the type of book you want to create. There truly is no wrong answer.

If you’re confident, creative, resourceful, and thrive on juggling everything from design and metadata to distribution and marketing, platforms like Amazon KDP give you a fast, affordable, DIY path to publication. One misstep, though, and you can feel the ripple effect chip away at your credibility as an author. Plus, you’ll still have to navigate royalty caps and limited distribution with these services — oftentimes your growth is at the mercy of their ecosystem.

However, working with a full-service self-publishing team like BookBaby lets you focus on what you do best (writing), while we handle the rest — as much or as little as you need. Do you have an eye for line editing but you’re not a graphics wizard? We’ve got you covered. Are you a Photoshop professional but don’t know your comma splice from your dangling modifier? We can help.

With BookBaby, you’ll still own your book and be in complete control of key creative decisions, but you have the backing of industry experts who understand all the nuances of printing, publishing, distribution, optimization, and more — all backed by premium-grade print quality and a global network that welcomes new authors with open arms. We’re here to position your book to stand out, get attention, and get sales — even in a competitive market.

So do you want to publish a book, or do you want to publish a professional, polished book that’s ready to market? If it’s the latter, we’re just a phone call, an email, or a live chat away. Get in touch today. Your book deserves to be seen and enjoyed, and your readers are waiting for you.