What to Do if Your Book is Pulled From Amazon

By Sean Davis

Having your book pulled from Amazon can be an annoying and disheartening experience. Though it may be natural to think the worst, don’t panic. There are steps you can take to figure out why your book was pulled and what you can do to fix the problem. This article explores what you should do if your book is pulled from Amazon and provides tips for preventing it from happening the in the first place. It also covers contacting customer service for clarification and advice, making necessary changes and ways other than Amazon to sell your book. 

Understand Why Your Book Was Pulled

If your book has been pulled from Amazon, it’s not the end of the world or even the end of your book.

The first step in getting your book back on Amazon is to figure out why your book was pulled in the first place. Did it violate Amazon’s terms of service? If so, then you’ll need to make the necessary changes so that the same issue doesn’t occur once you’ve resubmitted the book. You can also contact customer service for clarification and advice on what may have caused the problem and how best to fix it.

By proactively investigating the issue and making appropriate changes, you will be able to ensure that your books are compliant with Amazon’s standards and avoid any potential issues in the future.

Common Reasons Books Are Pulled From Amazon

Amazon’s guidelines prevent the following content:

• Illegal or infringing content
• Offensive content such as hate speech, abuse and pornography
• Poor customer experience
• Undifferentiated public domain content

Contact Customer Service

When your book is pulled from Amazon, contacting customer service can be an invaluable resource in understanding why it was pulled and how the issue can be remedied. Here are some steps on how to best use customer service resources:

1. Find the correct contact for your specific publishing problem on Amazon’s KDP Help Center. If your book is physically available, contact Amazon Publishing.

2. Explain your situation to customer service, providing as much detail as possible about when you noticed your book was removed and what other troubleshooting steps you’ve taken.

3. Ask customer service what can be done to get your book reinstated on Amazon, and follow their instructions closely if they provide any guidance or solutions.

4. Stay in communication with customer service until the issue is resolved — they may need additional information from you or wish to verify certain details before taking action on your request.

These steps will ensure that you are using customer service resources effectively if your book is removed from Amazon unexpectedly. It’s important to remember that while customer service representatives may not be able to reinstate books right away, they are often able to provide valuable advice and insights into the process of getting it back on Amazon quickly and efficiently.

Make necessary changes

Making the necessary changes to your book is the best way to ensure it doesn’t get pulled from Amazon again. Amazon’s terms of service are constantly changing, so it is important to stay up-to-date on what these terms are.

Editing your book’s metadata is the first step. This includes everything from the book’s title, author name and publisher information to its keywords and descriptions. Ensure that all of these elements adhere to Amazon’s guidelines for content and formatting.

The second step is to update the book’s cover art if needed. If there are any images or text on your cover art that violate Amazon’s terms of service, you should change them before reuploading your book.

The third step is to review the description of your book and make sure it accurately reflects what readers can expect when they purchase it. This includes removing any language or images that might be deemed offensive or in violation of Amazon’s terms of service.

By following these steps and ensuring that you are adhering to all of Amazon’s terms of service, you can reduce the likelihood of having your book pulled from the platform again.

Ways to Sell Your Book Other Than Amazon

Selling your book on Amazon is not the only option available to authors. There are plenty of other ways to make sure your book reaches its intended audience. Here are a few alternative methods for distributing and selling books:

Apple Books: Apple Books is an online marketplace that allows authors to upload and sell their e-books directly to consumers. It’s a great way to reach readers who use iPhones, iPads or Macs as their primary devices.

Social media: Social media platforms are great for authors looking to distribute their books. You can create pages or groups dedicated to your book and promote it through various social media platforms like Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.

Your own website: Having your website gives you complete control over how you promote and distribute your book. You can have an online store where customers can purchase physical copies of your book or digital downloads of the e-book version.

Independent bookstores: Independent bookstores are a great way to get your book in front of potential buyers who may not have access to Amazon’s extensive library of titles. Many independent stores will be willing to carry physical copies of your books if they think it will benefit their business.

Print-on-demand services: Print-on-demand services like IngramSpark allow you to print copies of your books as needed without storing large amounts of inventory. This can be a great way for authors to save money on printing costs while still getting their books published in a tangible form.

Protect Your Book from Being Pulled

Selling books on Amazon can be a great way to get your work out to the world, but if your book is pulled from Amazon for any reason, it’s important to have safeguards in place. Start by understanding why your book was removed, and then take action to make sure it doesn’t happen again. You can also diversify your distribution channels by publishing your book on other platforms or selling it through independent stores and print-on-demand services like Print Bind Ship.

By following these tips, you can ensure your book remains available to readers no matter where they shop, and we can help you make sure your books get to where they need to go with orders shipped 24 hours after processing.

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