You could simply be getting began with book creation as a advertising instrument or reconsidering the position of ebooks in your present content material technique.

No matter the place you’re within the course of, you are doubtless asking your self an necessary query: What are the perfect book codecs to your advertising library? It is a legitimate query as a result of the book format you select will decide the success of your efforts.

Right here, we’ll cowl all book codecs and the way to decide on the perfect one to your venture. We’ll additionally clarify how HubSpot’s book templates can assist you obtain your advertising staff’s lead technology targets.

E-book Formatting Templates

First up, obtain our package of book templates so you will get an concept of the book codecs which are out there to you.

Featured Useful resource: 36 Free E-book Formatting & Creation Templates

Obtain Your Free E-book Templates

Our assortment of 36 free book templates will show you how to create and format your book content material for an unimaginable reader expertise in Microsoft PowerPoint, Adobe InDesign, and Google Slides. You may format your ebooks to greatest go well with the wants of your advertising staff and the preferences of your content material readers.

Greatest E-book Codecs for Content material Creation

In the event you’re a content material creator, listed here are the book codecs you need to think about first.

1. Adobe InDesign

Adobe’s superior design software program provides content material creators a myriad of choices for creating and formatting their ebooks.

These superior options do come at a worth, however skilled advertising designers depend on Adobe InDesign due to these options.

Click on Right here to Obtain 6 Adobe InDesign E-book Templates.

Professionals

Adobe is understood for being feature-rich. Because of this, you’ll be able to count on your ebooks to look their greatest when made with InDesign, as you’ll create and incorporate unique design components proper into your doc.

Cons

For an inexperienced designer or the marketer who simply must launch a serviceable book, the bells and whistles that InDesign provides won’t be crucial. InDesign’s interface and value aren’t probably the most simple and will require you to place in additional effort than is required to your last deliverable.

2. Google Slides

Google Slides is an easier instrument for making an book in comparison with InDesign. The truth that the book lives on-line means you’ll be able to collaborate in real-time along with your staff members to make a unbelievable deliverable. Oh — and it is free, which is useful if in case you have a restricted advertising finances.

Click on Right here to Obtain 6 Google Slides E-book Templates.

Professionals

Google Slides is a good instrument for entrepreneurs who have to make a very good book rapidly, particularly in case you’re working alongside staff members and sourcing suggestions from them. Google Slides’ interface is arguably extra simple than InDesign’s, that means you’ll be able to transfer and edit artistic components sooner in case you’re new to each instruments.

Cons

As a result of Google Slides is primarily a presentation instrument reasonably than an book creation instrument, chances are you’ll miss out on some crucial options that might assist make your ebooks enticing sufficient to warrant your leads’ consideration.

Conversely, you would possibly have to make design components elsewhere, resembling an Adobe software program instrument or Canva, and later import these artistic components into your Google Slides deck. This might create an inconsistent creation expertise if you want to observe down design components after you’ve got created them.

3. Microsoft PowerPoint

A barely extra superior choice than Google Slides — however not fairly as superior as Adobe software program — PowerPoint is one other presentation-making platform that can be utilized to design an book.

Professionals

PowerPoint has some options that Google Slides doesn’t, resembling higher results for designing. PowerPoint can be an offline software program, that means you’ll be able to construct your ebooks with out Wi-Fi.

Cons

PowerPoint is a paid software program as a substitute of a free instrument out there in Google Workspace. You additionally received’t be in sync along with your staff in case you’re collaborating with them on edits and additions. Lastly, whereas it has higher artistic options than Google Slides, it does not come near the superior options of InDesign.

Click on Right here to Obtain 6 Microsoft PowerPoint E-book Templates.

Greatest E-book Codecs for Consumption

The book codecs on this part are greatest for content material consumption as you’ll be able to embed hyperlinks, mimic an actual ebook, and boost your content material. The codecs embody:

1. Interactive PDF

The most effective book format for book consumption is an interactive Transportable Doc Format (PDF).

PDFs are the go-to choice for content material advertising ebooks for a lot of causes. Amongst them are the consistency of their design and readability on totally different gadgets.

We at HubSpot use PDFs for our ebooks as a result of we will embed hyperlinks to related pages and sources in them. We are able to additionally add them proper into our content material library and belief that the design will seem as meant, even when our leads open the book in Chrome, Safari, or Preview. The doc can even seem the identical in the event that they open it on their telephones or on a desktop gadget.

The interactive nature additionally means we will embody an open textual content field for readers to finish an exercise within the ebook (like in our Content material Advertising Workbook). One other plus? Readers can full the exercise in no matter software they’re consuming the content material.

2. EPUB

EPUB, quick for digital publication and saved with a “.epub” file extension, is one other approach so that you can save your ebooks.

EPUBs rose in recognition after changing into a distinguished book format for e-readers. However, given its accessibility on Apple macOS and iOS merchandise by way of Apple Books, the format can be a viable — although considerably limiting — choice for content material advertising ebooks.

One distinctive characteristic of the .epub file format is its scroll capacity. To imitate the studying of an precise ebook, readers can view one web page at a time and should scroll or swipe horizontally. That’s in distinction to vertical scrolling with PDFs. The epub format provides your readers the sensation of studying a ebook versus interacting with web site content material. Nevertheless, this additionally means readers might need to do extra work navigating the content material and discovering the data they want.

Moreover, video and audio recordsdata may be embedded within the .epub format, in contrast to PDFs, which implies your readers can eat extra interactive content material with out leaving the book.

In the event you’re uninterested in the PDF choice and wish to spruce up your content material format, it can save you your InDesign ebooks as a .epub file. Simply be ready for some readers being unable to learn your content material, which is one thing you doubtless do not wish to be the case. It’s because the format is restricted. For instance, Amazon Kindle gadgets can’t learn .epub recordsdata. Readers should convert your book into one other format in the event that they wish to learn it on their Kindles.

How one can Select the Proper E-book Format

The book format you select immediately impacts how your book performs after publication. Listed below are a number of ideas that can assist you select the proper one to your venture for greatest outcomes.

1. Take into account your audience.

Who’re your shoppers? That is the primary query you want to reply earlier than selecting an book format. Your content material must be accessible to your readers. For instance, in case you’re concentrating on an enormous viewers, you’ll want to think about an book format appropriate with a number of digital gadgets.

2. Determine the way you’ll market your book.

How you propose to market your book can be a major issue when selecting a format. On the subject of promoting an book, you’ll be self-publishing as a result of you want to quicken up the method. You are able to do so both by yourself web site, or on a platform resembling Amazon.

Self-publishing means you get to make use of your sources to market your book. Due to this fact, you’ll want a approach to attain an enormous viewers, which can imply utilizing an book format like AZW that’s appropriate with totally different platforms. This offers you the best degree of flexibility by way of the variety of platforms that your viewers can comfortably learn your ebook.

3. Take into account the character of your book.

One other issue you want to think about when deciding on the perfect book format is its nature. Is it principally phrases, or will there be graphics and pictures? Will you be including useful sensible digital merchandise like Google Sheets that readers might want to obtain? All of it will decide the perfect book format to your venture. If doable, provide you with an inventory of all of the various kinds of content material that your book will comprise to make sure the book format you select helps all of them.

In the event you’re promoting an book containing digital photos and illustrations with sound or video, you’ll want a format that helps these options. For instance, the EPUB format helps movies, shade photos, and different interactive components, whereas MOBI doesn’t.

Keep away from the temptation of assuming what an book format will appear to be when you’re carried out. Typically, the top product may be very removed from what you count on it to be, and correcting it is going to be costly. Inquire and do thorough analysis on all options earlier than settling for any format.

4. Take into account the safety or privateness of your book.

Writing an book from begin to end takes loads of time and power, so the very last thing you need is everybody enhancing it as soon as it’s launched. This could have a number of implications to your model. For instance, your viewers might find yourself receiving false details about your venture, and the false content material might give undesired outcomes. In the event that they’re editable supplies in your book, guarantee there’s a approach for the reader to create a separate doc first to keep away from enhancing all the doc. This additionally protects your readers’ privateness by stopping them from unknowingly filling of their private info on a public doc.

You additionally wish to make sure the safety of your book by stopping unlawful sharing, printing, and copy-pasting. That is particularly essential for high-ticket ebooks, because it limits readers from sharing your content material without spending a dime. If limiting sharing is necessary to you, it’s advisable to make use of a format like EPUB that’s protected by Digital Rights Administration (DRM). The latter locks recordsdata in a specific platform and protects them from unlawful sharing.

5. Take into consideration the finances.

When you’ve got two or extra book codecs that work nicely along with your venture, one of the simplest ways to interrupt the tie is to think about the price. How a lot will it value you to launch your book utilizing every format? Is it possible? As well as, think about how a lot it will value in case you needed to increase. The most effective book format is cost-friendly originally and in the long term. If it is low cost initially however limits your progress, it isn’t price it. A great book format shouldn’t solely make launching your product simpler, however it must also be cost-friendly while you determine to increase.

Select the suitable book format and get began.

There are a number of book codecs out there which are in style for publishing ebooks. Nevertheless, like every little thing else in enterprise, what works for one writer won’t be the best choice for an additional. Take your time and analysis the options each format provides and see which one most closely fits your venture.

As well as, think about the price, the form of content material your book has, and most significantly, the supply methodology that works greatest to your viewers.

Editor’s word: This publish was initially revealed in December 2020 and has been up to date for comprehensiveness.