As publishers we should always be concerned with the bottom line. We are business people at heart, and must keep an eye on pricing trends as the rise and fall. With so many retail and internet outlets out in the world it is difficult to get accurate measurements of costs and competitions between brands. Unless you’re checking Barnes and Noble every day to see how pricing is changing (or staying the same) you won’t know how the market is evolving. A great tool for evaluating pricing changes and ranks is called Camel Camel Camel. This search tool is great for consumers and business people alike. You can evaluate how pricing might affect sales, and see how outside market forces like movie-tie ins can alter sales.
- For both Amazon and Best Buy products, the website collects the pricing of products over time and shows you how numbers have changed, going back to 2008. Take a look at how The Great Gatsby has increased and decreased in price in the past few years:
- They track the ranking of products over time too, as in the popularity of a book one year vs another. Here is additional information about The Great Gatsby and its popularity on Amazon:
- They show results for both official Amazon products and also 3rd party new and used books sold through the Amazon Marketplace as well.
- They provide price drop alerts as well for discerning shoppers. For example, you can set an alert to notify you when a digital camera drops below a certain price.