Protect eBook?

14 years ago

I had my ebooks all locked down for years. Finally became too much of a hassle. My sales actually increased quite a bit after I went to standard unlocked PDFs.

The jerks who would steal will still find a way.

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AttilaTheHun

14 years ago

This is always a trade-off. Too much security (eg. separate program / .exe conversion to open an ebook) is inconvenient, might narrow further purchases. (platform problems, should it work on Android / IPAD tablets. MAC etc..) no security makes too easy to pirate your content. I would recommend to:
- protect your download link at least (for example with DLguard)
- or create your wso in membership site format - much harder to duplicate
- for any case, include some upgrade link - as an up-sell - into you ebook - might happen if someone download free your wso will buy the upgrade

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jazbo

14 years ago

If someone wants it there are places to get it, so I wouldn't worry about it too much. You could try the membership site option if you want a bit more control.

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TeamBringIt

14 years ago

I agree with what is said here, people will get your ebook/course one way or another. Locking down your ebook and making it less customer friendly can impact your current and future sales.

If you want to step it up one notch, simply offer better customer service and possibly some bonuses for those that buy your stuff.

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Robert M Gouge

14 years ago

Only real solution that seems to be worthwhile is going the membership site route and hosting all your content inside. Everything else seems to be problematic.

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linkdestiny

14 years ago

One question....your in the Internet Marketing business....and you do not think people are not going to find a way to get your ebook if they want it :p...Just saying Internet Marketing is notorious for that kind of thing.

So unprotected mainly because of the niche.

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Dragonfire Wealth

14 years ago

All very good points, chances are if they pirate it and 2,000 people download it for free 1990 of those people weren't going to buy it anyway.

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kimboslice

14 years ago

You can't stop the pirates. DRM only makes it harder on the people who want to pay you for your product. The people who pirate were never going to buy your stuff anyway. I had an ebook heavily pirated a few years ago, but I still managed to make very good money.

It was a really quality package that was very well revived by people who purchased it.
I actually had a guy buy my book after pirating it. He said that he had pirated the book, but he felt guilty after he went through the materials and used them so much. So I guess i would say just focus on making a terrific product.

Thanks

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Warrior Simon

14 years ago

I like X's approach with his current product. If I may quote one of his emails:

What I've begun doing is piecing out the
offer - the PDF of Fast Cash was being
shared within hours of its release.

So they have a piece of the puzzle - but
they don't have it all and they never will.

Keep this in mind, both as a paying customer
of mine - and as a product creator.

I will deliver other pieces to you via
e-mail, updates to the main PDF (so there
will be multiple versions designed to
confuse and frustrate the criminals) -

and other pieces will be delivered via the
membership site which, by intention, has
no mention in the sales letter or book.

To the customer this is a great way to
build a relationship - you continue to
receive value that you didn't expect.

And while some people will snag our products
without paying, we can keep them from enjoying
the full benefits of being a customer.

Thanks
1 reply

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coachinggeek 14 years ago

Hmm. I like this approach.....

I'm getting ready to release a new niche product (not here) and am researching ways to decrease piracy.

I'm thinking about incorporating this idea, and also making it clear that if a member wants to distribute the book to their friends, they can do so, just send their personal affiliate link to the friend, and that friend will get it for what they paid, and the person sending the link gets a 50% affiliate payout on every copy that is purchased, so they make money for letting their buds in on the secret.
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JabMonkey

14 years ago

I actually prefer the tactic of joining several warez sites. You can then post your ebook for download yourself on the sites and include different promotional files in the download file.

And if you want to get really smart about it, what you can do is include a .exe file that when run requires registration to unlock the file (like with iCurator Pro). Make it something really appealing, because a decent percentage of those people DO buy stuff online. They just like to get it free if they can and some only when they can't afford to buy anything presently.

That's JabMonkey's Stealth Infiltration Method or maybe I should call it my Preemptive Strike Method.

[ 1 ] Thanks

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Sarevok

14 years ago

There are two options really,

Password protect the website URL that it's actually located, or password protect the file.

I don't really worry about pirating; I ensure to promote my website in each of my books.

At first, I was losing hair when I found my e-books on different websites, but then I said ehhhh what the hell, at least it's free traffic

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aprilm 14 years ago

Great thinking ahead. I can't tell you how many times I have come across one of the black hat forums providing the download links to WSOs!
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- 1 reply
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- Alexa Smith Banned 14 years ago
  
  One possibility is to use e-Junkie, simply to be able to take advantage of the stamping device which puts the purchaser's transaction details on each page of the PDF prior to the download. It's by no means 100% secure, of course, but it's a huge deterrent to illicit file-sharing, uploading to torrent/chapeau-noir sites, and so on.
  
  There's no 100% way to prevent piracy, but if you can prevent about 95% of it with minimal effort and expense, it would perhaps be unwise not to?
  
  One thing's for sure: there's limited value in protecting the download page without protecting the product.
  
  This thread is old, but entertaining: http://www.warriorforum.com/main-int...book-fail.html
  
  [ 1 ] Thanks
  
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sbucciarel

Banned 14 years ago

Originally Posted by Dragonfire Wealth

So I'm launching a WSO soon and can't help but wonder, how rampant is piracy on WSO info products? Should I protect the things I sell here (I do on clickbank for SURE) with a IP-bound licence key or has piracy not affected the WF that much? (I can dream)

My worry is that the inability to use multiple IP addresses to view an eBook would decrease sales/positive feedback more than those nasty black hatters.

So warriors, protected or unprotected? How do you want it?

It is rampant. Often they're on the BH sites within hours of a WSO launching.

Thanks

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cbader

14 years ago

Is there a way to prevent folks from using copy and past off of your pdf? I don't want any of my pdf's to be password protected, as I don't like it when it happens to me, but preventing people from 'copy' seems reasonable.

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Alexa Smith Banned 14 years ago

Originally Posted by cbader

Is there a way to prevent folks from using copy and past off of your pdf?

"Prevent absolutely" is asking a lot, but there's a way of very significantly discouraging most/nearly all of them. Described in post #16 above. (By using e-Junkie's PDF-stamping service, for which I believe they don't charge extra, or by buying equivalent software - there are such products available).
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WarrenPeterson

14 years ago

I turned my ebook into modules delivered via a membership site. I broke up the main book into the modules, and each one has a unique download link. The links are protected by the membership software.

Of course, once someone has downloaded the files, they are pretty much 'open'. Password protection doesn't work, and annoys people. Stopping the copy/paste function can work, but won't stop anyone serious about getting your content.

The other benefit of the membership software is that it is pretty well automated. If someone forgets their own password, they can click the link to reset it 24/7. When I had a standard PDF that was password-protected and delivered via a 'hidden' link or through the shoppingcart, the vast majority of support questions were password related.

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Raydal

14 years ago

As mentioned above there is a tradeoff between annoying customers and
the security of your products. I find that if you invest too much energy
in security you end up losing the customer. What secures your products
often frustrate the legitimate customer.

I also tried password protection but this created support issues
when the password is forgotten. But I also find the delivering
from behind a membership script cuts down on piracy.

Hard to beat those BH sites. See them in my traffic stats
all the time. I don't lose sleep over them though.

-Ray Edwards

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