Direct to AppleBooks or stick with D2D?

[Sailor Stone]

I'm wide. I do okay direct on Kobo. Sometimes I get sales on Google (in spurts, no idea why it's like that) and I get some sales on Amazon. I use D2D for all of the other sites. I just never get any sales at any of them. Is there any reason to go direct to AppleBooks that would lead to a way to leverage sales there, perhaps something like being able to do the promos that Kobo offers to their direct authors?
I love D2D but they don't even know I exist and I'm thinking it might be better for me to be direct on my own everywhere that I am allowed. But why bother doing it if I can't leverage the effort involved in going direct with more book sales? Does anyone have any thoughts? Thanks!

[guest819]

Do you have an Apple account?
Do you have a MAC?
if not,
Do you have enough sales potential to make the effort to use their services if it also means signing up to a virtual MAC server to gain access?

D2D doesn't do much for visibility true, but neither does signing up directly with Apple unless you are going to have enough sales to make it worth your while. D2D isn't the issue as far as I can see. The issue is visibility and that's down to marketing and that's down to you getting a bookbub or pushing Apple via Facebook ads.

With Google, as a short aside, does your book feature on their display pages? I think there are only a few active ones, General, Military, Soap Opera that count. If you don't then your sales are coming from small interest groups, perhaps recommends on the google forums. Again, it's down to visibility, solved again by advertising.

Nobody I know does very well on the other sites. They seem to be a consolation prize for most of us.

[JRTomlin]

How do you get your books on the Google display pages?

[Ghost5]

As a side note, I know some authors prefer to use D2D to iBooks just because they can use their pen name as a publisher. As far as I know and understand, Apple doesn't allow this unless there's a formal DBA on file (or LLC, etc.). Some authors want to keep their anonymity when it comes to their "real" names.

At least that's what I've heard in the past. I'm exclusive with Amazon so I can't be sure.

Here's a cat:

[Max]

Yeah, you need a DBA. Some places that's easy to get. Like in Texas. Just go to a county clerk's office. Less that 50 bucks. Take a picture of it with your phone. Email the picture to Apple. Done. One day process.
When you set up your books on the iTunes producer it shows your name under "seller." It won't be there on the product page. There it will show the DBA as "publisher."
Hope this helps.
Direct is nice once you are put on their list as someone to contact when they have promos that you can apply to. Think it's invitation only. Or it used to be.