KDP Reporting Issue Email

[KayBratt]

Anyone else get this today from KDP?

Hello Kay,
 
We're currently experiencing a reporting issue that has caused minor errors in the display of your Feb 2012 sales information on our KDP site. Our engineers are working to resolve this as soon as possible and expect the reports to be corrected next week.
 
Please allow some time while our technical team is working on the sales numbers, which will soon be reflected in your reports.
 
We're sorry for any inconvenience this has caused, and appreciate your patience and understanding.

[DonnaBurgess]

I haven't received an email, but nothing's happened at KDP all day, which is strange since I always have at least a little bit of action there.

[HeidiHall]

I didn't get it, which means my sales really have fallen off a cliff in the space of one week. I must go to my padded room now

[KayBratt]

My sales are clicking away...so I don't know what they will fix but I hope it is to my benefit!

[LKRigel]

My sales have been dismal since the first of the month. It's been contributing to my complex.

[Guardian]

I haven't received it, but I'm glad not I'm the paranoid one, but the sales counter actually doesn't work, just as I thought. What a "pleasant" surprise...

[MH Sargent]

I didn't get one, but it will be very interesting to see how many other authors did. Maybe I'll get mine tomorrow. 

[Rachel Schurig]

Did you email them Kay, or was this out of the blue?

[JRTomlin]

I haven't received an email, but nothing's happened at KDP all day, which is strange since I always have at least a little bit of action there.

Same here, but I have considered the possibility that everyone in the universe decided to stop buying my novels

[Monique]

KDP isn't frozen for me today. I'm assuming the email is in regards to the snafu on the 1st and 2nd of the month. Of course, there could be other intermittent issues with reporting too. Vagueness, thy name is Amazon CS.

[MH Sargent]

I'm assuming the email is in regards to the snafu on the 1st and 2nd of the month.

I doubt Kay would have gotten this email if the issue is now 4 days old, and presumably resolved, unless...

Did you email them Kay, or was this out of the blue?

The email was a reply to Kay's question on her account during that time.

[KayBratt]

Did you email them Kay, or was this out of the blue?

Yes, I did email them on that day that we were all freaking out about it all being weird with no rankings and sales. But their response came today, and it does say it will 'be corrected next week'...meaning it is not currently corrected, right?

[Sophrosyne]

I've been wondering. I got an email saying that last week's numbers should be fixed by next week, but I noticed today that even though my rank's going up, my numbers have frozen again. So I was wondering if the server was down again.

[MH Sargent]

Yes, I did email them on that day that we were all freaking out about it all being weird with no rankings and sales. But their response came today, and it does say it will 'be corrected next week'...meaning it is not currently corrected, right?

It seems to me the key point is that it says they are "currently" having problems, which means today, and like you mention above, that it will be corrected next week. So there is an ongoing glitch.

My reports seem off, so I'm glad you shared the letter, Kay. 

Of course, my sales just might be off, and it isn't a reporting delay. LOL.    But I'll think positive.

[Herc- The Reluctant Geek]

The sales page in in my author central has a delay warning, but I have never been able to figure out exactly what it refers to.

[ErikHyrkas]

Thanks Kay!

[Kenneth Rosenberg]

Just to ad my stats to the mix, I haven't seen a single sale or borrow for either of my books today, in the U.S. or the UK (or anywhere else...).  That is definitely unusual for me, so I hope it is the sales stats issue.  We'll see I guess.

[Dallas Haley]

My free promotion for my first book hit 2800 downloads, the second started Feb. 1, and there were almost no downloads. Then by the end of five days, they were just 800 total. Since these are Vol. 1 and Vol. 2, the only difference I could see was that people didn't like the cover? Didn't make much sense though, but not conclusive this was a reporting problem.

[Monique]

Do y'all have an extra lines (per book) in your prior six weeks' royalties report for the week ending 2/4?

[Elizabeth Ann West]

I would say they are still having issues... my numbers hardly moved today, but the sales ranking yo-yoed.

Just checked my previous 6 weeks royalties.... and for the week ending 2/4? HA!

I have 4 lines. The bottom two just show 1 sale at 35% and 70% each. Making no sense as my price never dropped below $2.99.

The top line shows 238 sales with 2 returns for total sales of 236 at the average rate of $4.78 at 35% royalty rate netting me... wait for it.... $23.80.

The net line shows 8212 sales with 26 returns for total sales of 8186 at the 70% rate with average list price of $4.95 but average offer price of $0.08, delivery cost of $0.07 netting me... again want to know how they're doing math... $327.20.

KDP for the month of February is showing 195 sales with 16 return for total sales 179 and 23 borrows.

Not really sure what any of this means other than that's a mess. I THINK the 8,212 sales are the free day (I figured 8,250 as I couldn't exactly pinpoint when the free stopped), and the 238 includes the lion's share of that 195 (I've only seen about 40 sales in the last 2 days I think, but no telling how accurate even that is).

[Monique]

All of that makes sense except for the extra lines.

[Elizabeth Ann West]

All of that makes sense except for the extra lines.

Please explain... the math doesn't add up.

[Monique]

The average offer price (not list) is they key. They're combining the freebies and the paid sales. If a book sells 10 copies and 5 are free and 5 are $4, the average offer price is $2. When you have oodles of freebies the offer price can be pennies. Does that make sense?

[Kenneth Rosenberg]

The bottom two just show 1 sale at 35% and 70% each. Making no sense as my price never dropped below $2.99.
 

If you have sales outside the U.S. (or any of the other countries with their own Amazon stores), then you get 35 percent on a $2.99 book, even if you're set at the 70 percent royalty rate.  For instance, if you sell a book in Australia, or in Argentina, then you'll get the 35 percent rate and it will show up on your U.S. statement like this.

And yes, Monique, I do have the extra lines on mine as well!

[Elizabeth Ann West]

Yeah, I got that, but the math doesn't add up.

For the 236 sales there is no average offer price. It just says 35% royalty rate (which I guess means 236 sales of people in the 35% countries as my price was never below $2.99) and N/A across the board until you get to $23.80. Now, there were 238 total sales, and two returns. that's deep fractions of a penny more than $0.10 per book, with the average offer price of $4.78. 35% of $4.78 is $1.673, or 14.22 sales were actual sales and the rest were free. Obviously the math could slide, but without an average offer price, there's no telling.

The 8,186 sales clearly state $0.08 average offer price, a $4.95 average list price. There is also a $0.07 delivery cost. My royalties are $327.20. But 8,186 * .01 (the difference between .08 and .07) is $81.86. 8,186 * .08 is $654.88. To get $327.20, you'd have to multiply 8,186 by $0.039 and I have no idea where that number would come from.