Quality

Quality is important, however I hate to say this, but the author really controls the first part of the quality check of the outcome of the ebook. Yes, the publisher needs the technical ability and some are more savvy than others and some hold more prestigious licenses and certifications, but it is the author that needs to do their part and assure the manuscript was typed properly in the first place and abide by the standards of the publisher. This is for the authors benefit in order to receive the best possible outcome. Publishers are not mind readers, so you as an author need to help them out a little and provide a good, clean manuscript. (this hands down is the biggest complaint from the publisher side of things) Now for the publishers responsibility - yes, you want the most tech savvy company possible! Ask what certifications they have and ask what software extensions they will accept as a file.

Royalties

MYTH - The best deal going is when a publisher is not keeping any of your money/royalties - WRONG - please see 'Price' below about the word 'FREE"— Some publishers may charge a very small fee, which is fine as this normally equates to pennies and the publisher is conducting an ongoing service to you. However any publisher that is retaining 10% or more or charging transactions fees - stay clear. Most booksellers advertise what the royalty rates consist of - most are 70/30. 70% to the author and 30% to the bookseller. Most booksellers will discount your book and that discount will be taken off the top. As an example - you book retails for 9.99, however it was discounted to 7.99. 70% of 7.99 is your retained royalty. Ebook booksellers have the right to discount your book as they see fit in order to generate sales. Most can only discount as much as 25%, but retain the right to discount to the lowest advertised price on the internet.

Distribution

This is one of the key to factor in choosing a company. You want them to lay the platform for your book to be successful. Therefore you want the best distribution possible. Do not settle for just distribution to Amazon - Amazon is not the only game in town or in the world for that matter. At a minimum you need - Amazon, Google and Google Play, Apple, Kobo, Gardeners, Barnes and Noble, Baker and Taylor and Ingram. (this section is the most important benefit to authors as per author interviews)

Service

Service is very important. Companies that do not provide phone numbers or an email address drive people crazy. There is no reason for a company to hide. People still like talking to people or they want to know the email they are sending is going to an actual person. It is a digital age and digital online services are great - however a real person needs to be on the other side. Hats off to those companies that offer phone, email and online chat support. If a company makes it hard for you to call or email a real person - run the other way!

File Submission

Some companies are limited in what files they accept - however the truth of the matter is the best results are going to come for the native file that the manuscript was written in. One misconception is that everyone thinks a PDF is a good thing. FACT - a PDF is not a source file. A PDF is a snapshot of the original file in the first place. You cannot create a PDF unless you have a file to create it with - therefore the native file does exist somewhere. Don't give the PDF to the publisher, give the native file whenever possible. If you submit a PDF and the publisher is not pro-active, they will use the PDF solely and substandard results will apply.

Price / Cost

Free is never a good thing in publishing. The old adage that you get what you pay for - is very true! You want to pay something as this will give you a stake in the game. The companies that charge for their services normally provide you with a human looking and working with your title. After reviewing many free services in the self publishing arena - they all have serious flaws. These free services are only good if you absolutely cannot afford a paid service. Even when working with a traditional publisher, be wary. They will normally retain 95% or more of your royalty. They are in the business to make money, so if they don't get money from you on the front end - they will take the money from the sales. Traditional authors are now going the self publishing route for this very reason.