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Book Profits Reviews: Is Luke Sample For Real?

By: JosiahDec 08, 2023Amazon FBA
Book Profits Reviews: Is Luke Sample For Real?

Is it possible to make money on Amazon utilizing Luke Sample’s course, or is it just a waste of time?

His business model is known to those in the industry as book arbitrage, and it involves buying at a reduced cost and selling at a higher one, allowing you to profit from the difference.

He has offered similar courses such as Textbook Money and Higher Path Ventures, but he never mentions them anymore. This can often be a red flag, but we'll let you decide.

What exactly is inside Book Profits? And how much does it cost?

Let's find out.

DISCLAIMER:

This Book Profits review has been thoroughly researched with information and testimonials that are available to anyone in the public. Any conclusions drawn by myself are opinions.

PROS
  • Possible to make some money
  • Selling books seems to be ethical
CONS
  • Very specific niche, perhaps oversaturated
  • Luke Sample keeps ditching old names - running from them?
  • Many better alternatives

Why Listen To Us

My name is Josiah, and this is my Dad, Joel.why listen us

Together, we make up the team here at Scamrisk.

If you’ll let me bother you for two minutes, I’d like to quickly explain why I’m even here writing this review.

In early 2020, I had just graduated from college & had no real career prospects.

I knew I was destined for something more, but I had no clue how I was going to make it happen.

I had this sinking feeling in my gut all the time… like the “big man upstairs” had accidentally given me the version of life where I’d be mediocre forever, instead of the one where I was, ya know – happy & fulfilled.

Anyway…

I had fiddled around with some different online businesses in college:

Some random MLMs, a bit of affiliate marketing, a (failed) dropshipping store or two, all the usual suspects.

Even my dad had been involved in MLMs back in the day… selling knives & other random nonsense people (probably) didn’t need.

All I really wanted was to find something that was going to actually work for me.

Maybe those things had worked for others, but for me it all turned up a fat “0” in the bank account department.

So I searched! And searched… and searched… and searched…

And eventually, I somehow stumbled upon a program that promised to help me build an income online (read about it here if you’re curious).

I didn’t really want to be “rich”.

The thought of making a reliable $5K per month & not having to worry about clocking in to a 9-to-5 ever again was all I needed.

Sure, there were people in the program doing high-6 and low-7 figures per year… but that wasn’t what I was out for.

I just wanted to provide freedom for myself, and if I was lucky, take my family along for the ride.

Fast forward a few days and a few phone calls & I was enrolled!

Here’s the first “money making website” I put up:

why listen us gif

I built that site in 2020, and it still makes me $1,500 per month. It’s a basic 5 page website I built based on a template the program provides.

The best part to me? My dad and I get to do it all together!

So between the:

  1. Ease of reaching $5-$10K per month in income online

  2. Straightforward-ness of the system to do it

  3. Fact that I get to do it w/ my family

Is why I recommend local lead generation as my #1 business model for making money online.

Sure, it takes some work and dedication – but anyone that tells you that there’s a business out there that requires no work is selling you a lemon.

I’m not saying you need to sign up for the same program I did, but I would definitely recommend giving the business model a peek!

Are you happy with the number you see in your bank account? Are you even making a profit?

After all, most businesses take at least a year to get out of the red and into the black, and plenty of companies never even take off altogether.

Every entrepreneur aspires to build a successful business – you know, one of those things where product sales continually flow out, revenue grows, and profits climb sky-high.

However, according to Forbes, 80% of businesses fail.

Book Profits – like most eCommerce programs – wants you to believe you can build and run a successful business that’s automated, profitable, and generates cash around the clock in less than 90 days…

With just a couple hundred dollars in inventory…working from the beach...

Living The Beach Lifestyle

Sounds a little too good to be true, huh?

Look, as far as most online businesses go, you could do a lot worse than selling books online.

But does that mean it’s the best solution for you?

That’s what we’ll find out in this Book Profits reviews.

The biggest things you have to consider here are:

  • Inventory Management
  • Product Selection
  • Time to Profit

While you can make good money with Amazon FBA book sales, it’s not as easy or simple as most course creators make it sound. Let’s break these 3 down real fast:

1) Inventory Management: If you’re doing an FBA business, the promise is that you don’t need to worry at all about inventory, because Amazon takes care of packing, shipping, customer service, etc.

However, you still need to get products to Amazon. And Amazon has very strict rules all sellers have to follow when preparing products for their warehouses.

This includes packaging, labeling, and registering products in their system. If you’re preparing all products yourself, you’ll spend a TON of time on this step (potentially 4-5 hours a day). So if you’re looking for a passive, automated business that runs itself, this might not be the best fit.

Now, yes, you can hire an Amazon prep center to do all this for you, but that eats into your margins. And remember that Amazon takes around 30-40% in fees for using the FBA program, so your profits are pretty tight to begin with.

2) Product Selection: E-commerce is a cyclical business. “Hot” products are always going in and out of fashion, which means, as an Amazon seller, you constantly need to be on the lookout for the next big thing.

That means monitoring trends, searching for products that might be popular down the line, and constantly in a rat race to – essentially – predict the future.

Sure, you can play in the evergreen market (things people always need and buy), but how much profit margin are you really going to get on meal prep containers, rubber spatulas, and golf umbrellas? Especially when there are hundreds of thousands of other sellers all swimming in that same ocean.

And because you’re constantly hunting for new hot products to sell, that takes up all the valuable time you could be using to travel, explore, read, surf, hike, or whatever else.

3) Time To Profit: Now, this isn’t the slowest turnaround time, but if you think you can put a dollar into inventory today and come out with two tomorrow, you’re sadly mistaken. From the time you first buy products to sell, you could be looking at anywhere from 4-12 weeks before you see a dollar come back.

And it could take twice as long before you break even.

Now, that’s not terrible, but what if you could start building a different (non-Amazon) income stream today, and see your first profits tomorrow?

Still Getting Paid

What if you could build a passive income stream that’s actually passive?

An income stream that doesn’t require:

  • Inventory
  • Low margins
  • Constantly looking for the next hot product

An income stream that brings in consistent revenues every single month (from a couple thousand dollars to well over $10,000)?

An income stream you could actually build in your spare time, and grow as large or as small as you want to, without having to spend hours a day packing, prepping, and researching?

If that sounds like something you’d be interested in, check out Digital Leasing!

However, if you’d still like to know more about Book Profits, keep reading.

Book Profits Review: What Is It?

Luke Sample's Higher Path Ventures Reviews

Book Profits is one of Luke’s numerous websites that promotes a training program and a software solution that claims to help you search affordable, in-demand books and sell them on Amazon.

In short, Book Profits is Amazon FBA with an exclusive niche on reselling books.

The business model is sound, but the profit margins aren’t as large as one might expect. The costs associated with Book Profits are far greater than they should be.

Furthermore, Luke Sample has changed the name of his flagship program several times, which is a red flag in our opinion. It's actually the basis of creating these Luke Sample reviews.

In fact, this page itself was once a Higher Path Ventures Review.

Typically, legitimate businesses do not normally act in this manner. Think about it: if you're offering a great service, wouldn't you want to stack success and build on your strong brand?

If you’re a newbie trying to earn passive income online, I believe there are other, more suitable, and cost-effective choices that do not require you to spend thousands of dollars upfront for something that may not even work out for you in the first place.

And if you are going to pay high-ticket prices, be sure that the value provided matches the cost.

Luke Sample has created this training curriculum, offering a handful of example strategies in his sales video to illustrate the complete business plan.

In the first video of the "free training", we hear the big promise that you can buy a book for $11.52 and sell it for $174. After deducting all of the fees associated with using Amazon to conduct your business, you’re left with a hypothetical profit of $130.85.

It's critical to understand that you will rarely make that much money from a single sale. Most of the time, after all of Amazon’s fees, you will earn less than that.

In other words, it's an unreasonable promise.

This system is comparable to another called MentorBox. The main difference is that you won’t be learning how to publish your own books with Book Profits.

Throughout the online presentation, Luke Sample displays “case studies” from people who allegedly earn thousands of dollars using this business strategy.

Don’t get me wrong: you certainly can. However, to get there, a lot of hard work, patience, research, trial, and error will be required.

That being said, you don’t have to spend or risk losing thousands of dollars to get started in this industry.

On the other hand, ex-members of Book Profits, formerly known as Textbook Money, Book Arbitrage, and Higher Path Ventures, have filed multiple complaints.

Apparently, if you dispute Luke’s techniques or try the system and lose money, he will go to any length to make sure that no one finds out about your bad experience.

You’ll be muted or banned from the members-only, secret groups.

Who Are Luke Sample & Jon Shugart?

luke sample john shugart course legit

Book Profits was co-founded by Luke Sample. Based on his bio, he has made millions of dollars online and, at the age of 23, was featured in the Wall Street Journal. He shows himself as a kind individual wanting to assist others in reaching their full potential.

Jon Shugart, the other High Path Ventures and Book Profits co-founder, is a university graduate with a Masters in Education & Leadership.

After four years of teaching mathematics in high school, he began studying computer science in 2000. He claims to have built several million-dollar businesses in the last 19 years.

Luke and Jon have both long been active in digital marketing and making money online.

What's Inside Book Profits?

book profits luke sample scam or legit

Book Profits contains a training course and tools that you may use.

Other "bonuses" are also accessible to you to help you with your book-selling business.

Training Summary

The Book Profits training course will supposedly teach you how to launch your own book arbitrage business.

Of course, the most essential lesson you’ll take away from this is how and where to find books at inexpensive costs and then resell them for a profit.

Aside from the primary lessons, you will also study the following:

  • How you may enhance your sales by offering free shipping on your products.
  • Using the “Amazon Prime” option to sell your books for a higher profit.
  • Product And Keyword Research
  • Other Amazon facts to know include the Amazon Sales Rank.
  • Using the Amazon Trade-in Program to gain more books and how to turn the Amazon gift cards into actual cash.
  • How to use sites other than Amazon to find even more cheap books.

Keep in mind that the course disclaims that for some people, transferring the gift cards that Amazon pays out with can be a hassle.

As a result, they advise avoiding it whenever feasible and instead using other online selling platforms when looking for books to sell.

Software

The software offered isn’t particularly noteworthy. However, it does simplify some of the duties that you will be required to perform.

It focuses on making your product research easier. You’ll be able to find cheap books to buy with greater ease with this software than if you did it yourself.

The Book Profits system will also handle some logistics for your online bookshop for an additional fee.

Benefits Of Book Profits Ventures

The software included in the course does, as they claim, simplify the otherwise time-consuming chore of locating the best and lowest-priced books to sell.

The opening video for this course by Luke Sample is highly transparent and clear. He answers the majority of the questions that may arise in your mind when you take this course.

Book Profits does handle some logistics for your internet business if you pay the extra fee. That means you can generate some passive revenue from this business because some of the labor is done for you.

These include receiving your ordered books, opening and inspecting them, repackaging them, and shipping them to Amazon on your behalf.

When correctly performed, the company concept might be scalable.

It’s a decent business idea for bookworms who want to make a living from their passion, as well as other types of book collectors.

Downsides Of Book Profits

luke sample scamBefore participating in this course, you should be aware of its flaws.

Unfortunately, the usual issues that plague similar online courses apply here as well. In this case, the high price and the problem of market saturation are hard to overlook, especially given the large number of people that may enroll in this course alone.

Book Profits’ most significant issue, though, is its reputation.

It has, as we mentioned earlier, renamed itself several times in the past.

It’s gone by a variety of names, including…

  • Textbook Money
  • Book Arbitrage
  • Higher Path Ventures Training

If you recognize these names, it’s because they have a history of making people angry . The best illustration is that most people who have tried these programs have complained that their software does not work.

At all.

The reason for the rebranding remains unknown. But you can probably predict that the cause isn’t good. Most likely, they’re doing it because their previous names have earned such a poor reputation among those who tried their program.

They even went far as to state in Higher Path Ventures' Terms & Conditions that once you sign the contract, you will be unable to perform the following:

  • They cannot guarantee that the software will function properly.
  • A class-action lawsuit cannot be filed.
  • Basically, after you sign in, you are not allowed to complain about the system.

Luke Sample's course raises a lot of red flags, in my opinion.

Because of these red flags, I can’t really recommend this system to anyone.

I’m sure some folks made money online using Luke Sample’s training package.

But because I also know the typical failure rates on upstart businesses, I know that many individuals have lost thousands of dollars attempting to make it work for them.

That’s quite typical. Book Profits, on the other hand, I believe is overpriced.

The greatest issue I have with the Book Profits program is that they’ve changed the name of the service several times over the years, it just doesn't make sense for it to have a good reason.

Why am I making such a big deal over something that many companies and organizations do? Mostly because there has been a flood of negative comments from those who have lost a lot of money after investing in Luke Sample’s training program.

To me, it appears that he is attempting to escape affiliation with these bad references by changing the name of his program regularly.

Book Profits has a whole Facebook page dedicated to them, saying that they are crooks. They have clearly enraged a large number of people.

Instead of confronting these individuals and their dissatisfied consumers, Luke and his business partner Jon attempt to silence them in some way. At least, that is the subject of many of the complaints.

This behavioral pattern history indicates that they have no plans to improve their training or software quality soon.

Some ex-members of Textbook Money (Book Profits’ prior name) claim that the actual net profit from some of the books they’ve purchased is as little as $2 or $3.

That is far less than the $130.85 net profit mentioned by Luke during his free webinar training.

If you really want to get into this industry, you can always look into other, less risky options instead of jumping into this over-saturated market.

Luke Sample Reviews: What Does The Internet Have To Say?

What Does The Internet Have To Say

Let's hear what the people have to say about Luke Sample's programs:

"Paid 3,500.00 Dollars company provided web site activity to sell books. They had all lessons on internet. I tried to get lessons but could not understand due to a memory problem due to age. Told them i couldn't absorb information they said wouldn't refund unless I completed the work I tried again and couldn't get it I told them about my problem they said only way they could refund is if I tried to sell the books and failed.

I then learned they were charging various prices for the same deal. I am a Veteran 77 and on disabilty and I need the money I made complaint about 2 months ago but haven't recieved a word about it."

Oof. Not good. Let's continue:

"Yes, I bought the system. It takes WAY too long to find a reasonably profitable book - about three hours to find two books with a profit of $25 each. Most "profitable" trades returned were $2-3 on a $200 book - not very good use of my money. Ordered the books, and set up the trade. Waited to print the shipping label so I wouldn't lose it. Didn't think this would be a problem.

First one took 11 days to get here - Amazon gives you 7 days to send in your trade. So I went to my trade in account and couldn't print a shipping label. When I re-checked on the book, the trade in value had gone down so I actually had a $35 loss on the book!

No mention of this possibility in the course. I will be requesting a refund but they had some funky 365 day refund policy implying they weren't going to refund anyone until they had tried the system for 365 days - who is going to remember to refund after 365 days? Meanwhile they have my money and disappear? I will be contacting my credit card company to file a complaint if they won't refund, along with the Better Business Bureau and FTC."

I'm noticing a pattern here...let's try one more:

"Well, this is really disappointing. I was just about to pull the trigger on this. The webinar is certainly deceiving - they show every page of Amazon their magic plug-in finding $300 of profits. I guess if it seems too good to be true...

If you Google "buy giftcards" you can find a few companies that do it. You can also sell them on eBay.

Glad I decided to search the forum before I plunked down the money for this one. Hard to believe their two pages full of video testimonials are all fibbing, but most of them seemed to be early on in the process. Maybe this worked great when there was only a handful of people doing it, but now that there are dozens or hundreds, the competition has made it nearly impossible."

I think the people have spoken.

Is Book Profits A Scam?

Scam or Legit

So, is Luke Sample's course a scam?

Not technically – even if people online are saying otherwise.

You can make money with this program, but building a successful business is definitely not as easy as they make it sound.

Now, there’s nothing wrong with front-loading the work and making the money later.

But if you’re grinding it out for 3 months, and then your reward is being forced to grind it out for another 9 months before seeing any “real money,” well…that’s not a great deal, is it?

Reminds me of those God-forsaken MLMs many of us have experienced…all hype and no substance.

What if, instead, you could do that same 3 months of work (in your spare time), and your reward was a $500 to $2,000 payment that came in every single month?

And what if you actually didn’t need to wait 3 months? What if you could get started today and have your first payment in a week?

And what if you could double it next week?

Well, that’s the power of Digital Leasing.

And you can legitimately do this from anywhere. It’s a true lifestyle business.

Your laptop and an internet connection are all you need.

Some of the most successful students in this program run their entire 6-figure businesses from:

· A camper in the middle of the woods

· A beach chair laid out on gorgeous white sands

· A small villa in the Mediterranean

Saying Goodbye To Our Jobs

These people are able to travel around, living their lives first, and focusing on their income second.

Because even if they stop working for an extended period of time, the money keeps coming in – so adventure, memories, and experience are the top priority.

And they never have to worry about how to pay for the next trip, or consider asking for time off.

If this sounds more like the type of life you want to lead, just click here to find out more about Digital Leasing.

How Much Does Book Profits Cost?

book profits book arbitrage cost

There is a one-time fee of $3,500 and a monthly fee of $297 – although some folks online have claimed they charge different prices for different people, all the way back to the Higher Path Ventures cost.

The only way to find out exactly how much they'll charge you is to set up a sales call.

Just like with the Higher Path Ventures system, you’ll be pitched on why you should be joining Book Profits to help build your own business. Installment alternatives and other upsells may be available.

They also offer a money back guarantee, although some customers have said they do not honor this.

Does Luke Sample Offer A Refund Policy?

luke sample bookprofits refund policy

Looks like that is a big NO.

If you hand over your money to Luke Sample's Book Profits program, you won't get it back.

In fact, his terms and conditions allow him to put malware and/or viruses on your computer, and allow for the program to not even be accessible.

Bad deal, in my opinion.

Are There Alternatives To Book Profits?

alternatives scam legit scamrisk

Yes, there are plenty of other business models to choose from if you want to pursue this path to making money online. Here are just a few:

What Is My #1 Recommendation To Make Money Online In 2024?

Digital Leasing

Our review team has spent months researching, reviewing, and vetting dozens of business models and thousands of programs.

While there may be no “perfect business”, the research IS conclusive:

Digital Leasing is the #1 online business model for entrepreneurs.

Whether you’ve never made a dollar online, or you’ve been in this space for a while but never really “made it,” Digital Leasing is probably your best bet.

Why?

Frankly, I don’t think you can afford to make the wrong choice when it comes to your career in this day and age.

Have you seen inflation lately? You know, that thing where your money is worth less but your costs of living keep rising? You must find a way to overcome this strain on your financial life, and you can’t rely on others to do it for you.

Whether you’re a man sick of living an average life, or a single mom seeking a new stream of income in order to stop the cycle of barely getting by…it seems clear to me that Digital Leasing is a great option to take control in today’s economy.

Let’s dig into the details:

1) It’s Flexible:

Got an hour a day? You can do this. Ready to drop everything else and dive in full time? You can do this.

Yes, the more time you put in, the faster you see results. But even with a little time each day, you can move the needle in a Digital Leasing business.

And because this system is so flexible, you don’t have to constantly be working to make more money. It’s called PASSIVE INCOME because if you stop working, the money doesn’

Imagine taking 3 months off to just tour around Europe, rent a cabin in the woods to write a book, hike the Appalachian Trail, or live on the beach and surf all day.

This is only possible if you have an income stream that’s not tied to your time.

TESTIMONIAL-JUMP-ALL-IN

2) You Own & Control EVERYTHING:

With Amazon eBooks, you don’t own anything. With Book Profits you REALLY don’t own anything.

You don’t own the sales platform, you don’t own a brand, and you don’t own the customers.

So…are you comfortable trusting Jeff Bezos and Luke Sample with your livelihood?

With Digital Leasing, you own the assets, which means you have all the power and all the control.

3) Little To No Startup Costs:

It’s possible to get into Digital Leasing with zero dollars upfront. Because, using the strategies outlined in this program, you can get a client to pay you BEFORE spending a penny out of your own pocket…even before you do any work.

That said, I’m not going to lie to you and say you’ll never have to put any work in. That’s a red flag. You don’t get anything for free in this life…however, you can absolutely put work in up front that frees up your time and lifestyle as you stack success.

That’s the life-hack to sitting back and watching money roll in.

Even without getting paid in advance, you can have your first Digital Rental Property up, running, and generating profits for a much more efficient investment than Amazon eBooks– or even worse, taking out student loans.

winning big

4) No Wasted Time:

As mentioned above, spending tons of hours every day managing your Amazon account is a huge time commitment.

Plus, you constantly need to be seeking out the next writer if you want to maintain your business.

You need to spend even more money if you want to scale up. With Book Profits, you’ll always have limits on your time and freedom.

With Digital Leasing, a 100% online business, you never have to worry about that.

Testimonial leadgen marketing

5) Easy To Duplicate:

Ok, here’s the best part: once you have your first Digital Rental Property up and running, you can literally DOUBLE your income with a few clicks, a couple keystrokes, and a single phone call.

Remember: each Digital Rental Property is worth $500 to $2,000 a month in semi-passive income (over 95% profit). Every time you decide to create another one and increase your income, it gets easier.

How does it get easier?

Because you have more knowledge, more experience, more results, and more momentum.

If you wanted to double your income with Amazon, you’d have to double your time investment OR your profit margins. And it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out that’s a lot harder than a few clicks and a few minutes of your life.

Done Deal

6) Make Money Helping Real People:

This part is what makes it all worth it. Selling eBooks is a decent way to make yourself money, but it doesn’t improve anyone else’s lives.

After all, there’s always someone else selling on Amazon. That might be fine in the short term, but in the long run you may feel like you’re missing a purpose.

Don’t even get me started on MLMs, where your friends and family become the product…I’m sure many of you reading have been through that sort of “bait and switch” nonsense before.

You know the type – they promise a living wage, then you’re only on commission for a sketchy product.

With Digital Leasing though, you’re actually helping people by solving your clients’ biggest problem:

Small, local businesses need more customers, and with Digital Leasing, you are unleashing a flood of happy, paying customers for these businesses.

You make money by helping them make money.

Not some big, faceless corporation either…a small business owner who’s using that money to put food on the table for their family, start a college fund for their kids, or take care of a sick parent.

Once you see how Digital Leasing makes a real impact in the lives of real people, you’ll see what I mean.

BOSS OF MY FUTURE Now, the choice is yours. You could continue browsing, looking at opportunities like Book Profits which could one day make you money…

…you could continue researching, never making a decision

OR, you could take a look inside, consider what you really want, and join a program that makes your dreams a reality.

At the same time, you’re joining a community of over 2,000 successful students that are living life on their own terms thanks to Digital Leasing.

A consistent, reliable, semi-passive stream of income that doesn’t depend on you or your time to keep producing profits? It’s as good as it sounds.

All while genuinely helping real people who are grateful and happy to pay for it.

If this sounds more like what you want out of life (or if you just want some nice side income), click here to learn more about Digital Leasing.

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