Readers buy books they have sampled. This tutorial shows authors and small publishers how to turn a PDF sample into a page-turning Look Inside preview, embed it on any website, protect it, and measure which pages convince visitors to buy.
Nobody buys a book they have not touched. In a bookstore, readers pick up a paperback, read the first page, flip to the middle, and decide in under a minute. Your website needs to offer the same moment, and a Look Inside book preview does exactly that. With Flipbooks AI you can turn a PDF sample into a page-turning preview and embed it on any site without writing code.
This tutorial walks through the whole process: choosing what to show, preparing the sample, building the preview, embedding it, protecting it, and measuring whether it sells more copies.
A sample lowers the risk of a purchase. A blurb makes a promise, but pages prove it. When a visitor can read your opening chapter in the browser, three things happen:
💡 Pro tip: Treat the preview as your best salesperson. Everything in it should make the next step, buying the book, feel obvious.
Shoppers are used to retail giants that offer a Look Inside feature on every listing. If your own site only shows a flat jacket image and a paragraph of text, it feels thin by comparison. A page-turning preview closes that gap, and you keep the traffic, the email signups, and the sale on your own domain.
| Publisher type | Typical preview | Main payoff |
|---|---|---|
| Self-published novelist | First 2 chapters | Voice and pacing sell the story |
| Non-fiction author | Contents plus chapter 1 | Shows the promise and the method |
| Cookbook creator | 8 to 10 sample recipes | Photography drives the purchase |
| Children's book publisher | Full spreads, 6 pages | Parents judge illustration quality |
| Small press catalog | Sample from each title | One page showcases the whole list |
The biggest mistake is giving away too little or too much. A preview that stops after two paragraphs feels like a tease. One that includes the ending removes the reason to buy.
A safe starting point is roughly 10 to 15 percent of the book. For a 300-page novel, that is 30 to 45 pages. For a short guide, 8 to 12 pages works well.
⚠️ Warning: Avoid spoilers. If your sample reveals the twist or the final answer, readers have no reason to continue.
You do not need special software. Any word processor or layout tool that exports PDF will do.
Open your full PDF and extract only the pages you chose. Most PDF viewers have a "save selected pages" or "print to PDF" option for this. Name the file clearly, for example novel-sample.pdf, so you can find it later.
Add one last page that tells the reader what to do next. Include the buy link, the retailer names, and a short line such as "Read the rest in the full edition." This page becomes your quiet call to action inside the preview.
Flipbooks AI converts a PDF into a realistic page-turning flipbook, with no watermarks, ever. The steps below take about five minutes.
Go to Flipbooks AI and sign up. A free account lets you test the full workflow before you commit to anything. When you are ready for more, compare the pricing plans.
Open your dashboard and drop the sample PDF onto the upload area. The PDF to Flipbook Converter processes each page into a crisp image and keeps your text readable. Larger files take a little longer, but a 40-page sample is usually ready in under a minute.
This is where the preview starts to feel like a real book.
If you publish digital editions as well, the Interactive E-Book Publisher and E-Book Flipbook Generator use the same workflow, so one process works for every format you sell.
Choose how the preview will travel:
✅ Best practice: Create two versions of the same preview. One public version goes on your site. One password-protected version, with more pages, goes to reviewers and bloggers.
Click publish, open the link on your phone and your laptop, and flip through every page. Check that the text is legible, the closing page appears, and the buy button works. The flipbook layout is mobile-responsive, so it adapts to narrow screens automatically.
Once the preview is live, the embed step takes one copy and one paste. For a deeper look at this part of the process, see the Embed Flipbook on Website tool.
In your flipbook settings, open the Share panel and copy the embed snippet. It is a short block of HTML that places the flipbook inside a frame on your page.
| Platform | Where to paste | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| WordPress | Custom HTML block | Works in any block editor page |
| Wix | Embed a Site widget | Choose "Embed code" and paste |
| Squarespace | Code block | Turn off "Display source" |
| Shopify | Product description or custom section | Edit in HTML view |
| Webflow | Embed component | Set width to 100 percent |
| Plain HTML site | Inside the body tag | Place near your buy button |
Set the frame width to 100 percent and use a height of roughly 500 to 650 pixels on desktop. On phones, the flipbook switches to a single-page view, which is easier to read with a thumb.
Position the preview directly above or beside your buy button. A visitor who finishes the sample should not have to scroll to find the next step.
Not every site needs the same placement. Pick the one that fits your traffic.
The preview sits under the book description. It suits stores with a single title and visitors who arrive from search.
A button labeled "Look Inside" opens the flipbook in a pop-up. This keeps the page clean and works well for catalogs with many titles. Combine it with the Catalog Flipbook Creator if you want one flipbook that previews your whole list.
A standalone page, such as /read-a-sample, gives you a clean URL to share in ads, social bios, and newsletters. It also gives search engines a page that targets sample-related searches.
| Layout | Best for | Setup time | Mobile friendly |
|---|---|---|---|
| Inline | Single-title sites | 5 minutes | Yes |
| Modal button | Multi-title stores | 10 minutes | Yes |
| Dedicated page | Ads and newsletters | 10 minutes | Yes |
A preview is meant to be read, not copied. You can limit abuse without making the experience worse.
The strongest protection is the page count. A sample that contains only the first chapter is not worth pirating.
Send advance review copies through a password-protected link. Reviewers get more pages, and the public never sees them. Change the password when a campaign ends.
Turn offline downloads off for the public preview. Keep them on for partners, teachers, or retailers who need a copy for their own use.
💡 Pro tip: Add a small line on the closing page, such as "Sample edition, not for resale." It sets expectations without sounding defensive.
A preview is only useful if it moves readers toward a purchase. Analytics and lead generation are part of the Professional plan, and they turn a simple sample into a measurable channel. See what is included on the pricing page.
If most readers stop at page 4, something on page 4 is losing them. It might be a slow passage, a dense paragraph, or an awkward layout. Swap in a stronger page and compare.
Add a lead form after the midpoint. Offer a bonus chapter, a discount code, or a reading list in exchange for an email. These readers have already sampled your writing, which makes them warm leads for your next launch.
| Goal | Metric | Action if low |
|---|---|---|
| More readers | Views | Promote the link in newsletters |
| Deeper reading | Pages per visit | Strengthen chapter openings |
| More sales | Buy-link clicks | Improve the closing page |
| Bigger list | Email captures | Offer a bonus for signing up |
If the button is buried in a footer, nobody clicks it. Put "Look Inside" near the top of the product page, close to the title.
Large images slow the page. Compress your PDF before upload, and test the load time on a mobile connection.
A preview that ends with a blank page loses the sale. Always finish with a clear buy link or a short email form.
Most book browsing now happens on phones. Test the preview on at least one iPhone and one Android device before you announce it.
A thriller author uploads the first three chapters and places the preview above the buy button. The closing page ends on a cliffhanger and links to the store. Readers who finish the sample are far more likely to purchase than visitors who only read the blurb.
A food blogger offers eight sample recipes with full-page photographs. Because the pages show real dishes, the preview does the persuading. She pairs it with the Recipe Book Flipbook tool to publish seasonal editions.
A press builds one flipbook per title and one catalog flipbook that links them. The Digital Catalog Maker lets visitors move from the catalog to any sample in one click, which keeps shoppers browsing instead of leaving.
An instructor publishes a sample chapter of a workbook through a password-protected link, so students preview the material before enrolling. The Course Material Publisher fits this workflow well.
Before you announce the preview, run through this list:
A good sample does the selling while you sleep. Upload your first chapter, customize the look, paste one snippet into your site, and let readers turn the pages.
Your readers are already on your website. Give them a reason to pick up the book.
