Book Marketing Blogs

The covers we choose for our books are much more significant than many authors think. Over the years I’ve seen everything from a finely designed book cover, to one the author created himself. Now, there’s nothing wrong with designing your own cover – if you’re actually a cover designer. Otherwise, you should leave it to the pros.

I recently had an opportunity to sit down with my friend and colleague Hobie Hobart to talk about the importance of book covers. I think some of his answers will surprise you!

How long does the average consumer spend viewing a book cover before they decide to buy or not buy the book?

Bookstore browsers spend an average of 8 seconds looking at the front cover and 15 seconds studying the back cover before making a buying decision where your book goes straight to the cash register, not back on the shelf. (more…)

Let’s take a look back at some of the most useful book marketing Tweets from the past week, courtesy of bloggers, marketers, authors and others. The topics include writing popular blog posts, optimizing your website for mobile users, linking your story to a larger media trend and much more. Happy marketing!

**************

* 6 Reasons Why You Should NOT Put All Your Eggs In The Facebook Basket

Image via Wikipedia

Yes, you should have a Facebook Page. The site is a great tool for promotion, but there are many reasons it should not be your only online venue:

http://socialmouths.com/blog/2011/09/28/6-reasons-why-you-should-not-put-all-your-eggs-in-the-facebook-basket/ (more…)

Guest Post by Suzen Pettit:

If kids, soon-to-be-adults and millions of not-so-young adults are your future audience, then you need to have a Facebook Business Page as you need to be where your audience is. And, today, our children, teens, young adults and even older adults like my former room mates and my ex (who deny they are addicted to Facebook) can be found updating their profile, commenting and changing their status updates regularly.

Image by dannysullivan via Flickr

The New York Times even wrote an article recently that showed kids are finding crafty ways to get around the increasing number of Facebook bans their schools are implementing. One eighth grader, who preferred not to be named, said he coached a school administrator on avoiding the ban last year. “She hated not being able to get on Facebook at work and asked for my help one day in the office,” the boy explained, more than a little sympathetic to her plight. “What could I do?”

It came as no surprise to me, and it’s speaking volumes of the need for small businesses, as much as they want to continue down that stream of FB Denial, to get on board and create a Facebook business page. It is time for them to put themselves in front of this next generation of Facebook addicts. (more…)

Guest post by Alan Jordan:

I’m considering using Kindle books to sell other Kindle books that I’ve written, promote print editions of other books that I’ve written and drive traffic to one or more of my websites. As I read through the guidelines provided by Kindle, they reinforced a basic truth of marketing, a truth that I had almost forgotten in my zest to use this new medium: The best marketing does not appear to be marketing.

Specifically, this means that I need the copy of my book to motivate people to click through to my website, or other books. It’s a violation of Amazon’s Terms of Service (TOS) to sham sites for a basic good reason: readers get annoyed and they don’t like to feel they’re being sold a bill of goods. Okay, we live in a world where we pay for movie tickets and have to watch commercials for soda and candy before we see the movie for which we’ve paid. However, books should be one step less commercial. Readers expect that!

With that said, it’s okay to mimic what a hard copy book does with regard to marketing, namely list other books by the same author and the author’s website.  It’s also okay to include links to non-commercial entities. For example, my Kindle book I Am Here, Dad includes links to photographs taken by the Hubble Space Telescope, and my Kindle book Generous Nick Chavez contains links to the sites of many charities that Mr. Chavez supports.

I have studied what other people have done to successfully promote their Kindle books, and these are the marketing strategies that I am starting to implement:

1. I’ve written more than one Kindle book so that readers who love my work can buy an additional book too. For example, I Am Here, Dad is written for a boy who has lost (or will soon lose) his father. Can You Feel Me, Mom? is the same basic book, but written for girls who have lost (or will soon lose) their mother. Zoey’s Letter to a Soul is a similar book that appeals to children who have lost an uncle, aunt, other relative, friend or pet. All of these books tie in with Relax, Rejoice & Rejuvenate, Vol. 1: This book features an affirmation for every day, an affirmation for everyday use, and a selection of spiritual photographs. It provides spiritual refreshment. In the near future, I’m introducing three more complementary books. (more…)

We’ve collected some of the best book marketing Tweets from the past week, courtesy of bloggers, marketers, authors and others. The topics include building your platform now, using book displays, selling eBooks via Twitter, improving your SEO skills and much more. Happy marketing!

**************

* 12 Tasks Every Author Should Tackle Before Publishing a Book

Image via Wikipedia

There is so much you can do to get a head start before your book is available – build your platform, write a marketing plan, start a blog and much more:

http://authoritypublishing.com/book-marketing/12-tasks-every-author-should-complete-before-your-book-is-published/ (more…)

You’re ready to create your very own author site, or maybe you’re updating your old one. We all know there’s a lot that can go wrong with a website (server gone down?) but there’s also a lot you can do in the early stages to avoid some mishaps down the road. Here’s a checklist that you can take with you as you work through the design elements of your website:

1. Cluttered: Let’s just start there. A cluttered site is the kiss of death to conversion. Make sure the site you choose is clean, uncluttered and easy to navigate. If you can’t figure it out, I guarantee you your visitor won’t, either.

2. Confusing: Tell them what you want them to do. Several times. In order to make a sale, you have to tell your visitor what you want them to do – over and over and over. When we were redesigning our website (http://ame.wpengine.com) I kept hearing this from my web designer: let’s tell them again and again what we want them to do. I responded to her, “But my visitors aren’t stupid, they’ll know what to do!” The problem is most surfers don’t. We’re busy, we’re distracted, we want information and we want it now, also we want to know right away if we’ve landed on a site that can help us. If you repeat your primary message, they won’t be able to miss it, and if the site is what they’re looking for, they will stay. Which takes me to… (more…)

Guest post by Brett Duncan:

Why is it so awkward to ask friends to help you out?

Image via Wikipedia

I don’t have the answer. I just know that it’s never easy. Which makes no sense, because friends should be more than willing to help out. Especially if you just launched a new book. In fact, friends should be your biggest supporters, your strongest evangelists. But they so often are not. {Sigh….}

My guess is that most friends don’t really know how they can help you promote your new work. My guess is they really want to help, really badly, but they don’t know how.

So why don’t you enlighten them? There are so many ways that “the common man” can help promote your book now, it’s silly to think a group of a few friends and an Internet connection couldn’t do you a solid and get the word out.

Here’s what I suggest: email all your friends, make sure they know about your new book and then ask them to help out. Yeah, you might think it’s a little uncomfortable at first, but think from your friends’ perspective. They want to see you succeed, and I bet they’d love to help.

Image via Wikipedia

Then, in that same email, choose a few of the cool ways to share the news below to get your pack of pals off and running. Give them detailed suggestions so they can’t claim ignorance here. Most of these tips are super-simple and no-brainers. Anyone worthy of being called a friend (or even an acquaintance) would be happy to do at least one of these things. I bet most of them will do several.

Easy Ways to Promote Your Book

1. Rate it on Amazon. I know, this one should be obvious. But even the best of friends don’t completely “get” that this is a big deal, and can help you immensely. So briefly explain it to them, and ask for an honest review of your book on Amazon. Let them know that this simple act, more than anything, can vastly help fuel your success as an author, given that it can influence how often your book shows up in searches to closing the deal once someone lands on the page. (more…)

Here’s a look back at some helpful book marketing Tweets from the past week, courtesy of bloggers, marketers, authors and others. The topics include why websites need Facebook “Like” boxes and buttons, planning a successful book signing, understanding why your book title matters and much more. Happy marketing!

**************

* Judging Books by Their Covers – Things to Know

Image via Wikipedia

Your cover should look professional, and that involves your choice of font, color and text placement:

http://theoldshed.me/?p=257 (more…)

We had a great show featuring Dana Lynn Smith about the importance of book reviews and the various ways authors can seek reviews for their books.

About our guest: Dana Lynn Smith, The Savvy Book Marketer, has 16 years of publishing experience and a degree in marketing. She helps authors and indie publishers learn how to sell more books through her how-to guides, blog, newsletter, and private coaching.  Dana is the author of several book marketing guides, including How to Get Your Book Reviewed, which is the topic of this interview, http://www.GetBookReviews.net

Learn more about Dana and her marketing tips at  http://bookmarketingmaven.typepad.com/

There are an estimated 1,500 books published every day – so it’s tough to get noticed. Book reviews can be one way for a book to gain more exposure.

Dana wrote How to Get Your Book Reviewed because reviews are important. Many authors don’t realize how important reviews are, and they also don’t know there are a range of opportunities to have a book reviewed, such as:

• Endorsements – this includes experts, other authors, and celebrities in your field. Use these testimonials in your marketing materials. (more…)