Uncategorized – Page 244 – Self Publishing Advisor

Quick Start Guide to Marketing Your Kindle eBooks Like a Pro!

Today’s blog post is by publishing industry expert, Dana Lynn Smith.

What are the differences between marketing a Kindle ebook and marketing a printed book?

The promotional methods used to drive traffic to your website and your sales page on Amazon are similar to that of printed books, but there are some differences in marketing Kindle ebooks:

There are fewer competing books in the Kindle store, so you may have a greater chance of your book standing out in search results. The Kindle publishing platform makes it very easy for you to enter appropriate keyword tags for your ebook.
Consumers expect ebook prices to be significantly lower than print books, especially for fiction. You can experiment with different price points, but for fiction books many indie authors report that they sell at lot more books at $2.99 than at higher prices. If you price your ebook between $2.99 and $9.99 (and it’s priced at least 20% less than the printed version) you can opt to receive a 70% royalty from Amazon, which is much higher than what you’d make on a printed book.
The audience for Kindle ebooks is smaller, because not everyone has a Kindle, but it’s growing rapidly. Remind potential customers that they don’t need a Kindle to read Kindle ebooks—they can download a free reading app to use on their PC, Mac, iPad, iPhone, Blackberry and other devices.

What are the best ways for an author to capitalize on Kindle edition sales?

Be sure to prominently state on all of your book marketing materials that your book is also available in Kindle format, and provide links directly to your Kindle page on Amazon. You can use a link shortening service to create a short, customized link to use for marketing purposes, such as http://bit.ly/AmazonEbook.

To make a customized link like this, go to http://bit.ly, paste the URL of your book’s Kindle sales page into the large blue box, click the blue “customize” button (beneath the blue box), enter a name for your link (such as AmazonEbook in the example above), and click on the “customize” button.

Make sure that your print book and your ebook are linked together on the Amazon website. For example, the reviews for your print book should be showing up on your Kindle page, and the sales page for your print book should indicate that the book is also available in Kindle format. If you don’t see that linkage within a couple of weeks, contact kdp-support@amazon.com.
Earn a little extra on each print and ebook sale on Amazon when you sign up for the Amazon Associates affiliate program at https://affiliate-program.amazon.com.

What are some common mistakes in marketing Kindle ebooks?

One common mistake is failing to write compelling sales copy and enter the right keywords. The great thing about the Kindle publishing platform at https://kdp.amazon.com is that it’s easy to make changes. Don’t be afraid to experiment with different sales copy, keywords and price points.
Other mistakes include pricing ebooks too high, failing to promote them as much as printed books, and failing to take advantage of the promotional opportunities available on the Amazon website.

DISCUSSION:What difficulties are you experiencing in marketing your Kindle book?

ABOUT DANA LYNN SMITH:
Drawing on her 16 years of publishing experience and degree in marketing, Dana Lynn Smith helps authors learn how to promote their books through her how-to guides, one-on-one coaching, blog and newsletter. Learn more about how to promote your book on Amazon in her ebook, How to Sell More Books on Amazon, available at http://bit.ly/AmazonEbook. For more tips, follow @BookMarketer on Twitter, visit Dana’s blog at www.TheSavvyBookMarketer.com, and get a copy of the Top Book Marketing Tips ebook when you sign up for her free newsletter at www.BookMarketingNewsletter.com.

Self-Publishing, Uncategorized, Wendy Speaks

How Much Will it Cost to Self-Publish My Book?

Today’s post is by publishing industry expert, Wendy Stetina.

How much will it cost to self-publish my book? That’s a loaded question.

There are many factors that go into how much it will cost to self-publish. Your cost will be dependent on the route you choose — whether you opt to do all of the work yourself, outsource some of the work, or hire a full-service self-publisher.

If you do all of the work yourself, the costs will be minimal and dependent on your skills and knowledge. Some of the top things you will be responsible for are (in no particular order):

Obtaining an ISBN number
Securing distribution agreements for your book
Designing your book’s interior
Designing your book cover
Editing your book (NOTE: You should always pay for a professional to edit your manuscript)

Of course, this only scratches the surface as there is quite a bit involved with turning a manuscript into a published book.

A good alternative for those who have a bit of book industry savvy is to outsource small jobs that are a part of the book creation process. Of course, your costs for these jobs will be dependent on the quote you receive from the professional you intend to hire.

Lastly, if you have limited knowledge or would rather leave book creation completely to the industry experts, you can choose to go with a full-service self-publisher, like Outskirts Press.

A good rule of thumb would be for an author to invest an equal amount in production and marketing. Serious non-fiction authors, for example, should plan on investing around $5000.00 – $7000.00. This would break down into approximately $2500.00 – $3500.00 for the creation of the book (designing interior, editing manuscript, cover design, etc.), and $2500 – $3500.00 to launch the book (book launch parties, marketing efforts, book orders, etc.). Post launch there needs to be an ongoing marketing effort.

DISCUSSION: How much did you spend to create and distribute your book?

ABOUT WENDY STETINA:
Wendy Stetina is a sales and marketing professional with over 30 years experience in the printing and publishing industry. Wendy works as the Director of Author Services for Outskirts Press. The Author Services Department is composed of knowledgeable customer service reps and publishing consultants; and together, they all focus on educating authors on the self-publishing process in order to help them publish the book of their dreams. Whether you are a professional looking to take your career to the next level with platform-driven non-fiction, or a novelist seeking fame, fortune, and/or personal fulfillment, Wendy Stentina can put you on the right path.

Book Reviews, Uncategorized, Weekly Wednesday Podcast

Weekly Wednesday Podcast: How to OWN Your Book Reviews

When you self-publish a book, it’s important to come up with a creative marketing strategy to get in front of new readers. It will not only get you the exposure you need to possibly sell your book but also give you a leg up on the competition. In this week’s podcast, I discuss the importance of this part of the plan and how you can truly OWN your book reviews.

I will cover:

The importance of book reviews
Who authors should contact to get their books reviewed
How to deal with negative book reviews
Why authors should review other books and how to go about this task

Resources:

Book Blog Search Engine

ArmchairInterviews.com

DISCUSSION: Do you have your own book review service? Share the link here. Authors, do you know of a good book review service? Post the link here.

Cheri Speaks, Editing Your Self-Published Book, Uncategorized

Self-Publishing Author: There’s a Problem with Your Book

Today’s post is by publishing industry expert, Cheri Breeding.

Your book published. Your family and friends have bought it. You’re excited…until they call you to tell you there were so many grammatical errors in the book that it was difficult to finish reading. “Oh no, I should have paid for copyediting”. Now you run the risk of “looking” unprofessional in the author community.

Too often authors are faced with the decision to either save their pennies or invest in editing services. They decide to bypass the editing. Fast forward to publication and many authors wish they would have made the extra investment. Even if you have gone through your manuscript with a fine tooth comb and had friends or family look it over, you’re almost guaranteed to find mistakes at publication. As a matter of fact, when you pay for professional copyediting services, the editor normally still has a 5% margin for error. With that margin of error from fresh and professionally trained eyes, imagine the level of error from amateur and familiar eyes.

When asked what they would have done differently when self-publishing their book, most authors agree they would have invested more money into professional copyediting and customizing their book cover.

So, I’m sold on the need for copyediting service, what do I need to know about working with an editor? Here are a few tips/things to keep in mind when you hire an editor:

Proofread and spell-check your work before sending it to an editor.
Remember that Editors are human and many work with about a 5% margin of error.
There are different levels of editing intensity: basic, moderate, and extensive.
Basic copyediting typically catches about 70% of errors in a manuscript.
As a self-publishing author, don’t focus on what the editor didn’t find, but rather what WAS found.
Review your manuscript again after you receive it from the editor to check for errors they may have missed.

If you want to be a successful author, it is important that you take the publishing process very seriously. That includes investing extra money into creating a polished product.

ABOUT CHERI BREEDING:
Since 2005 Cheri Breeding has been working as the Director of Production for Outskirts Press. In that time, she has been an instrumental component of every aspect of the Production Department, performing the roles of an Author Representative, Book Designer, Customer Service Representative, Title Production Supervisor, Production Manager and, Director of Production. She brings all that experience and knowledge, along with an unparalleled customer-service focus, to help self-publishing authors reach high-quality book publication more efficiently, professionally, and affordably.

DISCUSSION: Did you have a professional edit your book? If not, do you wish you did?

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