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Aside from Olivia Wilde being photographed holding your book are there any surefire marketing avenues for selling your eBook?
A thousand eBooks monthly are being published. How to stand out in that blizzard?
Let's be honest with ourselves:
If we do what everyone else is doing in marketing, we will get the results everyone else is receiving:
which are NOT VERY MUCH!
You can trade reviews with fellow authors -- get caught -- and get thrown off Amazon for life.
Ah, thank you, no.
Team up with fellow authors in joint projects --
That way even if the joint book is picked up by a reader, your name is crammed with the names of other authors.
You fade even more into the background.
Twitter every 3 minutes about your book? Want to know how many folks I have unfollowed for doing that?
FaceBook your book? Unless you pay excessive fees, your posts about your books are seen by only about 10% of your followers.
Blog tours? Cover reveals? Prize giveaways? All old hat.
I read one post where one author was waxing excited about the future of eBook Publishing,
but then she was on a high from being invited to speak in Stockholm, Sweden to local writers.
I don't know about you, but I don't get such invitations.
Even if I did, I have a day & night job and no funds to book the flight!
So what if you are just an average struggling writer with little free time, less money, and fewer followers on your blog?
1.) Have a favorite, living author?
Contact that writer's web page, offering to do an interview, hawking that author's latest book. So far, I have not connected that way. But you may. What have you to lose?
2.) Amazon's Top Reviewers:
http://www.amazon.com/review/top-reviewers
Take Ali Julia -- she writes:
"Feel free to email me with review requests." Then, she lists her interests, giving you an idea if your book fits her tastes.
There are others listed. Try. You have nothing to lose and a great deal to gain. :-)
Have any novel new ideas?
Let me know.
We are in this together.
That would be so cool, to have my fave author as a guest! Swoon!
ReplyDeleteRaquel:
ReplyDeleteYou will never know until you ask their contact person. I would have to have a seance to interview mine! :-)
You don't get invited to Sweden?
ReplyDeleteI thought we ALL got invited to Sweden.
Maybe Tesla could zoom you away to Stockholm, Sweden. Tell him it's my old hometown and that I'm a great admirer of his.
ReplyDeleteSeriously though, I have been thinking about you and ebook writers as I get these book offers on my Kindle. How do you get your books to pop up there? I have actually bought one or two and got some free ones too. Do you need a lot of reviews published on amazon, or what?
Hope all is well in your world. Things are sort of OK here for the time being.
You know there is no magic key, Roland, but you have listed a few good ideas for those so inclined.
ReplyDeleteI tried to leave an email for a fave author, but she doesn't list any contact number, unless you want to contact her publisher.
I've had fickle author friends too who drop you as soon as you aren't pushing their books for them. One in particular asked me to publicize for her to 'all my bloggy friends' as she was too busy to blog herself...I kind of drifted away from her after that.
How's the eye doing? Hope all is well in your world (the real one).
This is timely, as I've been pondering this very topic lately, since I'm planning on self-publishing one or two of my books sometime within the next year. It's irritatin that Facebook makes it so hard even for your own friends to see your posts, let alone get anything out to a general audience.
ReplyDeleteDidn't have any luck emailing top Amazon reviewers, but one who is also a blogger contacted me about reviewing my last one, so that was cool.
ReplyDeleteI'm in contact with a couple top authors and some have done guest posts for either me or the IWSG site. You've only to follow and then ask, right?
R. Mac:
ReplyDeleteThe only place I get invited to go is WAY TOO HOT to consider! :-)
Inger:
Yes, many positive reviews help to sell books. Folks look at a book's page, and unless there are at least 10 positive reviews, they usually skip the book. Sigh.
D.G.:
The eye is improving but caused me to make a mistake today -- luckily my supervisor was understanding and said that everyone makes mistakes. Sigh. I hate making mistakes because my vision is blurred!
Ted:
If you need any help in self-publishing, just let me know!
Alex:
Alas all my requests fall on deaf ears. I need to date Miley Cyrus for the notoriety ... shiver ... no prices for success are TOO HIGH!!
I wish had advice for you but I'm terrible at marketing. I might check out the Amazon reviewers though and see if they give my Compass book a look-see.
ReplyDeleteI hope all is well with you, Roland dear.
Makes me glad (in a strange way) I'm still where I am on the journey… it all seems so difficult…
ReplyDeleteAnd I hope you're doing okay, Roland. I think about you often, hoping you're coping through all your hardship.
Hi Roland - it's trying everything isn't it .. and sometimes the luck is in - other times it doesn't seem to land the right way up ... my thoughts though - Hilary
ReplyDelete