Book Promotion Articles

How to Choose Kindle Keywords

One of the more confusing aspects of publishing to KDP is selecting keywords. For many writers, finding that sweet spot for the right keywords has been the difference between sales and obscurity. Like Google SEO, there’s a bit of an art to it and it’s important to experiment if your sales are currently flat.

First, Amazon makes it somewhat easy. They list the keywords that you have to have in order to list in certain categories. For example, take a look at the Young Adult category. Some of the keywords are obvious but the “Angels & Demons” category needs the […]

2019-02-03T09:36:35+02:00February 12th, 2015|Categories: Features, Resources|Tags: , |

Self-Publishing Starter Kit

We get a lot of questions here from writers just beginning to self-publish who have little to no idea about the process. They’re all asking about the most basic nuts and bolts: how do I self-publish? We’ve gathered together the best services currently running (and have been running for a while) to publish a book quickly and professionally.

There’s still a fair bit of DIY involved with the services listed below, but you’ll have a more professional book and keep a larger share of the royalties.

So here’s a basic starter pack for the novice self-publisher who wants more of […]

Ten Ways To Get Your Book “Review Ready”

good reviews
As the owner and editor of Self-Publishing Review, I deal with hundreds of self-published and indie books every year. People ask me, “How do I get a good review?” Apart from actually writing a good book (snort) there are a few other things you can do to make sure you get your readers to invest and feel they can sing your praises on Amazon, Goodreads or Barnes and Noble.

1. Get a professional edit for your manuscript. This is 101 stuff, but still I see authors saying they are doing it themselves, or have let it loose on a friend. […]

2019-02-03T09:33:04+02:00January 23rd, 2015|Categories: Features, Resources|Tags: |

Five Ways To Sell More Books On Amazon

While there are other sales options open to you as an indie author, Amazon sales will feel like they count the most to most writers. Here are five quick ways to help you sell more books on Amazon.

Research Bestseller Keywords And Apply Them To Your Subtitle

wildUse the same keywords as bestsellers in your categories so that when customers search by keyword “Customers with Similar Searches Purchased” will then show your book in the search results for higher ranking but similar books.

As I have mentioned before, keywords on Google don’t really make sense in the same way […]

2019-02-03T09:35:17+02:00January 22nd, 2015|Categories: Features, Resources|Tags: , |

Why Amazon Reviews Just Aren’t Enough

reviews
With the fall in prices for trad published books, the indie Kindle goldrush may be over, so Cate Baum looks into Amazon’s algorithm and how its search engine works for authors and their books – and why Amazon reviews are not enough to sell a book – and maybe never have been.

There’s a lot of misinformation around about paid reviews, customer reviews, Fiverr reviews and the ethics and technical issues surrounding them for book sales. Frankly, I’m tired of the many forums banging on with the phrase, “I am totally against paid reviews.”  And yet the hallowed Amazon […]

2019-02-03T09:28:40+02:00December 15th, 2014|Categories: Features|Tags: , |

Ten Ways To Publicize Your Book You May Not Have Thought Of

You’ve tried putting your book on all the usual sites, getting reviews and talking about it on forums and still you aren’t getting the sales you imagined. What can you do to improve this situation? Here are ten lesser-known insider ways to publicize your book.

1. Engagement, engagement, engagement

engage

It’s not going to be enough to rock out a load of reviews and post your book on all the usual websites. It’s akin to spreading your wares very beautifully on a market stall that nobody can see. You’re going to have to get in deep with forums, groups and reading […]

2019-02-03T09:04:29+02:00October 23rd, 2014|Categories: Features|Tags: |

27 Places to Get a Book Tour (and the Top Ten)

First off, we’re talking virtual book tours, not a bookstore tour. The value is of course you can do it from your desk – but it does take a lot of work. What separates a book tour from just old-fashioned marketing? Timing, mostly. What makes a tour a tour is a blast all at once of reviews, interviews, guest posts and other content. This is hard to organize if you’re talking dozens of different sites. Getting people to post is one thing – getting them to post on time is another thing entirely.

Check out this helpful Virtual Book Tour […]

2017-03-24T06:32:27+02:00September 4th, 2014|Categories: Resources|Tags: |

Author Directory Sites: The Complete List

There are a lot of different types of directories: author listings, book listings, and libraries. This post will cover them all, some for free, some for a fee. I’m defining “directory” as any site where an author can add a book page, author page, or both.  It certainly can’t hurt to put your book wherever you can. It doesn’t even matter if no one buys it when they view the book on a particular page. A reader sees a book enough times and it might have the illusion of popularity. It’s also good for SEO: the more times your book […]

2019-02-06T14:49:12+02:00July 13th, 2014|Categories: Resources|Tags: |
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