Written by: Joanne Martin, Executive Contributor
Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise.
Authors often claim that writing is the easy part, and marketing is the real work. You can write an amazing eBook, design a best-selling cover and share it across all your social media channels, then sell barely any copies. Even the best eBook can languish if no one knows it exists. Marketing is a skill that doesn’t come easily for many writers, but it’s a necessary and essential part of the process.
To create a successful marketing campaign, you need to know and understand your audience, write a high-quality eBook and have a comprehensive marketing toolkit. When you start authoring your book, ensure you take your tribe on the journey with you. This means it is important to talk about your book, tell people it is coming and build excitement about the launch. Avoid making the mistake of waiting until after your book is completed to begin your marketing efforts. A marketing campaign should be strategic, considered and well-timed to be effective.
Shout from the roof tops and tell the world about your eBook:
1. Create and maintain a blog. A blog is a fantastic way to connect with your audience, allows potential clients to get a feel for your writing style and helps promote you as an author. A blog can form part of your content marketing strategy to attract readers to your eBooks.
2. Price your book appropriately. It is important to consider your market, what readers are prepared to pay for an eBook and whether you are interested in volume sales at a lower price, or less sales at a higher price point. If you are using Amazon as a platform to sell your eBooks, remember that it takes a share of your sales, and the percentage varies with the price of the book. It’s a good idea to look at the pricing of eBooks in the same genre or category and take the commission rate into consideration when pricing your book. Find a price that works for you.
3. Know your audience. When writing and publishing your eBook keep your reader front of mind. Think about what’s trending, where there is a gap in the market and what people are buying. If you have an established reader base, consider what they have purchased from you in the past and the feedback you have received about those books. If you are targeting a new audience, ensure you do some market research to determine the best way to market your new eBook.
4. Consider giving a few copies away for free. Some authors do this via Kindle to improve the ranking of their eBook on Amazon. Others run competitions to improve their social media engagement and drive interest in their book. There are many options you can include in your marketing campaign that will help monetize your eBook in the future. People swarm to free items, and eBooks are included in this phenomenon. Your readers will tell their friends, family and associates, which helps expand your network and may attract future customers.
5. Ask for reviews. Give away review copies to relevant websites and organizations. One positive review from a recognized expert can make all the difference. Also, ask your clients for a review of the eBook to help position your book for ongoing success. Consistent positive reviews from anonymous sources are powerful marketing tools and boost the credibility of your work.
6. Take advantage of social media. Open and use social media accounts for both yourself and your blog. Inform everyone in your world that you have an eBook available for sale. Take your audience on the journey and create eye-catching graphics to help promote your work. It is just as important to let everyone know about your eBook before it’s finished. Pick a release date and start advertising across all your social channels. Drive engagement through strong content marketing, influencer marketing and by being consistent with your posts.
7. Create eye catching graphics. People are attracted to beautiful images that convey meaning and feeling. Look at what’s trending, but do not necessarily follow the trend. Create graphics that are unique, on-brand and speak to your audience.
8. Make a video. Video is a great tool for promoting books of all kinds, including eBooks. Talk about your book, why you wrote it and the problem it solves for your audience. Ensure you provide a link to purchase as part of your video. Share the video through your blog, newsletter and social media channels.
9. Seek feedback. Continuous improvement is one way to enhance the quality of your eBook over time. Invariably, your readers will find errors and point out mistakes. Take advantage of this free help! If you published to Amazon, it is easy to edit your work and reload it. Your readers will appreciate your responsiveness. One advantage of eBooks is the ability to go back and make corrections after your work has been published.
10. Collaborate. Collaboration with other authors, business owners and influencers is a terrific way to promote and monetize your eBook. Collaboration can take many forms. It is important to think about what you want to achieve and seek out opportunities that will deliver those results. If you find the right collaboration partner, there is potential to create amazing opportunities and a win-win situation for both brands.
Marketing and monetizing your eBook is hard work. Many experts recommend spending at least as much time marketing as you do writing. Creating a marketing strategy and plan will keep you on track and help ensure your success. Consistently spend time each day on your marketing efforts, schedule social media posts and update your blog regularly. Seek opportunities to promote your eBook to your ideal audience and be open to trying innovative marketing techniques.
Want to learn more from Joanne? Follow her on Facebook, Instagram, Linkedin and visit her website.
Joanne Martin, Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine
Joanne Martin is the CEO and Founder of Golden Earth Publishing. She’s an International Best-Selling Author and Book Writing Coach for ambitious business owners who are ready to position themselves as the thought leader and go-to expert in their field.
Joanne works globally with clients to up-level their businesses, increase revenue opportunities, and magnify their marketing impact through published literary works. Her work is a bespoke blend of the book writing strategy, mindset mastery, and innovative business ideas to create exponential professional growth and positive global impact.
