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Marketing & Publicity

Good marketing is an art. Knowing your audience is critical. Get the word out about your book in a compelling and interesting way.

Steps in Marketing & Publicity

  • How to craft your message
  • Social media
  • Search engine optimization
  • Go local
 

Ask the Right Questions and Increase Your Sales

by Brian Jud
Bowker | Tue Jan 19, 2021

 
Many independent publishers ignore non-trade sales because they do not know where to start selling. Their definition of non-trade marketing is selling books “outside of the bookstore.” However, that only suggests where not to sell books; it offers no direction, insight, or instruction about where or how to actually do it. 
 
Here are some questions to answer that can help you define and expand your target readers, leading to new ways to sell your books and new places in which people can buy them. The questions themselves are universal and apply to all subject areas, but as examples I have focused on how they relate to a publisher trying to market a career or job-search title. 
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Five Easy Ways to Upgrade Reader Engagement

Penny C. Sansevieri's picture
by Penny C. Sansevieri
Bowker | Tue Jan 12, 2021

It’s one thing to write and publish a book; reader engagement is a whole different ballgame. Reader engagement gives you longevity and helps you sell more books, so it should really be the driver for all of your book marketing. But I’ll be honest, it’s also really hard, especially when you’re just starting out.

I’ve collected a few tips to jumpstart reader engagement, but really the key to book marketing isn’t doing everything, it’s doing what works for your genre and your reader market. It will take some trial and error before you sell more books in response to your efforts, but it will be worth it because reader engagement is the key to a long and prosperous publishing career.

An added bonus is that developing and encouraging reader engagement also creates a community of likeminded souls who can keep you connected and grounded during the very strange times we’re currently living in. And that may be an even bigger win for everyone involved!

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Marketing & Publicity
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The Measure of Marketing

by Brian Jud
Bowker | Tue Dec 29, 2020

 
The question most publishers periodically ask themselves at this time of year is, “Did I achieve the goals that I set?” The numbers are easy to measure and compare — you either reached your sales objectives or you did not.
 
Due to this perceived simplicity, publishers stop there and recalculate their objectives for next year. The problem with this process is it measures something you cannot control — sales and revenue. If you could control them, then reaching goals would be a given. But you can only influence the attainment of those metrics by the actions you take. 
 
Publishers can significantly improve upon this process by seeking several questions, such as, “Could sales have been higher? How? Did sales maximize my revenue and profit?” And if objectives were not achieved, “Why not?”
 
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Twelve Tricks for Amazing Author Websites

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by Penny C. Sansevieri
Bowker | Tue Dec 15, 2020

Is your website working for you? Is it helping you sell more books? So many authors really don’t know the answer to this question. And with so many options out there for websites, how do you know which elements you must have to be successful?

Most authors want to sell more books, and that is (or should be) the main goal of your website. If you wrote a business book to help you sell more services, build your business, or book more speaking opportunities, then you may have slightly different goals. However, even with that in mind, a successful website should still have many of the same key attributes. 

Here are 12 simple things you can do to make your website a more effective and efficient vehicle for your book marketing promotion.

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Planning For Uncertain Times

by Brian Jud
Bowker | Tue Dec 1, 2020

 
At the beginning of 2020 we all set aggressive goals based upon an optimistic view of the coming year. That changed abruptly with the advent of Coronavirus in the first quarter, with the subsequent quarantines and closed businesses. While this year has been a difficult one for making sales, we learned some valuable lessons for succeeding under dire circumstances. The key to survive in the future is to apply those lessons to make your business profitable over the long term.
 
Even though no one knows what the future brings, you can still create plans for what might happen. In this case, do not think of the word plan as a noun, but as a verb, a work in progress to which you can refer regularly and adapt to unforeseen conditions. Think of it as the first draft of your manuscript, needing multiple rewrites.
 
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Aiming to Please Your Target Reader

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by Penny C. Sansevieri
Bowker | Tue Nov 17, 2020

Just what is “discovery” in book publishing? Simply put, it’s exposure for your book. Many in the industry, including both publishers and authors, believe exposure automatically equals sales. Actually, while gaining exposure isn’t that hard, it doesn’t guarantee book sales. We worked with an author who spent all of her book marketing money to purchase ads in advance of a film release, but ultimately the needle never moved on the sales chart. Her efforts didn’t yield a single sale.

So the challenge is not discovery. Why didn’t her method pan out? I mean, aren’t ads a good book marketing idea? The answer is: it depends.

How Readers Buy Books

Back in early 2017, I was at Digital Book World in New York, and one of the speakers brought a set of slides and some fascinating statistics. I learned that very few sales result from ads, but most books, an incredible 95% of them, are sold via word of mouth. 

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How Sell More Books – Non-Returnable

by Brian Jud
Bowker | Tue Nov 3, 2020

There are two large markets in which to sell books. One is through bookstores (bricks and clicks) and the other to non-bookstore buyers. While that is correct, there is a better way to define the two opportunities for book sales. One is Business to Consumer (B2C) and the other is Business to Business (B2B). This distinction more accurately reflects the disparity. 

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Write a Killer Amazon Bio and Sell More Books

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by Penny C. Sansevieri
Bowker | Tue Oct 20, 2020

As authors, we often don’t spend enough time crafting our bios. Most of us write up a quick “about me” and never give it a second thought. There’s a problem with this tactic: it’s the wrong way to drive sales on Amazon and other sites.

If fact, as I look over author bios, you might be surprised how many are lackluster. Sure, they talk about the author, but mostly about their hobbies, where they live, and how they like to pass the time (when they aren’t writing). If this describes your bio, this article is for you, It’s time to make your Amazon bio into a killer sales driver on Amazon. 

Start with an Outline and all Book Tie-ins

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How to Work With a Book Marketing Consultant

by Brian Jud
Bowker | Tue Oct 6, 2020

 
Over the past 30 years I have been an author, publisher and book-marketing consultant. During that time, I have learned a valuable lesson: a mistake may be the costliest part of the publishing process.  If you work well with a knowledgeable, competent book publishing/marketing consultant, you can minimize — or hopefully eliminate — costly errors. Here are some things to consider when choosing and working with an advisor.
 
• Seek people who are recognized leaders in their specialty. Ask members of your local publishing group or Facebook friends for their recommendations and/or experiences with the consultants you are evaluating. If you get a negative response, do not automatically eliminate the potential consultant. The client may not have properly implemented the consultant’s good advice with poor results. 
 
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How Tos for Holiday Book Sales: Start Now!

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by Penny C. Sansevieri
Bowker | Tue Sep 29, 2020

Even during a pandemic, we can be sure of one thing: the holidays will be here before you know it! Now that kids are back in school (either virtually and/or in person), authors looking to boost book sales should clear their desks, pull out calendars and favorite planning tools, and get down to business.

In addition to Christmas, a few of the dates you may want to note include Diwali, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, and Three Kings Day. All of these holidays can have a gift-giving component in some families — and books are always a perfect gift! All too often, authors seek out my company in November, hoping to use the holiday shopping season to promote a book. But November is too late. A successful holiday sales season takes weeks of planning and preparation. Any retailer will agree with me here. 

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  • Obtain ISBNs (click here!)
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  • Find out who you write like (click here!)
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Getting Started

Create a Culture of Quality in Your Publishing Company

Thu, November 13

FAQs about ISBNs

Fri, October 24

How to Write a Business Plan as Narrative (Part 2 of 2)

Wed, September 10

A Novel Planning Technique for Book Publishers (Part 1 of 2)

Fri, September 05

Do You Have the Write Stuff?

Wed, September 03

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