Amazon Sponsored Ads-Collecting Wisdom by Rolynn Anderson

Talk about the blind leading the blind. I’m a panelist May 19 with another author, 'teaching' author/book promotion. I’m baffled about what to advise the audience to do since lately, our efforts have yielded people who ‘impress,’ but not people who 'buy.' Facebook hasn’t been much help in finding new readers for us, so many of us are using Amazon Sponsored Ads. Alison and Alicia have spent time working the system and have passed on some great ideas. Still, I thought we might review best practices and fill in any blanks as well as ask questions of one another. I did listen to a teleseminar by Derek Doepker and I read an article by Shane Stinemetz, the director at Fetcher https://fetcher.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/Ultimate_PPC_ebook.pdf

Here’s a draft of steps to take for building Amazon Sponsored Ads that sell books (correct my errors, please!):

1. Start with the obvious: Great Book, Fabulous Cover, Super Branding; gnat’s eyebrow understanding of novels like ours and

who our ideas readers are. We need good reviews, too...10 to 20.

2. For each book, write a list of at least 200 keywords of broad and specific nature about EACH book (Note: some words, like ‘suspense’ and ‘romance’ will appear on all the lists). Important (I JUST LEARNED THIS): Put each keyword on a separate line…a list but with no numbers.  YOU CAN COPY THIS LIST IN THE AMAZON BOX FOR KEYWORDS AND THEIR COMPUTER WILL SEPARATE THEM FOR YOU. Don’t forget to save your list as well as print out your list from the marketing site when you’ve gotten some feedback about ‘Impressions.’

Here are some keyword search sites (Fetcher suggests these; I’ve only tried Google, so far) besides Amazon: Google Keyword Planner, Keyword Tool io, AHREF’s Keyword Explorer, Moz Keyword Explorer, LSI Graph, Ubersuggest

Decide whether you want BROAD keywords, PHRASE keywords and/or EXACT keywords (see Fetcher’s article for more on this), but here are his ideas, in general:

“Using a broad match type opens up your ads to a wider audience which is great when mining for new keywords. This is a good place to start when launching new products.

“Using a phrase match type allows you to start to narrow down the amount of variants that can trigger your ad, thus saving cost and becoming more targeted. But there are still some variants which can continue to provide some useful insights.

"Finally, using exact match is most targeted and allows for the least variance in the search term that the consumer enters. This makes your ads more targeted, and usually cheaper with an improved ROI. It also means your ad will show to less people (less impressions). It will take some experimentation before you can transition keywords from broad match to exact match.”

3.  Work VERY HARD on your ad text…you want to spark the reader’s interest in only two sentences…make every word count!  SAVE THIS TEXT!

4.  Now comes what Derek Doepker calls ‘throwing spaghetti against the wall’…put ‘keywords’ in the place of ‘spaghetti,’ and you have your next step.

5.  Start with .25 per click unless you know you should bid higher based on past data. Look to see which words get the most impressions and clicks, and raise the per click rate to .50 or $1.00

6.  Decide on your overall budget and length of campaign.  Since there’s a 5-day lag for results on most of these campaigns, make them at least two weeks.  I go for monthly.  Amazon says don’t terminate the ad, just pause it.  That way, you can start it up again any time you choose. (See their instructions on the right hand side of your marketing page)

7. The analysis and adjustment of keywords and bids.  Here’s where I need your help. One of my campaigns earned 65,000 impressions and cost me $7 but not one sale.  Tell us how you learned to adjust keywords and bids to get sales. 

Roses, thanks for helping me smarten up for my panel!

Web and Blog:

http://rolynnanderson.com

Facebook page:

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Rolynn-Anderson/188767867821613  

Twitter:

https://twitter.com/rolynnanderson

Goodreads:

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4990049.Rolynn_Anderson

Amazon

http://www.amazon.com/author/rolynnanderson

I'm Changing My Name by Rolynn Anderson

I’m changing my name to J.D. Robb.  The legal work is finished, the papers signed and even though my attorney thinks I’m nuts, I’m paying her enough to shut down her arguments.  If FB, Amazon and all the other social media won’t let me ‘in,’ by God, I’ll find my own way to put my books on bookstore and library shelves!

April Fools!

Sorry, couldn’t help myself.  Facebook and Amazon have failed us (in too many ways to count) and Twitter has been taken over by politicians and other strident folk. We put time and effort into book signings, but sales are few. Yes, we must build e-mail lists, but we must also broaden our readership beyond those who ‘know’ us.

Clearly we’re going to have to think out of the box.  What more fitting day than April Fool’s to start?

So I’ll get us started with out-of-the-box thinking.  After all there’s nothing more dangerous than an idea when it’s the only one we have.  We are right to be dissatisfied with the status quo. Somehow we need to realize that we should be thinking something different about what we’re seeing.  We should be coming at the problem from a brand new direction, and slay a sacred cow or two in the process.

So here, on April FOOL’s Day, let’s consult a fool about our no-sales conundrum.  In the days of pharoahs, the kings would seek a fool for advice.  The fool was expected to offer jokes and odd observations to elicit fresh approaches to the problem.  Reversing assumptions, being irreverent, denying the problem, applying rules from another arena, providing metaphors…the fool helped people gain insight on the issue.  Roger von Oech, author of A WHACK ON THE SIDE OF THE HEAD, maintains foolish thinking is what we need right now.

For fun, you get to play the fool, with lots to say about the problem of selling books.

Example: The fool in me says: If a novel were a food, how would you entice a stranger to eat it? Give them a delicious sample that would hook them for life.

Your turn to whack book marketing on the side of the head…

Web and Blog:

http://rolynnanderson.com

Facebook page:

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Rolynn-Anderson/188767867821613  

Twitter:

https://twitter.com/rolynnanderson

Goodreads:

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4990049.Rolynn_Anderson

Amazon

http://www.amazon.com/author/rolynnanderson

How to Find Your Readers by Alison Henderson

I know you're hoping I have the answer to that perplexing writer's conundrum and am preparing to spill the beans. No such luck. Believe me, if I knew I would definitely share. Instead, I'm hoping for a give and take brainstorming session here.

I've been thinking about this topic lately because I have a book coming out this fall that will be the second in my female bodyguard agency series. I'd like to do more targeted marketing instead of my usual scattershot approach. A significant number of readers enjoyed the first book in the series (note: I said enjoyed, not purchased. Big distinction). I'd like to get the word out to them about the second book on the off-chance they might actually buy a copy. 

Like you, I've read innumerable articles about book marketing that advise, "find your readers and market to them where they hang out." Great! But you have to figure out who they are first, and that's no easy task. Very few of us are lucky enough to have well-attended booksignings or participate in large reader events where dozens of readers come up and tell us about themselves. So how do we identify them? The members of my mother's book clubs always enjoy my books, but does that mean my readers are largely in their eighties? Possibly, but I doubt it.

I've received a few emails from readers over the years, but not enough to give me much insight. I decided to turn to my reviews--might as well get something useful out of them. Since almost 20K people downloaded UNWRITTEN RULES during its free days three years ago, I was lucky enough to get a large number of reviews. I decided to read back through them looking for any useful data. Most of the reviews said basically the same things. Here are some common threads:

1. Enjoyable, fast read; good pacing
2. Appreciated the lack of off-color language and graphic sex
3. Successful suspense plot
4. Fun and enjoyable characters

To me, these suggest busy, fairly conventional people looking primarily to be entertained. I can definitely relate to that.

Two reviews stood out for me for different reasons:

"Absolutely brilliant book. Lost myself in it for hours. Hope there are,ore like this in the pipe line. We'll done for a really riveting read."

"This is a fast pasted novel that keeps you on the edge of your seat. I started reading and could not put it down. I ended up reading threw the nite and my shift was a 15 hr one."

The first review is from a man. I was very surprised by the number of men who read this book and enjoyed it--probably due to the legs on the cover. This might mean I should look beyond the romance community for more general readers. Book Bub would be the answer there, if I'm able to get the book accepted.

I think the second review may define "my reader"--someone who works hard and is looking for a diversion to lighten her load. If I can help someone else get through a 15-hour night shift, I've done all I set out do as a writer. 

But where do these readers hang out online? My best guess would be Facebook. They also might get emails from bargain book recommendation sites. I'm not young and hip, and I doubt my readers are either, so I'd be surprised to find them mainly on Twitter or Instagram. For this new book, I'm considering trying a sponsored Facebook ad or two. Does anyone have experience with them? Ditto for FB readers groups--any positive experience there? If so, which ones? What other venues have you tried?

Remember, we're all in this together, and I'd do it for you. 

Alison

www.alisonhenderson.com

All Dressed Up by Betsy Ashton

The summer season is upon us, bringing book signings and festivals where we can display and sell our books. A few words of advice may be needed to remind us of what all we need to do.

You need a checklist of everything that needs to be in your car.

• Books, plenty of books
• Bling, be it book marks, postcards, door hangers (something with your name and the books' names on it)
• Candy in a dish (not chocolate if your event is in the summer)
• Pens to sign books
• A cash box and plenty of singles or fives to make change
• A placard with the "event special" prices
• Posters of your books
• A business card holder
• Stands to hold the books
• A sign-up sheet for your newsletter
• A table and a cover for it
• A canopy if you are outdoors to shield from sun/rain
• A chair

I write mysteries. I know many of my readers love Castle. So, a couple of years ago, my husband gave me a Castle vest for Christmas. It's hot, so in the middle of summer I drape it over the chair. (I never sit behind my table.) The vest is a reader magnet. Women, mostly, will come over and chat about the TV show before they buy a book. Since I'm a fan, it's easy to engage in conversation. 

I wrap Crime Scene tape around the top of the table. 

I usually work with at least one other writer. We've been doing this so long that we know each other's books and patter. We cross-sell all the time.

With this all in mind, two weekends ago my dear friend and fellow mystery writer, Sally Roseveare, and I packed up my car and took off for Danville, VA to Brewed Awakening, a coffee house that had recently opened in the historic tobacco warehouse district. We knew the owners from a previous coffee house over in Martinsville, so when Bonnie Hale posted that she was doing the spring festival, we jumped at the chance. 

Perfect location in the historic district. Book sellers lined up along the sidewalk on either side of the coffee house across the street from ample parking at a community market. A wine festival was across the street in the market. Sally brings a stuffed black Lab, because one is featured in her Smith Mountain Lake mystery series. A kid magnet if there ever was one.

We were all dressed up and ready for the festival. 

We weren't expecting rain. Even with the canopy, mist blew in and dampened our table. There is nothing like liquid of any kind to ruin our product. We baled. Rain drove the street traffic away too. 

We'll be back again next year, weather and time permitting. Next time, we'll do a sun dance. We've had enough rain...

What else did I forget?

###

Betsy Ashton is the author of Mad Max, Unintended Consequences, and Uncharted Territory, A Mad Max Mystery, now available at Amazon and Barnes and Noble. Please follow me on my website, on Twitter, Facebook and Goodreads.

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It’s Official – I’ve Disappeared by Alison Henderson

Have you seen the ad with Mindy Kaling where she wanders around, wondering if she’s become invisible because no one seems to notice her? Finally, she interrupts a pick-up basketball game, only to discover she isn’t invisible—it just feels that way. I’m feeling a bit like Mindy these days.

For the first time in the five years I’ve been published, as far as I can determine, I haven’t sold a single book during the past thirty days. Two KU readers finished reading UNWRITTEN RULES, so I will receive a (tiny) royalty check from Amazon for July, but my KDP sales line is flat as yesterday’s lefse (a pancake to you non-Norwegians). According to Novelrank, no one worldwide has bought a copy of any of my three small-press published books in the past month, either. It’s possible I’ve sold something through another outlet, but I won’t know until figures become available from my publisher in a couple of months. Since the vast majority of my sales have always come through Amazon, I don’t spend much time worrying about other retailers.

Since I’m a writer and inclined to dissect feelings, I have to ask myself how I feel about this. Not too bad, as it happens. It’s odd, weird in fact, but not bad. Especially since I know the causes.

1.    I haven’t had a book out in almost two years. This is the primary reason I’ve dropped off readers’ radar screens.
2.   As a result of #1, I haven’t done any real promo in ages. I’m still active on social media just being me, but it doesn’t feel right to continue promoting an old title.
3.   Many writers, especially indies, have proclaimed that the debut of Amazon’s new subscription service Kindle Unlimited has sounded a death knell for their sales. I’m not sure that’s true for me. For a long time, I had a 50/50 balance between sales and KLL borrows. My sales slump coincided with the arrival of KU, but I think #1 is more to blame.

Some writers are quick to ascribe declining sales to any convenient outside force. I’ve read that sales are slow in the summer because people are on vacation. (Wouldn’t they want to buy a book or two to take along to the beach?) Others say sales drop in November and December because of the holidays. (What about books given as gifts?) Now Kindle Unlimited is the bogeyman. It’s always the fault of someone or something else.

I blame no one for my sales situation but myself. You read a lot of baloney on the Internet, but some of the marketing advice is actually sound. In order stay in readers’ minds, you need to publish frequently. Two books a year is good; three is better. Stay active on social media. Market yourself and your platform (though not necessarily your books) regularly. Collect email addresses. Send out newsletters. Yada, yada, yada. We’ve heard it over and over—probably because it’s true.

I’ve failed on nearly every count and take full responsibility for the result. I’m the poster child for Anti-Marketing. I have valid reasons for not publishing a book last year, but even at my most productive, I’ll probably never write more than one book a year. Again, a matter of personal choice and life balance. I hate marketing with a passion and, as a result, will never be any good at it. I’ll never do a Facebook launch party because I can’t imagine spending several hours online posting pictures of fancy dresses and nearly-naked male models and giving out prizes. I know it works, but it’s not me.

There was a time I would have embraced the stress of tight deadlines for the potential rewards of a successful writing career. That time has passed. I’ve come to accept that I’ll never be a best-selling author. I’m simply unwilling and/or unable to do what it takes. I still love the creative process of writing and have stories I want to tell. Hopefully, people will enjoy reading them—maybe not as many people as I’d like, but I’m grateful for each one.

That being said, I’m thrilled to have a new book coming out later this year. I’m close enough to finishing to say that with certainty. I love the stories in SMALL TOWN CHRISTMAS TALES and will do my best to get the word out so others can enjoy them. I plan to dedicate this book to my sister writers at The Roses of Prose, who inspired it. Thank you for your support along the way!

Alison

www.alisonhenderson.com