Deconstructing a BookBub & KDP Countdown Promotion

A condensed version of the article below originally appeared as a guest post on BookBub's Unbound blog.

As a bestselling suspense author who has been indie published since 2003, I've learned that being flexible and open to learning and adapting to change is key to being successful in this industry, and success for a professional career author should be defined by sales and income, though there are other indicators of success.

Too many authors schedule discount sales, post a couple of Facebook posts and send out a few tweets and then complain about lack of sales. Some do many small promotions, paying for 1-2 inexpensive advertising spots each time, and again don’t see high sales. Promos like these might get your book on a Top 100 genre bestseller list on Amazon, but they’re not enough to produce high sales.

You need to understand that watering down the impact of a discount sale by doing them too often just isn’t the way to go. You’re better off saving your advertising budget for a MAJOR promotion, and by “MAJOR” I mean spending $600-1200, and running 1-2 major promos a year per title. This is an investment in your career, in your work and in you.

Today, I’ll share some stats on my last major BookBub promotion, detailing my recent experience with a BookBub promo, so that you can see what advertising on book sites can do for sales.

Organizing and setting up my promotion:

First, I selected a book that has sold well but had never been on BookBub before or priced at $0.99 for many months. I chose SUBMERGED, a standalone thriller with tie-ins to my #1 bestseller, CHILDREN OF THE FOG. When I run a promotion for one title, there is always a strong possibility that some of my other titles will see an increase in sales too.

I decided to run a Countdown/BookBub combination promo, since Countdown deals get extra exposure from Amazon, and they create a bit more excitement. I determined I would only run this promo if BookBub accepted SUBMERGED (they'd turned it down numerous times in the past), so the first thing I did was pitch my book to BookBub, letting them know that my dates were very flexible. I requested a date close to the end of the month—payday. I did not book any other ads until after I had a BookBub date.

Once my BookBub ad was secured, I used that date as Day 1 of my Countdown promo and set up both US and UK Amazons. (Since we only get one Countdown promo every 90 days, you may as well do both Amazons.) I used all 7 days because it can take a few days to get into the overall Top 100 on Amazon, and I wanted to stay there as long as possible, building momentum.

My promo for SUBMERGED was set for the last few days of October and first few days of November, from October 28 - November 3rd (evening). This worked out great because most people are paid at the end of the month. I’ve found better success when I run a promo during a payday—15th and 30th.

I priced SUBMERGED at $0.99. I selected this price as this title had only been on sale for $0.99 once before, and that was when the SUBMERGED was first published, 8 months earlier.

Then I purchased other advertising, including Kindle Nation Daily, Fussy Librarian, BookSends, Story Finds, Bargain Booksy, Digital Book Today, Ereader News Today, The Kindle Book Review and more.

5 ads ran on Day 1 (Tuesday)

4 ads ran on Day 2 (Wednesday)

2 ads ran on Day 3 (Thursday)

4 ads ran on Day 4 (Friday)

3 ads ran on Day 5 (Saturday)

2 ads ran on Day 6 (Sunday)

2 ads ran on Day 7 (Monday)

Four of the above ads were free for various reasons; 18 ads were paid. I paid a total of $1214 for 22 ads.

I also set up various tweets to go out every couple of hours at random times each day of the promotion. During the promotion, I posted various updates to my Facebook pages, creating excitement and getting my readers and fans involved in where I was in my promotion. I used screen captures to show them when I made the lists. I had screen captures that showed where my book stood in relation to other Big-Name authors.

It’s important to note that prior to this promo and during the first 27 days of October, I had only sold 26 copies of SUBMERGED across Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk.

Results of my BookBub/Countdown promotion:

On Day 1 (Tuesday) SUBMERGED made Amazon's Top 100 overall bestseller list, which provides extra exposure to potential new readers. (This is the first time I made the Top 100 overall on the 1st day of a promo.) SUBMERGED remained in the Top 100 overall for the first 3 days of my promo. It remained in the Top 1000 overall for a week and in the Top 5000 overall for almost 2 weeks.

SUBMERGED also made Amazon.com’s Top 100 Movers & Shakers list, which provides extra exposure to potential new readers.

In the first 4 days of my promo (October 28-31) I sold* 2421 copies of SUBMERGED. Approx. 500 copies of SUBMERGED sold* in the first week of November (Nov 1-3). In the first 17 days of November I sold* 1000 copies of SUBMERGED. I sold* a total of 3421 copies of SUBMERGED on Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk during my promo and in the 14 days afterward.

Three of my other titles’ sales increased approx. 50% during and after the time SUBMERGED was on the Countdown deal.

SUBMERGED, sold from October 28 to November 3 inclusive, was on sale for $0.99, which earned me a 70% royalty (a perk of the Countdown deals) for most, or were KOLL/KU sales. I earned $1633 for SUBMERGED sales* in October; the majority of that income was created in the last 4 days of October.

When my Countdown deal was over, SUBMERGED sold for $4.99, which also earned me 70% royalties for most. I earned approx. $3000 for SUBMERGED sales* in the first 2 weeks of November. And even after those first 2 weeks, I still saw an increase in sales of SUBMERGED. Many of my other titles continued to sell at a higher rate than before this Countdown/BookBub promo.

I earned an approx. total of $4633 for SUBMERGED sales* during my BookBub/Countdown promo and in the 2 weeks following. I averaged a royalty of $1.36/sale.* From the $4633 I earned during this promo from one single title, I paid $1214 for 22 ads, which results in a $3419 profit. If I had to split my profit with a publisher at 50%, I still would have earned $1709.50 for this one single title and I still would’ve seen a profit.

My takeaway: RUNNING A BOOKBUB PROMO WITH A SELECT COUNTDOWN DEAL WORKS! I will do this again…and again.

PS: If BookBub turns one of your books down, try, try again!

*Sales data marked with an asterisk includes Countdown sales or after-Countdown sales plus KOLL and KU.

To summarize, I put SUBMERGED (a psychological thriller) on sale for $0.99 via a KDP Countdown deal on Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk from October 28 to November 17, 2015, and I sold 3421 copies. I paid $1214 for 22 ads (including BookBub--$500 Thrillers category), leaving me with a profit of $3419.

Authors: Submit your book to BookBub, and follow a similar marketing plan if they accept your work. I am sure you'll see great results.

PS: I recently did a similar BookBub promo for my DIVINE TRILOGY, and it too was a success and sold thousands of copies during my promo--and after.

24-7PressRelease Newswire Celebrates 10 Years & Offers Discounts

From 24-7Pressrelease.com...

 24-7 Press Release Newswire Announces Our Gift to You on Our Tenth Anniversary – A New Site Packed with Impressive Features

We are excited to announce that, to celebrate our 10th year of service, we have re-launched our site. It is now packed with new, exciting features designed to enhance distribution and make the submittal and distribution process more intuitive and efficient for users.

We have added additional news partners to bolster distribution, including Associated Press, more than 150 television stations most who post news directly to their websites, Acquire Media and many other industry-specific websites.

For users, the crowning glory of our new site is the Media Desk – a feature-loaded hub for journalists, bloggers and readers to use in tracking, searching and following stories of interest, through various search capabilities.

Statistics will be enhanced as we will offer a way for companies to see not just how many hits their release received, but also the source of those hits – whether it be journalists, bloggers, consumers, freelance writers, etc.

We have also significantly increased our social media sharing tools, and have enhanced our news widget for easy inclusion in your own website (including the ability to tailor the design and feel of the widget to integrate smoothly with your own site’s theme).

Marketing and PR agencies can take advantage of our Agency PReferred program, which offers discounts and priority customer service rates to those customers submitting high volumes of releases for their clients. Additionally, tools such as the address book and image bank allow agencies to easily submit releases for different clients without having to re-enter or re-upload information each time.

“We have spent the last two years listening to what our customers want, which is better distribution to media and journalists, more social media interaction and better visibility. And this re-launch is our way to give our customers what they’ve been asking for,” said Michael Iwasaki, Managing Partner with 24-7 Press Release Newswire.

Save on your press release with these two coupons that expire June 30, 2014:

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http://www.24-7pressrelease.com

New Release: How I Made Over $42,000 Selling My Kindle eBooks

In March 2012 one Canadian author boldly went where few have gone before—into the land of making real money with Amazon's KDP Select program.

This is her story…

My name is Cheryl Kaye Tardif and I am an international bestselling suspense author who earned over $42,000 dollars in March 2012 selling ebooks via Amazon's KDP Select program, captured the interest of a major literary agency, and went on to sign with a foreign rights agent. And I'm about to tell you HOW I did all that.

I don't normally tell people how much money I make, but I believe writers need to know it IS possible to earn a real income from your books. Seriously, if I can do it, anyone can—if you have the right combination of criteria and techniques.

In this book, I'll share with you what I believe are four key elements you must have in place to see high sales. And I'll reveal the strategic techniques I used during my KDP Select promotions that resulted in earning over $42,000—with $32,000 of that from ONE title alone.

Not only did I earn over $42,000 in ebook sales, I was contacted by one of the leading literary agencies in New York. The chairman noticed my success when my one title made #4 in the Top 100 Bestselling Kindle ebooks, right under The Hunger Games trilogy. Since then, I've signed with another agent for foreign rights.

So, if you're ready to earn some real money with Select, let's begin…

Available at Amazon (Kindle)

Recipe for a Bestselling Novel

Wouldn't it be great if there was a recipe for making a bestselling novel and if all a writer had to do was gather the ingredients and mix them in, and voila!―a bestselling novel is created? The reality is there are combinations of ingredients that can either get your name on a bestseller's list or fall flatter than an airless cheese soufflé. However, there are some common ingredients that have helped authors achieve bestseller status.

Common Ingredients for a Bestseller:

·       1 cup of well written novel

·       1 cup of professional editing

·       1 cup of professional layout and interior design

·       2 cups of professional book cover, including gripping back cover text

·       1 cup of decent distribution via major online retailers

·       2 cups of book launch, tours and other events, plus advertising

·       3 cups of contests and giveaways by author, publisher or both

·       Countless hours of organization and time

·       Dash of excitement

Method:

Take the well written novel and beat in professional editing until light and readable. Add professional layout and interior design, then stir in professional cover art and back cover text until well combined. Sprinkle in decent distribution until coated and roll mixture out with book launch, tours and events. Top with contests and giveaways, and fold in countless hours of organization and time before adding the finishing touch―a huge dash of excitement. Share with everyone and enjoy!

Reality Check:

While the recipe above may seem kind of silly, these ingredients can lead to a bestselling novel. I know because I've used them all successfully. My novels have made bestsellers lists multiple times on Amazon.com and Amazon.ca. Some made multiple lists on each in a single day. 

I've also sold over 5000 copies of Whale Song, which in Canada makes it a national bestseller.

So how did I do it? I created an exciting day-long event―a "Bestseller Day"―that had enough goodies to draw people in. It was held on my 44th birthday and I gave away 44 prizes.

There are three main ways to get prizes to offer:

1.) Pay for them (I don't recommend this.)

 2.) Get others to donate them.

3.) Find someone to sponsor the event or the prizes. They pay for something you want to give away and get something in return, whether it's free advertising, a mention in your next book, or some other benefit.

The Benefits:

The first benefit of reaching this "status" is obvious. You can use "bestselling author" when describing yourself. 

The next obvious benefit is that you're selling more books, which means you're earning more. 

Another benefit you may not have thought about is exposure. When people look for a book on Amazon, they'll often search using keywords. If your thriller is in the top 10-20 of books listed under "techno-thriller", for instance, you have a much better chance of being noticed. While on those bestsellers lists, more people will come across your name and your book. The more times people see you and your book online, the better the chance is that they'll buy your book.

Becoming a bestselling author takes persistence, creativity and good organization. Follow this recipe for success and you'll rise like a soufflé. Just don't forget that last ingredient―excitement!

Cheryl Kaye Tardif is a bestselling Canadian author whose critically acclaimed, award-winning novels have inspired much film interest. She's appeared on television and radio, and in newspapers and magazines. Cheryl has also presented at writers' conferences in Canada and the US, mainly on topics of marketing and promotion. She's helped many authors achieve success and does so as a book marketing coach, with Bestseller Days, Virtual Book/Blog Tours and Sponsorships her top 3 most requested topics.

http://www.shamelessbookpromoter.com 

http://www.cherylktardif.com  

A Publisher Shares Tips on Book Marketing

Publisher Jerry D. Simmons, who worked for Warner Books for over two decades before branching out to form his own publishing company, shares his insights on marketing books with some easy to follow tips.

"Selling books without a minimum marketing effort will result in poor sales. Here are the basics every author should follow when marketing their book..."

Read Jerry's tips on marketing at Shameless Promoter.

Authors: Hire a Book Marketing Coach

Shameless Promoter - Book Marketing Coach

Email me now for special rates! Specials end August 31st, 2009.

Hot Trends, Hot Markets - Part 5: Adding Friends to Social Networks

This is the final segment in my Hot Trends, Hot Markets online social marketing section.

Please read Part 1-4 before proceeding to Part 5.

Part 5:

Friends are gold; they'll promote you just because they know you. And if they read your work, they'll promote you even more. Friends connect you to strangers without you having to do anything. They tell two friends and so on...and so on...

Build up enough friends in your networks, and you'll build momentum. The next thing you'll know, you'll have people messaging you and asking to be friends.

In every online social network, the friends you add are very important. These are people who will be interested in you and your books for a variety of reasons. Not only do you want fans of your work and close friends and business acquaintances you already know, you want to invite complete strangers. Again, having a genuine interest in meeting new people and getting to know them is a huge plus. Learn to love your friends, even the ones you haven't made yet.

Ask yourself: Who would I like to know personally (famous authors, famous people, famous actors & singers, etc)? Which industry people would be beneficial (agents, publishers, etc)? What kinds of people will help sell my book (librarians, booksellers, etc)?

Search for:

• authors
• writers
• literary agents
• publishers
• librarians
• editors
• teachers
• book reviewers
• publicists
• booksellers

And search for friends who:

• love books
• love reading
• are fans of authors you like and ones you've been compared to
• are fans of books like yours, titles your books have been compared to
• live in your city, town, province, state, country

Now think completely outside the box--think movies, TV shows, films based on your books, and invite:

• actors
• film producers
• directors
• music composers
• musicians
• singers
• songwriters
• film companies
• screenwriters

Now think of your book. What topics are discussed? Now search for friends who relate to your book's topics (ie. if your book--fiction or nonfiction--is about a character with Alzheimer's, use that search term and you'll find groups, support groups, associations etc--all great contacts for you)

The last way to search for friends is what I think is the most fun. I recently experienced this, and I have to say it's opened up opportunities but also there's something both weird and exciting in it. This last tip is for fiction authors. And this is what you do...

Add your characters as "friends":

1. Make a list of all the main characters in every novel or short story (published or unpublished) that you've written.
2. Then make a list of secondary characters--ones that are interesting and important to your story.
3. Search for your characters' names on all of the online social networks, especially MySpace and Facebook.
4. Invite your "characters" to be your friend.
5. When they accept, leave a comment on their page (for ALL to see). Let them know that they have the same name as your character. Tell them a bit about this character and your book. Invite them to order it online--leave the link--and offer to send them an autographed bookplate or bookmark. You can do this in stages--replying to the friend.

Recently I've had the pleasure of sending many bookplates to people with my characters' names. They're all quite thrilled at the idea, and many are very curious. So am I! Again, it's an opportunity to promote your work, but a rare opportunity to connect with a "character" and this can lead to some interesting conversations. I love it! More and more, I've been blessed by meeting wonderful people from all over the world. These are my readers--actual and potential. And I value each and every one of them.

~Cheryl Kaye Tardif,
author of Whale Song
http://www.cherylktardif.com

Hot Trends, Hot Markets - Part 4: Optimizing True Social Networks Like MySpace, Facebook & Ning

I recently spoke about marketing books via online social networking at the CanWrite! Conference in Edmonton, Alberta, on the Hot Trends, Hot Markets panel. It was a popular topic and I was bombarded (happily) with questions afterward. If you're a writer who is looking for innovative ways to market yourself and your books, please keep reading. :)

Please read Part 1, 2 &3 before proceeding to Part 4.

Part 4:

When most people hear the words "MySpace" and "Facebook", they're most likely to think of these in terms of their teenage kids. But times have changed, and these 'just ain't for kids anymore'. I've spoken to entrepreneurs, including writers, about using these two social networks to promote their various products and services. Some look at me as if I've completely lost my mind. Some of them, I'm sure, think I've spent far too much time locked away in my office while writing my next suspense novel. Most wonder or ask how MySpace or Facebook could possibly be anything but a waste of time.

MySpace has revolutionized the social world of marketing. Gone are the days when MySpace was just for kids, a place to talk about music and share photos. Remember those days--back when you were afraid to let little Johnny post his profile and picture? Well, YOU are little Johnny now, and MySpace holds far more opportunity than danger to you.

And what about Facebook? When it first started out, it was similar to Classmates.com--only FREE. People were able to reconnect with long lost friends, school mates, lovers, and a few birthmothers were able to reunite with their children.

And now there's Ning, social networking that is grouped into specific targets: Bookmarketing.ning.com is for book marketing; Canadianauthors.ning.com is a group for Canadian authors and those who love books by said authors. You can search http://www.ning.com/ for groups that might interest you, book reviewers, librarians, people etc. Or you can start your own Ning network.

Now that the rest of the world has caught on, in particular the adult community, you'll now find that a wide variety of smart, savvy entrepreneurs, business owners, authors, artists and performers are using MySpace, Facebook and Ning to promote their business, work or name. Think of it this way, if you have something you want to sell or promote, you'd want to reach the most people in the fastest and least expensive way.

These social network sites become a "vehicle" for you, a vehicle that will take you from point A to B. Yes, you CAN waste a lot of time and energy with these sites if you aren't sure of how to do things and why you are doing them. So I urge authors to set a timer, if you must. Allow youself 1/2 an hour to promote on each site. And do this once a week, more if you have the time.

Authors, here is the how and why for MySpace, Facebook & Ning:

1. Set up your profile. Sign up, add your photo, or better yet the book cover of your latest book. Add your bio info and make sure you add links to your sites and blogs. Add photos, book trailers, etc. This let's people know who you are and what you do.
2. Add friends. Plan to add 10-50 friends a week, especially in the beginning. When you have 500 or so, add 10/week. Friends are the backbone of any social network and you need them. More on how to add 'good' friends in Part 5.
3. Write every week in your MySpace or Ning blog or import a blog into Facebook. I import my Blogger blog into my Facebook page. Write about anything. Blogging regularly attracts more visitors to your page. Search engines love blogs because they are always being updated.
4. Comment on your friends' pages. Visit their page and leave a comment, including your signature, which should include your name, book title or 'Canadian suspense author' and your website URL. This brings you more traffic. Not only will the friend visit, but so will people who are checking out their page and reading their comments. It's free advertising. But be genuine; comment on something they've said/done, something you like about them etc.
5. Post a bulletin on MySpace. This is great when you have a lot of friends. They will all automatically receive your bulletin. Use this for breaking news, events or to announce a blog post. Make sure you add your signature line and URL.
6. Ask some of your friends to read and review your book. You have access to book reviewers...and people who love to read. Plus big name authors have pages on MySpace and Facebook. You can message them and politely ask if they'll consider reading your book and writing a review blurb (for the cover) or a review for Amazon.com or Chapters.ca, etc
7. Connect with other writers/authors and get involved in multi-author events--like online book fairs. Ask to guest blog on their blogs and send them an article about your book or an interview or an article on writing.
8. Invite friends to events, real life or virtual.
9. Ask your friends to spread the word about an event or piece of news. Offer to blog about them in exchange.

Social networking is a two-way street. Don't be the kind of person who always asks and takes; learn to give in return. There are often unexpected rewards in being genuine, in taking an interest in someone else's life and gifts. When you focus on 'what can I also do for someone else?' you'll find that great connections will 'happen', and success is one step closer.

MySpace, Facebook and Ning can help you achieve success by connecting you to people who are willing to help you. There are wonderful, awesome people out there. I know; I've met them. So now it's your turn. Be bold, step out of that box and into the world of online social networking.

Stay tuned for Part 5.

~Cheryl Kaye Tardif,
author of Whale Song
http://www.cherylktardif.com/

8th Annual Express Yourself...Authors' Conference

Tonight I am 'penning a Pennsylvania post' from the Sheraton Park Ridge Hotel in Valley Forge, Pennsylvania. And yes, two days ago I was in Edmonton, Alberta. So how did I get here? Well, by plane, of course. :)

I am attending the 8th Annual Express Yourself...Authors' Conference, sponsored by Infinity Publishing. I was very honored when the Special Projects Director John Harnish asked me if I would take part on a panel, and since one of my goals is to give back to writers--particularly to new authors--I was thrilled. Plus, I've never been to PA before.

I left Edmonton yesterday morning very early. The flight was uneventful, with a stop in Minneapolis. Haven't been there either, although I didn't see much from the airport windows. :) When I arrived in Philly, I couldn't get over the heat. 90 degrees F. It was about 40 in Edmonton when I left.

Today's conference event was a writing workshop that covered self-editing, overcoming writer's block and much more. The day ended with a terrific buffet and our guest speaker Dave Lieber, an author and award-winning columnist for the Fort Worth Star Telegram. Dave encouraged us to "break the rules", something which I seem to not have a problem doing. :)

Tomorrow will be a full day and I'm looking forward to it. Conferences always give me ideas for writing and marketing, and anyone who knows me knows that I am always looking for creative and fun ways to market my books.

On Saturday I will be presenting at the conference--on 2 different panels. The funny thing is that I knew about one of them but had no idea about the other. I found out today that when I told Infinity Publishing that they could "use" me in any way that would benefit them and the attendees that they did just that. :) Good thing I love to talk about writing and marketing. I am really looking forward to being able to share some of the things that I have learned along my journey. So for any of you who are writers, I will put together some of my notes next week and post them on my site.

Also, as the Canadian Author Liaison for Infinity Publishing, my goal is to connect writers (especially Canadian writers) with one option for getting published--self-publishing. This has become a viable and acceptable method of publishing, especially since most traditional publishers accept less than 2% of manuscripts. Although my personal goal is to have all of my novels traditionally published (and I would be quite happy with one or more of the big New York houses), I recognize that there are different goals for every author. So if you're a writer looking to get published and you want to consider self-publishing, I invite you to check out Infinity Publishing, a company that really does have its authors' interests at heart. http://www.infinitypublishing.com/

For my dear readers, please know that I am always striving to learn more about my craft. There are always new things to learn. I write for 'me' in the beginning, because I have a story that needs to be told. But then I write for you--for every fan who has supported my work in the past and for every new one who discovers me. My goal as a suspense author is to challenge myself with writing a story that is sophisticated yet entertaining, suspenseful yet emotional, and always my best work with enough twists and turns to keep you on your toes. I hope you'll let me know when I succeed.

By the way, if you are in the Valley Forge area tomorrow and Saturday, please stop by the Sheraton Park Ridge Hotel and have the hotel come find me at Infinity's conference. Providing I am not in the middle of my panel, I would be happy to autograph a copy of Whale Song, The River or Divine Intervention. I have limited copies available.

http://www.cherylktardif.com/