Month: September 2017

SFFMP 151: All About Bookbub CPM Ads and Becoming a #1 Bestseller on Amazon with Adam Croft

Author Interview, Podcast

Today’s guest, Adam Croft, had a lot of great information to share about how he hit it big with a stand alone novel after writing two thriller series. Facebook ads played a part in his success with his first breakout novel, and we asked him about that, but lately, he’s been experimenting with Bookbub’s CPM ads (banners that you can pay for that run in their emails independent of their sponsorship program). We asked him about how authors can make the most of that program, even if they haven’t been able to get sponsorships with the big gorilla of advertising.

Here are some of the details we touched on:

  • Not following all the write-in-series advice all the time — Adam’s biggest hit was a stand alone thriller.
  • Writing hooky Facebook ads that draw people in and can sell a full-priced book.
  • Reaching #1 in the entire Amazon.com and Amazon UK stores with a new release.
  • If it’s possible to leverage former bestseller status to sell more books.
  • The difference between Bookbub’s paid sponsorships that we all covet and rarely get and their CPM advertising program that anyone can sign up for.
  • Targeting categories versus targeting specific authors.
  • Why targeting big names with Bookbub’s ads isn’t necessarily the way to go.
  • Whether the Bookbub ads are better for new releases or older titles or both.
  • Using affiliate links to help gauge how successful your ads are.
  • How the Bookbub CPM ads can work even if you’re marketing cross-genre novels or books in niches that don’t usually get picked up for their regular sponsorships.
  • Using ads to restore interest in older titles but doing tighter targeting for these, whereas you might go broader for a new release to get as many eyeballs on it as possible.
  • How Bookbub lets you link to individual stores in specific countries.
  • Making sure, before you get that big hit, to have your mailing list set up so that it’s easy to sign up for and people get something.

You can visit Adam on his website, his Facebook page, or Twitter, and make sure to check out his books. His series starters, Too Close for Comfort, and Exit Stage Left are free on Amazon and in other stores.

 

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SFFMP 150: Paranormal Romance and Publishing/Marketing Outside of the U.S. with Nalini Signh

Author Interview, Podcast

This week, paranormal romance author Nalini Singh joined us to talk about her genre, her experiences getting a traditional U.S. publisher when she was living in New Zealand, and how things have evolved over the 14 years that she’s been publishing. She’s best known for her Psy Changling and Guild Hunter series, and she’s also dipped her toes in the self-publishing waters with her contemporary romance series, Rock Kiss.

Here are some specifics of what we covered:

  • Differences to the publishing process when based in New Zealand or another country as opposed to the US or UK.
  • How paranormal romance is doing trend-wise now and whether publishers are looking for it.
  • The difference between urban fantasy and paranormal romance.
  • The importance of being consistent and not getting details wrong in a long series (Nalini keeps a story bible).
  • Some of the pros and cons of continuing a long-running series.
  • How helpful book review blogs can be if you can get your novels picked up.
  • Sending out ARC copies well in advance of the publication date.
  • Which social media sites Nalini likes and what she does on the different ones.
  • How she’s building her mailing list and working to keep fans happy.
  • How often you have to publish these days to stay relevant and grow a fan base.

Check out Nalini’s newest release Archangel’s Viper (out September 26th) and visit her on her website, Facebook, or Twitter.

 

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SFFMP 149: Success with Epic Fantasy and Marketing when Traditionally Published with Brian McClellan

Author Interview, Podcast

This week, we chatted with epic fantasy author Brian McClellan about the success he’s had by following the traditional route. He’s also dabbled in self-publishing some novellas in his Powder Mage universe. We talked about what publishers are looking for when it comes to epic fantasy, how he got his agent, how his first book went to auction, and what he’s doing for marketing.

Here are a few of the more specific topics we covered:

  • How he got an agent a few years ago and whether it’s truly necessary to hit up the conventions and network.
  • What Brian does for marketing versus what his publisher does.
  • What he’s doing on social media, his blog, and when it comes to building a newsletter.
  • Whether epic fantasy books need to be hugely long or if there’s a place for more quickly paced novels.
  • Giving readers (and agents/editors) stories that have the familiar and what people know they like but that also have originality and new elements.
  • Brian’s advice for newer authors.
  • Subjects he avoids on social media, and the kinds of arguments that are OK to start.

You can visit Brian on his website and check out his list of books there was well. His first novel is Promise of Blood, his most recent is Sins of Empire, and he just released a novella that you can check out for $2.99: The Mad Lancers.

 

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SFFMP 148: 12 Ways to Keep Your Backlist Selling and Maintain a Steady Income

Group Discussion, Podcast

The guys discussed the various tactics they’ve tried and promotions they’ve participated in that have helped keep their older titles selling, especially in finished series that haven’t seen new releases in a while.

Here’s the short list, though they also answered listener questions and expounded on these quite a bit. As usual, it wasn’t a short show!

1. Run a sale on Book 1 (free/99 cents) while booking promos
2. Put together a boxed set of the first 3-4 books and run promos on it.
3. Publish new stories (short stories or novellas, if not novels) that tie into your old, completed series.
4. Publish short stories for your old series in multi-author anthologies that will lead people into your books.
5. Join or put together a multi-author boxed set, using one of your old Book 1s. It’s a chance to basically promo something new for all the authors involved.
6. If you have a number of series, consider putting together a “sampler” boxed set with your own Book 1s (maybe publishing something new to entice regular readers who already have the other stuff to buy).
7. Relaunch with new blurbs, categories, and new covers, especially if your original ones were done on the cheap and/or don’t seem a perfect fit.
8. Facebook/AMS ads for a steady trickle of sales.
9. Sales/freebies combined with joint authors promos or newsletter swaps.
10. Keep your community active and engaged in social media with polls/discussions/artwork. Word of mouth is easier to get when you’ve got people talking.
11. Create print copy giveaways on Goodreads, or on your own blog. Engage the readers. Make them do something different, or fun, to “enroll” in contest.
12. Network with other authors. Offer to write a “guest” blog post. Offer newsletter swaps.

 

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