bookbub ads – Science Fiction & Fantasy Marketing Podcast

SFFMP 213: Marketing Plans for 2019, Meta Data and SEO Explained, and Which Advertising Platforms are Best for Authors?

December 23, 2018 SFFpodcast Group Discussion, Podcast

We recorded early this week, since Christmas is on a Tuesday, so we hope you enjoy the show while you’re traveling or after you’ve had fun with the holidays. The three of us answered listener questions that covered the range from what the heck is meta data and SEO to what kind of marketing we plan to try in 2019 and which advertising platforms we’ve found best for their books.

Here’s a list of the questions as well as some Bookbub-related links that Lindsay promised:

How do you market cross-over fiction such as a mix between urban fantasy and near-future-SF?
Is urban fantasy with a lighter humorous note a trend now?
What is meta data and SEO, and does it matter for authors?
How much value is there to in-house promos on the various retailers, such as prime reading on Amazon, the promo tab on Kobo, and Apple and B&N features?
What new will Jo, Jeff, and Lindsay be trying in 2019 in regard to marketing?
Are book blog tours worth your time as an author?
What should you do to build buzz and sell books if you don’t have money to spend on advertising?
Who are the guys’ favorite authors and how did they influence them?
How do you go about improving as a novelist and keeping new books from being too much like what you’ve written before?
Have you tried to publish your audiobooks on Spotify?
Do you need an ISBN for an Amazon paperback and a different one for an IngramSpark paperback?
What’s the biggest thing you learned/realized in 2018, and how will that change your approach to publishing in 2019?
How would you go about calculating ROI for advertising a series that doesn’t have a set reading order? Whenever people talk about this calculation, it always hinges on figuring out your readthrough, but if the series has multiple entry points and you can skip books, what then?
What do you find is the most effective platform for authors for ads?
What marketing avenues would you recommend for authors who aren’t big fans of marketing?
How have your audiobook sales done for your different series? Does releasing a new audiobook for a backlist book help boost sales?
What’s going on if you’re struggling to get impressions and clicks are expensive for Bookbub ads? (Links: All About Bookbub CPM Ads and Becoming a #1 Bestseller on Amazon with Adam Croft, Bookbub Insights Blog for Authors, The Best Bookbub Ads of 2018)
Can you change your author name on Amazon after you’ve published a book?

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blog tours, book marketing, bookbub ads, guest posting, isbns, marketing in 2019, meta data, publishing, seo

SFFMP 201: Bookbub Ads Update and Cultivating a Successful Author Mindset

October 2, 2018 SFFpodcast Author Interview, Podcast

This week, we had return guest, crime-fiction author Adam Croft, on the show. We asked him about changes to Bookbub ads that have come about in the last year (he joined us in 2017 for Episode 151 All About Bookbub CPM Ads and Becoming a #1 Bestseller on Amazon), what he’s been up to, and why he’s written a book on author mindset.

Here’s some of what we covered in the show:

Adam’s latest releases and what he’s working on now.
How Bookbub ads have changed in the last year and why he still likes them, especially for advertising to the Apple iTunes store.
How he’s found some great success using Facebook ads on some of his novels but hasn’t gotten them to work well on others.
Why he’s a fan of thinking long-term and not going exclusive with Amazon.
The challenges of selling non-fiction as well as fiction and building platforms to draw in both types of readers.
How well non-fiction audiobooks can do.
The different things authors should be focusing on to turn writing from a hobby to a business.
Some of the struggles authors have when it comes to mindset.
How to decide who you’re going to listen to in the indie author space when it comes to taking advice.
How flexibility when it comes to pricing, packaging, and marketing a book can help you.
Striving to get multiple income streams coming in, even from a single book.

You can visit Adam on his website and check out The Indie Author Mindset at your favorite store.

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adam croft, author mindset, bookbub ads, itunes store

SFFMP 165: Relaunching a Series, Bookbub Ads, and Does Podcasting Help Authors?

January 9, 2018 SFFpodcast Author Interview, Podcast

A return guest joined us on the show this week, Bryan Cohen, non-fiction author, podcaster, and author of fairy tales and superhero fiction. We talked about the fairy-tale-writing pen name he launched in 2016 and the big relaunch (including edits, new covers, and new ASINs on Amazon) he did of his first fiction series in 2017, where he turned it from a sort-of-urban fantasy series to something clearly in the superhero genre. We also discussed tips for getting the cost per click down on Bookbub ads and whether podcasting can be useful for authors.

In the end, Bryan told us about the Sell More Books Show Summit, a conference he’s helping host the first weekend of May in Chicago this year, and what prompted him to start a new conference for authors. If you’re interested in going, tickets are still on sale (with the Early Bird price good through January 12th this week).

Here are some more specific details of what we talked about:

How Bryan’s foray into fairy tales and a new pen name went.
What he learned from launching into a new genre.
How organizing and putting together a fairy tale anthology with some other well-known authors helped earn a good amount through Kindle Unlimited and also drive readers back to his novel.
Some things he wishes he had done differently when launching the pen name.
How he juggles writing fiction, hosting a podcast, and working in the author services industry with having a family.
Whether it makes sense to be a podcaster as well as an author — ie. will it sell any books?
What kind of podcast would make sense if an author was interested in starting one?
Current events in the publishing world that authors may be overreacting to.
What made Bryan decide to not only relaunch his series with new covers, blurbs, titles, and in a new genre, but also why he went back and did some major editing on the early books.
Budgetary and time concerns to think about with a relaunch.
Whether to keep your existing Amazon ASIN and book reviews or to start from scratch.
Whether it’s necessary to clear a relaunch with fans or if Bryan dealt with any blowback from readers upset by the edits.
Bookbub ads and ways to tinker to get the CTR up (and the cost per click down).
Whether Bookbub ads are more effective in some genres than others.

If you enjoyed listening to Bryan chat, you can also check him out on two of our earlier episodes:

SFFMP 15: YouTube Marketing, Facebook Events, and Increasing Mailing List Sign-Ups

SFFMP 84: Creating Better Book Descriptions (Blurbs) to Improve Your Sales with Bryan Cohen

Also, make sure to visit his site, check out his books if you like superheroes or fairy tales, and the Summit if you’re interested in going.

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book relaunch, bookbub ads, bryan cohen, fairy tales, podcasting, podcasting for authors, relaunching a series, superhero fantasy

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

September 26, 2017 SFFpodcast 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.