When developing your book promotion strategy, it is important to prioritize your activities. The first items on your list should always be the things that will have the greatest impact on your bottom line and require the least effort – especially if you are publishing your book to make money. Writing is about earning a passive income. Thus, the less time you “spend” earning money, the better your return on investment.
Believe it or not – one of the best ways to sell your book is to give it away! That may seem rather strange at first, but allow me to explain…
Most authors look at their book like a baby. It’s beautiful to them, and they are sure that people will want to buy it and read it many times over. That may be very true, but people can’t buy a book if they don’t know it exists. What if they learned about the book from a trusted associate/friend? What if they found a gleaming review for the book online? Wouldn’t they be more likely to purchase your book then? Definitely.
To see what I mean – here’s a review that our CEO, Brent Sampson, received for his book, Sell Your Book on Amazon:
This is only a portion of the review, but can you see how this can help an uneasy book buyer purchase your book? Any book can have a “flowery” description, but an honest review from an unbiased reader speaks volumes.
So, how can I find someone to review my book? That’s a great question – there are many reviewers online. An internet search can help. You can search for terms such as “book blogger”, “book review”, etc. You can also use the Book Blogs Search Engine for topical searches.
Outskirts Press authors who don’t want to do all of the “heavy lifting” themselves can also purchase either of our book review submission services:
- Standard Book Review Submission
- ForeWord Clarion Guaranteed Book Review (10% OFF through tomorrow, July 22 with promo code FWCLAR10)
- Kirkus Indie Guaranteed Book Review
- Blue Ink Guaranteed Book Review
Are you a self-publishing author ready to receive marketing support like this?
You can also get book reviews over at PennBookReview.com! It’s a great service for both indie and traditional authors! They really do an excellent job.
Great post.
Once you transition from having a manuscript to holding an actual book your job as an independent author switches from writer to promoter. Even if you or your publisher has hired a professional publicist for your title making the public aware that your book exists should be your top priority if you care about sales that is . One part of a successful publicity campaign is having reviews for your book and even as an independent author there are many ways to secure some solid unbiased reviews..First of all make sure you have plenty of copies of your book on hand as well as a nice budget for postage! .