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Business of Writing Marketing Self-Publishing Writing

How to Price Your eBook

January 13, 2012 – 1:00 am

Girl ReadingOne of the most common questions I hear from indie authors is:  “How do I price my eBook?”

First, let’s deal with some wrong thinking about price.  There is no one method or approach to pricing that will work for every book.  That’s right.  There is not a single answer to this question.

So, the real question becomes, what is some way I can determine a price for my book that the market will bear?

Let’s consider some of the information you’ll need to come up with a good pricing strategy.

1. How many titles do you have available?

2. What are other comparable eBooks in your genre selling for?

3. What are your distribution channels?

4. What are your sales goals?  Are you looking for a short, big burst of sales or are you looking at building a steady stream of sales over a period of time?

 

Number of Titles Available

If you only have one title available, your pricing strategy will probably vary from an author who has multiple titles.  For example, when my first book, A Dream Unfolding, was released, I priced it at $2.99 until the second book in the series came out.  I chose the $2.99 because a lot of authors talk about that being the sweet spot price for eBooks (more on my thoughts about that later).  My sales were okay – not really reaching over 100 books per month at that price point.

When I released my third book in the series, I dropped the price of the first book to $0.99 while pricing books two and three at $2.99.  I was still working on building my marketing strategy, but I sold over 200 copies of the first book that month and another 150 between the other two.

After a month of some very strong marketing, selling over 700 books between all three titles, I decided to come up with a better strategy for pricing books two and three.  I left book one at $0.99 to reduce the barriers for new readers to try my books as a new-to-them author.

My answer for books two and three?  I priced them both at $5.99.  Before you cringe and say that my sales tanked, let me offer you the next point.

Price ManPrice of Comparable Books in Your Genre

I did a pricing study of the top 100 best selling eBooks in my genre.  You know what I found when I did that?  The average price for my genre was $5.29 with some eBooks as high as $9.99 and others as low as $0.99.  I decided to go up a little from the average and price them at $5.99.

The results?  I didn’t see any drop off in sales.  Instead, I saw a marginal increase, which I attribute to better marketing efforts, closing out the month with 1740 books.  That number has been steadily increasing each subsequent month.

Distribution Channels

How do distribution channels affect pricing?  Well, if your eBook is on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and other distributors, be aware of their rules.  Amazon has a strict policy (see KDP’s Terms & Conditions for the most accurate info) that your eBook cannot be priced lower on another distributor than it is on their site.  Apple has a rule that the book must end in 99 (i.e. $0.99, $1.99, etc).  These rules must play into your pricing strategy.

Sales Goals

Lastly, your sales goals are a part of your pricing strategy.  If you’re looking for a short term burst, try lowering your price for a short period of time, like for a 99 cent sale.

If you’re looking for long term, steady sales growth, consider doing a pricing study or pick a price and stick with it for awhile.  Price alone will not provide long term sales Marketing plays an important role to the success of your novel.

The Sweet Spot Price

Given my own results with books priced higher than $2.99, I disagree with the idea that there is a one-size fits all sweet spot price for all eBooks of all genres.  My historical novels are doing well at the $5.99 price point.

Conversely, my new contemporary novel is not getting as much traction at $4.99.  My approach to this?  I’m working on beefing up my marketing efforts for it—leaving price alone.  If it’s still not doing well in its third month of release, then I might play with price.

Remember, price is just one of the tools at your disposal for selling your novels.  Don’t forget about advertising, distribution, and promotions.

 

Self-published author, Karen Baney, enjoys sharing information to help authors learn about the Business of Writing.  She holds a Masters of Business Administration from Arizona State University and has worked in various business related career fields for the past 20 years.  She writes Christian Historical Fiction and Contemporary Romance novels.  For more information about Karen’s books, visit her Amazon Page.

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Marketing Writing

500 Books in 12 Hours

January 6, 2012 – 1:00 am

Sales UpHuh?  Is it possible for an indie author to sell 500 books in 12 hours?

The answer is yes.  On Dec. 6th, my novel, A Dream Unfolding, appeared on Ereader News Today’s Bargain Kindle Book list.  This website accepts $0.99 books that have a rating of 4.0 or higher on Amazon.  I initially submitted the request toward the end of October, so it takes some time to get in the queue.

But the results were well worth it.  For $25, I sold 500 copies of A Dream Unfolding in 12 hours.

That’s not all.  During the first 24 hours after my book first appeared, it shot to #1 on Amazon’s Kindle Best Seller list in Religious Fiction.  It also shot up to #165 on Amazon’s over all Kindle Best Seller list.  This was huge!  Never before had this title reached such amazing heights.

Another great perk of climbing so high on the Amazon best sellers list is that my book started appearing more and more when customers purchased similar books in related genres.  You know:  Customers who bought this book, also bought…

What’s the moral of this story?  You can market effectively for very little cost.  If you do a little digging, sometimes you’ll find a gem like Ereader News Today.  I first learned about them from an author community that I belong to online.

OpenMindNot every opportunity will pay off this big.  But, with a little effort, you can find low cost or free marketing avenues online that help get your book in front of readers.  Just think outside the box.

 

To learn more about Ereader News Today, visit: http://ereadernewstoday.com/an-opportunity-for-authors-to-promote-their-books-at-ent/ 

 

Self-published author, Karen Baney, enjoys sharing information to help authors learn about the Business of Writing.  She holds a Masters of Business Administration from Arizona State University and has worked in various business related career fields for the past 20 years.  She writes Christian Historical Fiction and Contemporary Romance novels.  For more information about Karen’s books, visit her Amazon Page.

 

 

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Marketing Writing

The Business of Writing: Marketing Mix (Part 2)

March 28, 2011 – 6:29 pm

Yesterday we tackled two of the 4 P’s of the marketing mix: Product and Price.  Today, we’ll discuss how Place (Distribution) and Promotion fit into your overall marketing mix as an author.

Place (distribution)

As a self-published author, I am in complete control of which distribution channels I use.  I can choose to sell my book only on Amazon as an ebook, or I can choose to release it in multiple ebook formats.  I can distribute the book through a print-on-demand partner, reaching other channels.

Even if you are not self-published, understanding the different distribution channels available through your publisher can help you better reach your readers.  If your novel is a niche book, it might not make sense to choose a distribution channel that mass releases your book to hundreds of bookstores.  Your target market may be looking for books in your genre only on the internet.

If sales seem sluggish in your current distribution channels, consider adding a new channel.  If you are selling mostly ebooks on Amazon, perhaps it is time to make it available for the Nook, Sony eReader, Apple iBooks, Kobo, or Diesel.  Smashwords is a great distributor that can make the process easier for you by formatting your book for you and getting it out to all of these channels.  (They do take a share of your royalty, but you may decide it’s worth it for the convenience).

Promotion

How do I market my novel?  When most authors ask this question, they are really asking, “How do I promote my novel?”  The internet is full of ideas and suggestions for promoting your novel, so I won’t attempt to repeat what is out there.

The most important thing to consider when selecting your approach to promotion is:  Will this marketing effort reach my target market?  If the answer is “no,” then it is a waste of your time and money.  If the typical reader of your genre never watches TV, running a TV ad will be ineffective.  If they never listen to the radio, don’t run a radio spot.  Conversely, if they hang out on Goodreads and talk about how much they love different books in that genre—well, you might consider doing an author Q&A on Goodreads in conjunction with the launch of your latest novel.

Here’s another idea:  search the internet for the big name authors in your genre.  How do they promote their work?  Consider trying some of the things that they did.  For example, my novels are Christian Historical Fiction.  I recently found another bigger name in the genre that was doing a book blog tour.  I made note of what blogs their book appeared on.  Then, I looked on those reviewers’ blogs to see if they had a few other books in the same genre.  If they did, then I contacted them to see if they would review my book.  I know my target audience is already spending time reading their blogs, so this is a very effective marketing effort for me.

If your novel is a genre similar to a movie that is premiering in your local area (i.e. Twilight), then maybe you want to print out some fliers and hand them out as people are waiting in line to buy tickets.

The key with any promotional effort is learning to think like your target audience.  Find out where they spend their time and reach them where they are.  Think creatively, after all, you’re an author.  Your good at that.

Karen Baney has a Masters of Business Administration from Arizona State University.  In addition, she has studied Entrepreneurship.  She is actively applying these principles in her own business as a Christian Historical Fiction self-published author.

 Like what you’ve read?  Leave a comment below or email Karen at info(at)karenbaney(dot)com or check out her books on her Amazon Page.

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Marketing Self-Publishing Writing

The Business of Writing: Marketing Mix (Part 1)

March 27, 2011 – 7:05 pm

In any business, marketing mix is an important concept to understand in order to give your marketing plan the greatest chance of success.  Whether a company is selling laundry detergent or an author is selling a novel, the basics of marketing mix remain the same.

What is marketing mix?  Most business school textbooks breakdown marketing mix with these four P’s:

  1. Product
  2. Price
  3. Place (aka distribution)
  4. Promotion

When marketing your novel, it is very important to consider this mix, whether you are self-publishing, working with a small press, or contracted with a larger publishing company.  Price alone, while sometimes a strong influencer, will not drive the success of your novel.  Neither will the book (product) simply sell itself.  Let’s a take a closer look at each of these four areas.

Product (your novel and you)

As an author you are really selling two products whenever you release a book: you and your novel.  Your image as an author is critical in building repeat customers, whether you are releasing your first novel or your fiftieth.  Your platform and overall message is important to building you as a brand.

Your novel is the primary product and it should meet a market need.  If you are churning out the most amazing romance fiction, but if there is no distinction between your work and the work of thousands of other romance authors, what need of your customers are you meeting?  How are you meeting that need in a way that differentiates you from others?

Other aspects of the physical product play a part in the larger marketing mix.  Your novel’s cover art and design is the number one most recognizable aspect of your novel’s brand.  If the cover is not well done or eye catching, it could be hurting your sales.

Title of the work is another consideration.   What sort of title fits your book?  How does the title tie to a theme or a character?  Does it make sense?  Is it pronounceable?  Does it attract your target market?

Price

Pricing a book is a difficult consideration.  Many factors go into deciding the price.  What works for a romance novel might be underpriced for a thriller, so it’s good to understand pricing within your specific genre.  Ask yourself what the market will tolerate for a book similar in length in your genre in a particular format.  Consumers expect an ebook’s price to be lower than a paperback, which they expect to be lower than a hardcover.  In some cases, an ebook priced significantly lower than print version may generate more sales than one that tries to stay close to print version prices.

Playing with the price of your novel by offering discounts or offering a free ebook version can be a great way to reach new readers.  Offering a promotional price for too long of a period, or constantly changing the price, can have a negative effect—you can alienate customers who already purchased your novel at the higher price.

Tomorrow, I’ll wrap up this two part series on marketing mix by discussion the remaining two P’s: Place (Distribution) and Promotion.

Karen Baney has a Masters of Business Administration from Arizona State University.  In addition, she has studied Entrepreneurship.  She is actively applying these principles in her own business as a Christian Historical Fiction self-published author.

Like what you’ve read?  Leave a comment below or email Karen at info(at)karenbaney(dot)com or check out her books on her Amazon Page.

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Marketing Writing

Finding and Working With Book Reviewers

February 26, 2011 – 9:14 pm

Before I get started with my tips on reviewers, I want to highlight the number one most important thing about marketing:  Know thy audience.  Before you spend one dime on marketing your novel, make sure you know who your target audience is.  Who do you want to buy your book?

My primary target audience is: avid women readers of Christian Fiction.  My secondary markets are: men who read Christian Fiction, women who read romance (not limited to Christian / Inspirational), and other authors.  So, how do I reach my target audiences?

Well, one very good way to reach readers of any kind is to find bloggers who review novels.  I’ve had pretty good success in generating sales by getting reviewers of Christian Romance and Christian Historical Fiction to review my book, A Dream Unfolding.  Here’s what I did:

1.  I found this blog: http://www.stepbystepselfpublishing.net/reviewer-list.html.  It contains a list of reviewers that are favorable to indie authors and small press authors.  I started going through the list contacting anyone who I thought might read my book.

2.  Then, I began to refine who I searched for.  I want to make sure I’m reaching my primary market.  So, if I’m being reviewed by someone who typically reviews paranormal romance, I’m probably not reaching my target.  I focused on those reviewers who specifically stated they review Historical Romance.  If they didn’t say, I looked through their recent reviews to see if the books they are reviewing fit with my target audience.

3.  Before sending any email, I familiarized myself with their review policy.  What format did they want the book in?  Did they explicitly state that they do not review eBooks?  What kind of turnaround time do they have?

4.  Then, I send a very professional email.  Remember, first impressions count.  Here’s what I typically include in my emails to the reviewer:

  • My novel’s title
  • My novel’s genre
  • Format my book is available for sale (i.e. Kindle, Nook, Sony, etc).
  • Brief note, if this is the first in a series or if it is currently available in electronic format, I might mention when I expect to have a print version available.
  • Ask what format they would prefer, suggesting Kindle or PDF.
  • Address anything else stated in their policy (i.e. giveaways, etc).
  • Synopsis of my book (back cover copy)
  • Thank them for their time
  • In my signature, I include my name, email, phone, website, twitter, and Facebook page.

5.  Respond promptly when you hear back.  I typically respond the same day (or the next day if it’s late in the evening) answering any questions they have or to supply a copy of the eBook.  If they request a print copy, I try to mail it off in a day or two.

6.  Don’t expect everyone to respond.  I’ve gotten responses from maybe half of the number of inquiries that I send out.

7.  Don’t let a long lead time keep you from saying yes.  For example, I have one reviewer who told me they were pretty back logged, but they were really interested in reviewing my book.  They said it would be around 2 – 3 months.  I decided to go with that.  It won’t help me generate sales right now, but in 2 – 3 months, I should get another boost.  And, this particular reviewer contacted me about doing a giveaway for a special event she was having.  So, I will get the benefit of the giveaway boost and the review on two different dates.

Like what you’ve read?  Leave a comment below or email Karen at info(at)karenbaney(dot)com or check out her books on her Amazon Page.

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