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Get Your Books Found on Amazon

Posted on by Karen Cioffi

Everyone writing a book should realize that once it’s done, you will need to get it published, distributed, and visible.

If you’re traditionally publishing, you don’t have to worry about publishing and distribution. But, no matter what publishing path you take, you’ll need to learn about book marketing.

This article focuses on being discoverable through Amazon, in particular, but the content will also apply to any platform you choose to distribute your books to, including Barnes & Noble, iBook, and otheres.

Okay, so you have your manuscript, whether it was ghostwritten or you wrote it yourself. If you need illustrations for your children’s picture book, you’ve researched and found a great illustrator.

Everything is done, including editing, and your manuscript is now ready to go.

According to an article at MichaelHyatt.com, research shows how a potential reader looks at your book in the order that she actually looks:

1. She looks at the title, so it should definitely be grabbing (an attention-getter) and reflective of the book’s content.
2. She looks at the cover.
3. She looks at the back cover.
4. She looks at the flap (this applies to hardcover books with dust jackets).
5. She’ll glance over the Table of Contents.
6. She’ll glance at the first couple of paragraphs at the beginning of the story.
7. She’ll look at the price (it should be comparable to other books in your genre).

We’ll focus more on points 1, 2, and 3.

The title

Up till now, you might have been using a ‘working’ title. It’s time to step up your game and create a motivating title. As you can see above, the title is the NUMBER ONE element a potential reader will look at.

It’s also a good idea to include a subtitle. This will further help the reader and search engines find your book and help them determine what it’s about.

This is especially important in series.

The title and subtitle will be the first bit of information a potential reader will discover about your book.

The title should be:

– An attention-getting (as mentioned above)
– Be relevant to the book itself – giving information as to what the reader can expect
– Be memorable (if at all possible)
– Be easy to say

The last two attributes are akin to your website’s domain name. Don’t make it a difficult one to pronounce or remember. People want easy and quick.

So, why do you want your title to be memorable and easy to say?

You want the reader to tell his friend that he read “Your Book Title” and loved it. You want the friend to remember the title so he can look it up and buy it.

After the title, the potential reader will look at the cover.

Do your research to get it right.

The front cover

This is definitely not for amateurs. Your cover illustration and design need to be professionally done.

While much of creating a book today can cost little to no money, you should invest in the cover. And it doesn’t have to be expensive. There are a number of services, such as Fiverr.com, that can have skilled graphic designers.

The key is to find the right one for your book.

After the title and cover design, the potential reader will look at the back cover. This is usually enough for her to make a decision.

The back cover

Now, do you know what you want to do with the back cover?

While the front cover and title are your most important selling features, the back cover is the next most important thing in giving the reader a reason to buy your book.

– Do you want your author bio and picture on the back? (Not unless you’re James Patterson or Stephen King.)
– Do you want back cover copy that will help motivate the reader to buy the book? (Yes.)
– Do you want an illustration included? (If at all possible, especially for a children’s book.)

These are things to think about.

A good way to help decide is to visit your library and browse recently published books in your genre. She how these publishers designed the back covers.

Another factor

On a lesser note, some readers are interested in learning more about the author. They may scan the back of the book to check out the author’s bio. This may be the factor that gets them to buy.

This is why you should have an Author page.

Self-publishing companies

Now, it’s time to research a quality company that can take your manuscript (and illustrations, if applicable) and turn it into an ebook, physical book, or both.

The self-publishing company or distributor will ask you to input keywords, a description, an author blurb, back cover copy, and possibly dedication copy.

Don’t just jot anything down. Think carefully. Take your time. Research keywords and what to say for the other elements.

Whether your books are listed on Amazon or elsewhere, the site’s visitor search engines will look at those optimized elements to provide an accurate answer to a visitor’s query.

SIDE NOTE: Most of the self-publishing companies offer packages. It could include illustrations, editing, keywords, a description, and so on. It will be an additional fee, though. And keep in mind most are not interested in you selling your books – most of them make their money directly from you.

So again, take the time to research how to choose the categories, create your own optimized keywords, and so on. Give your book every opportunity to be discoverable.

At this point, you may be wondering what this all means. Well, let me give you an example.

How Amazon’s search works – Basically

Pete wants to buy a book for his middle-grade son, who loves fantasy adventure stories. So, Pete inputs Middle Grade, Fantasy, Adventure, and Book in Amazon’s search box.

My small traditional publisher created relevant keywords and a description for my chapter book, “Walking Through Walls.”

My book’s keywords and description include the keywords Pete used in his query.

Guess what?

Based on the optimization of my book, Amazon knows that it’s a good match for Pete’s query so they may very well include my book as one of the search results.

While there are other factors involved, this is basically how it works.

This is the power of optimizing your book for visibility. Keywords and categories especially make your book more discoverable.

How to find effective keywords . . . and categories

Just knowing you need effective keywords isn’t going to be of much help. To find those keywords, think logically; use common sense.

1. What is your book about?
2. What words would you use to describe your book?
3. What words would you use in a search box to find a similar book?
4. What words do you think a reader will use to find a book like yours?

Let’s say your book is a romance set in Tuscany. Come up with a list of keywords you think a person might use to search for that kind of story. Maybe it deals with a vineyard or tourism.

Along with the obvious: romance, Tuscany, love, think long-tail keyword.

A long-tail keyword is a more specific keyword. In addition to the basics, like romance, include ‘love in Tuscan,’ ‘romance Italian style.’ It might even be something like ‘love and wine and romance in Tuscany.’

You get the idea, elaborate. However, always use keywords relevant to your book.

After you have at least 10 to 15, go to Amazon and enter just the beginning of ‘ROMANCE’ in the search box. In the drop-down box that appears, what key phrases does Amazon bring up?

When I did it, I was given:

Book Marketing

Add the relevant ones listed to your own list.

Next, go to similar books on Amazon. Find a couple of good matches to yours and analyze them.

As an example, I searched for ‘ROMANCE IN TUSCANY.’ Although there wasn’t a drop-down list of keywords, it did bring me to a page with books that contained ‘Tuscany’ in their titles.

For the book “That Month in Tuscany” toward the bottom of Product Details, you’ll find what it’s ranking for (the categories):

Book marketing

This book is ranking well (#1816) for: Books>Romance>Contemporary

In the More About the Author section, toward the bottom it shows what the author’s Author Rank is and for what categories:

Book visibility

The author is ranking high for Kindle eBooks>Romance> Contemporary>Books>Literature & Fiction>Contemporary Fiction

Researching this topic provides you with a great deal of usable information.

NOTE: It’s advisable to conduct this research on books that have a good ranking – those that are doing well on Amazon, such as the book I referenced above.

Categories are similar to keywords, but they provide a broader look at what your book is about.

It’s in the keywords that you’ll get more specific. If they’re appropriate for your book, you might use TUSCANY, ROMANCE IN TUSCANY, ITALY, FLORENCE, TUSCANY VINEYARDS, RENAISSANCE ART, or Michelangelo’s DAVID.

Okay, so you have a good list of keywords and categories. Now, choose the ones that the ‘good ranking’ books are using, plus add ones that are more specific to your book (long-tail keywords). Possibly, romance in Tuscany.

What about the book description?

Amazon is great in it allows up to 4000 words (last time I checked). If you’ve written a novel or full-size nonfiction book, use all the words allowed.

If you have a children’s picture book, obviously, you wouldn’t use all those words. With an appropriate number of words, write a motivating description and elaborate on how the book will be relevant or beneficial in school settings or at home.

Think outside the box. Make your book description as enticing as possible.

If you’re working with a self-publishing company, they’ll most often tell you how many words you’re allowed.

The Amazon Author Page

Not everyone is familiar with the Amazon Author Page, but now you are. Be sure you create one and fill in every feature offered.

Readers often want to know about the author of a book. This will provide them with what they want to know, and it can very well help motivate them to buy your book.

You can find information about creating your own Author Page at:
https://authorcentral.amazon.com/gp/help

You can also see how I created mine:
https://www.amazon.com/author/karencioffi

Taking advantage of Goodreads

Goodreads is probably the largest reader site. Readers list the books they’ve read, are reading, and want to read. And many of the users give reviews of the books they’ve read.

To use this for your research, go to the site and, like Amazon, use the search bar to enter your keyword and see what their search engine brings up.

If you look at a particular book, it will also give you the categories (genres) used.

While you’re on the site, create an account and list your books.

Wrapping it Up

There are many strategies you can use to help market your book. Having your book on Amazon is probably at the top of the list. Just be sure to optimize your listing to make it more discoverable. Research and use effective keywords, categories, and descriptions. Analyze what other books in your genre are doing in this area. Take what you learn and create a slam-dunk Amazon book strategy.

For even more information on Amazon book marketing, visit:
Improve Your Book Descriptions and Audience Targeting

I’m a working children’s ghostwriter, rewriter, and coach. I can help turn your story into a book you’ll be proud to be the author of, one that’s publishable and marketable.

OTHER HELP I OFFER:

HOW TO WRITE A CHILDREN'S FICTION BOOK
A DIY book to help you write your own children’s book.

FICTION WRITING FOR CHILDREN eCOURSE
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I'm also a former author online platform instructor with WOW! Women on Writing. If you need help with your author online platform, you can check out:
Creating an Author Online Platform
This 4-week e-course is over 160-pages of all content, and includes videos. It's interactive and will take you from square one to selling your books.
Rather DIY? Get the ebook for only $19.99.

You can contact me at kcioffiventrice@gmail.com.
10 Book Marketing Tips to Boost Sales

Book Marketing Scams - How to Avoid Them

Book Marketing – SEO Basics

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Karen Cioffi is a working children's ghostwriter, editor, and coach who would love to help you become author of your own children's book. Just send an email to kcioffiventrice@gmail.com

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