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We all want to sell more books, and in this episode, Dave Chesson from Kindlepreneur gives some actionable tips on how to use keywords for better book marketing.

In the intro, I discuss how audiobooks are becoming the dominant format for reading in Sweden and why the subscription model is on the rise. [The New Publishing Standard.] Plus, why audiobooks will be boosted by Amazon's new Echo Input [The Verge], Echo Auto [The Verge], and the Audible app on the latest Apple watch. [The Digital Reader]

Today's show is sponsored by IngramSpark, who I use to print and distribute my print-on-demand books to 39,000 retailers including independent bookstores, schools and universities, libraries and more. It's your content – do more with it through IngramSpark.com.

Dave Chesson writes books under multiple pen names and is best known in the Indie author community for creating KDP Rocket and also for his useful blog and podcast at Kindlepreneur.com.

You can listen above or on iTunes or Stitcher or watch the video here, read the notes and links below. Here are the highlights and full transcript below.

Show Notes

• The deeply personal reason Dave created Kindlepreneur

• The differences between finding keywords for fiction and non-fiction

• Steps to take to find words your potential audience will be searching for on Amazon

• The four content areas of fiction to look at to find keywords

• The difference between broad and specific keywords. We discuss Keywords Gone Wild article on The Book Designer.

• How to breathe life back into a book that hasn’t been selling

• Dave’s thoughts on format (ebook, audiobook etc.) and keywords

• Using your 7 keywords to create a list of thousands for AMS ads. Plus, click here for Dave's FREE Amazon Ad Training Course

• Ideas for blog content that will draw in readers and other writers in your genre

You can find Dave Chesson at Kindlepreneur.com and on Twitter @DaveChesson

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Today I’m talking about a common question I get asked all the time: how much time do you spend writing and how much time on marketing?

You can watch the video below or here on YouTube, or read the transcript below.

In the video, I cover:

• The (incorrect) assumption that the job of a writer is just writing, but it has always included marketing.
• Marketing generally IS writing, whether you're blogging, prepping for a video or a podcast, or writing social media, writing text is the cornerstone of marketing.
• The question implies that only the ‘writing' side is valid, whereas marketing can also achieve some of the goals of writing e.g. many people who have found my videos and audio podcast useful have not read my books, but I have still been useful on their author journey.
• Organizing your time is about splitting it into creative blocks and marketing blocks, so you can effectively find time for both.

For more marketing tips, check out How to Market a Book, available in ebook, print, and audiobook formats.

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There are many ways to market your books, but most marketing will drive readers to your sales page on the online bookstores, and there are ways you can improve it so they stick around and buy.

In today's article, Chrys Fey outlines how you can improve your Amazon book sales page.

Amazon is the place to be if you’re an author. Even if you publish wide, this is where the reviews that matter, the reviews that influence sales, come in.

This is where most readers come to buy reading material. This is where an author could potentially make it onto a bestseller list.

Your Amazon book page is like a home for your book, your fans, and any potential readers. Just as you decorate your home to make it inviting, cozy, and reflect your style, you can do the same for your books’ pages on Amazon.

You may not be able to change the color scheme, but you can include as much information as you can about your books for Amazon customers. The more compelling, insightful and fun the information, the better.

Obviously, you’ll want to have the full blurb for your book set up for readers, but don’t stop there!

Here then are 5 ways to spice up your Amazon book pages:

1. From the Author

Pay special attention to the “From the Author” section. Use this spot to provide additional insight into your book. If you’ve done an author interview recently, or have done several in the past, put a few of the best questions you answered in this section. You’ll want to highlight questions that brought out the best answers that readers would find interesting. Make sure the answers aren’t too long. One small paragraph is a perfect length for an in-depth answer.

If you have ever shared tidbits or secrets about your book on social media, you can also add that to the “From the Author” section. Or you can tell a story about how you got the idea for your book. Just don’t post any spoilers!

2. Tagline

Begin the “Product Description” area with your book’s tagline. Come up with a single sentence to entice readers and get them to read your blurb. A tagline usually reveals the main plot point.

You can also end the blurb with a closing or wrap-up sentence to intrigue readers to take the final step and one-click. I have one such sentence beneath the description for Seismic Crimes (Disaster Crimes Book 2). “Take a walk with Chrys Fey through disasters, criminal activity, and blooming love.”

3. Highlight a Book’s Length

You can put a line above the blurb to highlight the book’s length in pages. I do this for my eBooks that aren’t novel length (novellas and short stories). I put asterisks around this information to make it more visible. Why do I put this detail first? Because I don’t want readers to be disappointed thinking one of my eBooks is longer than it actually is.

Although I do this, there has been a couple of instances where a reviewer negatively mentioned an eBook being too short. Mostly this happens when a book is free or on sale and a reader one-clicks without reading any of the book’s info. If this happens to you, even when you put this info at the top, it’s not your fault. Brush off that review and that comment, because you did what was necessary to make sure potential buyers understood the length.

4. Extra Descriptive Details

• Categories: Put a list of categories (3-5) under your book’s blurb for readers who might want to know what genres/categories your story falls under. This is especially good for those readers who don’t scroll down to see the product details.

• Content Warning: A content warning is smart for books with sensitive content that readers may not feel comfortable reading. For instance, if your book is for mature readers due to sexual content, has explicit language, or contains triggers (drug use, sexual abuse), mention it in the description, beneath the book’s blurb.

• Series: Is your book part of a series? Add an ordered list of each book in the series in the description section. This is excellent for readers who may want to know what books come before or after the one they are looking at, especially if they are new to the series.

5. Editorial Reviews

Maybe you have editorial reviews for your book on its book page. Or maybe you don’t.

You don’t need to wait for a review from Publisher’s Weekly (or the like) to use the Editorial Reviews section, though. Did you have authors beta read your book? Ask them for a blurb of endorsement. Or submit your book to be reviewed by InD’tale or Readers’ Favorite. Also, send requests to book bloggers. If your book is accepted and reviewed, quote a part of the review in this section.

You can quote a review even if you don’t get a 5-star rating. All you need is one sentence that praises your writing, characters, or plot. That’s it. One little sentence.

If you have a prequel, sequel, trilogy, or series, spotlight a few of the best reviews for each book in the editorial section of each book page. I did this with each instalment of my Disaster Crimes series. I begin with reviews for the current book (the book page I am on) and then follow it with a couple of reviews for each book in order. This is a great way to promote all of the books in a series, and hopefully get more sales from one instalment to the next.

If you’re not doing these things, go do them now. Or do something different if you get another idea from these tips. Make your books’ pages stand out. Make your books’ pages a place for readers to find out what they’ll need to know to read your book, or a place for them to gather a little more information after they read your book and are posting their reviews.

What would you like to see on a book page for a book you love? If you can answer that question then you have something you can do for yours.

Have you applied all these tips to your Amazon book pages? Please leave your thoughts below and join the conversation.

Chrys Fey is the author of Write with Fey: 10 Sparks to Guide You from Idea to Publication.

Catch the sparks you need to write, edit, publish, and market your book! From writing your novel to prepping for publication and beyond, you’ll find sparks on every page, including 100 bonus marketing tips. Fey is an editor for Dancing Lemur Press and runs the Insecure Writer’s Support Group’s Goodreads book club. She is also the author of the Disaster Crimes series.

Podcast: Download (Duration: 1:09:03 — 56.1MB)

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If you want to have a long-term career as an author, you need readers to care about you and want to buy your books over the years to come. So how do you turn strangers into superfans? I discuss this and more book marketing tips with David Gaughran in today's show.

In the introduction, I discuss the embezzlement at ‘famed' New York literary agency, Donadio and Olson, as reported by the New York Post this week. I encourage authors to educate and empower themselves and take control of their author business. Read Kris Rusch's informed article, and Chuck Palahniuk's blog post about how he is broke because of it.

I also mention the potential impact of Patricia Cornwell signing with APub [Business Wire] and predict that this will be the first big print run when APub books appear in high street bookstores. Plus, customers in Australia will be blocked from shopping on Amazon.com after July 1, 2018 because of 10% GST. This will impact Kindle users [The Digital Reader]. Make sure you have licensed your books for Australia if you want readers to be able to find them.

Want to write non-fiction and turn your knowledge into words? Want a step-by-step guide through the mindset, business aspects, writing and editing, publishing and product creation, as well as marketing a non-fiction book?

Check out How to Write Non-Fiction: Turn your Knowledge into Words, out now in ebook, print, large print, workbook, and coming soon in audio format. I also have a multi-media course, How to Write a Non-Fiction Book, which expands on the material. You can get US$50 off by using coupon code: LAUNCH, valid until 30 June 2018.

David Gaughran is the bestselling author of historical fiction, short stories, and popular guides for writers. His latest book is Strangers To Superfans: A Marketing Guide To The Readers' Journey.

You can listen above or on iTunes or Stitcher or watch the video here, read the notes and links below. Here are the highlights and full transcript below.

Show Notes

• The ups and downs of David’s author career over the past few years

• The effects of a disappointing book launch

• Staying current with book marketing strategies

• What the Buyer’s Journey is and how it applies to authors marketing their books

• How Kindle Unlimited has changed the book landscape, even for those not enrolled in the program

• Why KU isn’t a magic bullet

• How much Also Boughts matter for book sales

• The five stages of the reader journey and why we sometimes accidentally focus on the wrong stage

You can find David Gaughran at DavidGaughran.com and on Twitter @DavidGaughran

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