How To Sell Your Book On Amazon [70 Book Marketing Tips]

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You wrote a book, and now you want to sell it on Amazon. I’ve got good news! Kindlepreneur is coming in clutch with 70 book marketing ideas that will help you sell more books on Amazon’s eBook and print book marketplace.

Also read Kindlepreneur’s Marketing Mastery Guide.

In this article, you will learn:

Links in this article may earn me a small commission if you use them to purchase a service or product. This has not affected my opinion. However, it helps me continue to write these awesome articles that anyone can read for free!

Note: This article is not about selling used books or old books as an Amazon business. Here’s a great article on individual seller accounts, selling nonfiction hardcover books, comic books like new, and Amazon FBA vs. FBM.

One of the easiest ways to build a platform is to compile an email list of readers and authors interested in what you have to say.

Perhaps you have an author website, a WordPress blog, a YouTube channel — whatever it is, you should be pushing your email list like it’s your number one marketing service.

On this email list, provide value. People will unsubscribe if your email marketing is too spammy or unhelpful. Give your readers book recommendations, tips on how to start writing a book, or a handy list of marketing tips.

What is the best email service for authors? The absolute best email service for authors to use is GetResponse or MailerLite. Both offer authors a great way to communicate with their readers in effective and easy-to-understand ways.

Check out this MailerLite for Authors Course or my side-by-side review of Aweber vs. Mailchimp vs. GetResponse.

When you do publish a book, you should mention your new book in every email to your subscribers.

Whether it’s at the bottom or at the top of the email, let your readers know you have a book they can buy. Also, convince your email list to leave you reviews. If they subscribed to your messages, they are more likely to not only buy your book, but leave you a positive review.

Read more in my article on How to Get Your Email Subscribers to Leave Quality Reviews.

This is a fun trick I learned from Brandon Cullum. Ask your growing email list to take surveys that make it feel like they’re helping you write your book.

When you publish the book, they feel like they contributed, making them more likely to buy the book and hopefully leave some good reviews.

Learn more: How to Use Surveys to Sell More Books

Gather friends, family, colleagues, etc. to form a book launch team. Particularly for self-publishers, this group is crucial for author support, early book reviews,

Some on your team will do this because they love you. Others may need an incentive, like a giveaway or premium content from your website or email list.

Read more in our comprehensive article: How to Build a Launch Team for Your Book

How do I market my book to my friends and family? A great way to market your book to friends and family is to include them in the marketing process. Many friends and family will be thrilled to take part in your launch strategy.

You need to optimize your title and subtitle for Amazon’s and Google’s search engines. Every genre has unique keywords that readers look for — even subconsciously.

For romance, “heart” and “passion” are great words to include in titles and subtitles.

For sci-fi, “star” and “planet” are common words that attract potential readers.

For self-help, “how to” and “definitive guide” will key the right reader in on your book’s topic.

Have you checked out our article on the Best Book Title Generators?

Every author has to choose the right Kindle keywords because it’s how Amazon decides which search terms they should put you in the search results.

Amazon lets you add 7 keywords to your book. Use keywords that readers are searching, that shoppers will pay for, and that doesn’t pose much competition.

What is the best way to promote a book? The best way to promote a book on Amazon is using targeted Amazon ads that capitalize on your keyword strategy. Another great promotion tactic is to build an author platform over the course of several years.

Especially for first-time authors, your book cover is your number one marketing tool. A professional-looking cover makes readers think that your book is generally high-quality. If you’re looking to draw readers in, an intriguing cover makes readers want to know more.

I implore you to hire a professional cover designer,

If you r want to create your own cover, Kindlepreneur has a great mastery guide on Book Cover Design. It’s totally free to read! Additionally, check out Derek Murphy’s in-depth DIY Book Covers

How do I market my book on social media? You need to market your book on social media in order to increase impressions, engagement, reader base, and other factors that can sell books.

For most self-publishers, I recommend setting up a professional author page on Facebook, maintaining a presence on Goodreads, logging onto LinkedIn, and creating video content

I’ll go into more detail on individual social media platforms below. Stay tuned!

High-quality book reviews can get your book in front of a lot of new eyes. Readers gain a special connection with reviewers they trust. A word from these high-quality book reviewers can influence all their loyal listeners.

That’s why I wrote an article on How to Get Free Book Reviews Without Having a Blog, Email List, or Begging.

Check out Kindlepreneur’s list of Best Book Review Blogs.

While there are some benefits to pre-ordering, I recommend most self-publishing authors avoid the downsides of pre-ordering.

When you open your book up for pre-orders, Amazon penalizes you if your pre-sales don’t perform well. After publishing, Amazon rewards you if your sales are consistent by promoting your book closer to the top of ranking.

However, I you have a large following or can market consistently during the preorder period, then by all means go right ahead.

Watch this video to learn all the reasons I say don’t do pre-orders unless you’re famous or already have a substantial following.

Formerly known as KDP Rocket, Publisher Rocket can help authors with the marketing of their book or eBook. The 4 things Publisher Rocket can do for you:

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Show you what popular authors are doing, how much they’re earning, and much more
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There are many more benefits to Publisher Rocket, but you can read more about it in my in-depth review: Publisher Rocket Review (2021).

You have to set up a high-quality author website to funnel readers from retailer and social media platforms to one focused destination.

On your website, you should have books available for purchase, upcoming books announced, a riveting About the Author page, and preferably some well-written blog content to offer potential readers added value.

Want people to understand who you are and what you do as an author? Build a killer author website.Click To Tweet

Check out this awesome read: 5 Ways to Sell Your Book on Your Own Author Website.

Across all social media platforms, your website, and even in-person appearances, I recommend using the same author logo, the same description of your book, and even the same signature.

Make sure every platform you’re on features links to buy your book. Buy buttons should pop up everywhere.

Of course, you don’t want to overwhelm potential buyers. But you’d hate for a reader to be interested in purchasing your book, then not see an easy link to click.

For example, check out this screenshot from Alexa Donne’s video on Red Herrings. Almost half the video description is devoted to links to buy her books:

Editing can feel boring, but it’s a crucial step that protects you from future bad reviews.

A poorly-edited book means unhappy readers who are pulled out of the story. They’ll likely want to leave a negative review and never buy a book from you again.

A well-edited book lets readers get lost in your world — and can mean less money spent on an editor.

You need to hire a professional editor. I know, they’re expensive. But if you just have 2-3 grammatical errors or spelling mistakes in your book, 1 in 10 readers will put the book down right there.

Companies like Ebook Launch

Ebooks cost from $2.99 to $3.99. Print books typically cost from $13.95 to $17.95.

Except when running promos, you don’t want to undersell yourself. A very low price may indicate your product is cheap — worth the low pricing.

Unless you’re in high demand or a famous celebrity, don’t overcharge for your book either. A higher price can scare readers away.

Discount your book frequently. Especially if you’re a first-time author, a lot of readers are always looking for deals. I know, this sounds like it goes against what I just said, but discounting a book and poorly pricing a book are two different things.

Use these promos as marketing tools. Run Facebook Ads, Amazon Ads, BookBub Ads, write Instagram posts, and tweet how your book is on sale. Saving money excites people.

Heck, offer it for free — particularly if it’s the first book in a series!

You should be networking with other authors, especially in your genre, through writer’s conventions, big book fairs, book clubs, Facebook groups, etc.

This “marketing tip” doesn’t mean to be sleazy. Don’t make connections with other authors just as a tactic to sell more books.

Instead, approach networking like joining a mutual support group for people with the same passion as you. Sure, you may be able to cross-promote as a result of these relationships. But forming connections has to be personal and heartfelt, not sales-based.

> I’ve been blessed to work with some amazing authors over the years. Here’s just a few.

I could write all day about how valuable these are. Personally, my whole life changed because I went to a particular writer’s conference. But I’ll save that story for later.

These are a great place where you can network with other authors, hone your craft, and get your name out there.

I go into more detail in this article: How To Get the Most Out of a Writer’s Conference

One great marketing tactic when figuring out how to sell on Amazon is making sure your book idea is profitable in the first place.

No, you don’t need a crystal ball; all you need is a little Amazon marketplace research. I recommend using Publisher Rocket

Learn more about how to validate your book idea.

When marketing your book, you must ensure your story starts with a hook. The first sentence needs to grab the reader with a strong voice, a unique concept, an intriguing mystery, etc.

Many retailers offer readers a chance to read the first chapter of your book before they buy. Make sure your readers are hooked, so they end up clicking BUY.

“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times…” Charles Dickens, A
“You better not never tell nobody but God.” Alice Walker, T
“It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife.” Jane Austen, P
“It was a bright cold day in April, and the clocks were striking thirteen.” George Orwell, 1
“They shoot the white girl first.” Toni Morrison, P

Check out my article on How to Start a Story that Hooks Readers Right Away

Social media knows when you interact with your readers, and it notices when this interaction encourages the readers to stick around longer on their site.

Respond to comments on posts — unless they’re inflammatory or from trolls. Respond to fan mail and email questions.

Encourage your followers to take surveys so they feel like they’re a part of your writing process. This is a great use of email lists. Publicize your appearances, webinars, and signings, so readers can interact with you in person. All of this makes people want to support you more.

When picking your categories as an Amazon seller, you want to strike a balance between relevance and non-competitiveness.

If your category isn’t relevant, readers will be upset because they felt they were promised certain story elements by the category that the author didn’t deliver.

If your category is too competitive, you face little chance of becoming the #1 bestselling author in your category. If you make it to #1 in your category, that’s a huge marketing tool with lasting power.

From then on, you can boast in every piece of marketing that your book was #1 in whatever category on Amazon.

When choosing an Amazon category for your book, try to strive for a perfect balance between relevance and competition. Make sure readers know what to expect AND that you have a chance of making it to #1 in your category.Click To Tweet

You can add extra categories by contacting KDP Support.

Kindlepreneur’s Amazon Sales Rank Calculator helps you convert Amazon’s Best Seller Rank into an estimate of how many sales a book receives per day.

If this sounds helpful, check out my article on the Amazon Sales Rank Calculator, where I go into more detail about the functionality of this amazing marketing tool.

People love free stuff. If you offer a chance at a giveaway in exchange for subscribing to your YouTube channel, signing up for your email list, etc., you’ll increase your outreach and your engagement.

A lot of books are free — more than you realize. It is one of the most successful book marketing strategies used by thousands of authors.

Although it may seem counterintuitive, you need to provide readers and prospective readers with “value” before you ask them to buy your book or join your email list.

Value simply refers to something t

When readers see value, they feel a connection with you. They feel that they have gained value in an exchange, and now they are more likely to buy your book on Amazon.

This is easier than it sounds if you know where to ask. A lot of bloggers are desperate for original, engaging content for their reader base. If you offer to guest blog on a unique topic, you may be able to expose your name and content to hundreds, if not thousands, of new eyes.

Not to mention you’re networking with this blogger, forming relationships that can be mutually beneficial in the future.

When offering to write a guest post, make your outreach personalized. People can smell when your email is copy-pasted and robotic. Take 5 minutes to skim their website, and personalize your message to match their brand.

If their blog is about science-fiction, don’t pitch a guest post about erotic fantasy. If their blog is about Christian books, it’s probably not wise to pitch a guest post about serial killers.

Whether it’s on YouTube, Vimeo, your own blog — video is probably the strongest way to engage your audience and build your platform.

It’s also the most time-consuming. After writing, filming, and editing, you might expect a 10-minute video to eat up 10 h

To make things less overwhelming, I wrote this practical article that will help you use video to grow your audience, build your author brand, and market your book.

Plenty of writers have skyrocketed their author platforms using a YouTube channel: Shaelin Bishop, Jena Moreci, Jerry Jenkins, Bethany Atazadeh, Vivien Reis. Out of the half-million subscribers between them, imagine how many more readers they have because they built their YouTube channel.

Read more: How to Use Youtube Videos to Sell More Books on the Cheap!

However, consistency is key. If you’re going to use YouTube, it won’t do you much good unless you keep to a regular upload schedule.

You have books you sell on Amazon, right? When’s the last time you cracked open a book about… selling books?

Reading an entire book devoted to marketing books comes with its own brand of inspiration. And there are plenty of great books out there.

Check out my list of Best Marketing Books

Offer readers a free look at your first four chapters in exchange for their email address, for example. This is a great lead magnet that boosts your email list a attracts new potential customers. Frequent readers love discounts like a free preview.

Using Amazon’s Look Inside feature, readers will be able to view the first chapter for free.

Because this will determine whether a lot of readers buy your book, you need to make that first chapter perfect. It should feature an immediate hook,

Also called a blurb,

The summary that appears on the back of your book (or on your book’s Amazon sales page) is a new author’s t most important marketing tool (after a professional, intriguing cover design, and an error-free first chapter with a hook).

Check out Kindlepreneur’s amazing Book Description Generator to g

You have an author website, right? Every author who means to make writing their career should have a website.

Esure your name is on every page for SEO purposes. I suggest putting your name and contact info in the footer that appears on every page.
P
T
L
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Write a killer About the Author
Craft a modern, inviting website — not something that looks like a MySpace page from 20 years ago.
Create engaging blog content, if you have the time. It will draw more readers to your website, and they’ll be more likely to buy your book once they see your engaging voice and thoughts.

My preferred web hosting company is Siteground,

Utilizing Amazon Author Central and creating an official Author page may make a huge difference in your sales and strengthen your legitimacy as an author. It also gives you certain capabilities on Amazon that help you convert readers into fans.

Check out Jeff Goins’s author page

Ready to launch? Read my step-by-step guide

That’s right. There are the right hashtags, and there are the wrong hashtags.

When using social media to increase your platform and promote yourself, some hashtags give you a better ROI while others are not worth the four seconds it takes to write them out.

Instead of doing your own research, I’ve done it for you. Kindlepreneur has a comprehensive list of hashtags

(This was designed for Twitter, but they can easily work for Instagram as well.)

You should get on Instagram if you’re trying to market your book. Although you can’t include direct links in your captions, you can add a link to buy your book or visit your website in your Instagram bio.

Read more: Instagram for Writers & Authors

Instagram is also an excellent social media platform for connecting with potential reviewers, influencers, and show the behind-the-scenes of your writing and publishing process.

I recommend you create an author page on BookBub to encourage engagement and interaction.

BookBub is a free service that allows users to stay up-to-date with the latest and greatest in their favorite genres. BookBub analyzes your profile and selects genres to create a list of potential reads you might like.

Check out my review of BookBub.

Setting up a Facebook Author Page is one of the easiest marketing tactics on this list. Everyone knows how to use Facebook. You’ve probably received at least one invite a month to your friends’ professional pages, be it Real Estate Agent or Professional Singer-Songwriter.

A professional Facebook page establishes legitimacy, encourages engagement, and is a great way to let your Facebook friends know when you start selling a book on Amazon!

Here’s Kindlepreneur’s article on How to Create a Facebook Author Page (And Tips for Using It Wisely), as well as How To Advertise A Book On Facebook. These are both invaluable resources for any writer, especially a first-time author.

Another quirky way to utilize your Facebook author platform is testing cover options using Facebook ads.

Begin A/B testing using 2-3 different Facebook ads. Each ad uses a different book cover, but the same copy. The ad that receives the most engagement will give you a good idea of which book cover will catch the most eyes when browsing Amazon.

GoodReads boasts almost 100 million users. Though some may disagree, it’s a valuable social media platform for authors to utilize.

To get the most out of GoodReads, read this article: The Ultimate Guide to Goodreads for Authors.

G Don’t let the trolls get to you. On GoodReads, BookBub, Amazon — there are gonna be trolls who leave stupid reviews. These are completely different than thoughtful critiques that can shape your next book to be better. Don’t worry, be happy.

Most people don’t talk about this, but Quora is actually rife with marketing potential. I wrote a handy article about How to Use Quora to Increase Traffic and Sell Books.

Quora is a higher-quality version of Yahoo Answers. People ask questions. If you answer them, you establish yourself as a legitimate authority on the topic.

So log on to Quora and establish yourself as an authority on questions concerning your genre, the publishing industry, writing process, and (if you’re lucky) questions about your specific book.

You wouldn’t want to lose potential readers just because they couldn’t find a button. Add subscribe buttons everywhere.

Without being annoying and spammy, make sure there are places to subscribe to your social media, email list, etc. on every page of your website, every social media platform bio, every video, every guest post, and every email you send out.

Whenever someone is leaving your author website, there’s an easy way to install an exit pop-up box that kindly asks them to sign up for your email list before leaving.

This is a great way to build your email list and pull people off the fence about following you.

You may even want to hire a marketer to craft the perfect ads for exit pop-ups.

Write the best author bio you have ever read. Leave out the boring details. No one cares about where you went to high school.

Include intriguing details, impressive writing achievements, and most important a call to action at the end.

A compelling author bio might convince a few people to buy your book — especially in today’s age. If you can sell yourself as a voice that people need to hear, you can sell more books on Amazon.

Check out my FREE course on How to Do Amazon Ads the Right Way, or watch the informative video below. I couldn’t say it better myself.

What is the best marketing strategy for a self-published book? The best marketing strategy for a self-published book is methodical Amazon ad capitalizing on your keyword strategy.

Amazon ad keywords are an important part of your book marketing plan. In order to find the most profitable 200-300 Amazon ad keywords, you need to put in just a little research.

If you’re in the stage of publishing and marketing where you need to find the right keywords for Amazon ads, I highly recommend you read this in-depth article: How to Find Profitable Amazon Ad Keywords

See the Publisher Rocket effect, when you use the right keywords and categories to help get your book seen more on Amazon.

Get Publisher Rocket Now!

Don’t try to market to the wrong crowd. You need to be honest with yourself about who your target audience is.

As much as it hurts, you can essentially ignore readers who are outside your target market. If your book is about knights and wizards, but doesn’t feature any dragons, don’t try to get dragon lovers to read your book.

Be honest with yourself about how many sales you expect to make. No use setting yourself up for disappointment. Instead, set yourself up for success.

Set sales goals, and reward yourself each time you achieve a sales goal. Examples of sales goals and what they would mean:

This realism should help you maintain your mental health and strong momentum in your marketing efforts.

Be specific about this target reader (AKA proto-persona). It will help you focus your marketing efforts.

For example: “My target reader is Mark, a single 33-year-old man who works in tech and is too devoted to his job (and video games) to invest in a family.” Or, “My target reader is Joni, a 45-year-old divorced woman who loves to drink, post on Twitter, and schedule brunches.”

Local papers and TV stations are starving for interesting content. A well-written book press release might grab the attention of a local newspaper or a book reviewer who can put your book in front of more eyes.

Read my article on Writing a Book Press Release

Though not necessary for success, a self-publishing course taught by a professional greatly increases your chances for success in marketing and selling your book.

Kindlepreneur details 4 of the best self-publishing courses on the market in this list.

Or, you can simply peruse through all the courses listed on Kindlepreneur’s website, most of which are n

If you’re reading this list, you obviously love gleaning inspiration and ideas. Don’t miss out on content with an audio format. Be sure to listen to relevant podcasts, where writers, editors, marketers, and publishing professionals talk for hours about their jobs and experiences.

Shameless plug time! My podcast T is a fun, informative resource for writers and self-publishers of all shapes and sizes.

B Try to land a guest spot on relevant podcasts. Most podcasts are looking for new, interesting personalities to host.

Check out Kindlepreneur’s list of The Best Podcasts for Writers.

For conferences, book tours, everyday life, you should use author business cards. They’re crazy cheap to make, and they add an extra level of legitimacy to your author brand. (Also, consistent branding!)

Read my full article about Author Business Cards for more information on how these small cards can make a big difference.

Beyond editing your book, you need to proofread your book. This is typically one last look over your final draft before you officially publish.

Grammarly and ProWritingAid are both great proofreading tools, but which one works better for your situation? Watch this video to learn the pros and cons of each.

This is less necessary than hiring a professional editor — which you n to do. The proofreader is often the final step before publishing. The proofreader makes sure there are no basic spelling or grammar errors. They often check for formatting errors.

Check out my list of the Best Proofreading Services You’ll Ever Find

Writing contests help get your name out there. They encourage interaction and networking with the writing community. They help you hone your craft. A lot of them are free.

And if you win, put it in your bio, post it on social media, and celebrate it in your email list.

Read more: The Best Writing Contests and How to Apply

You can change your book’s Kindle keywords anytime you want. It takes Amazon about 24 hours to reflect those changes. With the right keyword strategy, this tactic can revive a title that isn’t getting consistent book sales.

I wrote a detailed article complete with graphics, step-by-step instructions, expert know how — the whole spectrum of what to know when changing keywords. If you’ve already published your book on Amazon, this article

A mockup is a 3D rendering of your book and cover. It looks more professional than just an image of your cover. A mockup is a must-have for high-quality marketing.

Some cover design services like Damonza provide a mockup included in most packages. However, you can make your mockup if need be. Watch this video to find out how.

In a similar vein, a book trailer is also a good idea for some genres, but you don’t want it to look cheesy. You may need to hire a book promotion expert or professional video editor to make a high-quality book trailer.

You can hire a professional book formatter or formatting service, such as Damonza or Ebook Launch,

Yes, they can get expensive, but your book needs to be perfectly formatted. Otherwise, you alienate the readers who were willing to pick up this book and lose the future readers who would have evolved from those buyers.

An improperly formatted book looks strange, is distracting, and leads to negative reviews — which are bad for marketing.

Read my article on How to Hire a Book Formatter

Alternatively, you could format your own book. Unlike cover design or professional editing, self-published authors are more likely to have the tech savviness and time available to properly format their books.

Also, check out Kindlepreneur’s Mastery Guide on How to Format a Book.

Easy to use, and and full of amazing features, you can quickly turn your book into a professional book.

Check It Out

I know, we’re Kindlepreneurs here; we don’t sell in physical bookstores! However, some indie authors would benefit from being sold in brick and mortar bookstores, especially indie bookstores.

It might also make you feel cool to bring your friends or family to a bookstore and see your name on the shelf. And it’s okay to want to feel a little cool from time to time. Read more: How to Sell Your Books in an Indie Bookstore.

How do I get my book into Barnes and Noble? In order to get your book into Barnes and Noble, you have to email [email protected] with a detailed marketing strategy, EAN of your book, and the name of the distributor handling your fulfillment to the retail trade.

In some cases, you may want to consider selling your book internationally.

If you’re on KDP (Kindle Direct Publishing), you’re automatically available in Amazon’s 13 international markets. However, to get any sales, you need to market your book specifically in those markets. Learn more in my Selling Books Internationally

Inserting your target keywords in your book description helps Amazon index your book for those keyword phrases. This gives amazon.com a stronger belief that you’re a good fit for those search queries.

However, stuffing all your target keywords into a book description for indexing purposes is n

Read my article on Keywords in Your Book Descriptionf

Turning your book into an audiobook can be time-consuming and expensive. But it will set you apart from the competition.

More and more people only have time for audiobooks, listening in the car for instance. Reach that market, and your sales should rocket.

Check out Kindlepreneur’s article on How To Make An Audiobook.

Amazon’s KDP Select might be awesome for your marketing strategy, mainly because it allows you to enroll in Kindle Unlimited. If you agree to list your eBook on KDP Select, you can’t list your eBook on any other retailer or offer your book for free.

However, Kindle Unlimited books will likely get preferential treatment in Amazon’s search results. I recommend all fiction authors try KDP Select and Kindle Unlimited for at least a year.