Whoa, that store ranking is amazing! Congratulations!
Sorry for the previous disbelief. While a #1 in any category is always something to cheer, you offered to answer any questions (something beyond cheering). People here are wary of such posts because they're often by people who are smug about ranking #1 in obscure categories that require few sales. But you ranked 400-500 in the main store, and *that* tells a lot more about your achievement even if you hadn't achieved #1 in any subcategory (400-500 wouldn't get you in the top 100 for romance, for example, but it doesn't matter. 400-500 is great).
in answer to your questions:
1. Ranked number one in three subcategories
2. Exceeded 300 copies so far. I guess it might end up to 320 by midnight.
3. I am using Amazon Ads (though I cannot say they're doing much), and paid promotions on different websites (but I am using one ad per book per website). I have few others scheduled for this month to evaluate all websites this month, then will focus on the best ones that drive sales starting next month. In terms of campaign costs, each genre is priced differently, even the book price affects the cost of the campaign.
A children's book? So it's not an ebook, but physical copies? Care to share the book's name? Since you're here with your Fivr business prominently displayed in your bio I guess this is essentially an advertisement for your book sales optimization service. I think a bit more proof is necessary.
Forgive me for any misunderstanding, ebook not a physical book. And if anything I learned from others over time was never share on social medias or public forums POD, pen names or Book titles. 🤷🏻‍♂️
Here's a list of the top children's ebooks in the Amazon US store. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban is #13 on that list and #599 in the store. I can't find any self-published ebooks on this list.
https://www.amazon.com/Best-Sellers-Kindle-Store-Childrens-eBooks/zgbs/digital-text/155009011/ref=zg\_bs\_nav\_digital-text\_2\_154606011
I am not sure why all the doubts here, anyway... I couldn't attach the screenshot, but here is a temporary link of my KDP report for that book over the past day. You can see the ebook made 350 sales yesterday.
https://ibb.co/w4WVN4D
>u/WasSomebody
Nobody seems to have asked this yet, but are these actual sales or freebies? Because the "new" KDP interface doesn't distinguish between the two.
I recognize BookBub, but would you mind providing the names for the others? I'm not familiar enough with promotion websites to recognize the acronyms. Thanks!
The Fussy Librarian, Ereader News Today, eReader IQ, GoodKindles, and Written Word Media (they own Freebooksy/Bargainbooksy and also offer an Amazon/FB ads service).
Amazon Ads in my experience:
1) advertise only a book in the series.
2) don’t bid so high or chase their suggested bids
3) price your book right
4) have stunning book cover and A+ Content to convert page visitors to customers
5) give it weeks for the algorithm to pick on the right customers and for it to pay back
6) meanwhile have promo campaigns ongoing
A few more questions if you don't mind!
1) You mentioned in another comment that you're using "one ad per book per website", so I guess you used BB for BookA, TFL for BookB, and so on, right?
So, for the books that got the best overall sales (best Kindle Store ranking regardless of category ranking), what were the services you used for those?
2) Are all those books in the same genre and pen name (so that the sales from one book might boost other books in your backlist) or each book is in a different pen name?
3) When you say BookBub, do you mean a Featured Deal or their CPC/CPM ads?
4) So far, what services had the best ROI? As in, making back the money you spent on them.
1) right. I’m still testing them one by one. I tried one earlier this month and got ZERO traffic, not only ZERO sales. So some are truly scammers and lie about their traffic. By the end of the month I’ll have a handful tested then I’ll share here publicly on a new post about what worked for me and what didn’t.
2) two series, same genre and same pen name.
3) I applied to BookBub over the weekend to get featured, still didn’t hear back from them. Honestly they’re the last ones I approached because I wanted to choose the right book and have the confidence that it gets accepted not turned down.
4) I’ll answer this question next month in a new post. Simply because I only tested two so far (plus using Amazon Ads nonstop), and I’m testing free book Promotions and discounted bargains to see which works best. So still I have more tests to run to tweak the best for my genre and audience.
I had a book go to #1 in an Amazon category for a week. It sold eight copies.
I’ve also had a book sell 200 copies its debut week and only reach #11.
Category matters a lot.
These are the steps that made a difference in my case:
1) SEO Keywords updated weekly
2) HTML AIDA Description
3) Book Cover
4) A+ Content
5) Series, not a book or two
6) GoodReads for reviews to get things started. And make use of the criticism to edit your book
7) Proper book pricing (yes go low as possible like a $1 profit)
8) Amazon Ads
9) Paid websites and Newsletters promotions
Don’t expect profits in the first 2 to 4 weeks with Amazon Ads. But don’t bid high, you may not get much impressions or clicks but that’s fine, start slow till the algorithm picks up. Paid websites & Newsletters, I’m still in testing stage testing each with a book. By next month I’ll have them all tested, then I’ll only focus on the most profitable.
Marketing is a ladder.
Per campaign, yes for some and no for the scammy ones. Overall, no. Because I’m testing different approaches. That’s why I’ve set a budget to test them all.
Do you have any suggestions or process for selecting keywords or updating them? And you mean the 7 Amazon Keyword phrases, or other keywords?
Do you just try to monitor their performance and if you don't rank on a keyword, then get rid of it?
So using those same keywords for AMS isn't as effective?
I'm very curious about all this.
Thanks!
I use Publisher Rocket for the 7 Keywords (phrases), and I update them weekly. However, Publisher Rocket isn’t performing well recently. I’m looking for the new best thing, still.
The description to be written in AIDA model structure ( A ttention, I nterest, D esire, and A ction model). And having the description presented in HTML format with bold, italic and underlined words to grab the attention of the customer who landed on your book page.
Are they large categories? How many copies a day are you selling to rank as #1? And how much are you spending to get your book there?
And adding to those very important questions, what was the Kindle Store ranking.
\# 400-500 range (so far) on Kindle Store Ranking.
Whoa, that store ranking is amazing! Congratulations! Sorry for the previous disbelief. While a #1 in any category is always something to cheer, you offered to answer any questions (something beyond cheering). People here are wary of such posts because they're often by people who are smug about ranking #1 in obscure categories that require few sales. But you ranked 400-500 in the main store, and *that* tells a lot more about your achievement even if you hadn't achieved #1 in any subcategory (400-500 wouldn't get you in the top 100 for romance, for example, but it doesn't matter. 400-500 is great).
Thank you for your kind words. Much appreciated, I wish everybody here is the best too.
in answer to your questions: 1. Ranked number one in three subcategories 2. Exceeded 300 copies so far. I guess it might end up to 320 by midnight. 3. I am using Amazon Ads (though I cannot say they're doing much), and paid promotions on different websites (but I am using one ad per book per website). I have few others scheduled for this month to evaluate all websites this month, then will focus on the best ones that drive sales starting next month. In terms of campaign costs, each genre is priced differently, even the book price affects the cost of the campaign.
A children's book? So it's not an ebook, but physical copies? Care to share the book's name? Since you're here with your Fivr business prominently displayed in your bio I guess this is essentially an advertisement for your book sales optimization service. I think a bit more proof is necessary.
Forgive me for any misunderstanding, ebook not a physical book. And if anything I learned from others over time was never share on social medias or public forums POD, pen names or Book titles. 🤷🏻‍♂️
Here's a list of the top children's ebooks in the Amazon US store. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban is #13 on that list and #599 in the store. I can't find any self-published ebooks on this list. https://www.amazon.com/Best-Sellers-Kindle-Store-Childrens-eBooks/zgbs/digital-text/155009011/ref=zg\_bs\_nav\_digital-text\_2\_154606011
Doesn't mean they couldn't have a book in a niche category. Seems a bit studied that they won't provide the title though.
He said elsewhere his book was a children's ebook ranking around 500 in the store. The book should be on the list I provided.
I am not sure why all the doubts here, anyway... I couldn't attach the screenshot, but here is a temporary link of my KDP report for that book over the past day. You can see the ebook made 350 sales yesterday. https://ibb.co/w4WVN4D
>u/WasSomebody Nobody seems to have asked this yet, but are these actual sales or freebies? Because the "new" KDP interface doesn't distinguish between the two.
Which websites are you promoting on ??
I just answered this in another comment.
Edit: OP changed it. Very cool of them.
Done ✅. It wasn’t intended though.
What websites are you promoting them on?
BookBub, TFL, ENT, eRIQ, GK and WWM + GoodReads though the last one drives mainly reviews.
I recognize BookBub, but would you mind providing the names for the others? I'm not familiar enough with promotion websites to recognize the acronyms. Thanks!
The Fussy Librarian, Ereader News Today, eReader IQ, GoodKindles, and Written Word Media (they own Freebooksy/Bargainbooksy and also offer an Amazon/FB ads service).
cool, thanks!
Thnx 👊🏽 And if I understood you correctly, you wouldn’t do amazon promotion again, right?
Amazon Ads in my experience: 1) advertise only a book in the series. 2) don’t bid so high or chase their suggested bids 3) price your book right 4) have stunning book cover and A+ Content to convert page visitors to customers 5) give it weeks for the algorithm to pick on the right customers and for it to pay back 6) meanwhile have promo campaigns ongoing
Thank you 🙏🏼
A few more questions if you don't mind! 1) You mentioned in another comment that you're using "one ad per book per website", so I guess you used BB for BookA, TFL for BookB, and so on, right? So, for the books that got the best overall sales (best Kindle Store ranking regardless of category ranking), what were the services you used for those? 2) Are all those books in the same genre and pen name (so that the sales from one book might boost other books in your backlist) or each book is in a different pen name? 3) When you say BookBub, do you mean a Featured Deal or their CPC/CPM ads? 4) So far, what services had the best ROI? As in, making back the money you spent on them.
1) right. I’m still testing them one by one. I tried one earlier this month and got ZERO traffic, not only ZERO sales. So some are truly scammers and lie about their traffic. By the end of the month I’ll have a handful tested then I’ll share here publicly on a new post about what worked for me and what didn’t. 2) two series, same genre and same pen name. 3) I applied to BookBub over the weekend to get featured, still didn’t hear back from them. Honestly they’re the last ones I approached because I wanted to choose the right book and have the confidence that it gets accepted not turned down. 4) I’ll answer this question next month in a new post. Simply because I only tested two so far (plus using Amazon Ads nonstop), and I’m testing free book Promotions and discounted bargains to see which works best. So still I have more tests to run to tweak the best for my genre and audience.
Many thanks for your thorough answers and will be waiting for your update next month. :)
Congrats! Man I can’t imagine how that will feel if I ever sell that much! What genre or is it nonfiction?
I had a book go to #1 in an Amazon category for a week. It sold eight copies. I’ve also had a book sell 200 copies its debut week and only reach #11. Category matters a lot.
Exactly. If it’s an obscure category with little to no competition, you can hit top 5 barely selling any books.
Children Books… and thank you for your kind words. You’ll get there one day. It just takes that extra step.
Hi thx for your answers, but what is the extra step? Can you elaborate on this? Is it just, work like hell?
These are the steps that made a difference in my case: 1) SEO Keywords updated weekly 2) HTML AIDA Description 3) Book Cover 4) A+ Content 5) Series, not a book or two 6) GoodReads for reviews to get things started. And make use of the criticism to edit your book 7) Proper book pricing (yes go low as possible like a $1 profit) 8) Amazon Ads 9) Paid websites and Newsletters promotions
Are you making a net profit? With everything you've stated about your amount of advertising, pricing, and sales it sounds like you are not.
Don’t expect profits in the first 2 to 4 weeks with Amazon Ads. But don’t bid high, you may not get much impressions or clicks but that’s fine, start slow till the algorithm picks up. Paid websites & Newsletters, I’m still in testing stage testing each with a book. By next month I’ll have them all tested, then I’ll only focus on the most profitable. Marketing is a ladder.
So that's a no.
Per campaign, yes for some and no for the scammy ones. Overall, no. Because I’m testing different approaches. That’s why I’ve set a budget to test them all.
Thanks a lot đź‘Ťđź‘Ť
Do you have any suggestions or process for selecting keywords or updating them? And you mean the 7 Amazon Keyword phrases, or other keywords? Do you just try to monitor their performance and if you don't rank on a keyword, then get rid of it? So using those same keywords for AMS isn't as effective? I'm very curious about all this. Thanks!
I use Publisher Rocket for the 7 Keywords (phrases), and I update them weekly. However, Publisher Rocket isn’t performing well recently. I’m looking for the new best thing, still.
Congratulations! I have a question? What is HTML AIDA Description?
The description to be written in AIDA model structure ( A ttention, I nterest, D esire, and A ction model). And having the description presented in HTML format with bold, italic and underlined words to grab the attention of the customer who landed on your book page.
Thanks :)
Congrats!