Prioritizing KU Marketing Between Releases

[Shoe]

I believe we all agree a new release is the most effective non-promotional tool we use to boost our bookshelves. I'm curious to know in what order you all would place the following promotional activities between releases, and which you'd omit (and what have I missed?):

1.   Paid newsletters other than Bookbub.
2.   Bookbub newsletter ad (alone).
2b. Bookbub newsletter ad (stacked with other promotions).
3.   Countdown Deals.
4.   KENP free days promotion.
5.   Facebook Ads.
6.   AMS Sponsored Ad.
7.   AMS Product Display
8.   Social Media
9.   Blog Post
10. Instafreebie or Other (Book Funnel?) Giveaway
11. Bookbub Ad


{Fixed your heading. t.}

[Shoe]

Hmm, sixty-four views and no response...

If I'd asked everyone to name their favorite Beatle there would be a hundred replies.

lol

[Crystal]

CPC ads are the best ongoing promotional tools.

[Rinelle]

I'd use bookbub if they'd take me!

Otherwise, free promos in conjunction with other ads.
AMS ppc ads (sponsored project)
I do plan to move on to other ppc ads, but trying to get AMS sorted first.

[Tom Wood]

If you join David Gaughran's email newsletter, he's embarking on an experiment that may answer this question in great detail.

It's a secret, so shhhhh.... 

[NathanBurrows]

List building (or trying to!) and keeping things going with AMS ads are my main priorities between releases.

[Kathy Dee]

Hmm, sixty-four views and no response...

If I'd asked everyone to name their favorite Beatle there would be a hundred replies.

lol

But there are only 2 left alive

[Tafkal]

Out of all those options, Bookbub featured deals make me the most money and get me the most sell-through hands down.

[Ash]

Unfortunately it's difficult to get BB featured slots for KU books, isn't it? That's been my experience, anyway.

[Tafkal]

Unfortunately it's difficult to get BB featured slots for KU books, isn't it? That's been my experience, anyway.

Well, yes, that is the downside.

[Shoe]

Unfortunately it's difficult to get BB featured slots for KU books, isn't it? That's been my experience, anyway.

Many say that, but I see KU titles in Bookbub promotions all the time, though they're not the majority.

For the sake of clarity, Bookbub does permit exclusive to Amazon KU titles. Whether they're more difficult to place in Bookbub probably depends on the book.

[Ash]

I only say that from my own experience. Most of my books have a ranking of above 4.5 off dozens or hundreds of reviews. And I've submitted for featured deals probably dozens of times to no avail.

[Anarchist]

Email and AMS are currently the big ones for me.

[Shoe]

I only say that from my own experience. Most of my books have a ranking of above 4.5 off dozens or hundreds of reviews. And I've submitted for featured deals probably dozens of times to no avail.

Personal experience is useful, of course, but not conclusive. I looked at today's BB deals and saw KU books featured (maybe 10% of total). One had only a few reviews and was published in December 2017.

As a marketing tool, BB is a solid performer (though I have read it's not what it used to be, and some only break even. Few seem to lose money, but it can happen). Their selection process seems well tuned to avoid disaster.

Reviews: What can one say? With the proliferation of the ARC system, which has essentially been corrupted, reviews don't mean what they used to. Fifty five-star reviews in Romance is now viewed as a good start. I'm sure BB looks at organic reviews only, though ARCs don't always identify themselves.

[Shoe]

Email and AMS are currently the big ones for me.

How do you use your email list between releases? I don't send newsletters between launches.

[Anarchist]

Email and AMS are currently the big ones for me.

How do you use your email list between releases? I don't send newsletters between launches.

I email a lot.

If you're asking what I put in the emails, I prefer to keep those cards close to my vest.

[Shoe]

If you're asking what I put in the emails, I prefer to keep those cards close to my vest.

That's the spirit.

[Tom Wood]

If you're asking what I put in the emails, I prefer to keep those cards close to my vest.

That's the spirit.

It's a picture of a vest! 

[LilyBLily]

AMS is my major tool. It works for my books. Nothing else does.

BookBub featured ads shouldn't be on the list, since we don't have the power to get them at will. Similarly, neither should "Getting a contract and large advance from a big New York publisher." When it's up to somebody else to decide, it's not a tactic. It might be a long-term goal, but that's all.

I can't stress strongly enough that YMMV. I've tried many tactics that work like gangbusters for other people's books but have not worked for my books. Even AMS ads don't work on books that are hard to categorize or in totally obscure niches. Which some of my books happen to be.

In three years doing this, I've tried everything on your list, plus several more things. Only AMS ads have produced a profitable ROI for my books.

[Anarchist]

If you're asking what I put in the emails, I prefer to keep those cards close to my vest.

That's the spirit.

[angela]

AMS ads for me.

Every book is different. I've tried Facebook ads a few times. I can get clicks and sales, but those buyers don't convert to the rest of the series very well. An AMS ad buyer is more expensive to get, but they're more likely to continue into the series.

Getting that information took several months and tons of $$ spent. And yet it's useful only to me. Someone else's book or series might do great marketed to a broader FB audience.