Any consensus of when it is best to send a new release email to your list?

[Lynn]

I guess I'll just repeat the subject line here.

Any consensus of when it is best to send a new release email to your list?

The day of, the day after, three days after, four in the morning, five in the evening, etc etc etc?

I've had a list since late 2013 and my first mailing went out to 5 people. :D But looking back at the timeline of sends versus how the books have benefited tells me squat. There doesn't seem to be a best time for me. Or if there is, it would require actual statistics for me to figure it out.

So maybe I'll just try to go with what's common knowledge from now on if anyone can tell me what common knowledge is? :D

Oh, and titles. For authors, what are some of the more productive subject lines? I used to sub to a lot of author emails back in like 2005. LOL. I haven't subbed to email lists in years so I don't really have anything to compare to.

[Eric Thomson]

I send out the email when the book is live on all major retailers.  The email itself has the book's blurb and a universal book link.

[TimothyEllis]

I'm in KU, so I send the moment I have the email finished after the url is up and functioning.

So often I have the email going out within an hour or so of the book going live.

Day 1 is THE most important day to get sales and borrows.

If you don't get them then, getting a higher rank is very difficult.

So the email must go out on day 1, and in time to be converted into sales and borrows on day 1.

[Shoe]

My experience is a slow climb for new releases produce stickier rankings (versus highest initial ranking), so I divide my list into eight or more groups, mail to one the day of release, and stagger the rest with two or three days in between each one.

I have no scientific proof this is better than hitting the entire list on the day of release, but I have noticed writers sending to their entire list on release day hitting #1500, then whining two weeks later when they've fallen to #50k. My releases open at #15k, then slowly climb to #3000-4000 as more newsletters are released. They often stick there for several months (with help from AMS).

I've read elsewhere that Zon's ranking algos build on three-, five-, and seven-day rank histories, though the logic, stickiness factors, and math escape me (which is why staggered paid promotions are recommended to avoid big spikes that quickly die).

[TimothyEllis]

@shoe - How big is your list?

Mine is <900, so no point in dividing it up.

[Shoe]

@shoe - How big is your list?

Mine is <900, so no point in dividing it up.

I just trimmed the deadbeats so I'm down to 5600. Don't be impressed if that seems high--most are from Instafreebie (before it went to crap). I only have 200+ organic subscribers (from links in my books).

[Lynn]

My list is entirely organic. I don't usually split it or anything. But I do usually wait until all the links are live and sometimes an extra day or two. But sometimes not. That's why I said I'd need statistics to figure out if there was any significance to any of it. :D

I'm not very interested in marketing stuff and I tend to do the minimum I can get away with. But I like having the list.

[Bill Hiatt]

My experience is a slow climb for new releases produce stickier rankings (versus highest initial ranking), so I divide my list into eight or more groups, mail to one the day of release, and stagger the rest with two or three days in between each one.

I have no scientific proof this is better than hitting the entire list on the day of release, but I have noticed writers sending to their entire list on release day hitting #1500, then whining two weeks later when they've fallen to #50k. My releases open at #15k, then slowly climb to #3000-4000 as more newsletters are released. They often stick there for several months (with help from AMS).

I've read elsewhere that Zon's ranking algos build on three-, five-, and seven-day rank histories, though the logic, stickiness factors, and math escape me (which is why staggered paid promotions are recommended to avoid big spikes that quickly die).

Yes, it was my understanding that Amazon has been reducing the impact of big spikes for a long time. I've had good luck (in a prawny with) with spread promos on new releases rather than bunched ones. I notify my mailing list somewhere early in the process (but not always on day 1 because I've found sending the monthly newsletter on the same day of the month each time produces better response. I've also noticed that the first rush of opens spreads out across the first five days, and oddly opens continue to trickle in for a whole month. In some ways, that works to my advantage.

[Marti Talbott]

I guess I'll just repeat the subject line here.

Any consensus of when it is best to send a new release email to your list?

The day of, the day after, three days after, four in the morning, five in the evening, etc etc etc?

I've had a list since late 2013 and my first mailing went out to 5 people. :D But looking back at the timeline of sends versus how the books have benefited tells me squat. There doesn't seem to be a best time for me. Or if there is, it would require actual statistics for me to figure it out.

So maybe I'll just try to go with what's common knowledge from now on if anyone can tell me what common knowledge is? :D

Oh, and titles. For authors, what are some of the more productive subject lines? I used to sub to a lot of author emails back in like 2005. LOL. I haven't subbed to email lists in years so I don't really have anything to compare to.

Thursdays. I can't prove it, but I think people at work will look for something to read over the weekend and start looking on Thursday.

I read somewhere that generic subject lines often go right into the spam box. It needs to say something like - "Thank you for signing up to be notified." or, "Here's the information you requested." Normally, I can only tell if my emails are reaching my list when they ask to be unsubscribed. I do that with a line at the bottom of my email that says, "To unsubscribe, simply reply to this email." That way, I can manually take them off the list. I have my own list and don't use a service, however.

[Rosie Scott]

Thursdays. I can't prove it, but I think people at work will look for something to read over the weekend and start looking on Thursday.

My best sales days are often Thursdays. I try to release on Thursdays as often as I can.

As for the original question, I send new release emails the day of release. However, I also send a pre-order notification email seven days prior. Based on my list statistics, most of my subscribers open the pre-order email (likely to see the cover reveal and read the blurb, both of which aren't revealed until this email). This helps to generate excitement and expectation for the new release email a week later, which is when most of them click through to buy and/or borrow. I only do pre-order periods for my own preparation: to get the store link ahead of time and have a release date set in stone. So I don't push pre-orders, but the email announcing them seems to take care of the problem of readers forgetting or missing an email because then it's the new release email that serves as the reminder, and at that point the book's ready to be read. I view that as a call-to-action more than anything.

[Joe Vasicek]

+1 for Thursdays.

For KU books, I believe the optimal strategy is to release without a preorder and promote it heavily in the first few days, in order to get up in the rankings. Please correct me if I'm wrong.

For wide books, the optimal strategy is to do a 90+ day preorder period and build up interest leading up to the release, so that all your fans know about it by the time it comes out. This also boosts you in the rankings, just not on Amazon, which nerfs preorders for ranking purposes.

I usually send out 2-3 emails to my list promoting the book over the course of the preorder period, and another one the week of the release. Both are important, because about half of my fans preorder it, and the other half get it when it comes out.

[JRTomlin]

I have a strong opinion that we are hurt on Amazon by pre-orders since the sales rank is not affected on release thus losing any bump from those first orders. I tried preorders and have decided I won't use them again unless Amazon changes how that works and gives me a reason to use them.

I usually send out my newsletters on the third of the month. What I am going to do this time, I'm not sure since I plan to release on Dec. 26. I *think* I will send it out early or the 26th or the 27th but am still debating. My list is small, only 600 but it is organic and has an extremely high open and click-through rate. I really want to use that to the maximum benefit.

[TimothyEllis]

I tried preorders and have decided I won't use them again unless Amazon changes how that works and gives me a reason to use them.

Followers emails go out 5 days after the book is added to AC as a pre-order. I'll see soon if its followed by another one straight after release.

Since otherwise the email goes out 8 days after release, out to 60 days or never, that's a powerful reason for doing a pre-order.

I'm testing it now.

[JRTomlin]

Instead of preorders showing as sales the day of release when they would be a big bump, they are strung out during the preorder so there is no spike on release day. That is a more powerful reason not to for me.

[TimothyEllis]

Instead of preorders showing as sales the day of release when they would be a big bump, they are strung out during the preorder so there is no spike on release day. That is a more powerful reason not to for me.

I've heard there is a bump on release day. Wont know for sure until then.

What is concerning me is the lack of ability for KU readers to tag the book for download as a pre-order, this giving you that part of the rank boost as well. It meant my book debuted worse than normal, and I ahve to wait to see if it picks it back up on release day.

One of those things you have to test.

[Simon Haynes]

I guess the KU problem is that they can only have 10 books checked out (isn't that right?) So, unless there's some kind of queue or wishlist, the new preorder book they've requested wouldn't come through unless they've already made room for it.

It is annoying though, because advertising of preorders would be a lot more effective.

[JRTomlin]

I did two which had quite a few preorders and no bump on release day, but that was quite some time ago. I'll be interested in hearing what you see. If you get a bump, I'll reconsider.

[TimothyEllis]

The only reason I'm trying it is things seem to have changed. (Again)

[Joe Vasicek]

I suppose you could get around the way Amazon nerfs preorders by running a 90-day preorder on every other retailer, and only a 1-2 week preorder period on Amazon. But then you'd get readers wondering why they couldn't preorder it on Amazon.

[JRTomlin]

I hope you're right!

[Bill Hiatt]

I suppose you could get around the way Amazon nerfs preorders by running a 90-day preorder on every other retailer, and only a 1-2 week preorder period on Amazon. But then you'd get readers wondering why they couldn't preorder it on Amazon.

In an ideal world, Amazon would stop nerfing preorders. That's another one of those things that doesn't seem to gain anything for Amazon and loses something for us. It's especially odd if, as argued upthread, Amazon is trying to encourage preorders.

[VanessaC]

Ah, the mysteries of Amazon ...

I'm in KU with a tiny, tiny mailing list. I use pre-orders to keep me honest so I have a hard deadline for the next book in series. I let my list know when the pre-order is live, and then when the book is about to go live - this time around I might wait until it is actually live before I let them know and see if that makes a difference.

I've heard from authors with very large lists (several thousand) that it is better to segment your list to let your readers know about releases for the reasons mentioned by Shoe above - on Amazon particularly, that seems to make a different with rank.

I'm sure I noticed for the second to last past pre-order that as well as the rank credit on the day a pre-order "sale" was made, there was also a boost on the day of release. However, for the last pre-order I don't remember that boost on release day.

That said, I am not a big seller, so perhaps if I'd had dozens or even hundreds of pre-orders it would have been different.

[JRTomlin]

If my list is eventually in the thousands, I'll segment my list. I was much later than I should have been even paying attention to my mailing list. It is now growing organically at one new email address a day and at 600, so I won't get into the thousands for quite some time. 

[Joe Vasicek]

I suppose you could get around the way Amazon nerfs preorders by running a 90-day preorder on every other retailer, and only a 1-2 week preorder period on Amazon. But then you'd get readers wondering why they couldn't preorder it on Amazon.

In an ideal world, Amazon would stop nerfing preorders. That's another one of those things that doesn't seem to gain anything for Amazon and loses something for us. It's especially odd if, as argued upthread, Amazon is trying to encourage preorders.

It makes sense if they want to push us into exclusivity. According to Mark Coker and Mark Leslie Lefebvre, preorders is an excellent tool for gaining visibility on the wide platforms. By counting preorders differently, it's like Amazon is saying "fine, you can use that tool, but it's going to lower your visibility with us."

Same thing with counting borrows as sales for purposes of ranking. "Fine, you don't have to enroll your books in KU, but it's going to hurt your visibility if you don't."

[Bill Hiatt]

I suppose you could get around the way Amazon nerfs preorders by running a 90-day preorder on every other retailer, and only a 1-2 week preorder period on Amazon. But then you'd get readers wondering why they couldn't preorder it on Amazon.

In an ideal world, Amazon would stop nerfing preorders. That's another one of those things that doesn't seem to gain anything for Amazon and loses something for us. It's especially odd if, as argued upthread, Amazon is trying to encourage preorders.

It makes sense if they want to push us into exclusivity. According to Mark Coker and Mark Leslie Lefebvre, preorders is an excellent tool for gaining visibility on the wide platforms. By counting preorders differently, it's like Amazon is saying "fine, you can use that tool, but it's going to lower your visibility with us."

Same thing with counting borrows as sales for purposes of ranking. "Fine, you don't have to enroll your books in KU, but it's going to hurt your visibility if you don't."

The KU part makes sense. However, the preorder doesn't seem like a push toward exclusivity. Rather, it seems like a push to not bother with preorders. And maybe Amazon doesn't actually like preorders, though if the theory about new release emails is correct, they actually seem to preference them in other ways. That's the part that doesn't make sense to me--different parts of the system working at cross purposes.

[TimothyEllis]

Reporting in on the Pre-Order trial.

 

I'm actually amazed!

Debut on pre-order was about 5500, which is well below normal. This steadily dropped out to about 30,000 over the next 2 weeks.

There was a notification email sent out 5 days after I added the book to Author Central, which blipped orders for a day, but nothing much more than that. The slide out continued.

I emailed my list the day before actual release. Specially to ensure KU readers knew about the early release. (2 weeks instead of 3).

Book came down to around 12,000 and hovered there for the early part of release day, and I went to bed expecting it to never get to the debut rank, because sales and borrows had effectively been separated.

This morning, the rank was at just over 2000, which is where my books normally debut at. Last couple have achieved in the 1500's, so wasnt expecting anything more.

But just now, the rank is 1201, and I've got a red tag for Cyberpunk Kindle.

Fears for nothing, and the book is now doing better than expectations.

So

 

[Shoe]

Reporting in on the Pre-Order trial.

It's all sounds good and congrats. But I'm not clear (it's late where I am)--do you feel the pre-order is responsible for the boost to #1500 (from a normal #2000)? In other words, doing the pre-order period was worth it?

[TimothyEllis]

Reporting in on the Pre-Order trial.

It's all sounds good and congrats. But I'm not clear (it's late where I am)--do you feel the pre-order is responsible for the boost to #1500 (from a normal #2000)? In other words, doing the pre-order period was worth it?

Around 2000 is my normal debut, with 1500 being a normal top these days. Sometimes it takes the follower email to get the distance about 8 days after release.

So having both bettered on release day is a definite improvement. And very unexpected.

There is no other promo going on here. Just list email for pre-order, list email for day before release, Amazon's follower email last week, and my Facebook group and page. Pre-order instagram messages as well.

As far as I can see, however the pre-order algorithm is structured right now, it's definitely getting better results than just a standard launch.

[JRTomlin]

Interesting. So it got at least some bump. 🤔

[TimothyEllis]

Interesting. So it got at least some bump. 🤔

It did.

Book Reports shows is actually got to #1141, but I didn't see that myself.

Sitting around #2020 at the moment, which for day 2, is pretty good. I was expecting it to go into freefall, but it is still getting enough sales to hold up, given day 2 is mainly always reads from day 1's borrows.

The thing will be how bad the drop is once it starts dropping. I cant see it no going into freefall early, given its had half a month of normal sales on 1 day. This will be interesting to see.

[JRTomlin]

Thanks for the info Timothy, but I am still wondering about the original question if I could go back to that.

I'm not doing pre-order on this novel although I may give it a try on my next. But since I'm not, when would be the best time to send a new release email? It may not be a big deal with my rather modest email list, but I'd like to get the most possible out of it. I am actually going to release it on the 24th to give it a day or two to be sure there's no glitch. I am thinking of sending the email out (and announcing it on social media, etc) on the 26th which happens to be a Thursday but more importantly is the day after Christmas and is a day when a lot of people will be off work and possibly have gift certificates to use.

Maybe it would be better to wait a few days though. Any thoughts? 🤔

[Bill Hiatt]

This isn't a huge data set, but the only new release I ever tried right after Christmas did not do as well as expected.

In the US, the day after Christmas is a big shopping day--not quite as big as Black Friday, but still substantial. Stores do a lot of post-holiday clearance. Malls are crazy-busy. That doesn't mean no one is shopping for ebooks online, but it might be better to wait until December 27. People do have gift certificates, and some of them also have new Kindles.

[JRTomlin]

Interesting point. I avoid those 'busy shopping days' like the plague and tend to forget not everyone does.

[Bill Hiatt]

Interesting point. I avoid those 'busy shopping days' like the plague and tend to forget not everyone does.

These days, I stay away, too. But when I did go, the stores were packed only slightly less than on Black Friday.

I can't find recent figures in a quick search, but there are plenty of posts suggesting that the day after Christmas as rivaled Black Friday during some recent holiday seasons.

[LilyBLily]

When I worked in bookstores, the week after Christmas was almost as busy as the week before. Don't know if that's the case now, but for sure in early January people are seriously looking for entertainment.