Author Topic: Checking again...  (Read 8548 times)

R. C.

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Re: Checking again...
« Reply #100 on: November 19, 2021, 07:02:21 AM »
UPDATE - About three days of run time. 

Parameters: Limited authors, some ADs with no authors, selective categories, bold ADs, ADs retained, some replaced.

Impressions: 88,402 (High, due to several ADs with no author constraints.)
Clicks: 59 Clicks are across the board: 'Zon, Apple, B&N, Roko, Google.
Sales: Minor uptick.

Next steps: Whack the ADs with few clicks and low CTR, keep going.

R.C.
 
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PJ Post

Re: Checking again...
« Reply #101 on: November 19, 2021, 11:29:05 PM »
Are book ads using clickbait titles yet?
 
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R. C.

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Re: Checking again...
« Reply #102 on: November 20, 2021, 12:37:35 AM »
Are book ads using clickbait titles yet?

Not yet, at least not intentionally. For the ADs that are not generating a solid CTR, I may add a few clickbait options.  The key with "clickbait verbiage" is to not be deceptive. Honesty leads to a good night's sleep.

Interesting Clickbait Article

R.C.
 
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alhawke

Re: Checking again...
« Reply #103 on: November 20, 2021, 02:25:22 AM »
I'd tread with caution when interpreting ads for the rest of November and December. BB ads don't do as well in the holidays because you're competing with many many more sale deals--unless you have elves or turkey & gravy in your stories.

I already am starting to see a drop (even while running a separate book promotion at the moment). It happens to me every year. Then January picks up. At least for my books, anyway.

{edit for clarity
« Last Edit: November 20, 2021, 02:31:53 AM by alhawke »
 
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R. C.

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Re: Checking again...
« Reply #104 on: December 01, 2021, 12:07:51 AM »
Captains Log - Final Entry.

November: Limited authors, some ADs with no authors, selective categories, bold ADs, ADs retained, some replaced.

Impressions: 389,946
Clicks: 102 - Clicks came from across the board: 'Zon, Apple, B&N, Roko, Google.
Sales: Not enough to continue.

Next steps: Find eyes somewhere else...

R.C.

Marti Talbott

Re: Checking again...
« Reply #105 on: December 01, 2021, 05:10:43 AM »
Sorry it didn't work out for either of us. Yet, we must persist or our books go right down the tubes. What else have you tried? Would you go for the same setup (clicks) such as Goodreads offers, or are you looking for something different. It's maddening, isn't it?

I placed an ad on bargain Booksy historical for McShane's Bride, to run the 7th at $2.99. I'm not expecting much. At least the cost not as hard to swallow. They have a much lower price for "historical fiction" which my book would fit into nicely, but the reserved dates are way out there. I suspect everyone with a historical romance goes for that genre instead of the actual historical romance category.
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R. C.

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Re: Checking again...
« Reply #106 on: December 01, 2021, 07:35:23 AM »
... Yet, we must persist or our books go right down the tubes. What else have you tried?...

Yes, persistence is a virtue and I need to cultivate a virtue.   :doh:

Tired: Everything.

FB - Recent changes by "meta" has killed the video ADs that were getting clicks.  Now: Nada.
'Zon ADs - Pointless. I am convinced the algo is bias to higher bids for higher priced product.
Google ADs - Getting better. Highly targeted campaigns. One driving to Google Books has given me my first sales there.
Other - Several options have resulted in impressions and traffic to my sight, sales are iffy.

R.C.

 
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RBC

Re: Checking again...
« Reply #107 on: December 02, 2021, 01:28:26 AM »
... Yet, we must persist or our books go right down the tubes. What else have you tried?...

Yes, persistence is a virtue and I need to cultivate a virtue.   :doh:

Tired: Everything.

FB - Recent changes by "meta" has killed the video ADs that were getting clicks.  Now: Nada.
'Zon ADs - Pointless. I am convinced the algo is bias to higher bids for higher priced product.
Google ADs - Getting better. Highly targeted campaigns. One driving to Google Books has given me my first sales there.
Other - Several options have resulted in impressions and traffic to my sight, sales are iffy.

R.C.

Take a break and start over in January. Maybe Tiktok ads then. If you had video ads for FB, might be able to do similar ones there maybe.
 
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R. C.

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Re: Checking again...
« Reply #108 on: December 02, 2021, 03:29:30 AM »
...
Take a break and start over in January. Maybe Tiktok ads then. If you had video ads for FB, might be able to do similar ones there maybe.

I tried TikTok several months ago. TikTok is price competitive but the results are hit and miss. Mostly miss. The audience is not looking for something to read.

R.C.
 
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Lorri Moulton

Re: Checking again...
« Reply #109 on: December 03, 2021, 07:51:35 AM »
I'm going to try to get some writing done and enjoy the holidays.  When I have more books finished, maybe I'll try FISF and some paid promos.

Author of Romance, Fantasy, Fairytales, Mystery & Suspense, and Historical Non-Fiction @ Lavender Cottage Books
 
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Luke Everhart

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Re: Checking again...
« Reply #110 on: December 03, 2021, 01:56:11 PM »
... Yet, we must persist or our books go right down the tubes. What else have you tried?...

Yes, persistence is a virtue and I need to cultivate a virtue.   :doh:

Tired: Everything.

FB - Recent changes by "meta" has killed the video ADs that were getting clicks.  Now: Nada.
'Zon ADs - Pointless. I am convinced the algo is bias to higher bids for higher priced product.
Google ADs - Getting better. Highly targeted campaigns. One driving to Google Books has given me my first sales there.
Other - Several options have resulted in impressions and traffic to my sight, sales are iffy.

R.C.

RC, have you considered spending some of your ad money on new, professionally designed covers? I suggest it as advertising/marketing advice, so hopefully it's fair game for the thread(?)
I've heard/read that in the early days of indie very homemade looking covers like yours could work (maybe you started back then?). However, nowadays those sorts of covers get an automatic pass from a lot of readers -- they certainly do from me.  :shrug  Usually an author running with homemade jobs has budgetary constraints that necessitate; but, given your ad spending, I assume you have the option. If so, that's the best move imo. (An opinion of a multigenre 2-3 book a week reader that reads predominantly on a kindle, not as an aspiring author who is still dragging his heels on his own endeavors 😏)

BTW, I'm not talking about nor judging the aesthetics of the covers (very subjective), or the genre signaling (fairly objective but not my point); I'm just talking about the amateur vs pro at-a-glance impression.
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Marti Talbott

Re: Checking again...
« Reply #111 on: December 03, 2021, 02:04:22 PM »
As a side note if you decide to change your covers, The price on these usually run from $.99 to $129. and they look great. Of course, it's just the front cover but you can ask the author for a quote on a back cover.

You wouldn't believe how many times I've upgraded my cover art. It does help.
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Luke Everhart

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Re: Checking again...
« Reply #112 on: December 03, 2021, 02:09:25 PM »
...
Take a break and start over in January. Maybe Tiktok ads then. If you had video ads for FB, might be able to do similar ones there maybe.

I tried TikTok several months ago. TikTok is price competitive but the results are hit and miss. Mostly miss. The audience is not looking for something to read.

R.C.

Nope, definitely not TikTok. Books and TikTok mixes about as well as arugula salad and avocado toast at an NFL watch party. ...and if you ever go to an NFL watch party and they are serving arugula salad and avocado toast 😳RUUUUNN! It's a trick! They're going to change the channel to ice skating or try and sell you tupperware or something
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Jeff Tanyard

Re: Checking again...
« Reply #113 on: December 03, 2021, 06:21:36 PM »
Luke, it's usually considered "bad form" to offer unsolicited criticism of another member's stuff.  That's why we have dedicated subforums for those who want to solicit criticism for covers or blurbs or whatever.


Books and TikTok mixes about as well as arugula salad and avocado toast...


I can honestly say I've never eaten either of those things, nor would I want to.   :Hqn66ku:


Quote
...at an NFL watch party.


I stopped watching the NFL when the damn Falcons pulled off the biggest choke job in the history of sports.  After that gut-wrenching event, I made a clean break and swore it all off.  And I haven't missed it, either.


Quote
They're going to change the channel to ice skating or try and sell you tupperware or something


That was a Stanley Cup final, right?  There was one year when they cut away immediately after the game but before the cup was presented.  Instead of seeing the trophies given out, we got to see figure skating (or something; not sure).  Really pissed me off.

And, of course, there's this:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heidi_Game
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Crystal

Re: Checking again...
« Reply #114 on: December 04, 2021, 07:35:01 AM »
As a native California, I have to say, we welcome avocado at all times, in all places, including Super Bowl parties. Granted, I'm not a football fan, but I've seen avocado welcomed in much stranger contexts. Guacamole is 90% avocados (also lime, cilantro, onion, salt and sometimes tomato or jalapeno), and surely no one would be upset to see guac and chips at a Super Bowl party? Avocado toast is really not that different.

Luke, it's usually considered "bad form" to offer unsolicited criticism of another member's stuff
Books and TikTok mixes about as well as arugula salad and avocado toast...

I can honestly say I've never eaten either of those things, nor would I want to. 

You should try them.

Avocado toast is great. It's just an bunch of avocado mashed on toasted bread, sometimes with other toppings. Who doesn't like that? I guess people who don't like avocados, but if you enjoy avocado on your sandwiches, you'll probably like avocado toast (or avocado sandwiches, as my mom used to eat, way before avocado toast was cool).

Arugula is peppery and delicious. Way more exciting than iceberg lettuce or mixed greens, but not for everyone.
 

idontknowyet

Re: Checking again...
« Reply #115 on: December 04, 2021, 08:25:31 AM »
I've actually heard the opposite about booktok. Authors selling dozens of books from a single tik tok post. But that's about developing an audience and it might be genre specific. Sweet romance and steamy romance do well there.
 
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RBC

Re: Checking again...
« Reply #116 on: December 04, 2021, 08:40:55 AM »
...
Take a break and start over in January. Maybe Tiktok ads then. If you had video ads for FB, might be able to do similar ones there maybe.

I tried TikTok several months ago. TikTok is price competitive but the results are hit and miss. Mostly miss. The audience is not looking for something to read.

R.C.

All pay-per-click ads are hit or miss. Just the part of the game. The more ads you try the more you learn.

And audience of readers exist there. BookTok is there and I hear authors using it on other groups. There are influencers there etc. So you should maybe actually try it again, at first not the ads, just browsing BookTok and seeing what people read, comment etc and learn that. Study, research, learn. Then move to ads. 

All platforms that come out, think Instagram even, gets comments at first that 'the readers aren't there' but if normal people are there, then there are readers. Dismissing platforms is easy, and doesn't require work and research. We're not gonna succeed in life by dismissing new things constantly...
 

RBC

Re: Checking again...
« Reply #117 on: December 04, 2021, 08:42:21 AM »
...
Take a break and start over in January. Maybe Tiktok ads then. If you had video ads for FB, might be able to do similar ones there maybe.

I tried TikTok several months ago. TikTok is price competitive but the results are hit and miss. Mostly miss. The audience is not looking for something to read.

R.C.

Nope, definitely not TikTok. Books and TikTok mixes about as well as arugula salad and avocado toast at an NFL watch party. ...and if you ever go to an NFL watch party and they are serving arugula salad and avocado toast 😳RUUUUNN! It's a trick! They're going to change the channel to ice skating or try and sell you tupperware or something

Did you actually try Tiktok?
 

Jeff Tanyard

Re: Checking again...
« Reply #118 on: December 04, 2021, 09:38:01 AM »
As a native California, I have to say, we welcome avocado at all times, in all places, including Super Bowl parties. Granted, I'm not a football fan, but I've seen avocado welcomed in much stranger contexts. Guacamole is 90% avocados (also lime, cilantro, onion, salt and sometimes tomato or jalapeno), and surely no one would be upset to see guac and chips at a Super Bowl party? Avocado toast is really not that different.

Luke, it's usually considered "bad form" to offer unsolicited criticism of another member's stuff
Books and TikTok mixes about as well as arugula salad and avocado toast...

I can honestly say I've never eaten either of those things, nor would I want to. 

You should try them.

Avocado toast is great. It's just an bunch of avocado mashed on toasted bread, sometimes with other toppings. Who doesn't like that? I guess people who don't like avocados, but if you enjoy avocado on your sandwiches, you'll probably like avocado toast (or avocado sandwiches, as my mom used to eat, way before avocado toast was cool).

Arugula is peppery and delicious. Way more exciting than iceberg lettuce or mixed greens, but not for everyone.


Not into guacamole, either.  I basically don't do much "green food" in general.  I'm not a pure carnivore like our friend Anarchist, but I lean heavily to the meat and junk food side of the dietary spectrum.  If I'm eating corn chips, then I'm dipping them in salsa, picante sauce, or cheese dip (especially jalapeno cheese dip; I love that stuff).
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Marti Talbott

Re: Checking again...
« Reply #119 on: December 04, 2021, 09:47:55 AM »
Good thing too, Avocados are expensive where I live.
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Jeff Tanyard

Re: Checking again...
« Reply #120 on: December 04, 2021, 09:56:47 AM »
Good thing too, Avocados are expensive where I live.


Well, the avocado market is controlled by Mexican drug cartels, so...   :shrug
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Marti Talbott

Re: Checking again...
« Reply #121 on: December 04, 2021, 10:20:40 AM »
 :catrun
Read The Swindler, a historical romance available at:
Amazon, Apple, Google Play, Kobo & Nook
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08QG5K23
 

R. C.

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Re: Checking again...
« Reply #122 on: December 04, 2021, 11:13:03 AM »
Well, the avocado market is controlled by Mexican drug cartels, so...   :shrug

Maybe I should tailor the BB ADs to the drug cartel overlords...

R.C.
 
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