Top-of-search impression share?

[LilyBLily]

Amazon keeps emailing me about sponsored brands and this time I followed the link and came to a pretty page that listed all its recent ad updates. Has anyone used top-of-search impression share? Amazon claims it's suitable for authors.

[Marti Talbott]

I haven't seen that, but I'm not doing a lot of AMS ads lately. I don't seem to sell enough to pay for the ads. I did read lately that pointed out that money spent on a first is a series pays for itself when the rest of the series sells. I hadn't looked at it that way before.

[LilyBLily]

I haven't seen that, but I'm not doing a lot of AMS ads lately. I don't seem to sell enough to pay for the ads. I did read lately that pointed out that money spent on a first is a series pays for itself when the rest of the series sells. I hadn't looked at it that way before.

I always added the sales of all books in the series when calculating the profitability of the ad for Book 1. It was profitable until Amazon messed with algorithms and sales attributable to the ad tanked. Such a hard change was obviously not a gradual drop off of reader interest.

Unfortunately, my attempts to replace Amazon ads with one-day newsletter ads have not worked out. In a way, I'm surprised that newsletters continue to exist, considering Amazon has 400 pages of free books.

[Marti Talbott]

I agree about mailing lists. Mine totals around 700, but I certainly don't sell 700 copies of a new release. I sell just enough to keep it going, since I can't see which on the list actually buys.

I keep wondering it it's not just free books, but cheap books that did us in from the beginning. I know, we've talked this subject to death and we still don't have any answers.

Wish there was some way to convince all Indie authors to raise their prices, but of course, there would always be those who would undercut us. I have three free books and don't know where I would be if they didn't sell the rest of my three series. So I'm guilty.

[TimothyEllis]

In a way, I'm surprised that newsletters continue to exist, considering Amazon has 400 pages of free books.

And the rest.

I've seen a free book with a rank in the high 14 millions.

There are just as many free books with rank as there are paid books with rank. And probably just as many again of both combined with no rank at all.

Last time I tried to work it out on Quora with someone, we came to the conclusion there were 48 million books on Amazon, and that was about a year ago.

So 400 pages of free books is just the taste test at the top of the iceberg.

I keep wondering it it's not just free books, but cheap books that did us in from the beginning.

I'm convinced of it.

While I'm also convinced no first author can command more than $2.99 for a novel until they hit at least 10 books, I'm also convinced that in keeping my first book at that level for so long, and giving away some 13,400 of them, I left about 10 grand on the table. And that figure comes from how well book 2 has done, not from trying to calculate anything to do with book 1.

I've been convinced that free promotions are just shooting ourselves in the foot for a long time now.

When I moved from $2.99 to $3.99, I saw no reduction in sales. When I moved to $4.99, I saw no reduction in sales. When I put series 2 back to $3.99, sales didn't improve, and eventually I put them back up again as well. When I finally put book 1 up to $4.99, it saw no reduction in sales either.

I have never used 99c for release week, and have never understood the argument for doing it. I view it as shooting yourself in both feet.

The problem is, the way you price attracts people who want to buy at that price. So if you do free a lot, or do 99c or 1.99 a lot, that's the people you attract, and they will never pay full price for any of your books.

When you price consistently without discounting, you attract people who want to buy because they love your books, and those people pre-order and download on day 1.

Those wanting discounts will wait for the book to be discounted some time down the track.

[Hopscotch]

When I moved from $2.99 to $3.99, I saw no reduction in sales. When I moved to $4.99, I saw no reduction in sales. When I put series 2 back to $3.99, sales didn't improve, and eventually I put them back up again as well. When I finally put book 1 up to $4.99, it saw no reduction in sales either....When you price consistently without discounting, you attract people who want to buy because they love your books...

Based on previous comments from Tim, Lily and Marti, I tried the same experiment and saw no reduction in sales at the higher price, making me agree w/Marti that those who expect cheap price rather than (what little) quality I offer aren't my readers or the readers I want for a long writing career.

[Eric Thomson]

I've been at $4.99 US since the get-go (except for limited duration 0.99 BB promos) and am wondering whether the time has come to make that $5.99, what with prices rising rather steeply everywhere.

[Marti Talbott]

I haven't observed that prices are rising. That's good news.