Marketing Self-Published Books on Amazon with Amazon Ads is a recap of “Amazon Insider: Why You’re Wasting Money on Amazon Ads,” a recent episode on our Book Marketing Tips & Author Success podcast.
We go deep in our discussion about this timely topic for authors trying to figure out the ins and outs of marketing self-published books on Amazon, so be sure to download and listen to the show for all the details, recommendations, and considerations!
Marketing Self-Published Books on Amazon with Ads
I’m a big fan of Amazon ads, but I so often find that they’re used incorrectly and inefficiently because they aren’t serving the right audience – and frankly it’s a waste of time and money to do them without some specific focus.
A lot of authors get confused about how many keywords you need and what kinds of keywords to choose. To begin, you’ll need a lot, or more specifically, a number of unique keyword strings.
In fact, you should have enough that you don’t have to use all of them at once. A deep pocket of unique keyword strings allows you to test which work best and to consider which are best for return on investment (ROI).
Moving beyond keywords, when marketing self-published books on Amazon, you also need to also consider the ads – and your books – themselves. The platform has its terms of service available to the public, and it is not shy about rejecting ads that it deems inappropriate.
We’ve seen ads rejected for being too racy or because the books they were promoting were classified as erotic. Amazon has also rejected ads it feels capitalize on something sensational – for example, political or covid books/ads.
This doesn’t mean you should shy away from writing the book you want to write, but this is where consulting with a team skilled in marketing self-published books on Amazon, like Author Marketing Experts, can help you before you commit to a particular cover or book title if you’re in one of these “hot button” categories.
Marketing Self-Published Books on Amazon with Ad Optimization
Ads have optimization value, too – you can build momentum when your ads are working in tandem with good information and material on your product page. And again, the strategic use of keywords plays a huge role in successfully marketing a self-published book on Amazon.
You want to work in keywords whenever you can, to enhance your page, but you have to be careful that you’re not using keywords you simply plucked out of thin air because you figure, “this is what my book is about.”
Most of the time authors are too close to their own work to be objective about keywords unless they’ve really studied the kinds of strategies we outline in our Amazon video course – because if you’re not using keywords that mimic buyer behavior, you’re wasting your time and likely wondering what you’re doing wrong.
Your Amazon presence should operate like a well-oiled machine, and like maintaining an expensive car, if one part of the system is failing, you’re going to see the whole thing go downhill eventually – and sadly for some authors – their beautiful car won’t even make it out of the driveway.
For more tips and information on marketing self-published books on Amazon, don’t forget to give the full episode (“Amazon Insider: Why You’re Wasting Money on Amazon Ads”) a listen.
The end of the year is a great time to include a review of your Amazon presence in your book marketing and promotion plan. We love helping authors work through the ins and outs of marketing self-published books on Amazon, so don’t hesitate to reach out if you want 2021 to be your Amazon bestselling year!
Resources and Free Downloads
How to Get Your Book Noticed on Amazon: Your Relevancy Score (Book Marketing Podcast)
6 Tips for Marketing Self Published Books on Amazon with Author Central
Jane Friedman: Reporting and Consulting on the Publishing Industry
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