Market Test Your Next Book - For Free
In the world of traditional publishing, highly paid marketing people spend numerous man-hours researching whether bookstores, libraries, and book clubs will order a new book based on its author, his or her reputation, the genre, the subject matter or premise, the perceived intellectual status, authority and/or celebrity of the writer, and the effectiveness of all-important cover design.
And much of this they will attempt to discern way before the book is officially released.
They may also pay for advance review copies, conduct customer feedback surveys, and employ consultants to discover how well-received a book might be on its eventual launch into the marketplace.
Legacy publishers like the Big Five regularly invest in these expensive activities because, as far as is possible, they're after a sure thing - not something that is easy to achieve in the competitive industry that modern book publishing represents.
They do this because, on average, book sales are fairly low. I say on average because bestsellers skew the figures. For every one of the top one-hundred bestselling authors around the globe there are perhaps another ten-thousand traditionally published authors who will barely make back a small advance or sell enough copies for the publisher to break even on costs.
But do not be alarmed by this scenario because, simply put: this how it's always been. It's nothing new.
Bestselling authors effectively 'pay' for all the other authors to truck along with minimal sales. This is the real reason why traditional publishing royalties seem so low: the publisher uses its 90% of sales, after having paid the author 10%, to run the company, which, of course, usually has hundreds of other authors to support and develop alongside its superstars.
The new breed of independent self-publishing author, however, doesn't have these same expenses. Amazon royalties are consequently higher for you and I because independent authors don't have to prop up anyone but themselves.
As a result, the independent author has an advantage. Not least because we also have a way of market testing our next book that is easy, effective, and best of all, free. It's called social media.
If you want to know how you next book might be received, you simply need to ask your Facebook followers, or post a blog about it to Google+.
You can upload your prospective cover design and ask for feedback.
If you have more than one possible cover design, upload all of them and conduct a poll.
Not only do people love taking easy surveys and giving their opinion - it's also back-door promotion for your upcoming book.
Using social marketing is also a good way to test your book blurbs and your Amazon synopsis, even your author bio.
The trick is to get people involved in your market testing. Make them feel they have a stake in what you're releasing.
Encourage people to leave comments - and make sure you respond to each and every one.
If you want, you can try to get a discussion going about the merits of visual impact over book content, that sort of thing.
Be grateful for other people's input - and listen to criticism, good and bad, and - and this is crucial bit - be mindful that you can always adjust your 'product' accordingly.
It's all about giving your book release its best shot. Not only does feedback allow you to improve and polish your book cover and the book content, it often gives you the extra confidence you need to move forward with your project.
Knowing beforehand that you have something that looks like it will be well-received can provide a great boost to you in those moments of self-doubt that we writers have to deal with prior to a new book-release.
In the traditional publishing world, book promotion can be a fast and ephemeral affair, centered squarely around the release date, and rarely beyond. Traditionally published authors often complain about how this works.
Marketing departments at a traditional publishing house will often work on a rotation basis whereby a new book might be the subject of intense promotion - press releases, media hype, bookstore and library liaison - but only for a limited period - usually when the next release in the queue comes along. This period may last only a week in a big publishing house.
As an independent author, you have a further advantage that you can continue pimping your book long after a normal book promoter or expensive publicist has moved on to fresher pastures.
Real author success is often a slow-burn, cumulative affair.
This is just as true on Amazon and Kindle as it is in the real world - because long-term success is dependent on customer reaction to an author's books, critical appraisal of the writing, and the writer's ongoing credible presence in the marketplace.
Basically, the longer you stick around, and the greater awareness the public has of your best efforts, the better you'll do.
Amazon's software algorithms reflect this organic approach to author success. The better your book sells, the more often Amazon will place your book alongside other books that sell in your category or genre.
It's all about visibility. The more visible you are to the marketplace, the more you can expect to sell your books - as long they're well-written, effective, and entertaining.
Amazon tries hard to keep up its end of the bargain. You must do yours: and market test your books - for free on social media - until they're as perfect as you can make them, in design, content, and overall market appeal.
Keep Writing!
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