- If you're self publishing, Amazon matters a lot.
So paying attention to what Amazon wants
and giving it to them is pretty important.
I already talked about the five things to do
when your book is listed on Amazon.
Today I'm gonna go much deeper into what you need to do
to create your awesome Amazon author page
and why it matters.
(upbeat music)
Hey, I'm Julie Broad, award winning author
and founder of Book Launchers.
A company that helps entrepreneurs
and professionals write, publish and sell
a fantastic nonfiction book.
If you're self publishing a nonfiction book,
Amazon is likely gonna be
your biggest source of book buyers.
So standing out on Amazon really matters,
the numbers are telling, 69% of adult
nonfiction books are bought online
and that number goes up, way up even more
when you're talking self-published books,
largely 'cause that's really
the main place that they're available in many cases.
And one of the most crucial pages for marketing
and sale success is your Amazon page.
As a Book Launcher platinum level client,
we make sure you're covered there.
But if you're not, here's the essential elements
to ensure your Amazon page markets your book
in the absolute best possible way.
Number one, your book title and subtitle
are essential to the success on Amazon.
I've talked about this in another video.
Ding.
So check out that video to make sure
you've got a great tittle.
But one thing we didn't discuss
in that video extensively is your subtitle.
And it really needs to hook your reader,
and answer this super important question.
What's in it for me?
Always be thinking, how will your reader benefit?
Will your book make them more beautiful? Richer?
Fitter? More successful?
And bonus points if you tell them how long it will take
to alleviate their biggest concerns.
A couple of my faves.
"The 4-hour workweek.
"Escape nine to five, live anywhere and join the new rich.
"The Perennial Seller.
"The art of making and marketing work that lasts.
"The dip, a little book that teaches you
"when to quit and when to stick."
Those are great titles with fantastic subtitles.
Starting with a great title and subtitle,
perfect thing for your Amazon page.
Number two is your cover.
Think in thumbnails, you need a cover
that creates visual curiosity.
It's the number one reason templates
for book covers are a terrible idea.
You must stand out and if you're gonna stand out,
you can't look like other people's books.
Too many people cheap out and don't work
with a professional who will create a unique
and targeted book cover.
With visual creatures, a colorful, explosive,
in your face cover, is a perfect way to capture
your reader's visual curiosity.
Number three, make your book available
in more than one format.
When I launched "The New Brand You",
I posted an important question on my Facebook page.
Do you think books printed in hardcover
are more credible than those printed only in softcover?
The answers surprised me.
When people see that is available in an eBook,
a softcover, a hardcover or an audio,
people automatically think real professional product.
This is a really important thing
if you're self-publishing.
You want it to look professional.
And if it's only available in Kindle,
you could be losing readers because they're gonna go,
hmm, cheap, or hmm, not professional.
Number four, keywords.
I'm gonna do a video on keywords real soon,
so make sure you've subscribed to Book Launchers channel
so that you catch that video.
But most importantly, you wanna know
what your competitor's books have for keywords,
and use that too.
So figure out which keywords are important for your book,
write a fantastic description
that will utilize those keywords.
Bonus points for getting those keywords
into your subtitle, that takes work.
But Amazon does give you some good guidance
on keywords in its catalog.
What's in its catalog is all it's going to search for.
And it's gonna personalize that to each person.
So the best way to get seen is by keeping your words generic
and broad for the most part.
On this list, ta-da!
You will see search engine will serve up results
much more effectively when you use categories
that have keyword requirements
and then you stick to those requirements.
Here's the link to the list,
and it'll be down below in the YouTube description as well.
Number five, description.
A mistake that I made with my books
that I'm actually fixing right now
is using the back cover description
for this spot on Amazon.
Why is this a mistake?
Well, a couple of reasons.
The back of my book has a lot more restrictions on it
in terms of size, and copy, and visual designs.
And the back of my book didn't have to be written
with keywords in mind.
Your Amazon description must be.
This description has to sell your book.
So you need to kick it off with your hook,
share what's in it for your reader
with the promise of what they're gonna get
when they read your book.
And include proof and even your author hook.
This is a great opportunity
to use those keywords again, by the way.
Number six, endorsements and reviews.
They're not the same thing, but they're equally important.
Endorsements are those quotes from well-known people,
media and other authors.
Check out my other video on the three types
you need for your book cover.
These three should appear here.
Then you need reviews for your book.
The most important is the stars, then the content.
The most liked review and most recent
will be the most important
because those are gonna be shown first.
So make sure you have recent reviews
and that the average overall stars
is four to five or better.
If they aren't, take a look at what reviewers
are criticizing and see if you can fix it.
You may want to relaunch your book.
Number seven, categories.
This is a big subject.
First, you only have a little bit of control over this,
but the strategy is to start
in the smallest category possible, itty bitty category,
and then have Amazon keep moving you up
within that overall category.
This way, becoming a number one bestseller
is quicker and easier and more importantly,
Amazon will pull your book
up into the mother category, so to speak.
Amazon will just keep pulling it up and up.
But here's the thing that many authors may not realize.
Canadian categories aren't the same as American categories.
Amazon print categories are not equal to Kindle.
So it takes research and setting yourself up
in different categories for different accounts.
Ugh, right?
That's what Book Launchers is for (laughs).
We do a lot of that hard ground work for you.
There's more in the page,
including also bots and recommendations.
But if you're focusing your marketing
on your ideal reader, then that should sort itself out okay.
So there's lots of things to cover in your Amazon page,
but they're essential to selling your book.
If you liked this video, hit that thumbs up button.
And of course, if you have questions,
you want me to film a video to answer one of your questions,
type it in the comments below.
And subscribe to the channel so you catch all the tips.
I'll see you on the next video.
(upbeat music)