Using Keywords to optimize web pages for search engines has been an essential practice for a long time in digital marketing, most especially for ranking on the first page of search engines like Google. This practice is just as important for ranking your book page on online book platforms such as Amazon.

Let’s talk about promo on a dime. Anyone who has a couple billion in the bank need not apply. Actually they should, but that’s the point, actually.

My mother used to say that you can have things good, fast, or cheap, but you only get to pick two. If you want your promo to be good and cheap, you have to opt for a long, slow build. Speed and spread cost serious bank. Successful promo requires a balance of time, energy, and resources. Money can help, but it isn’t the only option.

Finding an audience is one of the biggest challenges every writer faces.

Once you have a finished book with plenty to offer, how do you bridge the gap between yourself and a passionate audience of readers? Finding your ideal reader can be tricky, but it’s the most important thing you can do to sustain your career as a writer.

Where do you fit on the genre bookshelf?

We’re all writers, but our books, our voices, and our fan bases vary wildly. In our promotional efforts we need to stand out from our peers for the right reasons. Some authors specialize by subgenre, some by humor or intensity, others jump between every category on record and several that haven’t been invented yet. Whatever their approach, all authors face the task of clarifying why their books are extraordinary, so building your audience begins with establishing your place on the genre bookshelf: your niche.

Are you looking to take your writing career to the next level? Then you should consider going to a writers’ conference! Whether you are looking for a traditional role in publishing, or thinking of self-publishing, attending will be very beneficial for your overall writing practice and success.

I’m a shameless conspirator in my own success.

Because of my extroversion, most people tend to think of me as a wacky disruptive presence. In many ways that’s true. I’m a bone-deep rabble-rouser who loves improvisation and the unlit path. On the other hand, I have a 40-year history in show business which is beaten into me the need for schedules, structure, and systems. With all of the impossible details necessary to bring people together for any kind of entertainment planning is essential. No matter how Dionysian your druthers, there comes a moment when you have to get strictly Apollonian.

Many self-published authors on Amazon are leveraging the exposure provided by the platform to rake in thousands of dollars in earnings.

Ask author Mike Omer, a previously relatively unknown author who not only found fame by publishing on Amazon but fortune as well. Omer has sold over 10,000 books on Amazon. The Israeli engineer’s success is such that he was once ranked above popular authors like JK Rowling and James Patterson on the platform. Talk about overnight success.

Raise your hand if online activities ever seem like a big drag.

Social media can teeter into time-suck and become a grueling slog if allowed to fester. One great danger is to let these online platforms become another intense writing gig which demands hours of backbreaking labor and focus which pull us away from the books we need to be writing. Nurturing balanced habits can help any author walk that line, effectively.

Everyone knows color plays an important role in corporate branding and marketing for large companies. Over the years corporations have spawned iconic colors like Tiffany & Co.’s robin egg blue and T-Mobile’s magenta. The goal is to set a tone, attract customers, and get them in the right mindset.

Updated 1/10/2022

For most authors, Amazon is the place to be. They sold over 44 million books in 2020 alone, and every year, that number goes up. But how do you build a meaningful connection with new readers in that vast sea of products and searches?