By Kiana Mason
You’ve spent hours writing, editing, and perfecting your book. Now it’s ready to be delivered to the hands of readers everywhere. Whether you’re marketing your book on your website, on Amazon, or through an email blast, start with a listing description that lets people know exactly who you are and what your book is about and makes them want to read it.
But where to start? Use these quick tips to create a listing to promote and sell your book online.
Get Into the Mind of Readers
To make the most out of your listing, consider what readers want and make sure you make it clear that you’re going to deliver it:
Build a connection
Use words in your listing that connect you to your target audience. People want to know how your book is going to make them feel. Will they feel uplifted, inspired, enthralled, immersed,etc.?
Provide personal facts
Your online book listing is your opportunity not only to sell your book, but also to promote yourself as an author. Readers want to know who you are and why you wrote your book. This also includes building your credibility, why should they trust you?
Offer special pricing and options
When presenting your book offer different options with different prices, some ideas include print and ebook, paper or hardback, audiobook and ebook, signed copies, signed copies with a personalized note. When offering two package options and a bare minimum option all side-by-side you should see increased sales in your middle option.
Writing Meaningful Listings
Using listings to sell books is much like selling any other product online: they need to grab the attention of readers, so they buy. Use these listing techniques to promote your book:
- An effective headline – Lure readers in with a headline they won’t forget. This should be a play off of your title or include the title of your book depending on the market you’re trying to reach and how informative your title is. For example, if your book is a productivity guide titled, “Like Clockwork” it won’t be enough to tell people what it’s about or compel them to buy, consider using your subtitle as well.
- Effective descriptions – Even Amazon encourages authors to write “enticing” descriptions. Use powerful adjectives to talk about your book. Make sure you’re including keywords and versions of those keywords that surround your book (Italian cookbook, Mediterranean cuisine, authentic Italian cooking tips).
- Add images – Use a high-quality photo of your book cover and/or yourself in the listing to inspire even more interest. It’s also a good idea to include reviews of your book or even a teaser page.
Designing Your Listing
Once you have the words in place, create a design for your listing that’s easy to read:
- Use the right font size – listing headlines should be 16 to 20 point font for easy viewing while 10 to 14 point font works best for the body of your listing. Of course, some platforms don’t allow you to change the size of the live text but you can apply these principles to text overlay on an image as well.
- Choose a sans serif font that’s simple and basic so it’s easy on the eye. Both Verdana and Arial are good options.
- Be professional. Your listing promotes both you and your book – you want to leave a great lasting impression with readers.
There’s a lot of work that goes into self-promoting your book online. Done right, the payoff can be immense for both sales and the personal fulfillment of publishing. Use the techniques here to write book listings that sell. To see general listing tips and advice, check out the visual below, courtesy of ForSaleByOwner.
Kiana is a content creator with a passion for writing and all things creative. She loves exploring a diverse collection of topics including business, marketing, cybersecurity and everything in between! When she’s not writing you can find her traveling, going for runs
along the San Diego coastline and performing music.
