Have a new book coming out soon and want to plan a successful launch?
If so, you’ll probably want to explore one of the hundreds of book promotion websites out there. Each one promising to help the new or experienced self-published author to get their new release in front of the right prospects so they can build buzz, attract attention and eventually make sales.
It can be a daunting and confusing process to sort through all of the options available to hone in on the handful that will benefit you in a significant way.
What’s Important in a Book Promotion Service?
What factors should you pay attention to when selecting your ideal book promotion service?
- Price– There are free book promotion websites as well as paid services at a wide range of price points. However, it would be incorrect to assume that justbecause a service is paid or more expensive that it automatically means they offer better services.
- Subscriber Base – It wouldn’t be unreasonable to think that the more subscribers a book promotion service has the better. A bigger user base always means more potential eyes that will be focused on your book launch.
- Experience – Well-established book promotion services have an edge when it comes to selecting your launch partner.They’ve had more time to build up a sizable subscriber base and to get a good grip on the mechanics of creating a successful launch. However, depending on who you are targeting, a newer service may be a good fit if they are niche specific.
- Niche Focus– Every book focuses on a specific niche topic and will naturally be more attractive to a specific group of people. If you are launching a book on a very tightly-focused niche-specific topic, you may not need a large audience to make a big impact. But no matter who you are targeting with your books, if you have a choice between selecting a generic book promotor and one that targets readers interested in your particular genre, the betterchoice is obvious.
Finding the right book promotion service for your needs is a bit a Goldilocks experience. However, there are a few options that are worth taking a closer look at if you are serious about leveraging the power of an established business to help you to make your next book launch a success.
- BookBub
As far as book promotion services go, few out there are as promising as BookBub.
Boasting a subscriber base into the millions, BookBub has command of a lot of eyeballsbecause they offer limited-time and deeply discounted eBooks.
Many self-published writers have reported seeing their books go from completely unknown to selling several thousand copies in the space of a few days. Many also see the lasting benefit of rank boostson Kindle’s best seller lists. That type of exposure doesn’t come free or cheap.
With over 40 categories, you can expect to pay anywhere between $100 to $4000 dollars to promote your book, at no cost to BookBub’s subscriber base or at a deeply discounted rate, with fairly predictable results.
- NewinBooks
With several hundred thousand subscribers, New in Books is an excellent service for the budding self-published author that helps them gain rapid exposure for their books at first launch.
Touted as a ‘Launch Promo Stack,’ New in Books provides authors with a dedicated book promotion specialist, a promotional spot in their weekly newsletter, exposure on other branches of their media network, feature placement in a new releases list, an author interview that is featured on their website as well as promotion on their social media channels.
All of that comes at a cost of between $299 and $499 depending on your target audience.
- Bargain Booksy
Bargain Booksy offers a free book promotion service that targets close to 200,000 Kindle readers, where self-published authors can promote their discounted (but not free) books.
The catch to this free service however, is that you must submit your book and then wait to see if it is selected for the free promotion. Morebad news is that only about 5 percent of the books that are submitted to Bargain Booksyever get featured on the website.
They of course, have paid options if you want to guarantee that your book gets featured. And ranging from $25 to $160, it’s truly a bargain.
- Inkitt
Inkitt deserves a special mention in this list of prospective book promotion websites because of its unique approach to helping self-published authors.
Inkitt’s primary objective is to discover promising but unknown authors and give them an opportunity to become highly successful. They achieve this by presenting books to a test group in order to attempt to predict the potential that the book would have if it launched worldwide.
So, along with providing the initial exposure of your book to an avid reader base, Inkitt takes things a step further and works as a collaborator and publishing house to get your book into as many hands as possible.
- Book Bongo
With 7 social media-based (Facebook and Twitter) promotion packages ranging from absolutely free to $200, Book Bongo is a book marketing service that, while not as subscriber rich as some of the more established book promotion services, still has a lot to offer the novice self-publisher at a budget conscious price.
If social media is a major aspect of your book marketing strategy, Book Bongo is an excellent tool for getting a foot in the door.
The free promotion option doesn’t guarantee placement, as the service selects books that they deem very high in quality based on specific criteria.
- The Fussy Librarian
The Fussy Librarian is a unique book promotion service that works to match readers up with books they would most likely enjoy based on criteria such as genre and content preferences.
This makes this service very valuable for both readers and self-published authors alike. Subscribers to this service are highly targetable because they are, well, fussy. Or to put it a little more nicely, very particular about the types of books they want to read.
If you can deliver what ultra-picky readers want you are positioned perfectly to take advantage of this service.
- Many Books
Are you a brand-new self-published author with a small budget and want to dip your toes into the book promotion pool slowly? Many Books, may be the right platform for you.
With approximately 150,000 subscribers eager to discover new and interesting reads, Many Books is one of the more affordable book promotion services available today.
With a flat rate of only $25, you can gain exposure and boost book sales on Amazon and other select book selling platforms.
One caveat is that to be promoted on this website you have to be willing to offer your book for free or for at least a 50% discount off the retail price.
- Robin Reads
Have a brand new or previously released book that needs a promotional boost?
Consider launching or re-launching it with Robin Reads, a book promotion platform with a ravenous audience always on the hunt for new titles to satisfy their literary hunger.
With almost 200,000 subscribers with interests in seven categories that range from non-fiction to horror to romance, Robin Reads is an affordable book promotion service that ranges from $40 to $85 depending on the niche category you are targeting, and whether or not your book is free or discounted to $0.99.
No book promotion service can guarantee success, but in certain cases they can offer tremendous help to get your book sales moving in the right direction. Take the time to peruse these book promotion options, and set yourself up to have the best book launch possible.
Leave a Reply