How to Sell 20,000 eBooks

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You can buy ebooks on marketing your ebook. There are a lot of them out there. Or you can read this post and I'll tell you the top three things I've done to get to 20,000 ebook sales.

http://l00065619.wordpress.com/2010/02/

When I posted on my Facebook page that I broke 20k in sales, I received many emails, PMs, posts, etc asking me how I did it.

I know some people think I should keep my marketing strategies a secret. I call BS. Seriously? I'm happy to tell you what I've done.

Unfortunately, there isn't a magic bean. I wish there was, because then we'd all be sipping sweet tea on a beach. However, I can tell you some steps I've taken to increase visibility of my ebooks:

- Set the first book in a series free -

This is the same tactic they use at Costco. Have you ever tried walking through that place without eating enough sample food to fill you up for a week? If it's yummy, you might even buy it. It's the same with ebooks. Yes, Anathema has been downloaded, hold your breath, close to 2,000,000 times (thanks mostly to Wattpad and Amazon).

Don't tell me my sales suck. I'd guess there are tons of people hoarding ebooks on their ereaders, assuming someday they'll read them. I know, because I'm one of the hoarders. I'm really proud of my sell-through rate. The fact that anyone buys my sequels is encouraging!

- Get mentioned on the right websites - 

There are some incredible websites that advertise ebooks. Some charge money for ads. Some will list free ebooks. All four of these are the right place to be. Yes, I'm sure there are more great ones out there. If you know, please share them below in the comments.

Pixel of Ink (my favorite!)
Kindle Nation Daily
eReader News Today
Kindle Fire Department

- Befriend book bloggers -

There's nothing better than someone who loves your books and will tell the world about them. This is where bloggers come in. These readers are happy to devour your book and then tell the world how much they love it.

I'm not going to list my favorite book bloggers because the blogger you query should be targeted for your book. They don't all like fantasy, they don't all like contemporary. Find the right reader for your book and ask them if they're interested in reading it.

But do me a favor, treat them kindly. You aren't entitled to a review, or even a good review. Let them have their opinions. They don't owe writers anything. However, a friendly relationship can go a long way.

Just yesterday a blogger sent me interview questions. She actually apologized for them, assuming many of them would be repeats from the hundreds of other interviews I've done. My response: I'm happy to answer any questions, no matter how many times I've been asked. Just because other people know the answers, it doesn't mean her readers do.

http://bit.ly/LNbMrD

These are the top three tips I have for you. There's always discussions on getting into the right categories, promoting on Twitter (which I suck at, so don't ask me about it), promoting on Facebook (I generally use it as a way to connect with readers who already know about my books), etc.

You could try the spaghetti method (you know, throw it against the wall and see what sticks), or you could do the obvious: write, edit, write, edit, write, edit.

Take these words of wisdom from Hugh Howey (WOOL) in his Huffington Post article on snagging a film deal with Ridley Scott:

"My inbox lately has become sprinkled with missives from other independent writers asking me for any advice I might have. So I tell them what you have taught me: Please the reader. Write your best works for them; make those works affordable; interact with your fans; and take their feedback to heart. Without a single dime spent in advertising, a short story I wrote and didn't even work to promote climbed to the top of the Amazon charts. It drew the attention of Hollywood. It landed me an agent and half a dozen foreign book deals. All because of word of mouth. Because I happened to please you, and you told someone else, and they spread the word further."
  
Megg, Miss Enchanted ePubber