Well, that’s interesting

So, I’m 3 out of 5 days through the Amazon Ad course. For those of you who don’t know, if you sell on Amazon the company allows you to advertise with them. In short you design an ad and they present it to Amazon searchers depending on a number of choices you make, how much you’re prepared to pay and the state of their algorithms. It’s complex (hence I’ve only tried it a couple of times and got it badly wrong both times) and does need a course to help you iron out the best approach. Interestingly the biggest thing I’ve learnt is that this is about getting a sale, not about the book itself. Clearly people buy books without reading them, otherwise what’s the point? Some people will go on recommendations, but a lot search through Amazon, like the cover and the back page blurb, and press ‘buy’. Arguably you could write 500 pages on nonsense and have a decent cover and blurb and you’d sell books … although it wouldn’t be long before your reviews told the story. But the mindset is key: once you’ve got a book, it’s about selling. My first book, Unsuspecting Hero, which now has a new cover and 70-odd, 5-star reviews looks primed to sell. All I need to do is get the ads right, in front of the right people and pay Amazon enough money, but not too much, to make a profit.

Mmmmmm

I have two more days on this (free) course and then I can opt for a longer and much more in depth course, for which you pay. Those of you who know me won’t be surprised that I’m going to run with the free course, on which I have already learnt an awful lot, and see how it goes. I’m also going to read a number of other articles on the whole process as I go along to see if I can refine my work. There are a lot of options, a huge amount of information, and risk and opportunity. I’ve given myself until the end of May to see if I can make this work. Hopefully by then I’ll be turning a profit. We’ll see. [And, for those of you reading this who are in the same position as me, Amazon Ads, unlike Facebook Ads, are free until a punter clicks through to your Amazon sales page. FB charge you for each impression, even if there is no follow through. I’m not saying Amazon is better, especially as FB allow you to design some really impressive ads whereas Amazon is a tiny fingernail impression. But at least you can swamp the market with Amazon without the need of a mortgage.]

And Jen and I are making progress on the covers for books 2 and 3, Fuelling the Fire and The Innocence of Trust. There’s work to be done on both and C and I are up with them later today for lunch and some work. I’d hope we’d have new covers on both books by the end of the week. Thanks Jen!

draft Fuelling the Fire love this …

We’re fine. The weather is making all the difference, isn’t it? Assuming Doris passes her MOT we should be away on Wednesday for a couple of weeks (in that time I intend to start the edit of book 8). And, yesterday, I took the skis out of the garage and edged and waxed them. Due to covid they haven’t been out for a couple of years and were in a state. Indeed, we were going to buy new ones this year but, having done the maths, we’re going to leave it for another year. Anyhow, an hour and a half later and they were back in shape. We both like our skis and, assuming I haven’t ruined them, they’ll certainly be good enough for another season.

skis!

C’s been fretting about the hotels we’ve booked for a wedding trip to Italy in the summer. We’re going with Mary and want to make it nice. But, as always, there’s a cost … and getting that balance right, with only images and a few reviews to go on, is a struggle. It’ll be interesting to report how our expectations have or have not been met in June. Hopefully it’ll all be fine.

And we’re still walking and running. I have to take my hat off to C. Having run pretty much four times a week since I was 14, putting my kit on and getting out there is not an issue for me – although I really am feeling my age, now. C, on the other hand, has to really psyche herself up. And that takes effort and time. But she does it anyway. Good on her (he says in an as unpatronising tone as he can muster).

Stay safe everyone. If, like we were a few days ago, you’re feeling rubbish, put your walking garb on a enjoy the rain-free days. And, as always, stay safe. A good friend of ours has just got covid. She’s got a chesty cough and is feeling rough. Fingers crossed from us, Mikki.