Using ‘Free’ as an Incentive
by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig
Free book promos aren’t for everyone. Some writers are passionate about receiving payment for their hard work. Other writers don’t yet have enough published work to offer one of their books for free. It’s possible, also, that writers of standalones might not find as much value in a free promotion as series writers.
For me, I’ve found that free book promos do have their place. I use them often. In fact, at least one of my books is always free.
I don’t like the idea of Kindle Unlimited (KU), because I don’t like putting all my eggs in one basket. I’ve also found that anytime I cut back on any platform, I hear from readers. And I hate making readers upset.
Instead, I use Amazon’s price-matching policy to make my books free. In the past I’ve used Smashwords (a book distributor) to make my book free on other retailers (Kobo, etc.) and then Amazon has rapidly matched the price. I’m now experimenting with Draft 2 Digital (another distributor), which I’ve really enjoyed dealing with so far. You can make your book free on Nook with Draft 2 Digital, which does put pressure on Amazon to match the price quickly. Also (and I’m straying slightly off-topic here, sorry), Draft 2 Digital seems much easier to work with. More on them on their FAQ page.
Ways I use free book promos:
To introduce readers to my books. They’re more likely to take a chance on a new-to-them author if the book is free. The free book functions as a sort of ‘loss leader,’ using grocery store parlance. The hope is that the promo funnels readers to my other books.
As an incentive for signing up for my newsletter. (I wrote about the mechanics of getting the free books into the hands of the readers in last Monday’s post).
To elicit reviews for a new book. Goodreads giveaways provide an easy way of doing this, if you’ve got a print edition of your book. But I’ve also found that reviews follow a free book promo on Amazon…usually several weeks after the promo has ended. It’s true that sometimes free books can result in lower ratings from readers. That’s because some of these readers aren’t our intended audience. But, for me, this strategy for gaining customer reviews has worked well, despite the occasional bad review.
To introduce my books to a younger demographic. Wattpad‘s users are mostly 30 and younger (with a heavy concentration of teenage readers). Since many of my readers are seniors, I’m trying to ensure a future for my series.
Do you use free book promotions? What other promo have you used successfully?
Image: MorgueFile: DodgertonSkillhause
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