Jim’s Comments (group member since Feb 12, 2014)

Jim’s comments from the Taming Amazon group.

They'll change it for you, Anne-Rae. You'll be able to tell by looking near the bottom of your product page at the "Look for Similar Items by Category" section. That will tell you what categories you're in. Sometimes they'll just add the category without removing one. One of my books is in 4 categories.

It may take a few days before your ranking number shows in the "Product Details" section. I think it must take time for it to propagate.

Anne-Rae wrote: "Hi Jim,
I followed your advice and contacted KDP Help to change the categories for my book.

I always wanted my book to be in
Mystery & Suspense > Thrillers > Apocalypse
Young Adult > Paranormal >..."

It can make a big difference if you're on the first page of a category when people are browsing.

Making sure your categories are still relevant is extremely important. The last thing you want is to have someone expecting your book to be an adventure thriller and end up binge disappointed to find out it's a romance. Those 1 star reviews can really hurt.

Congratulations for reaching #2!

Here's an interesting chart I ran across in David Gaughran's book, "Let's Get Visible." It serves as a guideline for estimating how may sales are required for an eBook to make it on the Best Seller List in the Amazon US store.

Rank to Sales Estimator
#1 to #5 = 3,500+ books a day (sometimes a lot more)
#5 to #10 = 2,000 to 3,500 per day
#10 to #20 = 1,100 to 2,000
#20 to #65 = 850-1,100
#80 = 850
#90 = 750
#275 = 325
#500 = 200
#1000 = 100
#2000 = 50-55
#3000 = 40-45
#4000 = 30
#5000 = 20-25
#7500 = 16
#12000 = 10
#25000 = 5
#32000 = 3
#42500 = 2
#70000 to #100,0000 = 1
#1000,000+ = less than 1 per day

Roger, it sounds like you're doing well with the Countdown. Are you promoting it anywhere?

You're welcome, Jonathan. I plan to add more information soon about finding keywords, writing descriptions, and using social media to promote your book.

That's funny! No, I was really just using the number 55,000 as an example, what a strange coincidence! I'm glad you found the information useful.
Good Luck!

Thanks Greg, I'm glad you found it interesting.

Categories on Amazon are confusing, to say the least. But understanding them and placing your book in the correct one, is essential.

The key is to find a category that’s suitable for your book, but not very competitive. If you use Amazon’s Browse/Categories function, you’ll be able to see how many books are in a category.

Let’s say your Amazon Best Sellers ranking is #55,000 and you’re in the Mystery, Thriller, and Suspense category. If you go to the Best Sellers for this category, you’ll see the ranking for the book in 100th place is #487. So, your book wouldn’t appear to browsing customers.

If we drill down a few categories to the Suspense/Paranormal/Psychics category, and look at the rankings for the books on the first page, you'll see that your book would be ranked as 16th, so you’d be on the first page and highly visible.

To do this, go to your KDP Dashboard to edit the details of your book and choose to Add Categories. You’ll see the list of categories to choose from. The problem is these categories are different from how they are listed on the website. So, choose Non-Classifiable. Then go to the bottom footer on the page and click Contact Us, (really small print.) You’ll be taken to the What is the problem? page.

Choose Publish Your Book, and Adding or changing categories. For the subject I use, Category not listed. Then copy and paste the category(s) from the search on Amazon you want to be in. Also, list your book name and ASIN number. If you’re changing to a new category, list the one(s) you want removed.

So I’d say something like,
“I would like to add my book to this category. Kindle eBooks › Mystery, Thriller & Suspense › Suspense › Paranormal › Psychics.
Please remove my book from this category, Kindle eBooks › Mystery, Thriller & Suspense.
Thank you very much.”

I think it’s essential to have your book in a category that will put you on the 1st page for customers browsing that category. If, after a few weeks, you aren’t making much progress, change to another. Keep at it until you find a category that works for you.

Let me know if you’ve had luck with this tactic, or if you have any suggestions.
Thanks!

I've been part of the Goodreads review group and it's a great way to get reviews, as long as you have the time to read a few books. The effect of having 15 sales all at once really increases your Amazon ranking, but only for a short time. The key is to have your book in a category that you'll be able to be one of the top ten. Then, if enough people see you, you'll get more sales. Eventually, you should move to a larger category so you’ll have the chance to be seen by a larger group.

As Roger says, it's a long slog.

Hi Jenny, I haven't tried running a Goodreads giveaway yet, but your experience makes me interested to look into it.

As far as getting reviews, what are you doing? I've had good luck by contacting reviewers on Amazon that have reviewed books similar to mine. Most of the top reviewers have their email's listed on their profile. It takes some time, but getting one of them to write a review can make a big difference.

Also, I don't know how you feel about review exchanges, some people aren't comfortable doing it, but I've been able to get many reviews this way. I have an extensive list of facebook groups that do review exchanges if you're interested.

I look forward to hearing from others about their experience with the Goodreads giveaway.

Here are some Facebook groups that will promote your free eBook. Be sure to list your favorites. I'll add more soon.

https://www.facebook.com/KindleFreeEb...

https://www.facebook.com/eBookPromoeBook

https://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Eb...

https://www.facebook.com/PromoteMyBook

https://www.facebook.com/groups/12616...

https://www.facebook.com/groups/apablog/

https://www.facebook.com/groups/69073...

November 2019 update:
New sites added to the list!

The following is a listing of a few websites that will list your free or discounted eBook. If you’re using Select, coordinate with your free days, giving them at least a week in advance notice. If you’re not on Select, you’ll have to wait until your book is free. Most of these offer their services free, some for a small charge.

If you have some favorites, let us know. I'll add more soon.

http://addictedtoebooks.com/free

http://www.armadilloebooks.com/submit...

http://askdavid.com/free-ebook-promotion

http://awesomegang.com/submit-your-book/

http://bargainebookhunter.com/free-bo...

http://bookangel.co.uk/submit-your-book/

http://www.book-circle.com/submit-fre...

http://bookgoodies.com/submit-your-fr...

http://bookloversheaven.com/author-in...

http://bookpinning.com/?sws=home/subm...

http://bookpreviewclub.com/thank-you-...

http://www.bookzio.com/submit-a-listing/

https://choosybookworm.com/free-ebook...

http://dailycheapreads.com/your-two-c...

http://digitalbooktoday.com/12-top-10...

http://ebookasaurus.com/free-book-lis...

http://ebookshabit.com/for-authors/

http://ereaderlove.com/contact/

http://ereadernewstoday.com/ent-free-...

http://www.ebookmountain.com/

http://www.ebooksoda.com/authors/subm...

http://www.ereaderperks.com/authors/

http://www.ereaderutopia.com/

http://www.eroticaeveryday.com/submit...

http://www.etlc.info/index.php/site/a...

https://fivestarreads.com/free-ebook-...

http://freebooksy.com/editorial-submi...

http://www.free99books.com/author/add

http://www.freebookclub.org/kindle-bo...

http://www.freebookdude.com/p/list-yo...

http://www.freebooks.com/submit/

http://www.free-ebooks.net/submission...

http://www.freeebooksblog.com/contact

http://www.freeebooksdaily.com/p/blog...

http://www.frugal-freebies.com/p/subm...

http://www.indieauthornews.com/p/cont...

http://www.indiesunlimited.com/catego...

http://newfreekindlebooks.com/authors/

http://ohfb.com/author-free-kindle-bo...

http://pretty-hot.com/submit-your-book/

http://readcheaply.com/advertise/

http://readingdeals.com/submit-ebook/...

http://www.readfree.ly/author-submiss...

http://www.thereadingsofa.com/authors...

http://www.worldliterarycafe.com/foru...

Yes, I have a very extensive list of websites and facebook groups that I use for promotion. I've started listing them in the "Resource" folder of this group:
https://www.goodreads.com/topic/group...

I'll list more soon.

Hi Sherry,
I agree, the purpose of the Countdown is to create a sense of urgency. Did you list your promotion on many of the websites like, Pixel of Ink, eReader Utopia, and Bargain eBook Hunter? I'm sure that's what made the difference for me. Maybe after Countdown has been around for a while, it will be more popular. But I wonder if it will ever be as effective as the free promotion.

Do you use Amazon exclusively, or have you tried other retailers?

Hi, and welcome to Taming Amazon. I'd like to start the discussion by talking about the Kindle Countdown promotion on Amazon. I recently used the promotion and have mixed feelings about it. I was happy with the increase in sales it brought, but I think the requirements to use it are too strict.
Your price has to be at least $2.99 and not have changed for 30 days. Since I regularly experiment with different prices, this is a problem for me.

Have you tried the promotion or do you plan to try it in the future?