Any authors in the KDP Select Program? Showing 551-600 of 1,505

[Don]

I have a few bad reviews from the first edition that was in desperate need of editing. The edition of my first book that is NOW up there is much better than it was first presented. The problem is I can't get rid of those reviews now. I also have a couple reviews that clearly did not read my book I think one admits it too. Without those reviews I'd have like 4.5 stars. It can be frustrating but there isn't much we can do.
Sorry for going off topic but yes Kathy it is insane and they do it all the time. :)

[[deleted user]]

Kathy wrote: "Why would someone go to the trouble of NOT reading a book and then posting a bad review? That's insane! Why would these people go to so much trouble? Weird.."

There are authors who take another's success as a threat and post one-star reviews as a way to bring their 'competitor's' rating down. They do not, of course, use their own names. It is a known phenomenon. I was hit by one of those this past week.

You shrug and move on. They happen, you can't fight them without looking ridiculous, and any sensible reader (those ARE the ones you want to have look at your books, right?) will discount such a review. It's worthless to fret.

You'll continue to get good reviews if your work is good. ...and you wouldn't be publishing it if it weren't your best effort.

I now return this thread, with my apologies, to its regularly scheduled content.

;)

[[deleted user]]

Allan wrote: "Please, do yourselves a favor avoid the Amazon forums. There are too many immature, ego driven, power mongers who will go out of their way to be unreasoable, petty, and meanspirited..."

Another piece of advice: don't post about such here, either. This is a forum (I mean all of Goodreads) for readers - those people that read our work and (I hope) enjoy it. I'm always delighted when someone buys one of my books, and I'm always thrilled when someone leaves an honest review, whether or not it has five stars.

[Allan]

OK, sorry. I didn't realize it was open to all. I'll remove it.
I wasn't remrking about poor reviews..that happens, everyone tastes are different. I was posting about reviews where the reviewer admits or all but admits he/she never read the book before commenting.

[[deleted user]]

Don't apologize to me. I'm not a moderator. Just givig friendly advice, whether or not this is an open forum.

[K.A.]

When I'm reading reviews I usually discount 1-star reviews unless there are a whole lot of them. Many 1-star reviews seem to be from people who just couldn't understand the book's concept or didn't read it, and they're often poorly-written. I put a lot more stock in 3-star and 4-star reviews, which is where I feel the most thoughtful reviews are often written, and where I feel most books I really enjoy fall. Let's face it, all authors aren't going to be 5-star literary geniuses, but that doesn't mean what they're writing isn't really good. And I try to remember that "stars" are often used as opinions of either the author or the subject. Allan, you've got a lot of good reviews and the two poor ones are obviously ridiculous. No one's going to pay attention to them.

[Rebecca]

Diana wrote: "Kathy wrote: "Why would someone go to the trouble of NOT reading a book and then posting a bad review? That's insane! Why would these people go to so much trouble? Weird.."

There are authors who t..."
As a reviewer, I have learned a few things. No matter how good it is or how bad it is, you will always have at least one (usually more) lover and hater. Some will give a 5***** review to really bad work, and some will give a 1* review to bestsellers. Then you have the middle of the road, a sprinkling of **, ***, and **** reviews. Those are usually the honest ones that are sincere. I have always been the rebel I guess. Most of the time I don't read the previous reviews prior to reading the book if I am reading it for review. I have always like to decide for myself what I liked and what I didn't..one of the reasons I decided to review in the first place. I actually bought a book once because it had about 6 or 7 5**** reviews and one really nasty *. It didn't even give a valid reason in my opinion why the reviewer didn't like it..they were obviously just trying to discredit the author as was mentioned above. I assumed it was a sock puppet review..so, I decided to buy it to see for myself. The ***** were right. It is quite well written in my opinion..I am reading it now as a matter of fact..one of the 3-4 I am reading currently..lol You will see a review of it on my blog in the near future. Keep up the good work and the honest ones will always win out. The others can be detected by any discerning reader.

[Cindy]

I've been reading about KDP Select in other forums, and a lot of pages in this thread too and I still don't get why someone would want to do the restrictive thing or to put up their book for free. And it doesn't seem many people have borrowers to speak of either.

I like the idea of another poster who said they sell at $3.99 then do a 99 cent sale. That makes more sense to me. I'm probably going to go that route. Psychologically, I think people are drawn to 99 cent sale but if you say free, I think sometimes they think free=crap.

It's like in retail or the gas pump if you ever notice, it doesn't say $4.00 it says $3.99 because it sounds better (the brain relates to the first number, in this case the 3 being less than 4)even if there is really no difference.

If you get 4,000 free downloads you just lost 4000 potential buyers=lost sales. One thing I do know, that is 4000 people right there who will not buy my book. It doesn't seem that people do the spread the word thing when it's free(which I assume is the goal)to get the word out about your book if after the free promo there is a big drop off in downloads and only a handful actual sales. It doesn't seem to me that free=future sales.

I think people route out these free book list sites, download them and don't care what they are half the time. They only get it because it is free.

Just food for thought.

[Rebecca]

Cindy wrote: "I've been reading about KDP Select in other forums, and a lot of pages in this thread too and I still don't get why someone would want to do the restrictive thing or to put up their book for free. ..."

It seems to me that a free promotion would work better when it coincides with another sale: For instance, if I have a short story or two that is selling for $.99, which seems to be the norm for short stories, then my novel is about to launch. About 1-2 weeks prior to the launch, run a short promotion, say for a couple of days, when one of these short stories are free. If they like it, when the novel launches for say, $4.99 or so, then you will still be in their mind because they like your style..so then they will buy your book. So, you lost $.99 when the short story was free, but they paid $4.99 for your book=profit of $3.99..This is a theory. I haven't published anything yet, but I have worked in advertising sales..so this does work. Of course, your promotion for the book has to be there for it to work..

[Kathy]

It is interesting as I have a Kindle and I am downloading a lot of books I probably would not have bought. However, I am downloading those that sound interesting and which I probably would not have heard of beforehand. Problem is that it's so easy to download, I could be reading for months. However, if I do read it I and like it I will let people know.

A lot of it has to do with going up ranks. The free promotion helps to get you up the ranks for a little while so that people may come across your book, otherwise it's like a needle in a haystack - there are good and bad but 4000 downloads is not necessarily 4000 lost sales as many may not have even noticed the book otherwise...

Not sure....

[Kathy]

It is interesting as I have a Kindle and I am downloading a lot of books I probably would not have bought. However, I am downloading those that sound interesting and which I probably would not have heard of beforehand. Problem is that it's so easy to download, I could be reading for months. However, if I do read it I and like it I will let people know.

A lot of it has to do with going up ranks. The free promotion helps to get you up the ranks for a little while so that people may come across your book, otherwise it's like a needle in a haystack - there are good and bad but 4000 downloads is not necessarily 4000 lost sales as many may not have even noticed the book otherwise...

Not sure....

[M.L.]

@Cindy, you make some valid points. However, you may be overlooking some ways to leverage the program to your advantage - especially if you are a new and unknown author.

1. Most of us have learned that a higher position in the category lists equals more sales. The free day downloads will push you up those lists.
2. Many reviewers will take advantage of your free days to download your book. This can mean more reviews on your Amazon page, or even on other blogs and websites.
3. Most authors point out that KDP select works best if you have a portfolio. If you have other titles to upsell or a POD version of your book, some freebie seekers will buy your other products.
4. There are a lot of email lists and websites that will list your book during the free promo days, so it is a way to get a lot of exposure.
5. You are allowed to link to your blog/website/Facebook page in your book forward or cover page. This can generate some extra traffic to your fan pages.

Personally I have sold a lot more books after my free days than I ever did before. Yeah, I hated giving the book away hundreds of times, but I believe I also made 100 more sales that month than I would have.

You may also want to read about one author's experiences (good and bad) with KDP select here:
http://publishmyself.net/early-mistak...

[[deleted user]]

My first KDP select giveaway yielded 500% increase in sales.
I didn't hold a giveaway for several months and the numbers did increase, but not as dramatically as before. I did my research and advertised in July and August (hit #1 free in Kindle in July) and sales went up. August was very good, and September even better. The increase from January's sales (before I signed up for KDP select) to September is an increase of 1,100% in sales.

Borrows? Not a lot. That's fine with me: my Kindle royalties are higher than the KDP select ones. Sales rose and stayed there. Downside: I also got my first sock puppet one star review. But I needed the laugh.

I just re-upped. Word of mouth sells books. The more people who talk about yours (and enjoy it) the better.

[Cindy]

Rebecca and Marilyn, I see your point in combination with other books/stories that one can help push the other. I see what you mean there. I also like your short story idea Rebecca.

I'll use the 4000 figure again and Marilyn's point on the category lists for my next thoughts. I guess another question of mine would then be does the 4000 free book downloads pushing you up the lists offset the $0 on those 4000 free downloads. IF 99 cents was used instead of $0, how many of those 4000 people would have said, "OK it's not free but it's only 99 cents. I can do that," I guess is my point.

(If a freight train going 100 miles an hour takes 6 hours to go from .... kidding)

I do see the point of free might make it more likely that those 4000 people would see it when they otherwise may not but,do 99 cent books move a book up the list to any effect at least similar to free books? Or no?

A very good point Marilyn on the reviews or traffic to one's website. I hadn't thought about that.

This is a great thread. I'm learning a lot from everyone's ideas and experiences.

[[deleted user]]

Cindy wrote: "IF 99 cents was used instead of $0, how many of those 4000 people would have said, "OK it's not free but it's only 99 cents. I can do that," I guess is my point..."

The problem is that a $.99 book is increasingly seen as garbage by book buyers (I didn't do the research or compose the stats) while a free giveaway is viewed as a sale. Different focus. "Hey, that book's so crummy, they only want 99 cent for it!" versus "Hey, this book is usualy $3.99 - I'm saving about four bucks! Better get it while I can!"

I discovered a year ago that my sales went up when my prices increased. Though, to be honest, I was never at $.99)

[Cindy]

I didn't explain myself correctly. I meant if you do a promo marking down a $3.99 to .99 instead of free, does it move you up the lists at all? I'm over thinking this probably. Sure is a lot that goes into all of this huh?

[[deleted user]]

Marilyn wrote: 5. You are allowed to link to your blog/website/Facebook page in your book forward or cover page. This can generate some extra traffic to your fan pages..."

Not trying to sound like James T. Kirk, but can you explain about this? I'm interested...

[Kathy]

Cindy wrote: "I didn't explain myself correctly. I meant if you do a promo marking down a $3.99 to .99 instead of free, does it move you up the lists at all? I'm over thinking this probably. Sure is a lot that g..."

Whether you sell it for $0 or for.99, it counts as a sale and links to the ranks.

[Paul]

Kieron, you wrote: Prior to KDP, I was doing very well on iPhone and other electronic media (20,000 sales). I also stocked my books at Australian indie bookstores, and they all sell over time.

If you had 20,000 sales on iphones, etc., was that through Smashwords? Where were those sales - outside the U.S. or inside? I'm interested in knowing if there is an appeal for your books in certain countries? I'm also trying to figure out how to broaden my marketplace.

In general, I write nontraditional religious nonfiction and I don't expect my books to go viral. Being in the U.S., my sales outside the country are zippo. The KDP Select program has added to my exposure, and my sales from two books are running about three books per day - this is one month after my two day free promotion. That's two books per day more than prior to the promotion. (One third of those "sales" is borrows - which gives the reader the opportunity to analyze the book in depth if they have any reservations - they can later buy it if they really like it - two "sales" to the same reader.)

I have two more books being edited that will come out soon. It's a numbers game. More books mean more opportunity for word of mouth to expose them all to new people. It's a marathon.

[Cindy]

Kathy wrote: "Whether you sell it for $0 or for.99, it counts as a sale and links to the ranks.


OK, so if both count as a sale and links to the ranks, you still make no money if it's $0 so why not a promo at 99 cents instead?

I guess it really is a numbers game as Paul says.

[M.L.]

Diana wrote: "Marilyn wrote: 5. You are allowed to link to your blog/website/Facebook page in your book forward or cover page. This can generate some extra traffic to your fan pages..."

Not trying to sound like..."

Sure. When you compose your book in Word, you can simply add hyperlinks - i.e. links from text to a website. The conversion process keeps those links intact. In fact, if you put them early in your book, browsers who use the "look inside" feature can still see them.

You can use this feature to attract traffic to your site, social network page, or even to sell something.

http://publishmyself.net

[Marina]

I've had two books now in KDP Select, and did my free promo on both. Yes, I had lots of free downloads, that resulted in a brief bump in sales and a few reviews, but the bump didn't last too long, despite great reviews.

From what I'm reading on other blogs and forums, KDP Select is becoming a victim of its own success. So many authors are now enrolling, and doing their five day free promo, that we're not getting the boost in sales rankings like we were before. It's also recreating some new issues, such as trolls who download books for free just to write bad reviews, on purpose, to try to hurt the author's sales. I'm also concerned that we may be creating a niche of readers who'll only download a book if it's free. I'm now rethinking Kindle Direct Select, and I don't think I'll be using it anymore. I'm probably better off doing giveaways on other sites, like this one.

[Martin]

So after having been in KDP for the past few months, I've now reached the "it's not you, it's me" phase and we're going to part ways amicably. There's a chance that we can date again but right now we're both open to the idea of taking a break and seeing new people.

[Eve]

Marina wrote: "I've had two books now in KDP Select, and did my free promo on both. Yes, I had lots of free downloads, that resulted in a brief bump in sales and a few reviews, but the bump didn't last too long,..."

Marina, I totally agree with you, especially about the
"...trolls who download books for free just to write bad reviews, on purpose, to try to hurt the author's sales. I'm also concerned that we may be creating a niche of readers who'll only download a book if it's free."

[Laura]

Eve wrote: "Marina wrote: "I've had two books now in KDP Select, and did my free promo on both. Yes, I had lots of free downloads, that resulted in a brief bump in sales and a few reviews, but the bump didn't..."

Yes, the 'brief bump.' And now I'm watching my ratings plummet into the abyss. I've got another free promotion this weekend but I'm not going to do the Select program after this stint is up.

[Kathy]

Just to offer another perspective. Since I've now bought a kindle and discovered the free downloads, I am also one of those readers who gets emails about free downloads and downloads books for free - trouble is I have so many it will take forever to get through them. Though, I do offer a review of each book I read.
Also, I only download those books that interest me - I would never have found them otherwise so that's one way to look at it....I will get to them but I'm definitely less picky than if I was reading them.

[Marina]

Martin wrote: "So after having been in KDP for the past few months, I've now reached the "it's not you, it's me" phase and we're going to part ways amicably. There's a chance that we can date again but right now ..."

I love the way you put it, Martin. Know the feeling.

[[deleted user]]

Hm. I must be doing something wrong. My sales were bumped and then stayed bumped after I started doing KDP Select promos. (On the other hand, the increase also coincided with advertising I was doing as well, free or low-cost, so that might have done it...)

Haven't decided whether I will put my next one on KDP select.

[Rebecca]

I am just starting on my debut novel so I don't have a story regarding KDP as of yet. However, as a reviewer, I have taken advantage of the free books to write a review, but that was prior to being in contact with the authors directly. I have two queues in my Kindle: Promised Reviews and To Be Reviewed. The promised are those that I've had communication with rather than just downloading them on my own. The main reason why I am writing on this thread is that many authors may not know this, but if you go through Amazon to gift your book to a reviewer, you, the author, have to buy your own book in order to do it! That really stinks!! I was requesting a Kindle copy for review until one of the authors told me this. I was actually appalled. You should never have to buy your own book to gift it. I don't believe Smashwords makes you do that. They provide a code that you can give to the gift recipient and they can download it for free. Since I found this out, I have been requesting a mobi copy if possible, or a pdf. It seems that Amazon is a bit greedy, so when it is my time to publish, I am going to try all avenues. Thanks for all the tips! :)

[Kathy]

I found most my reviewers were happy to take pdfs or epub or I told them of my free promotions. There is only one reviewer that I bothered to gift them my Kindle copy. Problem with KDP is that you can't distribute through other channels while on the program so problem using Smashwords for that.........

[[deleted user]]

Rebecca wrote: "I am just starting on my debut novel so I don't have a story regarding KDP as of yet. However, as a reviewer, I have taken advantage of the free books to write a review, but that was prior to being..."

Oh, I don't know. It's an edition of my book. If I were to wish to gift someone a paperback copy, I'd buy a copy and send it to him (Actually, I'm doing that). I do get a discount with paperbacks...

I don't think it's such a terrible thing to pay to send a copy to a reviewer. Heck, I'll send you one of mine. ;)

[Nick]

Diana wrote: "Rebecca wrote: "I am just starting on my debut novel so I don't have a story regarding KDP as of yet. However, as a reviewer, I have taken advantage of the free books to write a review, but that wa..."

According to the FTC, you can gift anyone you like with a copy. But if you do so with the expectation that the person receiving the gift or free copy will review your book, then the reviewer has to disclose that they got a copy of the book as a gift or free for review purposes. It does not matter how they reviewed the book, good or bad, only that they reveal they received a copy for free...

This is the only way readers can judge a honest review from a paid review. This also applies to music, games, game systems, toothpaste, or anything else in which a reviewer received compensation, (the product.)

If the reviewer on the other hand gets a book from a library, buys a book, rents a book, or even gets a free copy from the vendor like a free download from Amazon, without expectations of a review, then the reviewer does not have to disclose how they got the book...

Lastly, any books given away for reviews or marketing purposes should be kept tabs on because the author can write them off as business expenses, including postage, even if the reviewer never writes the review. So, the IRS also enters the picture here for both the reviewer and the author...

I don't make the rules folks, I just report them...

[Julie]

Kenya wrote: "Hey,

I'm wondering if any authors are enrolled in the KDP Select program and what your experiences have been."

I am enrolled in the program. I haven't really noticed much difference financially except when you offer the book for free and have over a thousand downloads

[[deleted user]]

Nick wrote: "It does not matter how they reviewed the book, good or bad, only that they reveal they received a copy for free..."

This is standard practice. Actually, I think it has been (or, perhaps, is supposed to have been) so for a long time.

I think, incidentally, that there has been talk on Amazon of noting that the book was not purchased through Amazon.

I have all my expenses (advertising, giveaways - where I have to provide a hard copy of a book, paper, toner and the rest) carefully tracked for income tax time.

[Nick]

Diana,

Yes, this FTC reporting rule is not new, but to many new reviewers, even Goodread members who are swapping reviews, they are unaware of this and it can get them into troubles, especially with readers...

The thing on Amazon, is that they are reporting if the reviewer purchases the book through Amazon so that readers will know the reviewers more than likely read the book and aren't just repeating the book blurb or someone else's comments...

Good girl on the tax stuff, a lot of new writers never even consider this stuff...

Good luck to you and your writing journey...

[Rebecca]

Diana wrote: "Rebecca wrote: "I am just starting on my debut novel so I don't have a story regarding KDP as of yet. However, as a reviewer, I have taken advantage of the free books to write a review, but that wa..."

I just downloaded "Pharaoh's Son". I don't know when I will be able to read it, from the indication of my queue, it will be several months. It looks really good, so I hope it won't be too long.. :)

[Kathy]

Yes I just noticed that my reviews were verified as either Amazon verified purchase or not. The thing about my other review was that it was done by a blogger who read the book. What about people who lend books to others or send as a gift - that doesn't invalidate a review. I don't how bad things had been with reviews before but it might be just a little too restrictive by doing this/ I for one have half a dozen books here that I will read and review and got them through a book swap - there won't be anything wrong with those reviews....and yet won't have the Amazon verified.

[[deleted user]]

Kathy wrote: "Yes I just noticed that my reviews were verified as either Amazon verified purchase or not. The thing about my other review was that it was done by a blogger who read the book. What about people wh..."

I've given up trying to figure out why things are labeled like that. I decided that if I could ever get my mind around that sort of thing, it would mean that I am going mad. I've posted reviews of books I got from second-hand bookstores without any problems. Maybe the content of the review, bad or good, validates it?

[Nick]

Kathy wrote: "Yes I just noticed that my reviews were verified as either Amazon verified purchase or not. The thing about my other review was that it was done by a blogger who read the book. What about people wh..."

The reason behind Amazon's decisions is that Amazon has found out that a lot of the reviews are paid reviews or sock puppet reviews. These type of reviews game the system and makes it hard for the purchasers to know what is a legitimate review from a paid review.

There has been a lot of write ups about this in the papers and online blogs in the past year or so. This is becoming a very big industry wide problem on the Internet in that consumers do not know when to trust a review from a variety of products and service to book reviews. To many paid for 5 star reviews...

[Kathy]

Yeah, but if you are willing to pay for a review, how hard is it to pay for the book as well - doesn't get rid of the problem, just adds the cost of the book to it.

[Nick]

Diana wrote: "Kathy wrote: "Yes I just noticed that my reviews were verified as either Amazon verified purchase or not. The thing about my other review was that it was done by a blogger who read the book. What a..."

Very simple, in your review note where you got the book so readers know you have read the book and are not a sock puppet...

[Kieron]

Paul wrote: "Kieron, you wrote: Prior to KDP, I was doing very well on iPhone and other electronic media (20,000 sales). I also stocked my books at Australian indie bookstores, and they all sell over time.

If ..."

Hello Paul,
Sorry for my delay in writing.

I had an application written for my book that was submitted to iTunes. Basically, you have to find a developer who will 'wrap' your manuscript around an application, which is how all those iPhone apps work. It's not that expensive, and you can find someone to do the whole thing for as little as $50 (oDesk.com is great for finding someone, but you must be clear about what you want, and you must fix the price). I found the process quite exciting, and I have to say, way, way better than anything I have on Kindle. Speaking of which, I had to remove all other electronic versions because KDP Select demands it, and that is bad news.I did all I could to promote my book on Kindle, and it has been a complete waste of time. KDP's library 'share' is such a massive, insulting joke for indies. I know others have succeeded on Amazon, but I did NOTHING about marketing on the iPhone, the book just sold and sold for .59 cents and I averaged a 4 star rating.
I regret my Kindle (and smashwords) efforts. They both do nothing for you.

Read 'The long Tail' by Chris Anderson. It's a book about how these sites make money from thousands of hopefuls who make nothing.

Reversing out of KDP (I shall remain in Kindle) has taken a long time, because I have to now re-apply to Apple. Many millions have an iPhone, and they use them to read books, which I found astounding, but it's true. Not so many have a Kindle, and the whole 'free' thing I find distasteful, and smacking of vanity publishing.

Amazon don't care about you, they care about sales....the long tail. It's interesting.

Good luck,

Kieron

[[deleted user]]

I really feel that I'm still living in the 20th century. I've finally purchasedf myself a Kindle because I'm getting piled up with books and I think that it will be ideal for travel. As for the iPhone, what exactly does it do?

[L.L.]

This is my first post to Goodreads. I'm very excited about being here. Please don't hesitate to let me know if I'm not doing this right or if I'm breaking any rules. I promise I'll be a fast learner.

I thought I'd share my KDP experience, although my situation is probably a bit different since my ebooks are my out-of-print mysteries, not new books. My son and daughter gave me a Kindle Touch last Christmas and I quickly realized that for people like me--with aging eyes--ebooks have some real advantages. Since my kids were nagging me to do it, I decided to turn my books into ebooks and since Kindle was what I was familiar with, that's the program I used.

I don't regret joining KDP Select. I had one free promo day for my first ebook. 1500 copies were downloaded (350 of them were on the UK website). I have heard lots of negative comments about providing free books, and maybe my perspective on the subject is influenced by the fact that I spent many years working in libraries. When my hardcovers were published, many libraries purchased copies, for which I received a couple dollars in royalties per book, and then each library loaned them to many, many people. So, to me, providing free ebooks to readers through a promo on amazon.com was a lot like that. I didn't make any money from those readers, just from the initial sale to their library, but I believe word-of-mouth advertising is invaluable to writers. The month following the promo was my best month in sales so I do think the free promos lead to purchases. My sales numbers, even in the month following the promo, are nothing to get excited about but, as I said, these are "reprints" of out-of-print books, not brand new releases. I wasn't expecting to become a Kindle Millionaire (although my kids were probably hoping I would).

Linda

[[deleted user]]

L.L. wrote: "This is my first post to Goodreads. I'm very excited about being here..."

Welcome! Your books look interesting - and I'm glad your promo experience was good. I think books are sold through word of mouth, and getting them out there, whether through a KDP promo or a library loan, is a good thing. I know I, personally, have often bought a book I checked out from a library. Or else I've purchased in hardback a copy of a cheap paperback.

Anyhow, welcome aboard!

[[deleted user]]

Rebecca wrote: "I just downloaded "Pharaoh's Son". I don't know when I will be able to read it, from the indication of my queue, it will be several months. It looks really good, so I hope it won't be too long.. :)..."

I just saw this. Oh, gosh - I'm blushing.
I just hope you enjoy it, whether or not you review it. That's why I wrote it.

[L.L.]

Diana wrote: "Welcome! Your books look interesting - and I'm glad your promo experience was good. "

Thanks for the welcome, Diana. The first books I downloaded when I got my Kindle were ones that I already owned in print. You can't have enough copies of a good book!

[Laura]

I'm just wrapping up my second free KDP promotion and I'm pleased with the results. I should add, this is my first novel and I published it last month. My first free promotion had 1000 downloads, ranked #40,000 and no sales afterwards. (I had a moan further up this thread.) This second promotion had 5000 downloads and bumped me into the Top 100 Kindle Books, #2 in Historical Fiction.

The way I see this, as a first-timer, I could never have paid for this type of exposure. I know there are the disadvantages, for example no money earned, but these books would have never been looked at, print or electronic, had I just let them up for sale.

So, we'll see what happens the next two weeks. I'll be back...

[Laura]

Diana wrote: "Hm. I must be doing something wrong. My sales were bumped and then stayed bumped after I started doing KDP Select promos. (On the other hand, the increase also coincided with advertising I was ..."

Diana, I must add here, too, that before this second promotion, I spent lots of time putting advertising in place...

[[deleted user]]

Laura wrote: "I'm just wrapping up my second free KDP promotion and I'm pleased with the results...This second promotion had 5000 downloads and bumped me into the Top 100 Kindle Books, #2 in Historical Fiction...."

I posted elsewhere (my facebook author's page, I think) about my rankings, and I mentioned that I was especially pleased considering the top quality of the other books in its genre competing with it. I see yours was one of them ('A-ha! THAT's who wrote that good one!')

Pleased to meet you, and well done!