The Book Catapult Method. - Amazon S3...2: Nine Reasons Book Lovers LOVE Pre-Orders. 1. When your...

The Book Catapult Method.

Table of Contents1: THE TRUTH ABOUT THE BOOK CATAPULT METHOD.........................................................................................3

2: NINE REASONS BOOK LOVERS LOVE PRE-ORDERS............................................................................................6

3: WHY CUSTOMERS REALLY LOVE PREORDERS...................................................................................................8

4: CASE STUDY: HOW JON GOT $12,000 PREORDERS IN 1 MONTH.....................................................................12

5: CASE STUDY: HOW JD NIXON HIT #1 IN THE APPLE BOOKSTORE!....................................................................15

6: THE ORIGIN OF PREORDERS FOR INDIES......................................................................................................... 18

7: ASSETLESS PREORDERS AT SMASHWORDS.....................................................................................................20

8: BENEFITS OF PREORDERS AT SMASHWORDS..................................................................................................22

9: SETTING UP YOUR PREORDER ON SMASHWORDS..........................................................................................26

10: FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS FOR THE BOOK CATAPULT METHOD.................................................................................................................. 29

11: PREORDER MARKETING CAMPAIGNS........................................................................................................... 31

12: THE PREORDER PLATFORM COMPETITION...................................................................................................36

13: THE CLEVER WAY TO BEAT AMAZON'S DISTASTE FOR PREORDERS...............................................................41

14: WHY YOU SHOULD NEVER LAUNCH WITHOUT PREORDERS AGAIN...............................................................42

15: CONCLUSION............................................................................................................................................... 43

16: NEED ADDITIONAL HELP? ............................................................................................................................ 44

T h e B o o k C a t a p u l t M e t h o d .W w w . B o o k M a r k e t i n g E n g i n e . c o m

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1: The Truth About the Book Catapult Method.Like you, I'm an indie author. Like you, I absolutely LOVE reading, and writing books.

My wife and I recently dropped our two young kids at their cousins' house, for a

weekend sleepover. It was our first weekend alone in years!

We went out salsa dancing! But being parents of young kids, we thought surely things

will be hopping by 9pm!

They weren't.

So there we were. All dressed up, and about 3 hours early for the party.

Then my wife said: “Isn't there a Barnes & Noble nearby?”

Yup. You guessed it. We got all dressed up, and ended up spending hours at the

bookstore. And LOVED every minute of it.

Point is – books is what people like you and I do. But too often, we struggle to get much

deserved readers for the books we write.

I discovered the Book Catapult method a few months back. And truth be told, I

wasn't sure I wanted to share this one! Ha! It's seroiusly that good. But ultimately, our

writer community is all about sharing.

So here it is. You'll absolutely love how accessible this method is. While it's now super

democratized, and super-easy for indie authors to do, it wasn't always this way!

Big publishers have used this since the dawn of publishing. Today, we get to use it too.

Read, enjoy, and put this into action.


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“Ebook preorders are the single most important new tool for indie

authors who want to improve the visibility, desirability and sales of their new

releases.

Over the last 12 months, ebooks born as preorders at Smashwords

earned more than triple the earnings of books that were

simply uploaded the day of release.

I've been advocating preorders as an essential best practice for all indies.

Yet despite the amazing power of preorders, and despite the copious evidence that

preorders can work miracles, most indie authors don't use them today. Fewer

than 10 percent of books released at Smashwords over the last 12 months were

released as preorders.

Despite the poor adoption, over the last 12 months Smashwords books born as

preorders accounted for 7 of our top 10 bestsellers and 67% of our top 200

bestsellers.

When you consider how such a small fraction of books accounted for an outsize

percentage of bestsellers, you begin to realize something special is happening here.”

- Mark Coker. CEO of Smashwords.

Wow.

Preorders give you an almost UNFAIR advantage over the majority of authors who don't

yet use them.


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The amazing thing about what the CEO of Smashwords is sharing here, is that:

1. Preorders are the biggest thing for indie authors in the past 5 years.

2. Traditional publishers have used this method forever.

3. Most indie authors simply aren't using the method, even though it's now

available!

I have to point out though, that things have changed in the 3 or so years that

Smashwords has brought preorders to the indie publishing market.

The biggest change, is that prior to 2015, you had to upload a complete manuscript.

Your book pretty much had to be DONE before you could upload it for a preorder

campaign.

What this meant was that you, the author, had to upload a complete product, and then

let it sit for 30 days, while you promoted the “preorder”. AAARGH!

Can you imagine!

Smashwords got LOTS of feedback about that though, and made a big change.

You can now initiate a pre-order campaign with little more than a book cover and

description. HURRAY! That changes absolutely EVERYTHING.

You're about to discover the true power of preorders, and how you can transform your

next book launch experience from your anxiety to their anticipation.

Read on...


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2: Nine Reasons Book Lovers LOVE Pre-Orders.

1. When your pre-ordered book finally arrives, it’ll feel like Christmas morning.

2. Nobody can spoil the ending for you - you’ll be the first person to read it!

3. You can clear out your schedule in advance... (or even plan to call in sick!) So

once you get the book, nothing can stop you from reading cover to cover!

4. You can inform everyone on social media that you own the coveted book already.

Let them know you’ll be tweeting updates on its arrival to ignite their envy. Of

course, you won’t be tweeting spoilers, just cryptic messages about how great

every chapter is…


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5. You can start a waiting list of people who want to borrow the book from you

(after you finish reading it in one sitting).

6. You can opt to pre-order a bunch of copies for you and your friends—then throw

a party for all your friends when the shipment arrives!

7. You can take the time before the book’s arrival to build yourself a cozy reading

nook with food and water supplies and possibly plumbing. That way, when the

book finally arrives, you can sit down and read without interruption.

8. If you pre-order a book, you will forever avoid the heartbreaking experience of

someone saying to you, “Sorry, we’re out!”

9. If you pre-order a book, you will avoid waiting in line. Nothing is more awful than

waiting in a checkout line and watching precious minutes of your life go by while

the woman in front of you tries to return a birthday card she already wrote in.

Source: BarnesandNoble.com/blog


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3: Why Customers Really Love PreOrders.It's not just our customers. Why do we all LOVE Preorders?

No matter what it is you are purchasing, we all love getting in the front of the line.

1. Book readers love the rush of a much anticipated pre-ordered book

arriving.

After months of patiently waiting they finally get to read your book. It’s like being a little

kid and opening a present! You just cannot wait to see what is inside!

2. No spoiler alerts required.

It is always a complete letdown when someone spoils the end of a book for you. With

preorders, consumers can be sure they get their copy of a book and can finish it before

anyone crushes this magical experience.

3. Avoiding the masses.

For those who hate fighting crowds at retail stores, preorder allows consumers to get

their copy of your book on release day without fighting the amateurs.


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4. Bragging Rights.

Everyone likes to have bragging rights, whether we admit it or not. With preorder a

consumer can give you some release day free marketing and also brag about their great

score.

5. Reduce the letdown.

A pre-order assures a customer they will get a copy of your book. They don’t have to

fight to get a copy if they have the option to preorder.

6. And Last But Not Least...

...it comes down to anticipation.

The human brain is wired to respond to anticipation.

Neil Patel, CEO of Unbounce, shares this:


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“We can’t stop anticipation from happening. The human brain is always on and

always working. Anticipation is rooted in the cerebellum, which controls automatic,

non-thinking behavior.

With this anticipation always in play, the human brain desires more dopamine.

Dopamine acts as a stimulant that prevents pain, stimulates arousal and causes

excitement. Dopamine stimulation happens when we experience and expect good

things.”

Bottom line: “Understanding anticipation makes you a smarter marketer.”

And having pre-orders for every book launch, will only increase anticipation, book sales,

loyalty, and word-of-mouth with your customers.

This type of marketing buzz is unbeatable.

Preorder platforms are a great way to capture your readers before the release date and

keep them hanging on until the magic day that they have their copy of your book in their

hands.

You're getting early visibility too – so browsers within your target genre/category can

see your new title and remember to pick it up.


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The Apple iBookstore even has a “SNEAK PEEK” section specifically for preorders!

But does all this preorder stuff truly catapult book launches for authors?

Let's have a look.


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4: Case Study: How Jon Got $12,000 PreOrders in 1 Month.Jon Yongfook decided to give Publishizers preorder platform and concept a run

under the encouragement of Publishizer’s CEO and developer.

In one month Jon had $12,000 in preorders. All before the book was even

released. Once the book was debuted to the public, Jon gained another 10,000 sales in

the first 30 days!

Here's how he did it.


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The Campaign:

Jon set up his campaign on Publishizer, with a $10k in 30 days goal.

Preorder activity was concentrated over 3 points:1. The launch day

2. Reaching 90% of the goal

3. Surpassing the goal

At each point you're selling to different types of readers, with different appetites for risk.

In the beginning you'll be selling to your core community or to people who already love you and your work.

Later on, you'll be selling to more risk averse readers... the ones who might just be hearing about you for the first time, but based on your book title, book cover, book description, and the social proof of others already supporting you, they jump in.

Promotion:

Over the 30 days of the campaign, here are the things he did for promotion:

1. He posted on his personal Facebook and Twitter.◦ He kicked off the campaign with casebook promoted postand a tweet.◦ The Facebook post got 70 likes from friends in the startup scene. ◦ The tweet received just 1 retweet and 9 favorites.

2. He got retweets from influential people.◦ Some folks he begged.◦ Others tweeted about it before he could ask. ◦ It does help if you are part of whatever scene is your market, you're more

likely to have friends or acquaintances who can help spread the word if they like what you're doing.

3. He posted 3 updates on his blog.◦ Over the course of the 30 days he wrote 3 posts on his blog:

1. A detailed launch post, 2. A short post more like a mission statement (don't fail because

your marketing sucks)


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http://yongfook.com/don-t-fail-because-your-marketing-sucks.html

http://yongfook.com/don-t-fail-because-your-marketing-sucks.html

http://yongfook.com/growth-hacking-handbook.html

https://twitter.com/yongfook/status/424060548104605696

https://www.facebook.com/yongfook/posts/10151889660146581?stream_ref=10

3. And a campaign update post at the65% mark with 7 days left.

4. He reached out to journalists and asked for coverage.

5. He did a guest post on a major tech blog.◦ He wrote a guest post entitled The 5 Most Famous Growth Hacks of All

Time for The Next Web.

◦ The post got a fantastic response and resulted in an uptick in preorders.

◦ However since this audience is not familiar with me there was probably some apprehension about backing the campaign. Had he timed this for when there was more social proof for these folks, say at the 90% complete mark, there might have been a better conversion rate.

We'll talk more about his chosen platform (Publishizer) later in this course.

For now though, rest assured that there are lots of easy-to-use platforms to help you dip your toe into the preorder waters.


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http://thenextweb.com/entrepreneur/2014/01/26/5-famous-effective-growth-hacks-time/

http://thenextweb.com/entrepreneur/2014/01/26/5-famous-effective-growth-hacks-time/

http://yongfook.com/growth-hacking-handbook-is-65-funded.html

5: Case Study: How JD Nixon Hit #1 in the Apple Bookstore!

In 2013 JD Nixon spent several weeks acquiring preorders, in preparation for her

upcoming book release. She blogged about it. Note the anticipation from her existing

fan base in the blog comments...


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When her book was released it instantly hit several of Apple iBooks top 10 best

seller lists and was the number one seller store-wide.

Two weeks after the Book of the Week presentation in Australia, JD Nixon's other

titles dominated six of the top seven bestseller spots in the crime and thrillers category!

The preorders CATAPULTED JD Nixon's book on launch day, and from there the

Apple bookstore algorithms rewarded the book with extra visibility.

In the same year, Kristen Ashley experiences the same momentum with

preorders. Though the concept of preorder platforms was new to indie authors, Kristen

Ashley spent several weeks on preorder listings before her book release was launched.


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Instantly her book became the number 3 book at Apple iBooks. Ashley also landed on

several of Apple’s bestselling book listings.

Apple’s iBook preorder platform has been a wonderful diving board for a number

of authors. In 2013 both Kirsty Moseley and Abbi Glines spent several months

marketing their separate preorders from Smashwords. Upon their launch dates, both

Moseley and Glines found themselves ranked number one and two on Apple iBooks

markets.

With true success stories such as these, it shows that the planning and

strategizing behind eBook preorder platforms works. With a good marketing strategy,

strong reputable retailers and a great book, authors are finding the formula behind

preorders equals success.


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6: The Origin of Preorders for Indies.

Beginning in 2008, Smashwords introduced an online marketing strategy that

has taken book publishing to a whole new level. Born from a proven fact that books with

preorders options sell significantly more copies than books that are simply uploaded the

day of release.

In just a few short years, this simple yet brilliant strategy has become the

marketing buzz that changed the online world for authors and readers alike.

Smashwords industry changing Preorders concept has propelled many books onto the

best sellers list.

Preorders are in essence, a marketing management tool for authors. They allow

new and experienced authors to gain increased exposure for their upcoming publication

prior to its release. With preorders, major retailers can accept book orders before a book

is officially released. Used in conjunction with a well-planned marketing strategy,

preorders is a streamlined process to building a niche market.

For any aspiring author dreaming of publishing a book, preorders creates a large (up

to 12-month) window that can be used to market and write simultaneously.

An analysis of 12 months of Smashwords sales data from 2015 reveals some

important industry trends.

-Of Smashwords top 10 bestsellers, 7 were preorders

-67% of Smashwords 2015 top 200 bestsellers were preorders

-And yet only 9.8% of Smashwords 2015 books were preorders

These simple facts speak to some power facts regarding the current and future states of


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online book publishing. The preorder concept clearly works. And in just a few short

years has become the most effective tool when releasing a book.

Perhaps one of the most important keys is that the majority of authors are not

using this marketing tool. Authors are by nature focused on their craft of writing. So

marketing strategies is probably not on the forefront when they plan to publish a book.

Even though market trends can predict that with tools such as Smashwords

preorders, this fact will change in the future. It is clear that now is the time for authors

to start using preorder platforms to maximize their sale potential now.

Smashwords original preorder platform accommodated for authors to upload a

completed manuscript and streamline the production process. Out of this original

model, Smashwords has taken preorder features a step farther.

Over a year of software development, 18 months of testing collaboration between

Smashwords, authors, and iBooks has led to another revolution in book publishing, the

Assetless Preorder.


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7: Assetless Preorders at Smashwords.

The assetless preorder allows authors or publishers to initiate their preorder

listing to 12 months in advance of the official release date. What this means is that

authors can market and capture sales on their book up to one year before the book is

released to the public.

Perhaps one of the best features of assetless preorders, its requirements are

minimal. No full manuscript yet? No problem. You can still accept preorder with a title

and book description listing at major retailers via Smashwords.

Haven’t found a cover design you like yet? Smashwords is a work around for this

type of item. You can set up a venue for preorders, keep working on your book and

release the cover during your 12 month preorder marketing campaign. It really is a

brilliant multitasking concept to book publishing.

Obviously, the longer you accept preorders, the better the benefits. Longer

preorder time frames allow for more time to effectively market your book and build

marketing momentum for launch. This is where assetless preorders makes book

launches successful.

Major retailers such as iBooks, Barnes & Noble and Kobo have opened up their

business systems to allow Smashwords authors and publishers to work with them via

preorders. It is a win for everyone involved. Authors gain more marketing and presales,

retailers gain increased product and revenue while Smashwords, receives 10%

commission on sales.

The con in the preorder system is if authors fail to deliver a book on time. To

prevent this loss as much as possible the Smashwords system is designed with s


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incorporate a number of features designed to prevent- the author or publisher failing to

deliver the book on time. Features such as automated reminders and other engineer

designed safe guards work to protect the interests of retailers, authors and readers from

just this scenario.

In addition, though customers are submitting their payment information during

a preorder purchase, they are not actually charged until the book is actually released. A

great business practice that is an added benefit to Smashwords Assetless Preorder

platform.

How Assetless Preorders are a Game Changer.

Assetless Preorders are the start of a publishing revolution. This radical

change to online publishing means authors everywhere are evening the playing field.

Authors no longer need to spend days, months, or even years pitching their book to

publishers. Instead, authors can self-publish with no problems.

Even better, with Assetless Preorders, an author does not even need to have a

final manuscript. All they need is the idea. So while yes, an author still needs to deliver a

final manuscript in 12 months.

With assetless preorders, the process of publishing a book now further empowers

an author. The energy they would have spent pitching to publishers can be spent to

successfully market their book.


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8: Benefits of Preorders at Smashwords.

Whether releasing your first book, or veteran to the world of self-publishing,

preorder marketing platforms provide authors with some additional options and control

prior to a books release. The benefits of preorder make independent and self-publishing

a manageable task then when planned properly can be used to optimize your book

release date. From ease of use to increased exposure, preorder platforms offers some

clear marketing advantages.

Higher placement in bestseller charts

Authors who use preorder instantly have a competitive advantage the day their

book goes on sale. It really is a brilliant strategy when you stop and think about it.

During the preorder period, sales are collected at major retailers. Once the book is

released these sales credit instantly. Bestseller lists rank books on copies sold. Their

sales calculations actually place more sales power on sales made in the past 12-24 hours

than sales made days or weeks ago. On day one of release books with a preorder option

demonstrate higher demand for a just released item. It is an instant boost as soon as you

enter the competition!

This Marketing Strategy provides a boost in both genre-specific lists and store-

wide bestseller lists. It’s a win-win situation because as soon as a book appears to rank

on bestseller lists, exposure increases and drives up consumer’s desire for a book.

Besides the prestige that is associated with having a book on a bestsellers list, once a

book hits a best seller list there is a sales increase cycle.

Many readers want to read the latest and greatest book. Often they use bestseller

lists to pick their next book purchase. Preorders improve your odds of appearing in

bestseller lists and increasing overall sales.


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You can work Multiple Distribution Channels Instantly.

Using Smashwords Preorder platform to set up your books marketing launch

weeks or even months in advance really reduces the traditional book launch timeline

author’s used to experience. Before preorder platforms, an author would release a book

and then over a matter of days or weeks the book’s market would trickle to other

retailers. This is no longer the case.

Because preorder platforms are already working with retailers, they have the time

to prep, process, and accommodate for your book release. This allows preorder sales

collections and book releases simultaneously through a number of major retailers such

as Apple, Barnes & Noble, Kobo and Smashwords.

An added bonus to instant access to multiple distribution channels is that each

major retailer has their own unique strategy for preorder marketing. You have the added

benefit of increased exposure in a variety marketing avenues through utilizing

Smashwords preorder platform.

More effective buzz-building.

No matter what you are selling, marketing is all about creating interest in your

product. With the advanced ordering opportunities created by preorder, authors have a

really great opportunity to creating a fun marketing campaign.

Who doesn’t want to be the first one to purchase an item? Your preorder

campaign allows you to build on the desire to have something that is not even available

to the public yet. Throughout the preorder time period, you should provide you several

opportunities to effective build some hype around your book.

Capturing the sale.

Preorder marketing campaigns are a perfect window for authors to talk about

their book. Whether it is days, weeks, or months authors should be communicating with


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their readers about their upcoming release. Using a preorder marketing strategy allows

authors to capture their reader's order when their attention and interest is at its peak.

Use your previous work to your advantage.

Retail market systems will automatically link any previously published work you

have to your preorder. Use this feature to your advantage. You can have updates done to

your other books or their listings announcing your upcoming book. Fans of your

previous work can turn into loyal followers with this type of strategic marketing.

Build merchandising opportunities.

Preorders that are longer periods of time provide a great opportunity for strategic

merchandising. Many preorder merchandising is conducted by large retailers. Large

retailers monitor book preorders

When a large retailer notices a preorder has a significant amount of buzz and

exposure, they’re more likely to strategically market the book themselves to increase

their own revenue. This is an important marketing opportunity to keep in mind when

you are formulating a preorder marketing campaign.

This merchandising can come in one of two forms, automated or human curated.

Automated will link your boom to any of your previously released books when viewed

online. Human curated merchandising is a retailer’s response to a high demand

preorder. Retail stores will feature your book because of reader excitement and

anticipation.

Retailers initial orders.

High pre-order numbers can actually cause a buzz among retailers themselves. If

a book launch is still months away and retailers see high numbers in advance orders

they are likely to join the trend. No retailer wants to miss out on carrying the latest

bestselling book. If many individuals are preordering a book, retailers are likely to

increase their own order size in anticipation of the book’s release.T h e B o o k C a t a p u l t M e t h o d .

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Market testing.

Marketing a book prior to its release is a great way to see how the public is going

to respond. Through your preorder campaign you can take note of what audiences

respond positively or negatively to in preparation of your books release. It’s a great time

to test not just your marketing approach but your product and product message also.


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9: Setting Up Your Preorder on Smashwords.

The Smashwords preorder set up is a pretty simple process.

After establishing the book listing details, for a preorder you simply upload the

manuscript you currently have along with the book cover.

For an assetless preorder :

1. Book title,

2. Description,

3. Price,

4. Release date and

5. Genre are all you need.

Prior to publication details can be changed at any time.

(Just not within 10 days of the actual book launch.)

Here's a description of the Smashwords Preorder steps:

1. Plan your publishing schedule.

This step is pretty much self-explanatory. Based on your writing and marketing needs,

decide your timeline for publication.

2. Release Dates in Smashwords.

This is when you want to be honest with yourself about how you are when it comes to

adhering to deadlines. Setting up a Smashwords preorder means setting a deadline with

yourself. You can choose a release date up to a year away. Once you select a release date

in Smashwords it can be adjusted. However, if you aren’t sure about being able to make

a target release date you should consider giving yourself a buffer. It is better to give


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yourself 9 months when you think you might be able to complete the project in 6

months.

The reason? It's better to finish before a deadline than release late. Readers will be

disappointed and sales could be lost if you miss your deadline completely. Smashwords

does send deadline reminders however, the completion and release of the book still rests

on you.

For preorders, a release date for as close as one day away can be used. For an

Assetless Preorder, you must select a release date that's a minimum of 10 days away.

3. Publish set up in Smashwords.

For Smashwords publishing set up, simply click ‘Make it a preorder’. If your final

manuscript is ready for upload, upload it as usual. If you do not have a manuscript you

will select the option ‘I will upload my final formatted manuscript later’ to use assetless

preorder features. When that time comes, select ‘Upload new version’ in your the

Smashwords Dashboard.

4. Your books cover design.

Smashwords preorders can be set up with or without a cover. A preorder with a cover

will attract more orders, but some authors prefer to use the book cover release as a part

of their preorder marketing strategy. The marketing cover reveal is sometimes used to

increase marketing buzz around an upcoming book. If you choose to set up an assetless

preorder, the cover can be uploaded at a future date by using the settings in your

preorder Dashboard.

5. Attach the ISBN.

Your book’s ISBN can be selected using the Dashboard's ISBN Manager Tool. This

improves the searchability for your book among various systems.


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6. Verify Books Format.

Once your book is uploaded you have an opportunity to check for errors and review the

formatting. Adobe digital versions can be used to verify the book formatting in digital

version.

7. Preorder approval.

Once a book is completed in Smashwords it is reviewed by Smashwords for formatting

and then approved. After approval, the book can be distributed. Established

Smashwords Preorders receive priority during the review and distribution process.

8. Preorder sales tracking.

Smashwords Dashboard includes a Daily Sales report feature. This feature contains your

preorder sales count for iBooks. You can use this information for marketing strategies

and motivation to stick to your established book release timeline.


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10: Frequently Asked Questions for the Book Catapult Method.

A few useful key points to consider when establishing a book preorder are

listed below.

Can my book be updated while it's up as a preorder?

You want the answer to this question to be yes. With Smashwords manuscript updates

are a simple process. You simply upload through your preorder Dashboard.

When will my preorder be available?

This answer really depends on the eBook creator you use. With Smashwords, your book

listing is created after the preorder is uploaded.

When will preorder samples be available?

With Smashwords, preorder samples are available if this option is selected. Once this is

done, your samples are downloadable. The preorder samples help authors list and sell

their books as preorders at large retailers such as Apple, Barnes & Noble and Kobo.

How does my preorder reach major retailers?

This really depends on the preorder platform you use. For example, Smashwords

works with major retailers such as iBooks, Barnes & Noble and Kobo to market your

preorder. Through these vendors, readers can select to preorder your book and in

essence put a copy of the book on hold.

On the day of the release readers previously supplied credit card information is

charged and they receive their much anticipated copy of the book.


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How is preorder pricing selected?

Preorder pricing should be controlled by you, the author. Preorder platforms that allow

easy changes are feature you want to look for. For example with Smashwords, authors

have the ability to use preorder sales discounts and then increase the price of the book

once it is released. All you do is adjust the price at Smashwords and then give 1-3

business days for the price update at reach retailers.

Are my preorder sales trackable?

Various preorder platform offer features that allow you to view the success of your

preorder book campaign. Smashwords allows authors to view a sample of accumulated

preorders via one of their major retailers. Other preorder platforms also provide daily

reports similar to Smashwords that track units sold.

Can a preorder release date be changed?

You want to use a preorder platform that allows you to adjust release dates. This should

enable you to release sooner which is ideal from a marketing stand point. Or delay

release, which can hurt future sales but is better than cancelling preorders completely.

Look into the platform you select. Due to the time it takes for information to reach

retailers different platforms have different guidance. For example, with Smashwords

they recommend any changes to release dates be made at least ten days in advance of

your current or new release date.


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11: Preorder Marketing Campaigns.

A: The math of accumulated orders:

5 orders per day for 90 days = 450 pre-orders.




1 order per day for 90 days = 90 pre-orders.

It shows how explosive this strategy can be, coming out of the gate, with minimal

effort on your part. Now – if you're not yet at the “5 orders a day” level – don't worry.

Whatever level you're at, making sales before they count can only help.

So pick a daily target... and align your marketing efforts to hit that target.

B: Timing Preorders.

You want to budget a preorder runway into your publication timeline. The more

days your book is available for preorder, the more days you have to accumulate orders.

So you'll want to ideally plan anything from 30-to-90 days for your preorder.

(Although realistically, if you have an email list, even 7 days can provide a small

incremental advantage!)

C: Day to release:

Most big publishers release books on Tuesdays. Release on a different day and

chances of chart-topping increase.

Saturdays and Sundays are the biggest eBook selling days. Consider releasing on

a Friday or Saturday to leverage the increased visibility of your sales rank. Holidays can

be strong, too.


P a g e 31 | 44

D: Preorder Marketing that Works:

Existing Audience: To start out, focus on your existing audience.

If you have an email list, center your marketing there.

If you have a social media following, focus your marketing there.

Caveat: If most of your sales are done on Amazon, a platform that largely doesn't

facilitate preorders at the time of this writing, you'll want to save your email list

juice for Amazon, on launch day.

In your case then, you'd want to target brand new readers for your preorders...

and direct them via Smashwords to places like Apple iBooks, Google Play, and the

Barnes & Noble bookstore.

New Audience:

Once it's time to share your preorder with brand new readers,leverage contests,

chapter reveals, giveaways, blog tours, and cross-promotion from fellow authors.

The Preorder Marketing Formula: Attention, Interest, Decision, Action.

Attention:

◦ You'll want to get the attention of new readers in your niche.

◦ This essentially means FINDING TARGETED TRAFFIC.

◦ If you're a science fiction author, you don't want to target sources of readers

specializing in romance or nonfiction. (While there is always some crossover,

we're looking for the best bang-for-the-buck). So you'll want to go where

science fiction readers are:

▪ Available

▪ Easily targeted / easily reachable


P a g e 32 | 44

◦ That means niche web sites, niche forums, book promotion sites that

specialize in your niche, and general web sites that allow targeted advertising

(*cough* Facebook *cough)

Interest:

◦ Once you have their attention, you'll want to build interest.

◦ You can do this with CONTESTS, GIVEAWAYS, BOOK TOURS, and CROSS

PROMOTION CAMPAIGNS.

◦ But you can also engage with BOOK COVER comparisons (which is better?),

or with EXCERPTS, or BOOK QUOTES. Familiarizing yourself with social

media graphic tools like Canva will go a loong way here.

◦ You can even offer price discounts via a Smashwords coupon. Neat!

◦ Or you could just straight up put an ad: “Book Title, Coming November 15th.

Preorders Available at __________” (Consider though, that for folks who

don't know your books, you may need to do a bit more persuasion to convince

them. Except in some genres, where an intriguing book cover and book title

are enough to get the click.

Decision:

◦ Here you want them to go from curiosity to making a decision to click

through, and follow your call-to-action. You'll want a very specific call-to-

action.

◦ Note that sometimes people don't take action even when something they see

intrigues them. They may be busy. They may be distracted. It may be the

wrong time of day for them. That's why (targeted) ads are so powerful. You

can have the same person see your ad 3 or 4 times, before they now click


P a g e 33 | 44

through. So by all means, do plan a small (or not-so-small) marketing

campaign for your books. This goes not just for preorders, but for all of 'em. :)

◦ Your call-to-action will either be: “Click here to pre-order”, or “Click here to

get a freebie and join my list.”

◦ If you get them to join your list, make sure it's a separate list from your

regular one.

Action:

◦ The action they take is clicking through... so you'll need to make sure that

things are set up to either receive them as a new subscriber (to your special

preorder email list), or to make the preorder sale (-ex- via Smashwords).

Releasing your book as a preorder, does not guarantee sales.

That's why successful authors and publishers use preorder time frames, to increase

exposure and capture readers. It really comes down to a simple numbers game.

If your book is marketed as a preorder for 3 months, and you average one order a

day at a given retailer you’ll have 90 orders by the time your book goes on sale.

Depending on the retailer and book genre these sales hitting on your first day

could land you on a best sellers list. The variables depend on your own orders plus what

other new books are released on that same day.


P a g e 34 | 44

Releasing a preorder involves driving sales. To do so, take the time to analyze

your own marketing strategy.

Offer Incentives:

Everyone likes to save a buck and get a good deal. Use the thrill of discount

shopping to drive your preorder sales. There are a number of ways you can do this. Use

promotional codes, offer coupons, offer refunds to any fan who sends you their preorder

receipt.

You can even take incentives a step farther and offer discounts to fans that spread

the word about your book release. Discounts or free items to any fan who spread the

word about your upcoming release, such as a Facebook post sharing, preorder link

sharing, blog post, and Instagram can be used to drive sales and create a marketing

buzz.

Launch a sneak peek campaign

Once your preorder option is available you can easily use the development of your

book to capture readers’ interest and advance sales. Reveal pieces of your book

throughout the preorder time frame to leave your readers wanting more. Your book

cover, samples, chapter reveals, and marketing images can all be used to build a buzz

around your upcoming launch.

Run promotional contests

Contests can be used as standalone, or to capture readers through things such as email

lists.


P a g e 35 | 44

12: The PreOrder Platform Competition.

Amazon.

Take the retail giant Amazon for an example. There is no denying that Amazon

has become a household name. When it comes to book preorders amazon has its own

unique process. Unlike other retailers such as iBooks, Barnes and Nobles, and Kobo,

Amazon does not credit a book’s accumulated preorder purchased toward first day sales

rank.

What this means in the end is that an author’s units sold and overall ranking will

not be boosted on Amazon due to preorders. The Amazon platform will actually

devastate first day rankings if you are looking for a push for preorders.

So what do you do if the bulk of your sales are made on Amazon, and you want

that big ranking boost on launch day for your book?

We'll talk about that, in the next chapter. We got you covered. :)

Google Play.

Google play also allows Pre-orders but with several distinct differences. To start

customers are allowed to pre-order but not read or catch a sneak peek at your book

before its release date. On the release date, customers who pre-ordered your book are

charged for the purchase and they gain access to the book. This approach Enabling pre-

order marketing but on a limited level.

Though Google play’s approach can help increase exposure to upcoming books

and increase sales it stifles preorder marketing campaigns. With Google play your book


P a g e 36 | 44

can be available for pre-order sales if you specify a future On Sale Date during setup.

This is available up to a year in advance, and is available under settings.

One set back to using Google is that due to variable processing times and system

factors, Google cannot guarantee that a book will be available for pre-order sales during

a specific time range. Google play requires up to 48 hours to process manuscripts in a

PDF or EPUB file. Google play also does not accommodate pre-order sale price

incentives.

If your book's price changes after a customer pre-orders it, and the original pre-

order price is different from the price at the time of the release date, the customer is

charged the lower of the two prices when the eBook is delivered.

Google play allows presale tracking through a sales transaction report feature.

Because customers are not charged for pre-orders until the release date, revenue

generated from purchases will only appear in sales summary and earnings reports once

the books have been digitally delivered to the customers.

Apple iBooks.

Apple iBooks are a huge success in the world of publishing. Beyond their

collaboration with smashwords, they have their own eBook platform. It is minimalistic

as far as marketing goes but has a very key component that has made it a success. Apple

doesn’t care how you get your books on their platform. Whatever the format, and

whatever distribution channel, it does not matter to Apple iBook. You do your book the

way you want.

Apple mirrors Smashwords in its preorder approach. Full manuscripts and book

covers are not required. All you need is a skeleton data file to hold its place in their

marketing queue. With a 12 month time frame to work with you load the data you

currently have. If you need to make changes in the future Apple allows it.


P a g e 37 | 44

The steps for Apple iBook preorders are very simple:

1. Use iTunes Producer

2. Enter your book’s skeleton data (metadata) in the Details pane

3. Select the Price pane

4. Establish the necessary dates: Pre-Order Start Date and Release Date

5. Establish the rights and pricing details of your book

6. Use the File Menu to Save

7. Submit your data

Once your manuscript is ready just locat3 your preorder file, add the book cover, add

the book file and submit all to Apple iBooks. Apple requires all completed manuscripts

to be submitted at least 10 business days prior to the scheduled release date. This

deadline accommodates the time needed for file review.

Publishizer.

Publishizer offers another level to pre-order book campaigns. The main focus on

publishizer is to assist authors in locating funding. The site matches authors and

publishers during pre-orders campaigns. It's like Kickstarter meets Tinder, for

publishing. The site uses a metrics based analysis to match authors to publishers.

This approach is intended to help reduce the ‘no’s’. According to Publishizers

creator, "Over 2 million book proposals are submitted to literary agents in the US every

year – and 96% of those are rejected”.

Publishizer works to reduce the odds and change the tables. It brings the authors

publishers who are actually interested in their material. The site has defin9tely been

successful. Many authors have been able to find the pre-order funds.


P a g e 38 | 44

https://publishizer.com/

Publishizer actually draws in both large, major publishers and independent,

niche publishing services. With this type of networking, it is a great source for aligning

with publishers. Publishizer actually is a completely free service to use for both authors

and publishers. Its goal is to become a true crowd-funding publishing platform.

For an author to get started on publishizer the first thing they need is a well-

developed proposal that accomplishes several tasks. It should thoroughly explain your

project, define its concept, demonstrate its intent and most importantly draw publishers

in. A proposal on Publishizer needs to sell your idea so you want to take the time needed

to put together a good proposal.

When you put together your proposal during Publishizer stick to the point. Make your statements brief but effective.


P a g e 39 | 44

You want to explain why you are writing this book.

What is the driving force behind this development? How did you get to the point of writing this book? What makes this a good piece for readers?

Explain you publishing strategy.

Proposals on Publishizer are public so you want to make sure you have a detailed

timeline available. Do your research and have detailed data available for those you are

pitching to.

Describe your book.

This is where you want to shine. Give readers a sample that is going to knock their socks

off. Publishizer actually recommend including a table of contents, chapter summary

and/or a first chapter.

Provide your Bio

Give an outline of your career accomplishments, places you've had your writing

published and/or books you've written previously. This is the time to brag. You want

readers to know that you are awesome and the perfect person for their funding.

Preorder is definitely the future of online publishing. With so many avenues and

major retailers involved, this market is only going to continue to grow and blossom.

From an author standpoint, it is a highly competitive market and it is really on you to

research and find the avenue that works best with your preorder marketing plan and

publication goals.


P a g e 40 | 44

13: The Clever Way to Beat Amazon's Distaste

for Preorders.The trick to taking advantage of preorders, if most of your sales are done on

Amazon, is as follows.

1. Set up your preorder via Smashwords. That will get your book on several non-

Amazon platforms.

2. Plan to do your Amazon book launch on the same day as your launch on the other

platforms.

3. If you have a list of subscribers, plan to leverage that list foryour Amazon book

launch, on launch day. You'll be sending your existing subscribers to Amazon, for

that launch-day rankings boost.

4. During the preorder phase, promote the Smashwords preorder campaign to folks

not yet on your list. This is the way to not cannibalize your own marketing

momentum. I know it will be tempting to promote the preorder to your list. DO

NOT DO THAT!

5. But won't your subscribers be MAD if they find out that your book is available for

preorder elsewhere, and you didn't tell them? Maybe a few. But you can mitigate

that by doing this:

◦ Have a bonus for them, when they order from Amazon on launch day.

◦ -ex- a short video or audio from you, talking about the creation of the

book.

6. This will give you the best of both worlds!

▪ You'll make sales to brand new readers, on the other platforms, before

launch day. And on the platforms that DO reward preorder campaigns,

you'll have a BIG presence on launch day.

▪ And on Amazon, that hasn't yet gotten with the prorgram for preorder

campaigns, you'll still have a robust launch day boost! (Especially if

you supplement your email subscriber traffic with some paid ads.)


P a g e 41 | 44

14: Why You Should Never Launch Without Preorders Again.

Smashwords' Mark Coker revealed that preorders are the most valuable tool for

indies in the past five years. They used to be a bit arduous to set up... but that's recently

changed. Now they're easier than ever to set up. And the cost to an author is minimal.

With preorders you get the opportunity to build momentum around their book.

You also get a chance to in essence, sample their target audience.

Preorder marketing can be used to gauge how audiences are going to respond to a

book once it is released. Through book descriptions, writing samples and then chapter

releases as advance order promotions, an author can build intrigue and capture their

audience.

A push in preorders shows the audience is buying in. Passing this opportunity up

really leaves you completely unaware of how their niche market will respond to their

piece.

Another important factor to consider if you are thinking of not going the preorder

route is that without preorders you dramatically cut down on marketing and getting

your name in with major retailers.

Even if you choose to preorder for a small timeframe such as 10 days, a preorder

platform in itself can be used to get your book on preorder lists with major retailers.


P a g e 42 | 44

15: Conclusion.

“Ebook preorders are the single most important new tool for indie

authors who want to improve the visibility, desirability and sales of their new

releases.

Over the last 12 months, ebooks born as preorders at Smashwords

earned more than triple the earnings of books that were

simply uploaded the day of release.

I've been advocating preorders as an essential best practice for all indies.

Yet despite the amazing power of preorders, and despite the copious evidence that

preorders can work miracles, most indie authors don't use them today. Fewer

than 10 percent of books released at Smashwords over the last 12 months were

released as preorders.

Despite the poor adoption, over the last 12 months Smashwords books born as

preorders accounted for 7 of our top 10 bestsellers and 67% of our top 200

bestsellers.

When you consider how such a small fraction of books accounted for an outsize

percentage of bestsellers, you begin to realize something special is happening here.”

- Mark Coker. CEO of Smashwords.


P a g e 43 | 44

You're now equipped with everything you need to catapult your book launches.

Jump back up, and let's get started.

www.Smashwords.com/preorder

16: Need Additional Help?

1. Write Better. Finish Faster. And Slay Writer’s Block Permanently.

2. Trying to overcome overwhelm in your author business?

3. Sick of book launches that go flat?

4. Tired of struggling to get the 1st 10 reviews for every book?

5. At your wits’ end with not having a healthy and growing readers list?

6. Tired of spending so much time on book marketing?

7. Frustrated with stalled book reviews on your books?

Got questions?

Email [email protected] here.

Here’s to your success!

Bolaji O.


P a g e 44 | 44

mailto:[email protected]

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http://www.Smashwords.com/preorder

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