If you have a website, you need data. It's as simple as that. You need to know how people are using your website, where they are coming from, how many people are coming, and what the trends are. Along with a lot of other information. If you don't collect and analyze this data, then there … Continue reading 6 reasons Google Analytics 4 is better than Universal Analytics…and 4 reasons it’s not
Authors have a lot on their plates. They have to be writers, editors, and promotional machines. Let’s add one more thing to the author toolbox: SEO. Before we get too far into things, let’s make it clear what this article is and what it isn’t. It’s meant to be a basic guide to search engine … Continue reading SEO Basics for Authors Who Don’t Want to Learn SEO
Earning a living from short fiction or poetry is about as easy as earning a living from recycling aluminum cans and plastic bottles. Actually, it's probably harder. In some states, a plastic bottle will get you five or ten cents, but your thoughts are only worth a penny. Your short stories and poetry are often … Continue reading 5 Things You Must Do Before Submitting a Fiction or Poetry Collection
So you just had a new book published. Congratulations, by the way. Huge accomplishment. How did you celebrate? A week later, you look at the sales numbers. Disappointed? You were hoping to be on the next NYT Best Sellers list, but instead you only sold 20 copies, 8 of which were purchased by your mom. … Continue reading 5 Reasons Your Book Isn’t Selling
Even if you hate Amazon, chances are that's where many of your book sales happen. We can vilify Amazon all we want, but it does provide great opportunities for authors who otherwise might go completely unnoticed. But this isn't a discussion of the evil tyranny of Amazon. Nor is it meant as a blind rave … Continue reading Customers Also Bought What? Learning from Your Amazon Book Page
In order to be a writer today, you also have to be able to promote your work. Long gone are the days where your job is to do the writing while someone else is responsible for spreading the word. This is true whether you are just trying to make a name for yourself or if … Continue reading Are You a Writer or a Soulless Promotional Machine?
There are three major components to every book: Writing the book Publishing the book Selling the book Of the three, selling the book is probably the most difficult. How in the world do you get people to buy this thing you've just written? We live in a world where anyone can publish a book. We … Continue reading 5 Innovative Book Marketing Techniques for the Desperate Writer
I've heard many authors ask if they really need to create a Facebook author page. As with most things, the value of having one depends on what you are willing to put into it, but that type of answer isn't typically met with much satisfaction. Let's cut to the chase. Is it really worth your … Continue reading Why You Need a Facebook Author Page
So your book just came out. Congratulations. Now the hard work really begins. Here are my guaranteed-not-to-work book marketing strategies. 1. Log in to Facebook and Twitter once per day and post a link accompanied by "BUY MY BOOK" (in all caps, of course). On Facebook, post this on your wall and in every … Continue reading 7 Book Marketing Strategies Guaranteed Not to Lead to Sales
If you are like most writers, then writing is not your full-time job. Many of us spend 40 hours a week at work. When we are home, we don't just sit around and write all the time. We have obligations to family. We are fathers, mothers, husbands, wives. Everyone's situation is different, but everyone is … Continue reading How to Spend Your Time as a Writer
