As an indie author, breaking into the competitive book market can feel overwhelming. You’ve poured your heart into writing your novel, and now the next challenge is getting readers to discover it.
Enter Amazon Ads — a powerful tool that can help authors promote their books to the right audience. But if you’re new to the world of advertising, it can be a bit intimidating.
In this blog post, I’ll share my personal experience using Amazon Ads for the first time to promote my debut novel, When Karma Comes Calling. From initial struggles to eventual breakthroughs, I’ll guide you through the basics and provide actionable tips for aspiring writers looking to take the plunge.
Step 1: Understand the basics of Amazon Ads for authors
Before diving in, I highly recommend taking a class or watching tutorials on Amazon Ads. While they won’t guarantee success, they’ll equip you with foundational knowledge about how the platform works, including:
Campaign types: Sponsored Products, Sponsored Brands, and Lockscreen Ads (for eBooks).
Keywords: How to research and select relevant keywords to target.
Bidding strategies: Setting your cost-per-click (CPC) and managing your daily budget.
Remember, Amazon Ads are not a “one-size-fits-all” solution. They require testing and fine-tuning to figure out what works best for your book.
Tip: If you have just one novel, stick to the ‘Sponsored Products’ category type. ‘Sponsored Brands’ is more suitable later down the line when you have multiple books to sponsor in one go, while I have tended to steer away from ‘Lockscreen Ads’ as they’re limited to just eBooks. Since publishing my book in November 2024, the appetite from readers has been to purchase the print edition and, today, it still makes up approximately 85% of my overall sales. Pumping money into ‘Lockscreen Ads’ would feel counter-intuitive to me for that reason.
Step 2: Start small and experiment. See what works for you and your book
When I launched my first campaign, I focused on manual targeting – looking at keywords, categories, book titles, other author names, and ASINs - and spent hours researching each of these areas. I thought I had nailed it and despite my efforts; the campaign flopped.
Only a handful of keywords brought impressions, and even fewer resulted in clicks or sales.
Instead of giving up, I decided to try Amazon’s automated ads for my second campaign. This allowed Amazon to choose keywords it deemed relevant to my book. The results were eye-opening:
High impressions: More people were seeing my ads.
Clicks: I was getting traffic, but still no sales.
While automated ads didn’t immediately bring orders, they provided valuable data about which keywords were performing well.
Step 3: Combine insights for a winning strategy
For my third campaign, I combined the best-performing keywords from both my manual and automated campaigns. I also added similar terms I’d initially overlooked. This “souped-up” strategy was a game-changer:
Impressions skyrocketed.
Clicks increased significantly.
I finally started to see sales!
This process taught me that Amazon Ads require patience and a willingness to experiment. Be prepared to lose money initially as you gather data and refine your approach.
Practical tips for beginners
Here are some actionable tips based on my experience:
Set a realistic budget: Start with a daily budget of £5, but don’t be afraid to test higher amounts if you’re not seeing results. I found that increasing my budget to £10 significantly improved my performance.
Track your metrics: Keep an eye on impressions, clicks, and orders. Use these insights to adjust your strategy.
Focus on keywords: Keywords are the backbone of your campaigns. Experiment with different types, including broad, phrase, and exact matches.
Be patient: Success doesn’t happen overnight. Use early campaigns as learning opportunities.
A special word on Publisher Rocket
I have linked to this at the bottom of this blog, but Publisher Rocket is an innovative tool for any indie author looking to get analysis to back up their decision-making with Amazon Ads.
I come from a world of SEO and we are blessed with tools aplenty to tell us which keywords and search terms I should be pursuing in order to rank highly on SERPs (Search Engine Results Pages). There are Trends data tools, organic keyword tools, and competitor tools.
But there are very few tools out there that can show us this information concerning Amazon.
Publisher Rocket is that tool, though. Launched by Kindlepreneur, it provides great analysis around keywords, competitors, and categories – all while providing a helpful relevancy score to keep you focused on where you should be putting your efforts and what is likely to give you the best return on your investment.
Common questions about Amazon Ads
Q: How much should I spend on Amazon Ads?
A: I started with £5 per day, but my results were limited. When I increased my budget to £10 per day (the amount Amazon recommends), I saw a significant improvement in impressions and clicks. Keep in mind that higher budgets can become expensive quickly, so monitor your spending closely.
Q: Are Amazon Ads worth it for new authors?
A: Absolutely — but only if you’re willing to view them as a long-term investment. My initial campaigns weren’t profitable, but they provided invaluable data that helped me refine my approach. Over time, the insights you gain can lead to consistent sales and greater visibility for your book.
Final thoughts
Using Amazon Ads for the first time can feel daunting, but it’s a skill worth mastering for indie authors. By learning the basics, experimenting with different strategies, and staying persistent, you can unlock the potential of this platform to connect with readers and grow your audience.
Remember, every successful campaign starts with a willingness to learn and take risks. So don’t be afraid to dive in and see where Amazon Ads can take your writing journey.
Have you tried Amazon Ads for your book? Share your experiences in the comments below!
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