Looking to launch a bestseller? You’ll want to know about these two elements: the Kindle description and back-cover copy. On this episode, Ellen shares her tricks for optimizing this critical marketing content that have made all her clients #1 bestselling authors!
Resources mentions
FREE Kindle formatting tool
Bestseller Breakthrough Complimentary Consultation
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Key Quotes
• “Potential buyers want to know what the book is about, so you need to explain it in a couple of sentences.”
• “Too many times I see authors only talk about the book, or themselves or provide testimonials (on the back cover)”
• “The Kindle description is valuable real estate. To get the most out of it, you want to use as much of it as you can.”
• “That first part (of the Kindle description) has to be really compelling and capture the reader’s attention.”
• “(Amazon) wants their customers to get the experience they want and the information they need to make a good buying decision …”
Summary
On this episode, Ellen also provides the step-by-step for crafting your summary, bullet points, author profile and more. You will also learn how to stay on the right side of Amazon review protocol and secure testimonials reserved for your own proprietary use.
Sponsor Shoutout
Thanks to our sponsor www.shipyourbooks.com, which for 25+ years has been handling order fulfillment for authors, speakers, online bookstore, coaches and more. Tell them Ellen sent you!
Key Takeaways:
• A Kindle description is the sales letter for your book on your Amazon listing.
• Back-cover copy is for a physical book in the bookstore – also overlapping with visibility on Amazon.
• To keep in mind when crafting your Kindle description:
o Use an eye-catching hook to quickly summarize your topic or story.
o Include the keywords you are emphasizing in your publishing listing. (For more about this, check out this previous episode here.)
o Always have in mind the goal of capturing the reader’s attention so they will buy!
• To keep in mind for your back cover:
o People want to know what your book promises in a couple of sentences and what they can expect to find inside.
o Bullet points are a very effective way of quickly and easily grabbing the reader’s eye and focusing attention on the most compelling points.
o If you don’t capture attention here, the sale will be lost forever.
o Include positive social proof that the book is worth the time and money.
o Material that promotes and validates the author.
• The Books Open Doors™ method divides back covers into thirds that both make it easy for client authors to implement and for readers to experience.
Those thirds include:
o Top Third: 2-4 testimonials. They must be credible,authentic, and compelling.
o Middle Third: A concise description of the contents (including an intro, disciplined bullet points and a brief conclusion).
o Lower Third: About the author:
Why should a book buyer listen to you, the writer?
What makes you the authority on the subject or, if you’re not an expert, what did you overcome to make yours a trustworthy voice?
An attractive photo and something that personalizes your bio are also important.
• The Kindle description:
o You are allotted 4,000 characters and want to leverage each one to best advantage.
o Look at bestseller books in your category and how they are written, then consider whether to follow the same or a similar model. (A great shortcut!)
o To get started, consider your back cover content. (Ellen always suggests doing the back cover first to facilitate the Kindle description process.)
o Start with a punchy headline that engages. A question format is very effective!
o Headlines should be 25-30 words or less, which is important because these are words that will show before the “READ MORE” pops up. Use phrases that stand alone and persuade readers that they should want to read your book. Don’t focus your book’s features, a mistake Ellen sees many authors make.
o Space is allotted for up to four summary sentences, but your focus should be on the first two, which are immediately visible. Additional copy is hidden unless the viewer chooses to press “READ MORE.”
o Questions to ask:
Is there anything you need to say beyond what is on the back cover?
Should your back-cover copy be used as the basis for your Kindle description?
Do you want to add to your introduction or create (where warranted) additional bullet points?
Your conclusion should be at least 25-50 words and make a strong final pitch.
If they’ve gotten this far, the reader is interested! Ask for the sale.
o Other things you can add to your Kindle description:
Flattering reviews (or leave space for those still forthcoming).
One way to get reviews prior to publication is to ask for beta readers who would be willing to offer an honest review, sent directly to you (not via Amazon).
List awards and/or nominations.
To Note: If you solicit advance reviews, understand that those appearing on the Amazon website become proprietary to Amazon and are no longer available for your own uses.
Ensuring that reviews are completely honest is critical because Amazon will ban you if they believe you are in any way giving gifts or incentives in exchange for feedback that will skew
their reviews.
Similarly, do not ask close family, friends or anyone you have a financial relationship with to post reviews on Amazon.
As long as you’re on Amazon, where most books are sold, carefully follow their directions or risk getting banned, which definitely happens.
Consider in which categories you want your book listed.
Consider how you want to format your description. No one wants to read a wall of text. Leave a space between sections and avoid long paragraphs.
Whether hardback or paperback, uploads do not always occur seamlessly. Ellen has advice for ensuring a clean outcome at this linkhere or click here to learn more about the multiple books she has written on publishing and marketing strategy. You can also reach out via email at: ellen@booksopendoors.com.
About Ellen:
Ellen is a multiple #1 bestselling author, award-winning book and business coach, host of the Books Open Doors Podcast, CEO of Books Open Doors Author Services & Grammy-nominated songwriter. She works with creative professional trainers, coaches, founders, and speakers, who want to write a bestseller and 100% of her private clients are #1 bestselling authors. And once they have their book they will be able to use them to make a bigger impact in the world, open doors to unlimited opportunities, make more money and leave a lasting legacy.
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