This is a guest post from my good friend Lisa Sicard. Lisa has already written an ebook and provides tips on what to avoid when publishing one. Enjoy!
Tips on What Not To Do When Publishing An eBook
SO you have started to write that eBook or are thinking about writing one. Do you have a plan after your eBook is completed? Writing an eBook may be the easiest part of it all. Promoting it and selling editions of it may a bit harder. You need to come up with a plan for that prior to hitting the publish button. Let me explain more why.
Don’t Take Too Long Writing the eBook
Why you may ask? Because it will take a lot of work and energy to complete writing the eBook. Don’t procrastinate once you decide to do it. Write, write and then write some more. Proof it after you have completed it. Have someone else proof it, pay for the service of a proofreader. Save yourself some energy for promoting the eBook. It goes back to the old 80/20 rule. 20% of your time should be producing content and 80% of your time should be for promoting it.
Don’t Wait to Promote – Start Promoting the eBook Before Publishing
This one is a must. Promote it prior to going live with the eBook. Give people a reason to look for it and for them to anticipate reading it. Remember the song Anticipation? “Anticipation, anticipation Is makin’ me late, Is keepin’ me waitin’ “
Promoting the book prior is a psychological booster for you to finish writing it too. Now that you’ve announced it to the world, you must finish it, right?
Don’t Stop Promoting the eBook – Promote the eBook Continuously
According to expert eBook writer Ryan Biddulph:
“The biggest eBook promotion mistake is being timid about promoting your eBook. Most folks may put on a huge blitz when the eBook is a free giveaway then the promotional crickets come out and they stop promoting the thing when it is full price.
This is a class money mental block manifest; when you attach a price tag to something, less people want it….which is totally untrue. Promote your eBook as freely when it is at a premium price, as when you gave it away from free.
Also, continue to promote it via your sidebar, via calls to action on blog posts and most of all, keep guest posting and blog commenting and building your friend network to boost sales.
Don’t rely on Amazon alone to spread the word for you via your free giveaway and reviews. Help other bloggers out, make friends and these folks will become eBook customers and many will also promote your eBook, spreading the word and boosting your sales in the process.”
Ryan Biddulph, Blogging From Paradise (Skype: ryan.biddulph2)
Don’t Ignore Other’s eBooks – Buy and Review Them!
Another tip is to read and review other’s eBooks. This will help you get known more on Amazon and as an author. Of course, read books of interest to you. Don’t just read an influencer’s eBook for the sake of it, be genuinely interested in it. You will not want to stop reading it and offer a review afterwards.
Reading other’s eBooks before writing yours is another tip I would highly recommend as a must. Get familiar with how others do them. Read at the very least 5-10 other eBooks before writing yours.
Don’t Be Afraid to Do a Giveaway for Your eBook
Giving away your eBook is not a bad thing, just keep it to a limited time. Amazon offers flash sales and giveaway contests. You could give it away on your blog for a limited time if they sign up for emails. You could offer it as a prize on a Twitter chat or Facebook contest. Just be sure to follow their guidelines for giveaways.
Don’t Be Shy and Ask for Reviews of Your eBook
If someone says they read or bought your eBook ask for a review on Amazon. Email them or message them privately. Don’t beg but ask nicely and they will probably gladly give you a review. If they haven’t written an eBook they don’t realize the importance of reviews.
Don’t Be Afraid to Price Your eBook Fairly
After all your hard work you will want to price your eBook correctly. I sell mine on Amazon for $3.99. Do be sure to check with other eBooks for your page count are going for on the network you are using to sell your eBook. Think about having a sale, and then pricing it above that sale price too. As Ryan stated above, don’t be afraid to promote it just as much when it’s full price as when you are giving it away. Something I too need to learn to do, thanks, Ryan!
Don’t Miss an Opportunity on Your Blog About Your eBook
This is a big mistake I did. I did not do a blog post announcing the eBook. I do have a page for it but not a post announcing it or about the eBook. People love reading your posts so why not include one on the latest eBook? Tell them why you wrote it, what inspired you, etc.
Don’t Forget Your Call to Actions on Your Blog Posts
You could incorporate your call to actions on each post or page about the eBook. Remind people to purchase it. In fact, the direct marketing association says it takes a person 7 times to see a message before they respond to it with a purchase or inquiry. That is 7 Times! Think about that one. That is an eye-opener for sure.
Don’t Forget to Have Fun Publishing Your eBook
If you don’t like what you do, you will not be successful with it. In conclusion, do have some fun along the way writing and promoting your eBook. If it’s a major task for you to do you will not likely do another eBook again. Just ask Ryan, he’s published over 120 of them.
I’d love to know if you have written an eBook did you promote it often or not? Will you be doing another eBook in the coming future? If you haven’t will you consider doing one now? Please leave a comment below so we can discuss.
Hi there, I really found this helpful – I wrote an ebook a few years ago but I had no idea of how to promote it. It sold nothing more than a handful so I resolved that I would have to learn about marketing if I ever wanted any of my writing to fly. I have not heard about the 80-20 rule before, wow – that certainly makes a lot of sense. Social media and blog posts do take up a lot of time and it is tempting to think you can ignore it but how else will people know about your work? That said, I have a question: how do you avoid the trap of tweeting to people who are only interested in selling their own ebooks? Thanks for sharing…
Hey Oliver,
Thanks for your kind words. Promoting an eBook can be very challenging if not done right, and Lisa has given some solid advice here 🙂
Regarding your question,I’ll leave the expert to answer it.
Thanks!
Hi Oliver, that’s a great question. I find when I tweet others tweets and try to engage with them and they don’t – I move on. I may still tweet their info if it’s really good info for my following.
That’s part of the key with social media – provide relevant content to your audience.
Most folks will engage and share back, but it may take a little time. I would give them a month usually.
The same for commenting on other blogs, etc.
Just be sure you are real when doing either of the two 🙂 I always keep it real. You will be able to tell in time who is real from those that are using more bots and such.
What type of book did you publish? Triberr is a great tool too if you have a blog.
ive always wondered what the process of making and publishing an ebook was like but prior to reading this article i had no real idea. however after reading this i feel like an expert on the topic and am now much more well informed should i ever want to publish an ebook myself.
Jacob,
I’m glad you found the post useful.
Please try to use Caps where needed, because the comment is difficult to read.
Hi Jacob, thank you. Glad I kept it simple for you. Do you have an eBook in mind to write? Thanks for coming by here and commenting.
That’s some really sound advice, Lisa (and Marios). I’m considering publishing an eBook about a topic I’m very passionate about. So, it’s perfect timing to be reading all of this.
I was surprised about your advice to start promoting the book before it is published, but it makes a lot of sense.
I also really like what’s mentioned about pricing the book. I was wondering, though, do you think that because of the digital nature of an ebook, it should always stay below a certain price? Or, does it depend on the length of the book and what you think the market will bear? I’m sure pricing advice isn’t easy without reading/seeing the ebook, but I thought I’d ask.
Again, thanks for this informative read. I’m enjoying Everything About EBooks and the valuable information you provide here.
Hi, Jason!
Pricing is a delicate matter and depends on many factors. You can have it free for some period, in order for the readers to get a chance to read and rate/review it. But I’m letting Lisa answer this.
Thanks for your kind words. I’ll keep doing my best 🙂
Hi Jason,
Oh yes, I wish I had promoted mine more before it was published! The length of the book also can determine the price. And the niche – depends on the pricing of others in the same niche. Do a little research and you’ll be able to to judge from there.
If you use Amazon they do let you do a day or a short period of time to give away or at a discount. I love their platform.
Thanks Lisa for a prompt and to the point reply! 🙂
You, as an author, can give great insights on how to write and promote eBooks.
Hi Lisa,
I also recently wrote an ebook. I found this very helpful. Thank you for sharing.
All the best!
J. A. Areces
Hello there,
It’s great that Lisa’s article helped 🙂
Do you have any other tips yourself, based on your experience, to share with us?
Marios
Hi Jareces, how long ago did you publish yours? Did you use Amazon? Thanks for coming by!
It would be really interesting to hear your story, Jareces! 🙂
Hi Lisa & Marios,
It’s great to read your post. I was busy with my projects, that’s the reason I was inactive a bit, specially reading & commenting was completely off.
But Anyways, Thanks for the interesting & informative read. Keep up the good work and enjoy the holidays.
A Very Happy New Year ! Cheers
~ Donna
Donna,
Thanks for your kind words. I think Lisa exceeded herself in this post and I am grateful for it.
I hope it will be useful for you in the future.
Have a great new year and keep up the good work yourself!
Marios
Hi Donna, thanks for coming by here. Boy did I learn a lot from this one. Now to get into action for 2018 with more promotion for the blog and eBook , etc. I sure hope you didn’t get snowed in in Maine Donna….We got quite a bit down here in RI.
Have a great weekend ahead!
Lisa,
It is true that all of us have benefited from your experience – and Ryan’s.
The theory is one thing, but experience and practice is a totally different one.
Thanks for stopping by!
You are welcome Marios 🙂
I’ve been looking into the process of ebook creation for some time because I would like to start giving something valuable away for free and building an email list at the same time.
But it’s just knowing the direction I should take and especially learning what to do and what not to do when it comes to creating an ebook.
I appreciate all the tips you’ve provided, and for me, the main one would be not spending too long on creating an ebook because I usually get carried away when I’m writing content on the internet.
Maybe I just have too much to say or I’m a perfectionist lol.
Thanks also for the guidance on the promotion of the ebook too. 🙂
Neil
Hi, Neil!
Thanks for the kind words. I haven’t published any ebooks yet, but Lisa (who guest posted on my blog) has and she had indeed great advice!
Thanks for stopping by! 🙂
Marios
Hi Neil, I just saw your comment today, a few months late. Try not to sweat writing the e-book, that way you can maybe do more than one.
You will need to save yourself some energy to promote it, that is something I wish I had done more of. I hope to do another within the coming year. Good luck with yours!
Wow, am so much impressed to have this article. I will be reading it a day per day to have more information.
Mark,
Thanks for your kind words and for stopping by!
If there is anything I can help you with, please let me know 🙂
Marios
Hi Mark, thank you for coming by on this piece. I really hope it’ll help you when you write your ebook. Be sure to save yourself some energy to promote it, promote it, and promote it!
That is so important. Have a great day.
Thanks for your kind words. Promoting an eBook can be very challenging if not done right, and Lisa has given some solid advice here .great post
Hey Dr. Rogers!
Thanks for your kind words. I believe that promoting a book is more of art than science. You need to try and see what works for you. But Lisa has made a great job paving the way.
Thanks for stopping by 🙂
Marios
Thanks Dr. Rogers. Have you published one or several yourself? Thanks for coming by and for your comment 🙂
I have never heard about promoting the book before it is published but I did not take it seriously but after explaining it clearly, it makes sense,great post
Hi there!
Glad you liked it, Thanks for stopping by 🙂
Marios
Hi Lisa. I needed this post as I will need to write several ebooks for my online business that I will be launching soon. Thanks for sharing the don’ts in making ebooks. As for me, I will be giving out some ebooks for free in exchange for email addresses to grow my email lists and would probably create others for sale in the near future after having some experience in the online world.
Thanks for the tips.
PS: I love your ebook front cover, it’s beautiful.
Hey Barry.
I’m glad you liked Lisa’s guest post. The book is indeed great – I’ve purchased and read it- and comes with some very helpful advice.
Thanks for stopping by!
Marios
For proof reading I always use TextBroker. It’s a good website to find US based writers. The turn around time is pretty quick. You can have articles done within 1 business day.
Also, I would encourage purchasing grammarly. It’s one of the best business purchases I have ever made. I use it when writing my articles, commenting on others websites, etc. It’s certainly worth the money!
Hey Garen,
I do not live in the US, I’ve never heard of TextBroker, but I will check it out eventually. I am using the free version of Grammarly. I like it a lot, and I am thinking of getting the paid version.
Thanks for stopping by!
Marios
Does it make sense to price your ebook at a high amount first when releasing it before you do a free giveaway? I hear that psychologically, people tend to value things highly when they are realeased at a high price point vs when they are priced low.
How many pages should a first time ebook author put in the ebook?
Hi Jessie,
Lisa can answer that question in more detail. In my opinion it could be a good strategy. It’s the equivalent of a sale.
Thanks for stopping by!
Marios
Hey Lisa! How are you doing? I really enjoyed reading the blog post on “What Not To Do When Publishing An eBook” as its informative. I’m actually planning to write an eBook regarding fitness so that I can make a change in the society and help people achieve their fitness goals. I have some questions which I need to ask. How many pages should an eBook consist of? Is it possible to create your own link to promote your eBook after you’ve done publishing it?
Not easy I think after reading this. I am thinking of writing an eBook too sometime. But after seeing how much effort promoting this book would take, I think I stick to my blog for the moment.
The idea of reading others eBooks is something I can do in advance of course. That’s in fact a very good tip. I will be on the lookout for free eBooks for now 🙂
I checked your, Lisas eBook but that’s not for free anymore 🙂
Hi Stefan,
I bought Lisa’s eBook myself, because it has a lot of condensed information. Writing and promoting an ebook is not easy. You could though, make an eBook from posts on your blog. And take Lisa’s advice on how to promote it :). You can also check The 6 best ways to promote your eBook. I also offer information on that post.
Thanks for stopping by!
Marios
That’s a very informative article and priceless shared experience to keep in my diary. Writing an ebook is a new thing to me and I’m not sure if I want to get into it. Perhaps it because I know less about it. But in case I want to go down this road, how do I start? Does I need any special training and money to start?
Hey there,
Writing and publishing an eBook is a complicated process. I’ve written a whole series of posts on how to publish an eBook. Check all the posts, and, if you have a problem, do not hesitate to come back to me!
Thanks for stopping by!
Marios
I have never looked very much into e-book publishing so the tip you are giving here are very useful. I have been thinking about writing one for my niche but because I didn’t know what the best course would be I was always postponing it. Maybe your article was what I needed to start rethinking about it.
Thanks Stratos. Look to go for 3,00 words to get started. Start slow and build it up. The first step is the most important.
Wow! Useful article review. What I want to say is that procrastination is a dream killer and one that want to be successful should do away with it. Also, Hardwork pays off. One should not relent on his or efforts, remember, journey of a thousand miles begins with a step. All these are well spelt out here about publishing an eBook. Thanks guys.
This is an educative post, I have tried writing so many e-books and ended up completing none, I found it difficult because I had not enough time to get the work done. Reading this post made me realize I wasn’t doing things the right way. I will definitely follow up the advice given from this post because they were sent from heaven to me.
I’m hoping to self-publish some paranormal romance on Amazon before the end of the year so this is definitely advice that I need. My writing is going okay and I have an accountability group to keep me focused. I’m really worried about the promoting and marketing parts. I really appreciate the encouragement not to be afraid of promoting and to do a lot of it. A lot of people in my writing group have a strong focus on promoting, creating video teasers, and just making people aware of their books.
Hi Ginger, promotion is key! Have you published it yet? I just saw these comments today from January. Love to hear about it.
Wow, I love this post, personally I wrote an ebook some years ago but I did not know what to do next, I did not know on how to market it, how I wish I came across this post by then, what I have realized is that it’s good to read other people’s ebooks this really helps in making your own, secondly about marketing it even before you publish it, I think this is the section I went wrong as I was only writing and just published without marketing, also I have learnt to give away some ebooks for free for it to go viral easily, I really appreciate for this post, I am sure not to be late to update my ebook and make something out of it, thank you.
Ftom Joy.
Dear Lisa,
Great information, you have really given a lot of value in this post and this was a highly informative article. I learned a lot of new things.
To be honest I am writing my own ebook (For the last 2 months Lol) and your post means a lot to me. The first point itself hit me on my head with the hammer.
How I wish I had found your article two months before when I first started writing my Ebook! I had to go through the old way of trial and errors.
Thanks a lot for the helpful and informative advice and check list.
Much Success!
Paul
This was a great post chock full of useful and actionable tips and advice from someone who has been there and is gracious enough to share the wisdom from the experience with the rest of us who are considering telling their story through publishing an ebook.
The above is a run-on sentence and is an example of why one tip is so true – getting someone to proof-read your content makes a lot of sense. The rest also make sense to me. I will be finishing up a book I am writing now soon, and have carefully looked through this post.
I have no doubt that the steps mentioned and the advice has saved me time and money. In fact, I have bookmarked this page because I will return as I start planning for the post publishing phase of the book. Most certainly it is my intent to get it out to as many people as possible.
Thanks for having this article added to the website, it was a super useful guest post! The author is to be commended!
I really enjoyed the tips. Definitely wouldn’t have just randomly came up with them myself.
I actually never thought about how important it is to market it and really push it forward. I mean, as you said 4 times the amount of time should be on marketing and not developing the book.
At the end of the day, I do think that many people will still find themselves struggling with procrastination as the task of writing an ebook, without a doubt, can be a daunting one. I sure see it that way but would love to publish my own one day.
Thank you for all the insights, I truly appreciate it!
Cheers and have a Great One!
Matiss
Years later but thanks Lisa and Marios. Much appreciated guys. I just raised my prices across the board today. Everything; eBooks, courses, and raised my sponsored post rates last week. Be generous. People will pay $10 or $15 if they pay $1. Not much of a difference and pricing higher helps you go full time and awesome increases the perceived value of your offering.
Ryan
Our pleasure, Ryan!
I still read your books through Kindle Unlimited. They are an invaluable resource to me. Thanks for sharing your experiences!
Marios
Hi Ryan, thanks for that piece of advice. I will love to know how it goes a few months from now since you have done that. Thanks for taking the time to write about it here as well. Never too late!
Thanks, Lisa and Ryan,
Your tips have been invaluable to this community and myself. You are both a great inspiration for me!
Marios
Thanks, Lisa and Ryan,
Your tips have been invaluable to this community and me. You are both a great inspiration for me!
Marios