What the Author Does

• The Right Mindset
  We are looking for team players: authors willing to learn and be coached and trained in new ways; authors willing to share information, ideas, and solutions; and authors willing to work with us to help make their book a success. We will be training and coaching you in some areas, but we do expect you to reach out and figure out the rest. We want you to become a marketing pro.
• Social Media
  Social media refers to the entire network of online tools, apps, websites, blogs and networks you can use to raise awareness about your title. Here is some of what we do and what you should expect from a responsible and progressive publisher.
• Author’s Website
  Your website is the linchpin of your social media program. It needs to look good and work smart. It needs to connect readers to the rest of your social media empire through Facebook, Twitter, etc.
  We recommend WordPress or another similar type web application, which allows the author to easily change and add posts, photos and other media. You can learn how to build your own site or pay a professional to build it for you. To see examples go to Author Websites page.

• Blogs
  We recommend that you add a blog to your website. The fewer the clicks, the better for readers; plus, it adds your voice to your work. Regardless of how you do it, this is the place for you to share your thoughts as a writer and author and reader. If possible, try to use a plugin or other tool that will automatically send all new posts to your social media network sites like Facebook and Twitter. That is a great way to easily expand your reach and save you time.
• Book Launch Team
  This is a great way for an author to get good advice and extend your social media reach. We recommend adding 3-5 people to your team. Your mission is to recruit people you are close to, who would be willing to help you launch your book, and who have some level of influence on social media with a good number of followers. You will ask them to be available to help you make tough decisions for instance about the cover. Also ask them to extend your social media reach by forwarding any links or posts you send them. Finally ask them to provide any other help they can to help you promote and launch your book.

   

  Criteria for launch team members:
  • Someone who is well known to the author either on a collegial or friendly basis.
  • Someone with good social media skills and with a decent amount of followers, and who in some way is influential in their community.
  • Someone willing to help the author extend her social media reach and get the word out about the book.

  What you will ask of your launch team members
  • That they rebroadcast any blog posts or social media you send them.
  • That they encourage the author along the way towards launch.
  • That they act as spokesmen and women for the book and the author.

• Facebook
  Facebook is king, according to some book publicists. No doubt, it is important, and the author needs to have an author fan page. Instead of friends, you want “likes.” Make sure that your FB page is connected to your website and that you take the time to flesh it out with relevant information.
• Facebook Forum
  Over ninety of our authors have formed a writers’ forum on Facebook. They trade notes about marketing tips and tricks and coach each other on the things that they are doing to market and promote their books. This shared wealth of intelligence can be very helpful, especially for newer authors. If you are a Köehler Books author, you can join the forum by contacting Teresa Inge, the moderator. Send her your  Facebook url (web address).
• Twitter
  Twitter is all about getting followers and making noise. Whereas FB is for friends and associates, Twitter is for complete strangers, so you can discriminate less with it. Come one, come all!
• LinkedIn
  An author once asked, “Isn’t LinkedIn for professionals?” To which we replied, “Aren’t authors professionals?” LI is the place to post your resume. It is another place you establish yourself as a professional author. After you post your information, you really don’t need to do much else.
• YouTube
  Don’t overlook YouTube. It is a great tool for sharing book trailers and author talks. Don’t overthink the production values. Readers want to hear from you, and they don’t expect heavy makeup and perfect lighting. You can do it on your computer. Keep them short, less than five minutes, and add the video to your site using the embed code.
• Bookshop.org– Sell books directly from your Author website
  Bookshop.org provides an easy way for authors to sell their own books directly from their website. Setting up an affiliate program is easy and free, and takes about 15 minutes. Sales are routed through Ingram and count as royalty sales for the author. Plus 10% of every sale will go to the author directly from Bookshop, and another 10% will support local and independent bookstores. To find out more and sign up for your own Bookshop.org account, go here.
• Amazon’s Author Central
  Amazon’s Author Central is a great way for you to see reviews, track sales, and pay attention to your activity on Amazon.
• Pubby – as noted by author Madison Brightwell
  The system at Pubby is that you pay $29.99 a month, and you are given points for your book to be reviewed. You earn the points by reading and reviewing other people’s books. I think it’s really a win/win because you get great reviews written by other authors (so well written!) and you get to read some interesting books. You can choose whatever books you like to review. Yes, you have to buy them but they’re not expensive, ranging from 99c to $4.99, and remember that other people are also buying YOUR book to read and review!
   
  I have managed to gain now almost 50 reviews, and I’ve only been with them for just over a month.
   
  The other way to earn points is to invite other authors, which is why I’m inviting the Koehler authors to join. My signup code will get anybody who joins a 15% discount, here it is: https://pubby.co/?invite=24961
• Publishers Weekly Reviews
  Publishers Weekly offers reviews (hard to get) and paid reviews (easy to get) to authors. Koehler Books may assist with non-paid reviews for work that we feel has a chance, as PW is very picky. Go here for PW reviews.
  
• Publishers Weekly Ad Program
  Koehler Books will work with authors interested in a PW ad program that includes print and digital. We will create the ad and place it. Ad prices include: $1000 for a 1/6-page ad and boom box digital ad. $1300 for 1/3 vertical or square plus boombox. $1750 for 1/2 page vertical or horizontal plus boombox digital. $2995 for full page ad plus boombox digital. $5495 for 2-page spread plus boombox digital. Inquire with John Koehler for details.
• BookBub
  BookBub is an online service that notifies millions of readers of deeply discounted e-books. If you manage to have your book selected by BookBub for a limited-time deal, then you are afforded the incredible opportunity to expand your fan base and sell a lot of books. Upon your selection, Köehler Books will discount your e-book so you can run your e-book campaign.
• Bargain Booksy is another online Ebook service similar to Bookbub and appears to be cheaper.
• NetGalley
  www.netgalley.com
  Kristina Radke
  kristina.radke@netgalley.com
  This marketing and publicity service offers cultivated influencer communities; offering interesting, relevant marketing promotions; and providing rich, real-time data. NetGalley is the key pre-publication marketing channel for new books. The NetGalley member community, with over 300,000 influencers, has reviewed more than 500,000 books (with 50,000 new reviews a month), fuels over 3,000 Library Reads nominations and 1,200 Indie Next nominations monthly, and generates over 4.6M pageviews per month on book blogs we track.
• Amazon’s Author Advertising Program
  In 2022 Amazon began allowing authors to setup their own ad programs. In the past only self-published authors or publishers on KDP could do so, but now Koehler Books authors may create and manage their own ad programs directly on Amazon.

   

  From author Karen Ruben: Below is a link to Amazon’s Author Advertising program. Some marketing gurus and book promoters have advised that this program, coupled with as many positive reviews as authors can get posted on Amazon (at launch), are the two most important elements to the overall success of the book. It’s at the author’s expense, based on cost per click and author sets the budget.
  From author Danielle Koehler: Yes, it works but it requires some time to set up because you have to be strategic about the titles you’re targeting and your cost per click.

  I would suggest authors could schedule this to start on launch day but not before, as I doubt it would work for preorders.
  https://advertising.amazon.com/library/guides/advertising-books-on-amazon-authors
• Conventional Media
  Newspapers, magazines, TV, and radio are all viable sources for acquiring reviews. They are tougher to navigate, but the results can be spectacular. This is an area where publicists or marketing pros can be especially helpful due to their established network.
• Advanced Review Copies (ARCs)
  We expect our authors to use print and digital ARCs that we will provide to acquire endorsement quotes and reviews. The quotes and reviews can be used on the front and back cover and in the text. They establish validity and quality. We add them to the book prior to release. They are priceless.
  We will provide an agreed-upon number of ARCs as part of our publishing agreement. Authors may also purchase additional copies for near or under wholesale prices. Our authors typically purchase 50-100 ARCs for personal and professional use. They may sell them, but the sales do not include royalties.
  
• Book Talks, Signings & Events
  Authors will often set up a series of talks and other events to spread the good news about their book. These can be at bookstores, for book or reader’s groups, writer’s clubs, professional organizations that bring in speakers, and more. If the event is held at a bookstore, the retailer must purchase the books. Otherwise, authors may use their own ARCs.
• Blog Tours
  A blog tour is essentially seeking out some blogs related to your book’s subject matter. Craft a relationship and follow their blog. Then ask them to review your book. Bloggers are like columnists, and they have a following of readers. Many publicists and book marketing pros have a list of bloggers they work with.
• Share the Wealth
  When our authors set up a tour or a series of talks or anything else considered newsworthy and relevant to readers and the industry, we ask them to send it to us. Köehler Books may then post it on the website and/or share it with Ingram.
• Hiring A Pro
  If you have the budget, you may consider hiring a professional to help you with your website, marketing, or other aspects of your promotion. Our Experts are proven vendors who are or have worked with our authors. Talk to them, along with others, and then make the call carefully as always.
• Author Questionnaire
  An Author Questionnaire (AQ) is typically one of the first things a new author will fill out after landing a traditional or hybrid publishing deal. Self-publishing questionnaires will vary, depending on the company, and may not include all of the material shown below. We are including the Author Questionnaire below so that you can see the types of things that publishers or self-publishing authors need to know. The contact information includes the obvious street address, phone number, but also includes website URL and social media links and handles. The author’s biography is an important section, as most books will include an author’s bio along with a photo on the back cover or inside flap. It is important that good style and form be used. The author residence is of interest to booksellers who want to know where the author lives for events and sales. The sales hook and main description are critical components for creating the back cover synopsis. The AQ has good guidelines to follow. Key selling points are a nice bulleted short list useful for marketing. So is the audience, a listing of the various types of readers who you think will buy your book. There is a section asking for details about your cover. We like the author to pull samples that they like from Amazon and paste them into this section to help give our designers an idea of the type of covers that you like. Written descriptions are great and sketches are welcome. We will then have a discussion with the author and brainstorm about the cover.The Marketing and PR section has some guidelines to follow. It is extremely important for the author to fill out these sections in as much detail as possible. Download Sample Author Questionnaire