Writing it easy. Marketing is hard.
So as not to bury the lead, let me announce that BookBub has agreed to feature a free download of Black Jack: Behind the Waves to run from May 6 to 8. Why the hoopla on this one? I mean, we’ve had numerous free downloads in the past on this and other volumes, so why should this one matter? BookBub is the premier discount platform on the internet, featuring the likes of Janet Evanovich and James Patterson. While figures on membership and distribution vary widely – possibly because they are often in flux – the number of people signed up for a given genre can top 1.3 million. That doesn’t mean 1.3 million are going to be viewing BookBub when your book is being featured, of course, let alone pausing to read the blurb or hit the download button. But it is a heck of a lot more than the little sites we’ve been using.
BookBub is a very competitive venue. It selects only about 20% of the books submitted for its consideration, looking at writing style, genre, presentation and cover, and a fair number of books simply never make the cut. But when reading over the suggestions offered by successful authors, being featured on BookBub is always high on their list. So, Barbara and I have been submitting a steady stream of my works for consideration for months now – rotating the books since BookBub requires 4 weeks to pass between submissions – and we have piled up an impressive mound of rejection letters. Except, not this time. This time, they said “We are pleased to inform you…”
So, where does this lead? I’ve had successful giveaways in the past – the first offering of Pharaoh’s Mountain had 3200 – and they haven’t resulted in increased sales or even increased reviews (that vital currency of marketing). BookBub, however, is different. It is a different audience and, I suspect, a different level of interest. This is the big leagues, the place where a lot more books get bought and read (too many free books just get stored and forgotten). And Black Jack is the threshold drug, the first book of the trilogy, the introductory taste that hopefully brings the reader back for more.
I truly have no idea how this is going to turn out. Yes, BookBub has many, many readers, but it also has many, many pages of offerings. By my rough estimate, something like 1200 books are offered each session with mine a tiny unknown vying for attention. So, rather than a win, we might better describe this as an opportunity, though it’s one I welcome. I’ve got a great book, a wonderful cover, and the same attitude Leon Spinks had going into his 1978 championship fight against Mohammad Ali: “I ain’t got nottin’ ta lose.”
Hope springs eternal. And sometimes, yes, sometimes, you win.
I’ll keep you posted on results.
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