How’s your Newsletter Going?
Does that sound like a weird question? One of those filler questions someone asks you before they make a request like, “Can you loan me 20 bucks” or “Will you babysit my blind chinchilla for the weekend?”
Well, it’s not one of those questions at all! I’m sincerely interested in your newsletter. Let me tell you why.
I sent out my very first author newsletter 4 months ago to a whopping 27 people, all of whom were either related to me or were my very bestest friends in the whole wide world. And, you know, that was okay. I did a lot of thought work on it and came up with the realization that it’s not about numbers. My newsletter is just fun.
That gave me the momentum to move forward with my next monthly newsletter, designing it, advertising it, creating a giveaway to promote it - all the things. That newsletter went out to an astounding 32 people! At that point, in the depths of disappointment, I calculated that I might reach 1,000 subscribers round about my 200th birthday.
Then, and THEN, a friend recommended Book Funnel to me.
Now, please note, I am not trying to sell you on Book Funnel. I just want to share with you my experience and then you are free to do whatever you think best to build your newsletter.
Sound fair?
Sweet, let’s get to it.
Here’s how Book Funnel works – according to the description on their website.
“BookFunnel is an author service that specializes in ebook and audio distribution, sending ARCs, and creating tools that save indie authors time and sanity.”
Doesn’t that sound amazing? I love saving time and sanity!
To add to this description, Book Funnel also allows people to create promotions – think of a virtual book fair – where authors are able to join forces and promote their books. There are sales promotions and newsletter promotions – which are the kind I’ve been using. When you join the promo, you select a date and you commit to share the promotion by that date. Be mindful, cause if you don’t honor that commitment, you will be removed from the promotion. So, let’s be good kids and share, share, share!
The coolest thing about these promotions is, with a lot of authors on board and sharing the promotion all over social media, your book gets in front of a lot of eyes. Eyes are good. They are connected to brains that get to decide to buy your book.
And sharing is easy as pie! Each promotion page has social media links just under the header that you can click on and voila! Sharing is done! It’s also good to include the upcoming promotion links in your newsletter, so it goes out to all your subscribers. More eyes, right?
So this all sounds pretty awesome and junk, but how does this help your newsletter audience? I’m so glad you asked. Let me tell you! In story form. Cause it’s way more fun.
Once upon a time there was a voracious reader named Jennifer. In her untiring search for new books to read, she happened upon a promotion shared by her good friend (on Facebook) Sally. With bated breath and trembling fingers, Jennifer clicked on the promotion and before her eyes appeared a veritable scroll of books. Some were by new authors, some by old. Some were sample chapters and some were full books. All were free. Her heart raced as visions of spending the whole winter under a blanket with cocoa and popcorn, consuming every book on the list, danced through her mind.
She clicked on the first book and found herself at a landing page with a brief description of a book and a button that urged her to get it now. Not one to ignore such urges, she clicked and was asked to supply her name and email address. This was a small price to pay for the plethora of new reads just a click away. She entered the information and proceeded to read until the sun set behind the mountains.
The End.
But is it? I’m actually thinking that’s the beginning. For us – as authors. Because the moment Jennifer entered her email address into that book landing page on Book Funnel, she was added to the author’s newsletter audience.
What?!
True story. I wouldn’t make this stuff up.
So, let’s go through this again, step by step, to make sure we are all on the same page. Sound good? Yay!
Step One: Sign up for one of Book Funnels Author plans.
The plan you choose will depend on your purpose for using Book Funnel. I chose the Mid-List Author plan because I wanted the ability to collect email addresses to build my newsletter. It’s $15 a month or $100 a year. Let me just say, in the last two months my newsletter audience has gone from 32 to 621. I think it’s safe to say I will now reach 1000 subscribers before I turn 200. That’s totally worth the money to me.
Step Two: Create a landing page for your Book.
There are a couple options for landing pages. If your book hasn’t been released yet, I recommend the normal, not the sales, landing page. This will allow you to enter numerous promotions without needing to provide information on how to purchase your book. Since it’s not out yet. Does that make sense?
The landing page is the place people like Jennifer will go when they click on your book in the promotion. There is a template, so all you have to do is fill in the book info and upload your book cover and either your full book or the sample chapter you are providing. Some promos won’t take a sample – they want the full book – but there are plenty who will accept a sample as long as you tag the book cover in some way to let people know that’s what their signing up for. No surprises.
This step is also the place where you coordinate your newsletter service with Book Funnel. I use Mailchimp, so when I connected my account to Book Funnel, the email addresses were entered automatically into my newsletter audience.
Sweet Sister Sassafrass, that’s amazing!
Step Three: Choose your Promotions.
This is the fun part! Read through the available promotions. Each one is unique and all the details are provided when you click on the individual promotion. If your book fits their requirements – join.
Step Four: Smile, lean back, and enjoy the feeling of success!
Meet the Author: Cori Cooper is an Arizona Mountain girl, not born, but definitely raised! She met her husband in Middle School and married him 8 years later when they both grew up, (sort of).
She’s living the fairy tale she always dreamed of, with as many sparkles and floofy dresses as farkles and hot messes, all of it together is what make happily ever after so stinking amazing!
When she isn’t reading her eyes blurry or typing her fingers stiff, Cori loves to play board games with her 4 kids, go for hikes in the gorgeous pine forested hills just steps from her front door and bake delicious treats for her family and friends.
About Make Believe: Cat Anderson doesn't want much out of life. Give her a circle of friends to giggle with, a few cute boys to flirt with, and she is good to go! She is perfectly content...until a scheduling mishap on her first day of 8th grade places her in a culinary arts class.
Food, it turns out, is a very big deal.
In her family there is a secret, too big to stay hidden any longer. A secret too fantastic to be real.
Something happens when Cat bakes.
Something impossible.
Can it be true? Or is it Bake Believe?