Marketing Advice

Why Author’s Still Need an Email List and Newsletter

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For authors to gain success, they must play many other roles besides writer of books and articles. To sell books, authors must build a strong online presence to connect with their readers directly. One of the most effective ways to do this is with a newsletter and email list. Newsletters and email lists allow authors to communicate with their audience, promote their work, and build a loyal fan base. Let’s explore the reasons an author needs a newsletter.

One of the main reasons an author needs a newsletter and email list is to build a direct line of communication with their readers. By collecting email addresses from fans and followers, authors can send out regular updates about upcoming books, events, and promotions. This direct connection with readers helps authors to cultivate a loyal fan base and create a sense of community around their work. In today’s saturated market, where competition is fierce, having a dedicated audience who is eager to support your work can make a significant difference in an author’s career.

A newsletter and email list promotes an author’s work effectively. Traditional methods of marketing, such as advertising or book tours, can be costly and may not reach the right audience. By sending out targeted emails to subscribers, authors can promote their books, upcoming releases, and events directly to people who have already shown an interest in their work. This targeted approach can lead to higher conversion rates and better engagement with readers.

Distributing email to fans helps authors gather feedback and insights from their readers. By sending out surveys or asking for feedback in emails, authors can gain valuable information about their readers’ preferences, interests, and opinions. This feedback can tailor future projects, improve marketing strategies, and strengthen the relationship with readers. In this way, a newsletter and email list can act as a valuable tool for authors to engage with their audience and refine their craft.

In terms of impact, the use of newsletters and email lists has revolutionized the way authors connect with their audience. With social media platforms becoming increasingly crowded and algorithms constantly changing, having a direct channel to communicate with readers is essential for authors to stand out in the digital landscape. Authors who have successfully built and maintained a newsletter and email list have reported higher book sales, increased engagement with readers, and a stronger sense of community around their work.

While there are many ways to promote books, newsletters are still the best way to communicate with readers and build a loyal fan base. The more authors connect with readers through their newsletter, the greater the success they experience. So don’t give up on regularly sending a newsletter to your fans.

Managing Automatic Targeting Ads for Books on Amazon’s Sponsored Ads

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Now that you’ve completed Automatic Targeting for Books with Amazon Advertising’s Sponsored Ads and let the ad run for a while, it’s time to manage the ad. No, you can’t just set it and forget it. There are a number of things you’ll need to do on a regular basis to make sure the ad delivers results. 

NOTE: If you haven’t set up an ad on Amazon yet, click on the title above and set up the ad. Then come back here in 2 weeks to a month to start managing the ad.

1. Log in to Amazon Ads and find an Automatic Targeted ad that has been running for 2 weeks to a month. 

NOTE: To find a particular ad, scroll through the ads on the campaign list or go to the Portfolios and find it in the applicable portfolio. 

2. Click on the ad to open it. Notice the options in the menu on the left. Here’s what they do:

  • Placements are used to adjust bid strategies for ad placements up by a percentage to gain better ad placement. We will discuss placements in a future post.
  • Targeting is used to adjust bids.
  • Negative Targeting allows you to identify keywords that you don’t want your ad targeting, as well as products where you don’t want your ad placed.
  • Budget Rules adds bidding increases to your ad at special times. For example, adding a bid increase of 10% during Black Friday. We will cover these rules in a later blog post.
  • Search Terms are the terms that Amazon has decided to target. While you can’t change these, it is important to check them and add the ones you don’t want targeted to the Negative Targeting keywords.
  • Campaign Settings is where you can change your overall bidding strategy and other campaign specifics.
  • History provides a list of the changes you’ve made to the ad.

3. Before you start managing the ad, click on Ads in the menu on the left.

4. Go to the campaign details below the chart and change the columns to the ones listed below. To do this, click on Columns on the right side, then click on Customize Columns.

  • Impressions: The number of times ads were delivered to customers.
  • Clicks: How many times your ad was clicked. 
  • Spend: Total charges accrued for the clicks that occurred.
  • CPC: Cost Per Click or the average cost for the clicks.
  • Orders: Total orders that occurred from the clicks.
  • Sales: Value of the books sold from the orders.
  • ACOS: Like pay-per-click. This is the ad spend divided by tracked sales on the ad dashboard.

If you need more information about each column, hover over the i in the gray circle on the column header.

The 7 columns above contain the most useful information you need to know about ad performance. Ad performance tells you whether you should increase or decrease bids. In some cases, you may need to stop using certain ads because of what the performance shows.

Default Bid Adjustment

In this section you will adjust the default bid in the Campaign Settings based on the ad campaigns performance.

5. Go to the Date Range on the right side of the section and change it to “The Last 30 Days.”

6. Take a look at the overall performance of the ad in the columns. Make note of which scenario below applies.

  • If the performance has an ACOS greater than 50%, lower the default bid 1-5 cents below the CPC.
  • If the performance has an ACOS lower than 50%, raise the default bid 1-5 cents above the CPC.
  • If the performance has an ACOS that is blank, raise the default bid 1-5 cents above the CPC.

IMPORTANT: Suggested Bids are just that, suggested bids. As you adjust bids, keep them low and increase them slowly. If your bids are below the suggested bit it is okay.

7. Click on Campaign Settings in the menu on the left, then go to the Default Bid and change it per the scenario you chose in step 6.

Ad Group Level Adjustments

As was discussed in the post where you created the Automatic Targeted Ad, there are 4 options in the two Targeting Groups. Here you will adjust each slowly so you do not pay too much for clicks that are not converting to sales.

9. Click on Targeting to go to the Automatic Targeting Groups where you’ll adjust the bid for each of the options.

10. Look at how each of the group types is performing. If a type has an ACOS, adjust the bid as was done in the Default Bid Adjustment section. If there is no ACOS, adjust the bid per the group type discussed below.

The Close Match and Loose Match group type is based on keyword searches made by a customer and shows your ad in search results based on similarly assigned keywords.

Loose match: With this match type, customers enter search terms and Amazon delivers ads for books that are loosely related to what the customer expects. In this case, if your book is fantasy and the customer searches for “fantasy books with vampires and werewolves,” your book ad could deliver even if the monster type in your book isn’t the same. Since your book is likely to end up in front of customers that are not necessarily looking for books like yours, increase bids sparingly or not at all.

Close match: With this match type, customers enter search terms and Amazon delivers ads for books that are closely related to the customer’s expectations. For example, if your book is fantasy and the customer searches for “fantasy books,” Amazon could decide to deliver your ad. Since your book will end up in front of customers who are more likely to purchase your book, consider increasing the bid if you are receiving a high number of impressions, clicks, and sales.

The Complements and Substitutes group type shows your ad on book pages that are like your book. 

Complements: Your ad will deliver when a customer lands on a book page that complements your book. So here, if your book is about demons in an urban fantasy setting but not related to romance, your book could still end up on an urban fantasy romance book page. Since your book is likely to end up in front of customers that are not necessarily looking for books like yours, increase bids sparingly or not at all.

Substitutes: Your ad will deliver when a customer lands on a book page for a book similar to yours. If you write comedy, Amazon will deliver your book on other comedy books’ pages. Since your book will end up in front of customers who are more likely to purchase your book, consider increasing the bid if you are receiving a high number of impressions, clicks, and sales.

Search Terms and Negative Targeting

In this section, you won’t adjust bids, but you will make sure Amazon is properly targeting your ad. This is just as important, maybe more important than your bidding because you can quickly accrue clicks on irrelevant keywords or dissimilar products.

11. Click on Search Terms.

12. Page through the keywords listed. These are what Amazon has decided to target for ad placement. Write down any keywords that are not relevant to your book.

13. Click on Negative Targeting, then click on Add Negative Keywords.

14. Enter all the keywords you found that do not represent your book. 

15. Choose Negative Exact or Negative Phrase as needed, definitions for each below:

Phrase: Includes the exact phrase or group of keywords.

Exact: An exact match for either the keyword or group of keywords.

16. Click on Save to exempt the keywords.

17. Notice there is also an option for Negative Products. If there are books in which you don’t want your ad to display on, you will need to gather their ASINs and use that tab to enter them.

That’s it. Complete these steps weekly or every couple weeks. These ads don’t have a high spend in most cases, especially if they are well maintained, so they don’t need as much care as category and keyword ads.

How to Write An Author Bio That Attracts Readers

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So you’ve been putting off writing your author bio. Or maybe you wrote one in 10 minutes just to get it done, then you slapped it up on Amazon Author Central with a dulled-out selfie. After all, very few of us enjoy an afternoon of bragging about our books and other accomplishments. And no one reads them anyway, right?

Wrong!

Your author bio is your business card. It helps you stand out from the rest of the authors out there. Besides showcasing your books, your author bio should reflect your personality and achievements. It affirms that you are a real person, qualified in your field, and worth reading. People read author bios because they want to relate to you and pursue reading your other publications, be it other books, a blog, column, etc. A catchy bios help you sell books!

What’s In An Author Bio?

Your author bio needs to speak to your target audience. This is key to ensure the right reader picks up your books. For example, you wouldn’t market children’s books to post-apocalyptic zombie readers. And it’s short, only 90 words or less, with the following sections:

  • Writer Profile
  • Credentials
  • Interests/Personal Info
  • Call to Action
  • Internet Presence
  • Headshot

How Do You Write An Author Bio?

Sitting down to write your author bio can be difficult. So, before you tackle it, start by answering the questions below. Provide at least 3 short, striking responses for each. These questions will assist you in compiling a striking bio.

1. Who are you writing for? Men or women? Certain professionals? Kids or adults?

2. What are your publications about? What genres do you write? Who are your characters? Where does your book take place? Is there something historic that readers should know about? Are your works funny or serious?

3. What do you know? What special training do you have? What has happened in your life that influences you? What have you experienced that makes you an expert in your field?

4. How are you involved? What do you do to make the world a better place? How are you involved in helping people? Are you solving problems?

5. Who are you personally? What are your interests? What are your hobbies? What do you want people to know about your family life?

6. What do you want readers to do? When people read your bio, do you want them to go to a blog or website? Or do you want them to go to a popular article you wrote? Do you want them to sign up for one of your classes?

7. What are your most important accomplishments? Have you won a contest or award? What can you tell readers to increase your credibility?

Now use your answers to write your author bio in third person. Pull out your most interesting and highest accomplishments from the answers. Start with something captivating from the list that speaks to who you are as a writer. Continue by building your credibility. Add your interests and personal information, and end with a call to action that could lead to a book sale.

After you write your first draft, remove irrelevant words, then remove some more irrelevant words. Get that word count down to 90 or less. Make changes as needed, but don’t spend more than a half an hour on your bio. Ask a friend to critique your draft, then complete your final copy.

Don’t forget about your headshot. Forget that dulled-out selfie and go with a more professional and personalized photo. If you are a doctor, the photo better look professional. If you are a horror writer, consider a dark and mysterious background with a raised eyebrow. It’s okay to show off your personality, considering your career. A comedian that looks like an accountant won’t attract readers.

Also consider that you will need a different author bio for a number of websites, contests, awards, articles, and more. You will also need to update your bio on your own website and social media accounts regularly. So keep that list around because you’re not done!

Automatic Targeting Ads for Books with Amazon Advertising’s Sponsored Ads

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Sponsored Products ads are the type of Amazon ad that authors use to create book ads. Automatic Targeting is one of the ad types, and it is the easiest ad to create. Because automatic targeted ads require little to no planning, these are the perfect starter ads for authors new to advertising on Amazon.

It is important to note that automatic targeting is one of the least effective ads because you have little control over the ad targeting and where they place your ad. And you can only bid at the targeting group level, explained below. Amazon controls the product targeting and assigns the keywords for you. Later, you can review and research the terms Amazon targets and use negative targeting on the ads dashboard to control whether Amazon continues to target certain terms, which you’ll learn in another checklist.

This type of ad displays in 3 different places including at the top of search results, within search results, and on product pages. Again, Amazon decides where they’ll place your ad.

While automatic targeted ads are inflexible, there is one very good reason to use them. As mentioned, Amazon controls your keywords. Typically, finding keywords for your manual ads is extremely time consuming and not always effective. Amazon, on the other hand, always knows which keywords are trending, and they use these trends to promote your book where they know it will sell.

What are targeting groups? There are 4 different options in the targeting groups that you can set up when you create the automatic targeted ad or later when you manage the ad. You won’t set them up in this checklist, but you will update them later, in the checklist to manage these ads. But it’s good to understand what they are and how they are used, so they’re explained below:

The following two group types are based on keyword searches made by a customer and show your ad in search results based on similar assigned keywords.

Close match: With this match type, customers enter search terms and Amazon delivers ads for books that are closely related to the customer’s expectations. For example, if your book is fantasy and the customer searches for “fantasy books,” your book ad could deliver.

Loose match: With this match type, customers enter search terms and Amazon delivers ads for books that are loosely related to what the customer expects. In this case, if your book is fantasy and the customer searches for “fantasy books with vampires and werewolves,” your book ad could deliver even if the monster type in your book isn’t the same.

The following two group types show your ad on book pages that are like your book. 

Substitutes: Your ad will deliver when a customer lands on a book page for a book similar to yours. If you write comedy, Amazon will deliver your book on other comedy books’ pages.

Complements: Your ad will deliver when a customer lands on a book page that complements your book. So here, if your book is about demons in an urban fantasy setting but not related to romance, your book could still end up on an urban fantasy romance book page.

If you’re confused, don’t worry, I’ll explain in a later post. Right now it’s more important to get an ad running so you can first learn the rest of the Campaign Manager tool.

NOTE: If you haven’t set up your Amazon Ads account, check out You Don’t Need a KDP Account to Manage Amazon Ads for Your Books. The blog post is for authors who don’t have a KDP account but do have an Author Central account, where they can access and set up an AmazonAds account.

How to Create a Sponsored Products Automatic Targeting Ad

Now you know enough to create an ad. Follow these instructions to start your first ad.

1. Log in to your Amazon Ads account. If you haven’t set up Amazon Ads or need help logging in, see 4 Ways to Log In to Access Amazon Ads.

2. Once you’re in the Campaign Manager, click on the Create Campaign button on the left side above the list of campaigns. The page below will display.

3. As mentioned earlier, most book ads are created using the Sponsored Products option, so go ahead and click on the Continue button in this section.

4. Fill out the page as follows:

Top Section

AD FORMAT: Choose Custom text ad. This allows you to add a short description about your book later.

PRODUCTS: Find the book you want to advertise and click on the Add button. Only add one book title in one book format. Never advertise paper and eBooks in the same ad.

IMPORTANT: Always advertise paper and eBooks in separate ads. This is because their audience is different, so their targeting is different. For example, certain books like fiction sell better in eBook format. Journals sell better in paper format. Paper sells better for traditionally published books and eBooks sell better for self-published books. And the list goes on as to why you should advertise book formats separately. Know that an ad for a paper book on an eBook page or in search results, and vice versa will likely not result in a sale.

TARGETING: Choose Automatic Targeting.

AUTOMATIC TARGETING: Enter an amount within the range of the suggested bid unless the suggested bid is too high for your budget. The suggested bid is the highest amount that Amazon will charge you if someone clicks on your ad. I suggest you keep it low to start, and I’ll show you how to maintain your ads in another post, which includes increasing and decreasing bids. Note the How to Set Bid Pricing link in the upper right of the Automatic Targeting section. Read it to get a better understanding of how bids work.

NEGATIVE KEYWORD TARGETING & NEGATIVE PRODUCT TARGETING: Leave these sections blank. We will update negative targeting after the ad has run for a week or two.

CREATIVE: Add custom text or a description for the book here. Something enticing so that readers will want to purchase the book. Be careful with symbols because this section is audited, and I’ve had ads rejected for including too many symbols or punctuation.

Campaign Section

CAMPAIGN BIDDING STRATEGY: Choose Dynamic Bids – Down Only. This setting ensures that your bid will never go above what you set it as. In fact, the bid will go down from your max bid for certain circumstances. For newbies to AmazonAds, this further provides a comfort level that you won’t start your day, checking your ads to find a $100 advertising spend. Again, Amazon has provided a help link that will explain how this section works.

SETTINGS: For Campaign Name, add a short, descriptive names for your campaign. Suggest you start the name with the book title and the ad type, both in an abbreviated format. For my book series, I do the first letter of the words in the title and add -AT for Automatic Targeting, such as CFO-AT. I suggest his because using a short form of an ad name makes it easier to find in the Campaign Dashboard later.

For Portfolio and Start & End Date, make no changes. You can change these later. I’ll explain best practices for both in another post.

For Daily Budget, consider your pocketbook again. This is the amount you are willing to spend on the campaign each day. Start low and increase this number if the ad campaign proves ineffective. Consider that if you add $2.00 as the cap, that’s a $62 spend at most for the month. When you start advertising more books, that number goes up. Remember that these are the least effective book ads, but the higher a bid doesn’t mean better results.

5. Click on Launch Campaign. You’ll receive confirmation that your campaign was created successfully.

6. Click on Go to Campaign Manager.

7. Page down to the campaign list, and you’ll find the campaign in a pending status. When the ad is running, the status will change to Delivering. If your ad fails to deliver, you will more likely than not need to contact support. They provide little to no feedback on why they reject ads.

If you’re feeling adventurous, click on the ad and peruse around the maintenance options. But let your automatic targeted ad sit for a week or two before making any changes. It’s important to not get trigger happy on changing bids. During this time, you are learning how Amazon handles your book ad, and Amazon is learning how they should present your book.

See, setting up your first ad was pretty easy. Now the fun begins because there is so much more to learn. In the next blog post I’ll help you check your Automatic Targeting ad for needed bid changes, negative targeting, and more. Until then, resist the urge to gawk at your ads. I know, I know, it’s like getting a new gadget or toy. Peeking once a day or every couple days is fine and won’t suck up too much of your time.

4 Ways to Login and Access Amazon Ads

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Amazon makes it easy for you to access their ads platform from a number of places. The Amazon Advertising dashboard is where you will create new ads and manage existing ads. In this checklist you will access the website and set up your account for the first time. There are also instructions on how to access Amazon Advertising from KDP and Author central.

Amazon Ads Website

In this section you will access amazonads.com and set up an Amazon Ads account if you haven’t haven’t set one up yet. There are also instruction to log in when you return to manage your ads.

Set Up Amazon Advertising

Use this checklist if you are accessing Amazon Ads for the first time. Once this section is complete, you will need to set up your account, which is not in this checklist.

1.Go to Amazon Advertising at advertising.amazon.com or amazonads.com.

NOTE: This checklist assumes you are in the United States. Consult KDP help to find the platform for the country in which you publish.

2. Choose Register.

3. In step 1 choose Sponsored Ads > United States.

4. Choose Products Sold on Amazon > Kindle Direct Publishing Account.

5. Enter your Amazon Login information. Your Amazon Advertising dashboard will open.

IMPORTANT: Your Amazon log in information is typically what you use for your KDP account. If you don’t have a KDP account, use the Amazon account you use for your Author Central account.

Sign Into the Advertising Dashboard

If you are returning to Amazon Ads, follow these steps to log in to your account.

1. Go to Amazon Advertising at advertising.amazon.com.

2. Choose Sign In.

3. Choose United States, then click on Sign In.

4. You will either need to log in to your Amazon account or the ads dashboard will open.

KDP Marketing Page

Follow these steps if you have already set up your Amazon Ads account. This checklist will open the ads dashboard from KDP.

1. Sign in to your KDP account.

2. Choose Marketing from the top menu.

3. Go to the Amazon Ads section and choose amazon.com, then click on Go to Ads Console. Your Amazon Advertising dashboard will open.

KDP Bookshelf

Follow these steps if you have already set up your Amazon Ads account. This checklist will start an ad for a chosen book from the KDP Bookshelf.

1. Sign in to your KDP account.

2. On the Bookshelf page, find the book you want to advertise.

3. Under Kindle Book Options, choose Promote and Advertise.

NOTE: If Promote and Advertise isn’t available, use the More (…) menu to find it.

4. Go to the Run an Ad Campaign box and choose amazon.com, then click on Create an Ad Campaign. 

5. The page to start an ad campaign opens instead of the ads dashboard. If you want to go to the ads dashboard, click on Campaign Manager at the top left.

Author Central

Follow these steps if you have already set up your Amazon Ads account. This checklist will open the ads dashboard from your Author Central account.

1. Sign in to your Author Central account.

2. Click on Reports + Marketing at the top of the page.

3. Go to the Amazon Advertising box on the right side.

4. Choose United States under Choose a Marketplace.

5. Click on Go to Ads Console and you’ll go to the Ads dashboard.

It’s that easy… and quite convenient to access the Amazon Ads dashboard from so many different locations.

You Don’t Need a KDP Account to Manage Amazon Ads for Your Books

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Amazon Author Central Reports and Marketing Option

If you have an Amazon Author Central account, you’ve probably seen an Amazon Advertising box in the Reports + Marketing section. This is a perfect option for traditionally published authors who don’t have a KDP (Kindle Direct Publishing) account. And it’s quite essential for an author to have an Amazon Advertising account because, as you’ll hear me say over and over again, you won’t sell books on Amazon unless you advertise.

You might be afraid to venture into advertising on Amazon, I know I was. The platform is intimidating at first. And having Amazon suck up your royalties can send chills up your spine. Really, it’s just a matter of finding the right formula for your books to keep costs down while making sure your book is seen on product pages and in search results.

But I digress, focusing back on the purpose of this blog post, which is to help you create an Amazon Advertising account. I’ll freak you out on the complexity creating and maintaining ads in a later post.

It’s simple to set up an Amazon Ads account after you’ve accessed your Author Central account.

1. Start by clicking on the Reports + Marketing menu option as displayed by our model.

2. Page down and look on the right side, where you’ll find the Amazon Advertising box shown next.

3. Stick with the United States and click on Go to Ads Console.

NOTE: It’s best to start your advertising venture through the United States and then try other countries after you’ve created some successful campaigns.

4. If you are new to Amazon Ads and haven’t set up your account yet, an informative message that states, “The pen name and titles claimed in your Author Central account will be automatically synced to your ads account.” displays on the page.

5. Click on the Go to Ads Console button, and you’ll go to the Campaign Manager, where you start a new ad campaign. You will create ads for your book using Sponsored Products option.

6. Click on the Continue button to progress to creating an ad.

While we will not create an ad in this post, it’s good to know that there are 2 types of ads you can create:

Automatic Targeting: This is the easiest ad to set up and puts the control in Amazon’s hands because they decide how and where to promote your book. 

Manual Targeting: This option allows you to decide how to target your ads using categories and keywords. You’ll have better success with this type of ad, but they require more maintenance.

7. We’ll end the instructions pointing out that Amazon wants money for the ads you run, which is why you’ll need to click on the Billing and Payments link to provide a payment method.

Now take a deep breath and close your browser window. We’ll discuss planning your ads in another post. No, you can’t just set ’em and forget ’em. Here’s just a few things that come next:

Budgeting: Decide how much money you want to hand over to Amazon. This is a huge up front task because you have to consider more that what’s in your wallet. Amazon Advertising is like gambling because you have to bid against other authors and hope it’s high enough to get you book seen. This process can take a long time and include a loss of a lot of hair before you see a profit.

Category and Keyword Collection: This is equally time consuming, especially while finding keywords that work with your book. You can use words that describe your book, authors who write similar to you, titles that are similar, and so much more. For example, I run book ads for Amazon Prime Day and the keywords are directed toward readers looking for book deals on those days.

Ad Maintenance: Besides budgeting money, you’ll budget time to watch your ads, especially category and keyword ads. This is necessary to make sure your campaigns are effectively targeting the right readers and that your bidding is working. This process helps teach Amazon the best ways to sell your books.

At this point, just the thought of moving forward with your ads may stress you out, so go get a cup of camomile tea, put up your feet, and chill out. While there’s much more to come, we’ll eat that elephant one bite at a time. Corny but my favorite idiom.

5 Reasons Author Central is an Essential Part of Your Author Presence in the Amazon Bookstore

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Do you want readers to buy your books? Of course you do. Then don’t just put your books in bookstores, put yourself out there too. Amazon’s Author Central brings both you and your books together in one place that you control. Besides introducing you to Amazon’s customer base, it encourages readers to buy more of your books, and here’s how.

1. Author Follows

Amazon is invested in understanding their customers’ preferences because it results in more sales, and every store wants to sell more products. The Author Follow button is one way Amazon can track what their reader base likes and is more likely to buy. Readers can follow authors from their Author Central page or any of their books’ product pages, but only if the author has an Author Central account. And once a reader follows an author, Amazon will show that author’s books to her in emails and on their website to promote more sales.

Identify the number of followers you have on your Author Central control panel. 

Similar to how you would encourage fans to follow your social media accounts and GoodReads author page, you should encourage readers to follow you on Author Central for the reasons previously mentioned. Put a link to the page on your website and include it on your promotional materials. Get your number of followers up, and you will sell more books.

2. Brand Awareness

Your Author Central page reflects your brand as an author. The profile you publish tells readers who you are and what you write. If you are producing a series, customers can easily find the next book or two they’d like to read in highlighted series sections. There are places to tell readers which of your books  they should read, along with recommendations for the books you enjoy. 

It’s important to note that the author name link on a book’s detail page or in search results directs to an author’s Author Central account. If you don’t set up an Author Central account, this link goes to a page that lists your books mixed with other authors’ books. This means you could lose a sale to another author whose book outshines yours, and I’m sure you don’t want that to happen.

Readers do want to know who you are, including your background, accomplishments, credentials, and that you are a real human. These days, not only do we compete with human authors, we compete against AI more and more. Readers are becoming even more invested in knowing the identity of an author. If they like you, they believe they will like your stories.

3. Google Search Results

Simply stated, Google indexes author page on Amazon. When someone googles your author name, you want all the top search results to be flooded with your website, social media links, and such. More so, direct links to buy your books are better at the top. Since you’ll sell more books on Amazon, it’s best that your Author Central account link be as close to the top as possible after a Google Search. Go google your author name now. Discover where it ranks. Any way that you can increase visibility of your books is a good thing!

4. Book Information Control

There are a number of book information updates you can apply to your books from Author Central: add editorial reviews, update your book descriptions, add author comments to a book page, and more. Editorial reviews are positive testimonials about your book that catch a reader’s attention and tell them your book is worth reading. Actively updating your author comments tells both readers and Amazon you are invested in selling books. This option is especially helpful if you have a publisher and a lack of control of your books via KDP (Kindle Direct Publishing).

5. Marketing Materials

Again, if you are traditionally published and do not have access to KDP, the marketing materials that Amazon provides in Author Central are extremely helpful to view your book rankings and manage your marketing needs. In the Sales Ranking report, you’ll find your rankings in the various Amazon marketplaces around the world. There is also a BookScan report available for free on Author Central, which expands a picture of your rankings across other bookstores. Author central also provides easier access to your review, so you can use them in your marketing materials on social media or print.

Finally, Amazon Advertising is accessible from Author Central. This is especially handy for traditionally published authors. If you haven’t already realized this, you won’t sell books unless you advertise on Amazon. Having control over your advertising is important because you also have control over advertising budgets. 

Part of being an author is getting your name and face and books out there for all to see. And your Amazon Author Central page is an invaluable tool every author needs to further your exposure. It’s easy to set up and maintain, so make an effort to visit your page and update it frequently.