One of the most important things you can do in this ebook
world is to provide your reader with your current contact information. I monitor
over 50 authors and ebook experts blogs on a regular basis and finding their
contact links is quite a challenge.
Surprisingly, I find the same problem in the current ebooks
that are being published. If they do include link information, rarely is it a
live link.
I feel the authors are missing a large marketing opportunity.
Here are some ideas you may want to consider.
Different Products
One of the things I have been harping on for the last several
years is that a traditional paper book is a different product then the ebook
version, especially the pre-content information.
In fact, this information should be different between your
retailers. Yes, you should have a different version of your ebook for each
vendor. Whether it is Amazon or Barnes and Noble or Smashwords, they should
have a different version of the ebook. Not the story or the major content but the
front end of the ebook.
In other words, the ebook should not be just a copy of the
paper version.
Contact Page
An easy way to keep in touch with your reader is to include a
Contact Page in the front of the ebook. You know, one the reader can use to
access your major contact points. The continuing communications with your
followers should be a major part of your marketing effort.
Here is an example of the one I have in my novel, “Call Off
The Dogs.”
Your Ebook can be
updated
Your ebook lives on the fast moving Internet. Internet
addresses and links included in ebooks will change and new communication points
will definitely come along. In fact with the long life of an ebook, it is a
reality. Wait a minute. Your ebook can be updated anytime you want. Just make
the change and re-publish.
In contrast, once the paper book hits the shelves, any link
to the Internet is cast in concrete. That’s not the case with your ebook.
Ask for a review,
twice
You might ask me the following question after looking at the
example above. I see a link to help my reader enter a review of my ebook. What
is that all about?
You should give your reader easy access to your buy page to
let them review your book. Just include it on your contact page.
Once the buy is done, most readers don’t go back to the buy
page. Add this link to the contact information in the front of your book. Give
them an easy way to write about your ebook.
To top it all off, ask them again for a review at the end of
your ebook.
In a lot of cases, authors are still not providing live
links to the outside world to help the readers keep in touch.
Don’t miss this marketing opportunity. Keep your contact
information up-to-date in all your ebooks. It is just an upload away.
What do you think about adding a Contact Page to the front
of your ebook? Will publishers buy into this concept? Have I missed anything
you would like to add to the Contact Page?
Follow Me on Twitter: @jimhbs
Or EMAIL at: jim@jamesmoushon.com
Or visit my blog: The eBook Author Corner
Check out my Jonathon Stone Mystery Novel: Call
Off The Dogs
NOTE: The examples in this blog are displayed as an image (to keep borders to resemble a book page) and do not have live link to accommodate the blogging software.
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