In my last post ten days ago I explained the reasons behind my decision to put out a FREE ebook on Amazon and Smashwords. The theory behind the decision is nothing new, so after careful consideration, I changed the price of Secrets and Lies, (the first book in the Detective Jill Brennan series), from US$0.99 to FREE. I did this in the hope I would see a boost in sales of the other books in the series.
THE GOOD NEWS: In the last 10 days I’ve seen a spike in the number of FREE downloads of Secrets and Lies on Smashwords. As a spin off, there’s been an increase in PAID sales of Killing Sunday and Asylum.
Here are the stats: In the last ten days FREE downloads of Secrets and Lies increased by 366% while PAID downloads of Killing Sunday and Asylum increased by 167%!!
THE BAD NEWS: I enrolled Secrets and Lies in Kindle Matchbook with disappointing results. There were no FREE downloads or significant increases in PAID sales of Killing Sunday or Asylum.
As my commitment to marketing continues, I have to ask myself did this marketing strategy work? Despite Amazon’s disappointing result, I believe it did. The timing and the sales jump in Smashwords downloads was significant enough for it not to have been a fluke. The next question I believe I have to ask myself is, as a writer, what is important to me? To have dollar sales or have readers read my books? Crime is a a popular genre and with so much competition, the biggest threat I face is obscurity. The more readers I reach the better.
What are your thoughts:)
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Its a huge learning curve Gina, isn’t it? I watch your progress with interest. Thanks for sharing your journey.
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Marketing is largely about action and response. No action from the author, no response from readers and literary obscurity looms. So I think your experiment is effective just by its very being. Has it worked? Your Smashword results would say yes!
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Thanks, Gail for your comment. I’m considering offering Killing Sunday as a Freebie as well. I’ve got nothing to lose and everything to gain! (I think)
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