Bookbub Review (and how to!) for Children’s Authors

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Hello Writers!

Let’s talk about BookBub for Children’s Authors! This week on the podcast I introduced BookBub – the currently most well-known book promo site!

Free and discounted ebooks are great promotional tools for children’s authors, but only if our readers know about the deal to be had! 

[No time to read or listen? GRAB the Bookbub Basics cheatsheet here!]

Bookbub for Children’s Authors in 2020!

When you decide to discount your ebook you likely share on your social media sites, and to your email list if you have one.

But wouldn’t it be great to share your discounted books with loads more readers?

That’s Where Book Promo Sites Come In!

You provide the fabulous book, promotion services provide the readers.

Some of these services are paid – like Bookbub & Fussy Librarian -and some are free – like Indies Unlimited and Book Raid. 👉Want a HUGE list of all the promo sites❓ Try this one!

These services are constantly growing their mailing lists, and you can use them to put your free and/or discounted books in front of tens of thousands of (hopefully!) interested readers. 

Bookbub is Best?

I’m focusing on Bookbub because it is arguably the best and most well-known promotion service there is. Perhaps due to their email list size – almost 700 THOUSAND subscribers! Readers do love their free books. Bookbub is a well-known, well-oiled machine. Check it out!

Bookbub Cost

Bookbub charges vary depending on genre but are about $120 for a children’s book featured promotion.

If you are brand new to Bookbub, I recommend joining as a reader to experience what your readers will experience.

• What do their emails will look like?
• How often are they sent?
• What are the choices you have as a reader?

Outcome From a Bookbub 🤞

What is the goal of getting a Bookbub featured promo?

Authors aim for a few outcomes from a Bookbub:

• a significantly improved rank,
• loads of downloads (in the thousands!)
• verified reviews
• sell-through to your other books
• possibly paperback/hardcover sales as well

Novelists love getting Bookbubs for a series. Put a book one in a series as a Bookbub promo and then SCADS of people fall in love with it and borrow or buy the rest of the series for full-price. 👈that’s the dream!

The odds of success

Getting chosen for a promotion can obviously be a huge boost, right?

To sales, to visibility, and to book page traffic, which all add up to huge BENEFIT for you!

The potentially significant gains are why Bookbub promotions are in high demand, and why there’s limited space.

Staffers at Bookbub carefully curate their books to make the best experience for their readers.

200 to 300 books are submitted every day. The applications for the books are vetted and about 10% to 15% of those applications are accepted.

Getting chosen can depend on the quality of your book, what the cover looks like, how many reviews you have and whether your book is exclusive to Amazon or not, but it ALSO depends on how many other picture book authors apply the same day you do. Sometimes it all comes down to timing.

How to Apply for a Bookbub as a Children’s Author

It’s the same for all authors! And pretty simple actually.

• join BookBub as a children’s author.
• set up your author profile
• apply for a featured book deal
• cross your fingers & toes for an acceptance!

Free vs. Paid

My dad loves to get BookBub’s emails about Western novels. He giddily asked me not too long ago, “Have you heard about this thing called BookBub? I get tons of free books!”

#truthbomb He only wants the free ones.

Personally I like the cozy mysteries and kid’s books, of course. I only like the free ones too!

Do your own research to see if a discounted book or a free one does better for you. When you apply, request a 99cent deal first, and if it’s declined you can immediately apply for a free one. Best case scenario – you’ll have enough free AND 99cent promos to compare!

Stacking Promotions

Many authors ‘stack promotions’. Meaning they organized a few promotions, a few days in a row, for a better rank boost.

The short version: if you have good sales many days in a row (aim for five!) your rank will improve each day and then stay there. This is known as being ‘sticky’. It won’t last forever, but while it does you’ll have better organize traffic to your book page.

Triumph or Failure. Keep Trying!

Best practice, ie. collective wisdom from other authors, is to keep track of when you apply, and for which book.

Don’t give up after only one application! The benefits of a featured Bookbub promo are worth it for children’s authors just as much as novelists!

Tag me on social when you get your first Bookbub!

Joining me on the podcast for the first time?  Start at the beginning HERE

Want more marketing ideas? Try HERE

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