Book Bargains: How to Ace Book Promotion Campaigns with PublishDrive

Offering book bargains is not just about boosting short-term sales; it’s a strategic move to increase long-term visibility and readership. 

For publishers, book promotions are a powerful tool to amplify the reach of their titles, attract new readers, and revitalize interest in older publications. 

Authors can see a significant impact on their personal brand and audience growth when opting to conduct book promotions that are attuned to their readers’ interests.

The article discusses in detail how to use the PublishDrive platform to increase readership and sales through our book promotions feature.

Rock Book Promotions with PublishDrive

Currently, there are several different ways to use PublishDrive features to market your book:

1. Featuring 

With the Featuring tab, authors can promote their books for free. Here’s how it works:

1. PublishDrive's merchandiser selects a title that gets featured. PublishDrive recommends titles to editorial teams of retailers and book promotional platforms, who then select books for special features. More precisely, our merchandiser, Fruzsina Sugar, works with retailers to submit books for their in-house promotions. You should receive emails for these opportunities if you have eligible titles.
2. Authors can use the Featuring tab directly to nominate their books. Keep in mind that this is not a guaranteed deal. PublishDrive’s editorial team picks the best stories to tell.

Where can you promote your book using the Featuring tab?

• Written Word Media websites & newsletters
• Dreame
• Apple Books
• Bibliotheca
• Hoople
• 24symbols

These curated lists are favorites among readers looking for their next great read. It’s essential to select titles that align with the specific theme of the promotion. 

2. Price promotions 

Set your own price drops to run a sale. Look under the Advanced Promotions header on the Promotions tab. This promotion feature allows you to schedule any price promotion with Amazon, Apple Books, Kobo, Barnes & Noble, and Google Play Books.

3. Drive Book Sales with Written Word Media 

This is the paid option to advertise your book with Written Word Media. In the Featuring section, you get to promote your book with them for free, although not guaranteed it will get picked for featuring. With the Drive Book Sales tab, you can book an ad at FreeBooksy, Bargain Booksy, or other list-based email advertisements through our partnership with Written Word Media. 

If you have chosen the paid service from the platform’s Drive Book Sales, sit back and watch your sales grow.

If you want to choose this option, click on Drive Book Sales under the Promotions tab in your dashboard, and pick one of WWM’s websites that suits your book.

❗Please note the following requirements about the promotional Written Word Media newsletters:

• Readers’ List

This is still part of Written Word Media websites. But the Readers' List is different from the promotional newsletters mentioned above. The team of Written Word Media sends out these newsletters once a month, and they are all based on a monthly theme.

Freebooksy, Red Feather Romance, and Bargain Booksy all have Readers’ List versions. The monthly themes can be found here.

It is important to note that Written Word Media implements a strategic 30-day interval between promotions of the same title within the same newsletter (such as Freebooksy, for example) to enhance promotional effectiveness. 

This gap allows for the expansion of their reader base, increasing the likelihood of a more successful subsequent promotion. For instance, a book featured in Freebooksy on March 1st would be eligible for another feature in the same newsletter only after April 1st. 

However, this restriction doesn't apply across different newsletters within Written Word Media's network. A title promoted in Freebooksy on March 1st can be featured in Bargain Booksy as soon as March 2nd. 

4. Social media 

Send us a note about your new releases and sales through this section on the Promotions tab. We pick titles to feature on our social media channels as time and space allow.

5. Amazon AMS ads 

Run AI-enabled Amazon ads if you publish to Amazon through PublishDrive. Look under “Paid Promotions” on the Promotions tab.

6. Sales events

Because publishing a book is just part of your journey as a publisher or authorpreneur, we’ve created the Sales Events feature inside the PublishDrive platform to assist in book marketing promotions with many of our vendors.

Sales Events will allow you to see the various in-house promotions available at many of our retailers:

• Apple Books
• Kobo
• OverDrive 
• Bibliotheca
• Odilo
• Baker & Taylor
• E-Sentral

Sales Events differs from the other types of marketing already available through PublishDrive:

• featuring promotions don’t necessarily have a price change associated with them. 
• Sales Events are promotions based around putting titles on sale, so a discount or price change is required throughout the duration of the promotion.

When you log in to the Sales Events feature, you will see the following:

• the logo of the store where the event is happening
• event title and description
• application period
• campaign period (campaigns will always start after the application is closed, most begin to run about a month later)
• discount details - maximum price allowed and minimum discount required is displayed.

✅ Books eligible for a Sales Event will be noted with a green icon. 

❌ Books ineligible for a particular Sales Event will also be noted with a red icon. Keyword or category mismatches constitute the most common reasons for ineligibility. Many of these promos will be for certain types of titles or have another relevant theme.

➡️ If your book is eligible, follow the steps within the dashboard to apply.

Authors will be notified of their acceptance in a Sales Event via email. They will receive another email when the promotion goes live.

PublishDrive Authors Success Stories

In 2023, authors participating in book promotional events on our platform experienced significant sales growth. From April to September 2023, an impressive total of 10,820 units were sold, showcasing the effectiveness of these promotions.

MK Meredith

A USA Today Bestselling Romance author, MK Meredith is passionate about crafting stories with happy endings. Known for her tenacity and romantic outlook, MK has a flair for infusing hope in her narratives and life. 

Her novel, One Jingle or Two, saw remarkable success through PublishDrive and Written Word Media. The book was selected by our merchandiser and sent it to WWM to be featured in Freebooksy and Red Feather Romance, leading to a substantial boost in sales.

On its Freebooksy feature day alone, it sold 2,919 copies, eventually earning the No. 1 spot in Amazon's Holiday Romance category. 

Including the Red Feather Romance feature, MK Meredith's sales for the year reached 5,576 copies.

Pamela Donison

As a practicing attorney, former military journalist, and a leader in various writers’ associations, Pamela Donison brings a rich background to her writing. 

Her debut full-length novel, Death Comes for Christmas, marks the beginning of a 12-part murder mystery series set in Regina, Saskatchewan. 

Her book was also selected by our merchandiser and sent to WWM. Her book was featured on Bargain Booksy, resulting in an immediate uptick in sales. 

The book sold 42 copies on the day of the feature and 27 the following day, significantly surpassing the sales figures prior to the promotion.

The Unmatched Value of Book Promotions

Book promotions offer many benefits, mostly related to boosting visibility and sales. 

By discounting books temporarily, publishers can create a buzz, encourage word-of-mouth marketing, and ultimately drive up overall sales volume. 

Here’s why you should book promotions:

1. Expand the reader base

Book promotions are a powerful tool for publishers and authors to broaden their reader base. By discounting their books, they attract new readers who might be hesitant to purchase at full price. This approach opens the door to a broader audience, potentially converting first-time readers into loyal fans.

2. Build buzz and exposure

Discounting books often generates excitement and buzz. Readers love to share great deals, like sales, on social media platforms such as Instagram stories, leading to increased exposure. This word-of-mouth marketing can significantly amplify a book's visibility and appeal.

3. Get highlighted in stores and thematic sales

Stores typically create special pages or sections for discounted books, which means a promotional book gets prime positioning. This visibility is particularly beneficial during thematic sales targeting specific genres, helping authors reach readers interested in their particular genre.

4. Participate in general sales

Participating in general sales events like Black Friday or end-of-year promotions allows authors to tap into a broader customer base. Everyone loves a good deal, and these events are prime opportunities for authors to market their books to a broad audience.

5. Participate in sales events 

Platforms like PublishDrive offer features like Sales events, allowing authors to nominate their books quickly for various promotional opportunities. This streamlined process includes automatic price adjustments during the campaign, removing the hassle of manual price changes.

6. Join flexible price promotions

With PublishDrive, publishers and authors don’t have to wait for specific sales events. They have the flexibility to discount their books whenever they choose. 

Unlock the Power of Free: Leveraging No-Cost Books For Maximum Impact

Publishers and authors continually seek innovative strategies to reach wider audiences and boost book sales. One such tactic is the offering of free books. 

It is not just about giving away content; it's a strategic move with numerous benefits that can significantly impact an author's visibility and a publisher's market presence. 

Maximize this strategy for:

1. Effective series launches

Offering the first book in a series or trilogy for free is an excellent strategy. It entices readers to invest in the characters and story, increasing the likelihood of purchasing subsequent books.

Implementing a perma-free book tactic, especially when an author has multiple books in a series, allows readers to dive into the story without financial risk. This can lead to increased sales of later books, particularly if the first book ends on a cliffhanger.

3. Limited time offers

Releasing a new book for free during its launch week can attract more reviews. These early reviews are crucial for building credibility and attracting future readers.

Free books often result in more reviews, as readers may leave them as a ‘thank you.’ These reviews are valuable for marketing and enhancing the book's visibility on retail sites and platforms like Goodreads.

Including a call to action at the end of the free book can guide readers to the next installment.

4. Drive traffic to author platforms

Free book promotions can attract readers to the author’s website and social media platforms, enhancing their online presence and engagement.

💫 PublishDrive offers promotional support for free books, submitting them to platforms like Written World Media’s Freebooksy and Apple Books’ Permafree promotions. Apple’s quarterly free promotions, focusing on different genres, offer additional exposure.

Turn Pages into Profits

Book promotions offer authors and publishers a strategic advantage in a crowded market, ensuring their work reaches a wider audience and garners increased attention. 

The substantial rise in sales figures following these promotions underlines their effectiveness as a valuable tool in an author’s marketing arsenal, making them an indispensable part of a successful publishing strategy.