Writing in your Heart discussion

This is becoming a huge topic as trends evolve with ebooks. I thought it would be good to have a place to discuss what prices authors have used for their various ebooks. What worked? What didn't?

We can also discuss sales here and strategies related to.

Here's an interesting article I found today on pricing.
http://www.writtenwordmedia.com/2015/...

Currently, my first series is 2.99, 2.99 and 4.99. I've had them all at the same price and there wasn't a difference in sales, so I raised back up the price of the last book. I'm not sure this is the best strategy, but it does help me to recoup cost when I do a free or 0.99 sale of first book. And I've found that people who want the last book will pay for it. It's also a huge book at 120K words, so I think it should cost more.

Currently, my newest book is 2.99. Sales have been steady, but after reading that article I'm thinking of dropping it to 1.99. My only concern is when I put it on sale. Where there be as much of an impact?

Sarah wrote: "Currently, my first series is 2.99, 2.99 and 4.99. I've had them all at the same price and there wasn't a difference in sales, so I raised back up the price of the last book. I'm not sure this is t..."

Every time we increase the prices, the books fall off the top one hundred. So, we then struggle with the idea, do we need to sell a lot so that we become recognized authors or do we need the profit a higher price and fewer sales. It all depends on what your goal is. I have said before I am aiming in creating a brand for both my son and me. I think you have done that already Sarah. I think you have a fan base that will buy the books, because they like the subject matter and enjoy your writing. We ran the books for free and they were downloaded like crazy- but we got very few reviews, so it makes me wonder if they even read them.

For me it helps that I write about the same book universe throughout all my series, but still price point is a weird conundrum. Creating a brand is key and a great strategy. I do have a loyal reader's base, but I always need to encourage new readers. That article says that 1.99 encourages more new readers to buy, which is important.

Free days are tricky. They help with ranking, but I think you're right about people not reading usually. It's like they're just collecting books. Errrr...

I went ahead and dropped my first book to 1.99 to see if it rattled sales. My concern is if the book will have spike when it goes on sale or is free. I've also heard authors say that lower prices don't encourage KU readers to pick up book. And I'm having good success with KU's new program. I'll let you know how it goes.

That was a very informative article. It gave me a lot to think about.

I will say that a lot of readers will download a book when they see the Free promotion, and then it sits on their electronic device until they remember it later.

That was a very informative article. It gave me a lot to think about.

I will say that a lot of readers will download a book when they see the Free promotion, and then it sits on their electronic device until they remember it later.

Carey wrote: "That was a very informative article. It gave me a lot to think about.

I will say that a lot of readers will download a book when they see the Free promotion, and then it sits on their electronic ..."

You're welcome! I know. I've had discussions in author groups about this. It's hard to encourage people to read a free book. I tried putting the second book in my series on sale during a free promo of first book. This was an okay strategy.

Amazon does this thing where you can run a contest and give away a book to surprise winner. People hear about the contest through Twitter, buy the books and one in every five or ten wins a free book. You pick and pay for as many winners as you want. It runs concurrent with social media. Not sure how it works, but we have been doing them for a week and it bumped up sales. My assistant has been running the contests.

Carole wrote: "Amazon does this thing where you can run a contest and give away a book to surprise winner. People hear about the contest through Twitter, buy the books and one in every five or ten wins a free boo..."

This is super interesting to me. Will you tell me how to find out how to run this promo? Thanks!

I have to ask Brittney, the girl who works for me. My email address is cnbbook@gmail.com. Shoot me an email and I will forward it to her to explain how to do it. She'll send you the links and then you can put them up here.

Carole wrote: "I have to ask Brittney, the girl who works for me. My email address is cnbbook@gmail.com. Shoot me an email and I will forward it to her to explain how to do it. She'll send you the links and then..."

Thanks Carole. Email sent. :)

Carole wrote: "Amazon does this thing where you can run a contest and give away a book to surprise winner. People hear about the contest through Twitter, buy the books and one in every five or ten wins a free boo..."

When you've finished your campaign please let me know thoughts on the program as a whole. I did participate in the Amazon advertisement program. And after $100 (which is the minimum marketing budget) I sold one book. At least I can say I tried it.

Carey wrote: "Carole wrote: "Amazon does this thing where you can run a contest and give away a book to surprise winner. People hear about the contest through Twitter, buy the books and one in every five or ten ..."

Yes, I did the Amazon marketing program and it didn't go so well. I wouldn't recommend it currently. I sold a few books, but definitely no ROI.

Sarah wrote: "Carey wrote: "Carole wrote: "Amazon does this thing where you can run a contest and give away a book to surprise winner. People hear about the contest through Twitter, buy the books and one in ever..."
We'll see. Jury's still out on it for us.

Carole wrote: "Sarah wrote: "Carey wrote: "Carole wrote: "Amazon does this thing where you can run a contest and give away a book to surprise winner. People hear about the contest through Twitter, buy the books a..."

Carole, I saw a few really nice ads for your son's book in PW today. Nice placement. I hope they do really well.

Me too. I am tracking to see how they do.