What enters my mind when authors as me if they should run ads on LinkedIn for their book….
You’re competing for clicks against huge software companies that can afford to pay $5 per click on an ad.
So let’s talk about Meta ads instead. Thank you to our Chief Marketing Scientist, Laura Russom, for sharing these notes.
3 Secrets
- How Facebook Ads Fuel Amazon Success Let’s talk about how Facebook ads don’t just sell books directly but amplify your Amazon product page’s performance. External traffic, like the clicks Facebook ads generate, is a big deal to Amazon’s algorithm. When you send traffic to your book’s Amazon page, it signals to Amazon that your book is popular, which helps improve organic rankings and visibility.
Here’s the breakdown:
Boosting Amazon’s Algorithm: External clicks improve your book’s performance metrics like conversion rates and sales velocity, which Amazon rewards with better rankings. Review Momentum: Facebook ads targeting early readers can help drive reviews, which are essential to your book’s credibility on Amazon. - The Game-Changing Power of Amazon Attribution Thanks to Amazon’s new Attribution feature, you can now track Facebook ad-driven sales directly from your dashboard. This provides clarity on how effective your ads are at converting traffic into sales. But here’s the catch: privacy policies still limit tracking, especially for iPhone users. Apple’s App Tracking Transparency framework means some shopper data won’t show up in your reports. Despite this, Amazon Attribution is a must-use tool for optimizing campaigns and understanding ROI.
- Why Creativity Matters More Than Ever Gone are the days when you could simply target “Christians” for your Christian business book, or “investors” for your wealth-building guide. Thanks to recent privacy policy updates and the removal of many audience targeting options, Facebook advertising has become a much trickier landscape to navigate. But—and this is the fun part—creativity always wins. Instead of lamenting the loss of easy targeting, let’s dive into how to outsmart the algorithm with some ingenious examples.
1. Marketing a Christian Business Book You can no longer target interests like “churchgoers” or “Bible study,” but don’t let that stop you. Instead, try these creative targeting ideas:
– Geotargeting Mega Churches: Use Facebook’s location targeting to advertise near well-known mega churches like Joel Osteen’s Lakewood Church in Texas or Saddleback Church in California.
– Targeting Christian-Friendly Brands: Focus on audiences interested in brands like Chick-fil-A, Hobby Lobby, or even Christian music festivals.
– Cross-Interest Strategies: Target audiences interested in personal development alongside authors like Dave Ramsey, who resonate with Christian audiences.
2. Advertising a Political Book Political books require precision to avoid alienating readers. Try this:
-Interest Layering: Combine interests like “political documentaries,” “The West Wing,” or “TED Talks” with niche political thought leaders relevant to the book’s slant.
-Geotargeting Battleground States: Focus on swing states or urban hubs where political conversations are most active.
-News Junkies: Target those interested in publications like The Atlantic or National Review, depending on the book’s ideology.
3. Promoting a Book on LGBTQ+ Identity For a book on homosexuality or LGBTQ+ topics, sensitivity and specificity are key.
-Target Advocacy Organizations: Interests like “The Trevor Project” or “Human Rights Campaign” create a direct line to engaged readers.
-Community-Based Interests: Target LGBTQ+ film festivals, artists like Troye Sivan, or even niche pop culture like “RuPaul’s Drag Race.”
-Inclusive Brands: Focus on audiences interested in brands that support inclusivity, like Target or Nike’s Pride campaigns.
4. Reaching High-Net-Worth Investors An investment book for the mega-rich? This demands premium targeting:
-Luxury Interests: Target followers of brands like Rolex, Tesla, or The Wall Street Journal.
-Investment Tools: Focus on users interested in apps like Wealthfront, Betterment, or Charles Schwab.
-Geotarget Wealthy Regions: Target specific zip codes in affluent areas like Beverly Hills, Manhattan’s Upper East Side, or Palm Beach.
We now run Meta ads for our authors. Please email steve@getshelflife.com if you’re interested in getting Meta ads set up for your book.
2 Links
- If you’ve ever been curious about who this rando Alex Strathdee on the internet is…John Strelekcy had me on The Cafe on the Edge of the World podcast to talk about where I come from, how I’ve built ShelfLife, and how a non-fiction author should market their book. Listen in here.
- Bulk corporate buy plan in action. Gatekeepers conversation with Dr. Scott J. Vrzal. Listen here.
1 Quote
“Do one thing at a time.”
– Origin Unknown
