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Topic: Experience w Bestseller Strategies Amazon campaign
| Author | Message |
| writesonwater | Posted – 8/21/2007 2:00:11 AM | show profile | email poster Has anyone here had any experience using the bestseller strategies for blitzing Amazon in a day in order to gain bestseller status? I'm curious -- they charge about $2700 for their "system" and have numerous self=published authors singing its praises ... The teleseminar marketing it is "How to Make Your Book an Almost Instant Bestseller and Sell Tons of Copies -- EvenIf You're a Marketing Novice." Authors Randy Gilbert and Peggy McColl tout this 5-step formula "at almost zero cost" -- except the $3k system of course. http://www.FreePublicity.com/bestseller/?10402 http://www.YourOwnBestseller.com They claim a money-back guarantee. Am I missing something? It seems to be creating a wave of email marketing designed to push sales and inquiries at one specific day and time in order to capture a moment of being an Amazon top seller. Anyone here find this system works?? |
| gettin by | Posted – 8/22/2007 7:09:11 AM | show profile Hi, I read about this strategy and similar "schemes" to land on a certain cities bestseller list. The tone of the article I read suggested that the "bestseller" term was beginning to lose its credibility due to these types of schemes. What does it really gain you? |
| writesonwater | Posted – 8/22/2007 8:39:31 AM | show profile Thank you ... It seems like there would emerge a gap between people who could say they were bestsellers because of an artificially manipulated tsunami of inquiries and those who made it to the top because they were good. Of course, who are we kidding -- marketing is an essential part of any book's life if you want it to have one. But this thing bugs me. I listened to the teleseminar, saw multiple places where they were advertised on writers' sites (through some clever marketing agreement no doubt). Individually, the strategies look good -- dynamite copy inspiring readers to buy, email blasts to "targeted" prospective buyers, free giveaways to lure buyers, etc. But calling your book a bestseller based on a part of a day when the clicks all aligned? Technically, for a few hours, it's a best seller -- but at that rate it's kind of a hollow victory. I've heard of people loading other systems as wel, like the NYT etc. by buying up great quantities of books (the NYT list costs like $100,000 to stack with purchases, supposedly.) |
| dribbledrive1 | Posted – 8/22/2007 11:15:08 AM | show profile --But calling your book a bestseller based on a part of a day when the clicks all aligned? Technically, for a few hours, it's a best seller -- but at that rate it's kind of a hollow victory.-- I don't think it's a victory as much as a marketing strategy. If you are trying to get speaking gigs, for instance, it's better to be able to say "I am the author the Amazon best-selling book XYZ." But you're right, I don't think it means all that much. If you are able to put "New York Times Best Seller" on a paperback edition or better "#1 New York Times Best Seller" it means something. |
| writesonwater | Posted – 8/22/2007 2:35:33 PM | show profile So if you were publishing a book or two would you use it, dribble? |
| dribbledrive1 | Posted – 8/22/2007 3:15:55 PM | show profile I would have to do more research and do diligence to weigh the value of it. From the links I read, the guys who are hyping the system's basic plan is: send out a gadzillion emails at the same time, offering a gift or bribe to get people to buy your book; see if zoom to the top of the Amazon list for at least a short time; cash in on that status and have foreign publishers and bookstores call to stock your bestseller. Of course, they don't guarantee all those payoffs and the case study on their web site are the most successful people. They just guarantee they'll edge your book into the Amazon 100 for an hour. --So if you were publishing a book or two would you use it, dribble?-- |
| Seafarer | Posted – 8/22/2007 4:08:49 PM | show profile | email poster How the 4-Hour Workweek guy did it Or, rather than pay all that, read how Tim Ferriss, the author of "The 4-Hour Workweek," ran his book up the bestseller lists. I heard him speak last year at South by Southwest Interactive: http://www.fourhourworkweek.com/blog/2007/08/06/how-does-a-bestseller-happen-a-case-study-in-hitting-1-on-the-new-york-times Some buzzwords and hyping, sure, but also some useable nuggets in there.... ------ My Web site Family Travel blog NHRA drag racing on Fast Machines |
| writesonwater | Posted – 8/22/2007 9:32:46 PM | show profile I will look that up, Seafarer. Thanks! The whole thing just smacks too much of those annoying infomercials on making millions in real estate. I don't mind marketing -- but ... |
| writesonwater | Posted – 8/22/2007 10:49:54 PM | show profile Thanks for the feedback, Seafarer. I'll check that out. The whole Amazon campaign rush thing seems to smack of the late night infomercials on buying bargain real estate. |
| writesonwater | Posted – 8/22/2007 10:50:39 PM | show profile Oh, Dilbert... |
