In the words of James Baldwin, “If I love you, I have to make you conscious of what you don’t see.”
Here’s the Game:
Once upon a time, when print-on-demand publishing became more popular thanks to companies like Amazon and Lulu, self-published authors discovered a powerful manipulation tactic: they could reach a higher ranking by reducing their ebooks to 99 cents and getting all their friends to buy them, skyrocketing their books to the #1 spot.
And before you knew it, tons of Self-Published books, both excellently written and mediocre alike, hit the Amazon Best Sellers List. Some authors even put the sticker on their covers.
It was an exciting time…
…for a few minutes.
Most of these authors stayed at #1 for a maximum of a few hours.
Over time, their book sales continued to plummet until the next book, where they repeated this strategy: setting the price to 99 cents and telling all their friends to buy it.
The problem with this is it caused many Self-Published authors to lust after that pretty orange tag, even if it only lasted for a few minutes.
They’d refresh their browsers repeatedly to see where the numbers are.
When I first put I am Soul on preorder at 99 cents in 2017, it was #7 on Amazon’s Best Sellers list.
But I had only sold five preorders!
Chile, my bank account was dryer than a Popeye’s biscuit.
It looked good on the outside, though, and I was technically a bestseller on paper, but I wasn’t making any money.
It wasn’t until I started to shop my books offline and talked to the owners of bookstores that I truly understood how little being an Amazon Best Seller meant to the outside world. I focused my efforts on getting my name out there and increasing my reviews, and this helped me to become an Amazon Best Seller the organic way.
I was also selling out of brick and mortar bookstores and I didn’t have to beg my family and friends to make it happen.
Back to the Story…
The problem with getting all your friends to buy your book is once they’ve bought their copies, the book stops selling.
And that’s what happened to these authors. Unlike traditionally published authors or Indie Authors who focused on other methods and reached the bestsellers through sales, the self-publishers who used the tactic couldn’t maintain the momentum. In a matter of hours, their orange tags were gone.
It’s exciting and praise-worthy to make it onto the best sellers list, whether it’s Amazon or USA Today. However, it is not something Self-Published authors should stress themselves over or allow to consume their writing career.
If the bestsellers list is a goal, authors should strive to do it more authentically. Instead of trying to manipulate the algorithm, focus on selling the book to your target audience, getting early reviews, offering sneak peeks, running Ads, book signings, book tours (virtual or in-person), speaking, and a host of other creative ways to get the word out about your book.
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