How to Promote Your Pre-order
Your pre-order period is a time when your die-hard fans—the ones who would blindly buy the book without having seen a word of it—get a chance to do just that. Pre-orders on Amazon boost your rankings. Higher pre-order numbers can improve your book’s visibility when it launches, as Amazon's algorithm often favors books with strong early momentum. So how do you keep sales going for a book no one has seen?
Here’s a proven method for making the most of the algorithm during this period:
The day after cover reveal/pre-order, send an email to your email list with a quick message, the pre-order link, and the cover reveal poster, letting your readers know the book is available for pre-order. (Waiting a day after cover reveal will maintain momentum after the excitement of the cover reveal wears off. Anyone who didn’t catch the reveal can order after receiving your newsletter, which pumps up the algorithm a bit longer.)
The day before your book is actually published (last day of pre-order), send the first chapter of the book as an exclusive sneak peek to your readers with the buy link. Until this moment, no one has seen the story yet. This will entice readers to go ahead and pre-order the book because it will land on their Kindles the next day. Those pre-orders will give your ranking another boost just before the book goes on sale, shooting it further up the charts.
Here are a few social media ideas of things to do between these newsletters:
Countdown Posts: Use a countdown strategy with milestone announcements like "30 days until launch!" to maintain excitement.
Special Offers: Offer incentives for pre-ordering, like bonus content, discounts on future releases, or entry into a giveaway.
Videos: Create short, engaging videos that introduce key characters, favorite lines, or themes.
Newsletter Swap: Exchange newsletter mentions with other authors who have upcoming releases.
Get Chatty: Get your readers involved in the journey. Poll them on social media about elements of your book or ask for opinions on minor details (like a character’s favorite hobby), include playlists, talk about what inspired the setting, etc.. This involvement makes them feel invested in your success.
Wishing you a wonderful pre-order period!