Saturday

Buy Buttons

About thirty of our students have spiffied up their blogs in preparation for their blog book tours, and are now suffering through peer critiques. Actually, it's not that bad. Most of the blogs look really good (you can visit them by clicking on the links at right), and the tweaking is only minor. Here's one little addition to your blog that is enormously important - the buy button. Some of our class members haven't paid quite enough attention to it, and it's a common flaw.

What is a buy button? It's the live link on your website or blog that shoots the reader to a sales point for your book. That could be your own shopping cart, your specific amazon.com book page, the book page at your publisher's site, or all the sales locations for your book. The more options your reader has, the more chances you'll have a seamless sale. Do you have easy-to-find links and buying prompts on your sites? Do you include a link in every post that mentions your book? Make it easy on your reader.

It's that "seamless sale" aspect that is vitally important. If you have a sales point that isn't operating smoothly, you will lose sales and possibly even irritate your fan. Don't do it. No excuses here. Find a way to solve the problem, no matter what it takes. You get one chance to make a good impression. It's an old adage, but it's true. Strangers have no sympathy for sob stories - they want perfection and are thinking of their own convenience. You have to supply that before you sell one book. Service sells your book before great writing.

So to recap: Have a sales link - a buy button - at your websites and blogs, and make sure it works without a hitch each and every time. Give your readers every opportunity to buy that book. Selling, and selling lots, should be part of your personal success equation. Is it part of your motivation? Then set it up so your fans can help you achieve that goal.

5 comments:

Shari Lyle-Soffe said...

Dani

Great advice. Is there really a "button" and if so where can you get it? Or are you using the term to describe any link to a purchase point?

Shari
http://sharilyle-soffe.com

Dani said...

The best buy buttons are picture clickers. Most sales points like fictionwise and amazon have graphics you can add via html code. Or you can use your bookcover in the sidebar, and have it cloak an url that leads directly to a sales portal. Boke around on your blog to find this feature.I also like the idea of collaborating with a local indie bookstore and shooting sales over to their website from your blog. This would require some collaboration with the bookstore owner, but it can be done, and might be a nice technique for a blog book tour.

Just a few ideas to consider.

Dani

Morgan Mandel said...

Another great tip, but I've come to expect that!

Morgan Mandel
http://morganmandel.blogspot.com

L. Diane Wolfe said...

My book covers both have hidden url's that lead to a place of purchase...

Although one could put a PayPal or other "Buy Now" button there too!

L. Diane Wolfe
www.circleoffriendsbooks.blogspot.com
www.spunkonastick.net
www.thecircleoffriends.net

Anonymous said...

The buy button makes sense, to make it easy when someone is ready to buy. But regarding the link to the book in every post, I have a different viewpoint. When I'm a stranger to a site, I view posts as the way to get to know the author and figure out if I want to buy. So if every post has a link to the book, it feels like a salesperson following me around the store, and it really turns me off the site. Just a perspective from a newbie.

-Krista
http://www.shadesofwhitematter.wordpress.com