Saturday, September 10, 2016

Building Your Free eBook Offer by Jacqueline Vick


All writers know that the email list rules. It's how we communicate with readers who have given us express permission to do so. In the past, I've offered free short stories and newsletters in exchange for that valuable email address, but I recently upped the offer to a copy of a free eBook. I placed the offer on the front and back pages of my latest release, Civility Rules. Here is the process that a reader would follow.

1. Click on the link to the free offer.
2. Go to a landing page and enter an email address in order to receive the free eBook.
3. Confirm the subscription--an important step in order to avoid being marked as a spammer.
3. Receive an auto-respond thank you that includes a link to the eBook.
4. Go to the link, enter the code, and collect the eBook in either mobi, epub or pdf format.

The Free Offer  

This may be obvious, but only offer a free eBook if you have multiple books for sale and can afford to give one of them away free. You can continue to sell the "free offer" eBook on Amazon and in other markets.  This actually makes your offer more valuable, since those who sign up for your email list won't have to pay what others are paying.

Not having Adobe Photoshop, I created my offer as a slide in PowerPoint and then saved it as a jpeg.  Then I inserted the jpeg onto a blank page in the eBook.

The Landing Page

I made my landing page match the offer in my eBook. Note that almost every landing page widget offered through WordPress costs money, and sometimes a lot of money. I chose Pagewiz http://www.pagewiz.com/ for several reasons, one being price. Basic, which includes up to 5,000 visitors, is $29 per month, paid monthly. Also, Pagewiz hosts the landing page on their site, so as I'm revising my website, I don't have to worry about glitches or gremlins.

The Email List

Since the whole point is to build your email list, you will need to have a way to collect those emails on the landing page. I use AWeber because it's flexible and meets my needs. There are other services out there, such as Mail Chimp, but I can't speak to how those will work. I pay $49 every three months, or about $200 per year.

Through AWeber, https://www.aweber.com was able to set up an auto-respond with the thank you page and link to the book.  This happens after the reader responds to an email to confirm their subscription. AWeber allows multiple email campaigns, so I can tell who signed up for my list because of the free offer to make sure it's paying off.  

The Delivery

I have the thank you page on my web site. This includes a little blurb about what kind of news readers can expect from me, how often they can expect to hear from me, and a promise to never, NEVER share their information. It also includes the link to the free eBook.

You will need a service that allows people to download the book in the format they desire. Book Funnel https://bookfunnel.com/ is perfect for this. I chose the least expensive option--$20 annually for up to 500 downloads per month. The great thing about Book Funnel is that if you exceed that count, they will still honor the download and let you know that you need to upgrade the account. This saves your reputation. Can you imagine clicking on a link and getting a message telling you the free offer is gone? Not good.

Instafreebie https://www.instafreebie.com is another option. Their free option doesn't allow you to integrate emails into your email service.  If you choose a paid option, it looks like they only work with Mail Chimp.

Creating your free offer does take some research and work, such as creating the thank you page, but it is another way to build that valuable email list.      



Jacqueline Vick is the author of over twenty short stories, novelettes and mystery novels. Her April 2010 article for Fido Friendly Magazine, “Calling All Canine Clairvoyants”, led to the first Frankie Chandler Pet Psychic mystery, Barking Mad At Murder, followed by A Bird's Eye View of Murder. Her first Harlow Brothers' mystery, Civility Rules, is out in eBook format. To find out more, visit her website at www.jacquelinevick.com.


12 comments:

  1. Jacqueline -- thanks for the step-by-step approach. Can you tell us how your newsletter list has increased since your implemented this process?

    ~ Jim

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  2. Lots of good information there. I always appreciate a thoughtful guide from someone who has had success with a project.

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  3. This is great information. Thanks for sharing!

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  4. Jim, I just started the process last month, so I don't have extensive data. The book is selling, but the number of people downloading the free offer isn't keeping up with the numbers. Maybe readers are waiting until they finish Civility Rules. The funny thing is that I thought, since the offer shows up in the preview, that I would have people who didn't buy the book taking advantage of the free book offer. I'm not seeing that. I have added a few names to my email list.

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  5. KM, Julie, and Margaret, thanks for checking out the post. I hope it's helpful.

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  6. You have done a lot of research on this aspect of publicity for book selling. It is the one area we writers fear most because unless you have done it, it all looks Greek. Thanks for blazing the trail and leaving a map.

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  7. Publicity IS difficult, especially as so many writers are introverts, or at least shy about tooting their own horns. Thanks for stopping by.

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  8. Wow... good stuff. I can see you have done lots of trial and error and have come up with what works. Now... if readers will follow the steps and do it!
    I plan to post the link to this guest blog on other writers' sites as well.

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  9. Thank you for having me on Writers Who Kill. I love the blog.

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  10. Warren, I hope you can use the information. Jackie, it's good information for writers as we all slog our way through book promotions. Thank you both for stopping by and for your comments.

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  11. Hi Jacqueline,

    Thank you for choosing and mentioning Pagewiz as your preferred landing page creation platform, truly appreciated!

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