Do you need a cover reveal?

The big cover reveal was on Monday and, as you know, I was pretty on the fence about the whole thing. So I thought I'd do a quick run down on how it went and my thoughts on having a cover reveal.

Here's what happened right after the release:

1. I got several more adds on Goodreads, which is nice, but not necessarily a big deal.

2. Blog traffic has been up since announcing the book, but Monday had a nice spike that hasn't dipped back down yet. Yeah for more site visitors.

3. I got a handful of pre-orders which is a handful more than what I was expecting. So that's nice, but I'm not swimming in a pool of money gangsta-style yet.

I also had a few take-aways for things I would do differently if I were going to have another cover reveal:

1. I would have put a trackable link in the blog posts so I could see how many people clicked over to read the first chapter from a cover reveal

2. I would have done the reveal earlier so I could get it out before loading to various sites (this is a timing thing).

So would I do it again...maybe.

In the end, I can assume that a lot of eyeballs saw my cover. This alone isn't really enough to pull in sales. The exception here is if you are a big name with a large established fan base that's waiting for your next book. You know, so next time I release a book. ;)

But remember how I said the biggest challenge facing new authors is discoverability? Well, this is part of it. By itself, a cover reveal is pretty pointless. But, when my blog tour starts next month, hopefully some of those same people who were exposed to the cover will see a review, or guest post, or interview. And because the book isn't new to them, they'll be slightly more open to reading it.

Maybe.

Here's the deal. It would be easy to get caught up in trying to figure out what works and what is going to drive more sales. And this is important to think about when you are considering a tactic that will be either expensive or time consuming. But the cover reveal was neither. I simply added it in to my request to review bloggers as an FYI in case they'd like to participate. I asked for participants here and in my newsletter. Again, simple. For the actual reveal, I was going to create a post on the blog no matter what so I could share the first chapter. It was easy enough to send that post out to all the bloggers who agreed to be part of the reveal.

In terms of cost and time, this was a simple action that maybe added another hour of work to my schedule. It didn't create a massive surge of sales, but I didn't think it would. Hopefully, it planted a seed of interest in potential readers that will pay off as I continue my marketing efforts.

 Here's my advice. If you want to do a cover reveal, go for it. Do it early enough that you don't have to worry about holding back other marketing efforts in order to keep the cover a secret until the reveal. And only do it if it's something you think you can do with minimal effort. If the thought of contacting bloggers for a reveal and then contacting them again for a review sounds like too much work, then skip it. There is nothing wrong with doing a reveal on your own website and asking your friends to help you spread the word. You might also reach out to just one friend who has a large platform to host the reveal for you. 

Cover reveals are fun and if you have a quality, professional cover, they can be a nice confidence booster (nothing beats hearing gorgeous cover all day). But they aren't going to be a huge boost to your marketing efforts. Keep that in mind when deciding how you are going to share your cover with the world.

Why authors need clean baseboards

This past weekend, I washed my baseboards. Like, I got out a bucket and cleaning rags and marched around my house on my knees scrubbing all the grime that gets mysteriously deposited on the little ledge of baseboards. I also polished the doorknobs, cleared the grime off the thermostat, and cleaned out all the air return vents.

My husband came home and said, "Wow, the house looks great, honey. That really makes a difference."

Or...he didn't notice at all and made no comment on the cleaning project that soaked up hours of my Saturday.

The truth is, no one is ever going to walk into my home and comment on how clean the doorknobs are. But you better believe if they grab the bathroom door handle and come away with a palm full of something my kids have smeared on it, they'll notice.

So why do it?
Because, even though no one notices, I know it makes my home cleaner. I know that cleaning the return vents means less dust and healthier air. I know that clean doorknobs means less chance that we all give each other a cold this season. And I know that if I don't do it, my house will look and feel dirty, even if it isn't.

So why are we talking about this?
Because cleaning your baseboards and polishing doorknobs is the marketing equivalent of a clean, easy to navigate website. Here me out.

No one is going to visit your site and say "Wow, look how few clicks it took me to find a buy link. This author made it so easy for me to find their work." But if you don't streamline your site, you might hear "Great googly-moogly, it took forever to find this buy link". Or worse, you hear nothing, because readers got frustrated and left to go find another book.

You will not receive praise for the hours you spend organizing your book pages or putting your press release in its own tab. And my husband still hasn't noticed the clean baseboards. But if you don't keep your website updated, easy to navigate for readers and beneficial to journalists, the silence will much worse.

Walking the Line

Unless you've been buried under revision pages for the past several years, you've heard non-stop about the importance of an author platform. Obviously, by way of the existence of this blog, I've bought into the idea.  Honestly, I love that, as a reader, I can look into the private world of the masters who have written some of my favorite works.

I mean really, wouldn't it be cool if Jane Austen was alive and could blog about her world.  I'm kinda geeked out by the idea of it.

There are all kinds of idea about what makes a good author site/blog.  Many folks cite wanting to know about author inspirations, their path to publication, updates on the progress of their current projects and the like.

I also think it's interesting to read about certain aspects of authors more personal lives. I would love to learn that you wrote your novel on graph paper in half-hour increments during your kids baths. Did your dog literally eat your first draft forcing you to start from scratch? That's awful and I want to hear all about it.

Insight like this can remind us that writers are real people.  However, when does sharing cross that invisible TMI (too much information) line?

For me, the line is irrevocably crossed when I start to squirm. If I open your website and immediately feel like I accidentally read an entry in your diary, damage has been done. I don't want to hear about your husband's affair, your strong political/religious beliefs or the inadequacies of our public school system.*

Let me clarify a point here.  This really applies for fiction writers.  If you are a non-fiction author who writes about child labor violations, then I'm going to expect that your website will leave me feeling slightly uncomfortable.

However, for the fiction writers among us, it should be noted that some topics should just be off-limits.

*I know that sometimes these experiences/beliefs can fall under the category of inspiration, but sometimes less really is more. :)