This presentation was originally given on April 15, 2013 at the London Book Fair's Author Lounge. It details the challenges facing authors and publishers hoping to get their books discovered. It also highlights how to use the Goodreads Author Program to find new readers.
10. Recommendations are what get people excited about books.
Recommendations from Recommendations from the
Friends Community
Recommendations from our new book
Recommendation Engine
Confidential
10
14. Metadata.
Goodreads sources book metadata from publisher ONIX feeds, Ingram, Firebrand, and OCLC WorldCat.
We will also soon begin importing data from Amazon, including international book metadata.
15. Goodreads Is A Social Media
Platform For Authors
EL James
70,000 Authors Neil Gaiman
James Patterson Diana Gabaldon Margaret Atwood Janet Evanovich
Confidential
Paulo Coelho Nicholas Sparks John Grisham Jennifer Weiner Kathryn Stockett
19. Make your author profile stand out!
Add your events
Post your events and invite your
Goodreads friends
Author Lisa See has gotten
excellent results by messaging
friends located in each city she
visits on tour
20. Goodreads groups.
Anyone can create, manage, and maintain a Goodreads Book Club or Group. They are typically created around a single
genre or author.
Authors can use groups to have in-depth conversations with their fans.
21. photo by Jesse Chan-Norris http://jcn.me
Get people talking
22. Your goal is to get reviews,
especially early in the life of your book.
Reviews help new readers discover your book
23. Your goal is to get reviews,
especially early in the life of your book.
Reviews help new readers discover your book
They help readers decide to read your book
24. Your goal is to get reviews,
especially early in the life of your book.
Reviews help new readers discover your book
They help readers decide to read your book
Goodreads reviews work harder for you
25. What Happens on Goodreads ...
Doesn’t Stay on Goodreads
Goodreads Reviews Shared on
27. Some tips to make your giveaway great.
Start early: Three months pre-publication is ideal.
A month is the perfect amount of time to let plenty of
people enter your giveaway.
Giveaways offering 20 books or more will get, on average, 887
entries with 50% of those people adding the book to their to-
read shelves. 45% of winners review the books they win.
The more books you offer, the more reviews you’re likely to get.
Don’t be afraid to run multiple giveaways for a single title.
28. 30
24
Books Added Stats for
Books Added
18 Beautiful Ruins
12
6
0 Jan Feb Mar Apr May
29. Books Added Stats for
Beautiful Ruins
300
240
Books Added
180
120
60
0 Jan Feb Mar Apr May June July
31. People who have added the book to their to-read
shelves receive an email on the publication date.
32. Use the giveaway widget on your blog, Facebook page,
or website to encourage your fans to enter.
33. Amplify your reach.
Self-serve ads can be targeted by author and genre.
Add a call to action like “add to my books!” or “enter to win.”
Giveaways with ads attract 56% more entries than giveaways without ads.
34. The Power of a Promoted Giveaway
Promoted Giveaway
Normal Giveaway
36. Finding an Audience From Scratch
160
Republished by S&S
140 4. Listopia
120
People who added to "to-read"
100
80 3. Recommendations
1. Giveaways
60
40
Published 2. Influencers
20
0
Feb Mar Apr May Jun July Aug Sep
38. Finding an Audience From Scratch
160
Republished by S&S
140 4. Listopia
120
People who added to "to-read"
100
80 3. Recommendations
1. Giveaways
60
40
Published 2. Influencers
20
0
Feb Mar Apr May Jun July Aug Sep
39. A Taste Based Algorithm
If you liked these books, thousands of other readers liked these similar books…
40. Finding an Audience From Scratch
160
Republished by S&S
140 4. Listopia
120
People who added to "to-read"
100
80 3. Recommendations
1. Giveaways
60
40
Published 2. Influencers
20
0
Feb Mar Apr May Jun July Aug Sep
42. Finding an Audience From Scratch
160
Republished by S&S
140 4. Listopia
120
People who added to "to-read"
100
80 3. Recommendations
1. Giveaways
60
40
Published 2. Influencers
20
0
Feb Mar Apr May Jun July Aug Sep
43. Useful Links
http://www.goodreads.com/author/program
Information about the Author Program, including who is
eligible and how to join. If you’re not yet a
Goodreads Author, this is a very useful page.
http://www.goodreads.com/author/how_to
Useful information on how to do anything and everything
in the Goodreads Author Program, including links to
giveaways, featured author groups, and more.
http://www.slideshare.net/GoodreadsPresentations
Previous presentations we’ve given, as well as
several slideshow tutorials.
44. Patrick Brown
Director, Community
pbrown@goodreads.com
twitter.com/patrickrbrown