Depending on your marketing budget, paid ads can help you reach listeners across the world. Your ads should be individually and uniquely created, showcase your book, and allow the listener to click and go right to the audiobook.
Most ads are run on either a PPC model, pay per click, or the CPM Model. Both advertising methods can be worthwhile depending on what outcomes you are looking for and the budget you have to work with.
CPM- This type of advertising is billed at a flat rate and covers 1,000 impressions. An impression is the number of times an ad has displayed. It doesn't matter whether they click on the ad or not.
Pros
More budget-friendly than PPC.
More control over how much you spend.
Guaranteed showing of listings for a chosen number of times.
Cons
Money can be wasted if no one clicks your ad.
Monitoring the promotion is almost impossible until it is over.
PPC- These are ads that are only paid for when someone clicks the ad. These ads are usually more productive when it comes to results, but the cost varies. The price depends on the marketplace value of the keyword best associated with your audiobook.
Pros
Easy to track.
You only pay for the clicks you receive.
Less of a risk of wasting money on bad ads since you only pay if they are working.
You can change an ad or budget for an ad at any time during the promotion.
Cons
Competition for popular keywords can make them too expensive to use.
If your bid for your pay per click isn't competitive with the market, you won't receive any traffic.
Just because they click, doesn't mean they will buy.
The ads can be tricky, and you can often lose money before you figure out the perfect system for your specific ad.
When choosing which ad you want to use, you also have to decide what network will be the most appropriate place for your ad.
For example, Facebook ads focus on new businesses, brand awareness, and products. LinkedIn, however, focuses on professionals by interest or job title.
When choosing your keyword, you'll want to do some research first. You can use Google AdWords to find the most targeted keyword for your ad. This is important because those keywords should reflect what people are searching for, and what they would search for first if looking to purchase your audiobook.
You can also choose not to use one of the primary social media sites and focus on sites specific to books.
For example, BookBub has an ads program, and you can rest assured that everyone on BookBub is there because of books. It will help narrow things down a little bit.
Once you've decided on what type of ad you want, you should create or have an ad created for your audiobook. The ad shouldn't be too busy, should be bright, and should reflect the theme of your book. Make sure the link takes the listener directly to your audiobook, or to the book funnel page, depending on your focus.
When your ad is up and running, it's essential to monitor it. Keep records of what works and doesn't, and don't break the bank the first time around. It may take trial and error to see the results you are looking to get.
