Knowing When You're Ready to Run Ads for Your Book

One of the biggest misconceptions I see among authors is that paid advertising is the next step after publishing a book.

It’s easy to understand why.

We see other authors talking about Facebook ads, Amazon ads, BookBub ads, and all kinds of marketing strategies that promise more visibility. It can make it feel like running ads is the missing piece between publishing a book and seeing more sales.

The reality is a little different.

Paid ads don’t fix problems; they showcase what’s already there.

If your book has a strong cover, a compelling description, and is reaching the right readers, advertising can help more people discover it. But if those pieces aren’t in place yet, ads often become an expensive lesson rather than a profitable investment.

Before you spend your first dollar on advertising, here are a few things I recommend checking first.

The first thing I always encourage authors to do is take an honest look at their book.

Ask yourself:

• Does my cover fit my genre?

• Is my book professionally edited?

• Does my description make someone want to keep reading?

• Is my Look Inside preview strong enough to hook readers?

Remember, an advertisement only gets someone to click.

Your book is what convinces them to buy.

If your product isn’t ready yet, spending money to send more people to it usually won’t produce the results you’re hoping for.

One of the easiest ways to waste money on advertising is trying to market your book to everyone.

Instead, spend some time thinking about your ideal reader.

Who enjoys books like yours?

What other authors do they read?

What kinds of stories are they looking for?

The more clearly you understand your audience, the easier it becomes to write ad copy, choose keywords, and decide where to advertise.

Imagine paying for hundreds of people to visit your Amazon page.

Now imagine only a handful decide to purchase the book.

Sometimes the issue isn’t the advertisement.

Sometimes it’s the page they’re landing on.

Before running ads, review your retail page from a reader’s perspective.

Look at your:

• Book description

• Categories

• Keywords

• Editorial reviews

• A+ Content (if you have it)

• Author bio

• Series information

Everything on that page should work together to answer a reader’s biggest question:

“Why should I read this book?”

Reviews aren’t everything, but they do help build trust.

When readers discover a new author, reviews often provide reassurance that other people have already enjoyed the book.

You don’t need hundreds before you advertise.

Even a handful of genuine reviews can help new readers feel more confident about giving your book a chance.

Before creating an ad, ask yourself one simple question:

What am I hoping this advertisement accomplishes?

Maybe you want to:

• Sell more copies.

• Increase Kindle Unlimited page reads.

• Introduce readers to the first book in your series.

• Grow your email list.

• Build awareness before a new release.

There’s no right or wrong answer.

The important thing is knowing your goal before you spend money trying to reach it.

One mindset that’s helped me is thinking about my first advertising dollars as part of my education.

Advertising involves testing.

You’ll likely experiment with different audiences, keywords, images, headlines, and budgets before you discover what works best for your books.

Because of that, I always recommend starting with an amount you’re comfortable spending while you learn.

That way, every result, whether it’s successful or not, is teaching you something valuable.

Advertising becomes a little easier when readers have somewhere to go after they finish one book.

If you write a series or have multiple books available, one sale has the potential to become several.

That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t advertise a standalone novel or your first book.

It simply means your expectations may be different, and that’s perfectly okay.

Advertising isn’t just about getting clicks.

It’s about understanding whether those clicks are turning into sales.

Before running ads, take a few minutes to learn:

• How much you earn per sale

• What your break-even point is

• How much you’re willing to spend to gain a new reader

Knowing those numbers makes it much easier to decide whether an ad is actually working.

Running paid ads can absolutely become part of your marketing strategy.

But I don’t believe they should be the first thing an author tries.

When your book is polished, your retail page is optimized, and you understand who you’re trying to reach, every advertising dollar is more likely to work for you.

Take the time to prepare first.

Knowing where to begin with advertisements is half the battle. So why not start with some useful knowledge right off the bat?

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