Welcome to the GWN blog! Today I have Shelley Munro talking about doing a Goodreads giveaway.
Here’s Shelley!
A Goodreads giveaway is an excellent and cost-effective way of promoting a new print release. They’re simple and quick to set in motion and best of all, doing a giveaway is free—apart from the postage and cost of the book.
According to Goodreads stats the average giveaway attracts 825 entries and over 40,000 readers enter for the chance of winning a giveaway every day. Many of the entrants add your book to their to-read shelf, which means your cover will be seen by other readers who look at their Goodreads stream.
So how do you start a giveaway?
1. Your book must be set up on Goodreads in order to do a giveaway, so this is your first step. Make sure all the details are loaded plus the cover. You definitely want readers to see your cover.
2. Click to Goodreads’ giveaway page http://www.goodreads.com/giveaway/new
3. First, decide on the dates of the giveaway. There is a lag time while the Goodreads people check your giveaway details, especially if you complete the form over a weekend or public holiday. Bear this in mind when you decide on a start date. e.g. if you want to start your giveaway on the 10th of the month then give a start date a couple of days earlier i.e. 8th.
4. Closing date – the length of your giveaway can be as long or short as you wish. I generally do my giveaways for around a month while other authors do week or day giveaways with equal success. I suggest you play around a little with the length of your giveaways and work out the premium length for your books. I like to start each giveaway in the middle or toward the end of the month, because I’ve found that many authors do giveaways for a calendar month. You don’t want your giveaway lost amongst all the others. It’s worth while checking to see how many other giveaways are on the same day as the one you’ve chosen.
5. The book release date and ISBN are self-explanatory.
6. The description for the giveaway is where you can use your writer talent. You can mention top reviews, contest wins for your book and of course, the blurb. Different writers have different approaches. Having said this, I tend to just go with the blurb and mention if the book is in a series. In this section you can tell readers that your book will be an autographed copy. I send my books directly from The Book Depository because this works out cheaper than postage for me, therefore my prizes are not signed copies.
7. Number of copies to give away. I’ve found that the number of entries doesn’t increase with the number of copies I give away, which is why I stick with one copy. However, most winners leave a review for the book they win. If you give away multiple copies you will likely receive more reviews.
8. Countries for giveaway. A lot of authors restrict their giveaways to the US and Canada. I live in New Zealand and do a worldwide giveaway, and I think the number of my entries is higher as a result. I do regular giveaways and have only had two non-US winners so far.
9. Comment section – I say I am the author of the book.
10. Once the giveaway ends, Goodreads will email you your winner’s details. It’s your responsibility to ship your book to your winner in a timely fashion. Don’t forget to hit the button on the right-hand side of your giveaway page to let Goodreads know you’ve sent your book to your winner.
11. I also send a quick message of congratulations to my winner, send them a friend request, and let them know their book is in the mail.
Conclusion: I’ve found Goodreads giveaways a good method of promoting both new and upcoming print releases. It’s also possible to promote older print titles too, so what are you waiting for?
And if you’re interested – here is the link to my current giveaway for The Bottom Line
http://www.goodreads.com/giveaway/show/59849-the-bottom-line
Shelley Munro is tall and curvaceous with blue eyes and a smile that turns masculine heads everywhere she goes. She’s a university tutor and an explorer/treasure hunter during her vacations. Skilled with weapons and combat, she is currently in talks with a producer about a television series based on her world adventures.
Shelley is also a writer blessed with a VERY vivid imagination and lives with her own hero in New Zealand. She writes mainly erotic romance in the contemporary, paranormal and historical genres for publishers Carina Press, Ellora’s Cave and Samhain Publishing. You can learn more about Shelley and her books at the following links.
WEBSITE: http://www.shelleymunro.com
BLOG: http://www.shelleymunro.com/blog
AMAZON AUTHOR PAGE: http://www.amazon.com/Shelley-Munro/e/B001JOWGNK
FACEBOOK: http://www.facebook.com/ShelleyMunroAuthor
GOODREADS: http://www.goodreads.com/ShelleyMunro
PINTEREST: http://www.pinterest.com/ShelleyMunro
TWITTER: http://www.twitter.com/ShelleyMunro
Cindy here again!
Thanks for being here, Shelley. Great information about doing a giveaway. I will have to keep the points in mind for when I’m ready to do one.
Happy writing!
Cindy
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