Not so good

[Neil D Ostroff]

 

So once again, I’ve made a blunder (I think) in my sponsorship ads. Last Friday, DROP OUT was Kindle Nation Daily’s sponsor. http://kindlenationdaily.com/2012/06/kdd-june-29/ According to their own estimates more than 150,000 readers were exposed through their means. I probably exposed the link to another twenty or thirty thousand people through my promotional efforts. I figured it was a good day to place the sponsorship because of the upcoming Fourth of July. I assumed readers would be anxious for some holiday reading by the poolside or on the beach. I, myself, was at the beach all last week at Wildwood Crest New Jersey. Our checkout date just happened to be the Friday of my sponsorship. So, after posting notice and the link on all my writer’s sites and blog in the morning, I merrily packed the car and headed home, thrilled to check my sales numbers when I arrived. I cruised out of the island pretty easily, but then we got to the expressway. Oh my God! Traffic was backed up for miles and miles. It was crazy. People honking. People getting out of their cars and looking down the street. People scratching their heads in frustration. Thankfully, the cars were all going toward the beaches and not away, like I was. So, as I drove onward relieved that I wasn’t involved in that mess, it suddenly occurred to me that today was a HUGE travel day. People weren’t going to be lounging around poolside or scanning their Kindles for books. They were going to be traveling. I had booked a sponsorship on a day when most people won’t be reading anything. The last sponsorship for DROP OUT was a few months ago with Kindle Fire Department, and that yielded impressive results. With that hopeful thought in mind I tried to put sales out of my head and concentrate on driving. Three hours later, tired and hungry, I pulled into my driveway. Not one for suspense, I went straight into my office, turned on my computer, and waited with tingles along my spine for the machine to boot. After what seemed like an eternity, the screen flickered to life and I was online. Fingers trembling, I typed into my account. I looked at a few sales of my other books and then lowered my eyes to DROP OUT’s numbers. It felt like a lead weight had dropped into my stomach. My biggest fear materialized into truth. My sales for DROP OUT after the sponsorship were hardly affected, just a few more than normal. I sighed with disgust at my own stupidity for booking the date. If nothing else, I’ve learned this about sponsorship. Don’t sponsor on the weekends even though most people say you should. I’ve discovered most sales come during the week when people are bored at work and fiddle around online to pass the time. That’s when they discover you. Don’t book sponsorships on sites with less than 10,000 hits a day. The percentages against making enough sales to cover the cost run against you. And the hard lesson for me, never book a sponsorship on a known travel day. Hopefully, sales will magically increase and I can put a plus on the income side of this sponsorship instead of a negative.

http://www.neilostroff.blogspot.com

[Irina Shapiro]

I totally agree with you.  I know that I hardly ever browse for books on weekends or holidays.  I look for books during the week when I am bored.  How do you book a sponsorship?  I am new to this as well and haven't heard of anyone doing this.  Please enlighten me.

Irina

www.irinashapiro.com

[Kevyn Sexton]

Thank you for sharing this information.  I often blog and post comments on San Diego Reader website.  One of the staff members thanked me a few years ago for posting comments on the weekends because it was so slow.  So I do believe what you are saying and will take it to heart.  It seems strange.  I would have thought people would be on their computers on the weekends because that's when they have the time.  But I guess not.

http://kevynsexton.blogspot.com

[Grace Elliot]

I would have made the same mistake.

I'm always torn about whether to use ads or not. I do put my cover up on targeted sites but I'm not convinced I'd recoup the cost of a major ad.

Best of luck with your work,

G x

[Irina Shapiro]

You can try using cheaper advertising like Facebook or Goodreads and see if there are any spikes in sales.  If that works, you can try something more elaborate.

Irina Shapiro

www.irinashapiro.com