Comments on: Giving Back To Your Readers

By: Eldred Bird

Eldred Bird — Thu, 06 Aug 2020 18:29:38 +0000

In reply to Traci Lovelot. Thanks for the input. I haven't tried Book Funnel yet. When I first started I was looking for a purely free solution (I had no real budget to work with) and feeling my way through the process.I used to offer the downloads in PDF, EPUB, and DOC formats. The only ones that got downloaded were PDF so I stopped including the other formats. Maybe it's time I added those back in the mix!

By: Eldred Bird

Eldred Bird — Thu, 06 Aug 2020 18:22:41 +0000

In reply to C.D. Watson. Thanks for the information. I'm by no means an expert, just sharing my own experience and what has worked for me up to this point. That's why I ask for people to share their experiences in the comments. I'm always open to learning new things!

By: Traci Lovelot

Traci Lovelot — Thu, 06 Aug 2020 12:07:30 +0000

As a reader, I'm always disappointed when an author provides a freebie as a PDF because i can't read it very easily on my phone. I prefer an actual ebook format, like epub or mobi, because i can load those to my ereading app. Most readers aren't that tech savvy, though. If you want to avoid wasting valuable writing time by acting as your readers' technical support person, use BookFunnel to automate the process. It puts the power in your readers' hands, and gives readers the choice of what device and what file type to download. And it's got even more features these days. I personally love it for all my pen names.

By: C.D. Watson

C.D. Watson — Thu, 06 Aug 2020 07:57:14 +0000

I'm a little confused. Why would you not funnel your reader magnet (the proper term for that freebie) through your list manager (MailChimp, etc.) or a site like Book Funnel? That's what those sites are there for, to automatically manage downloads so you don't have to spend time sending files one by one. This is exactly how most authors I know manage their reader magnets. I most certainly do! Also, I suggest Newsletter Ninja by Tammi Labrecque for a deeper look at how to set up and manage your mailing list/newsletter.

By: dholcomb1

dholcomb1 — Thu, 06 Aug 2020 04:02:48 +0000

I have an email under my author name. I haven't used it for anything other than my domain registration.

denise

By: Eldred Bird

Eldred Bird — Thu, 06 Aug 2020 01:35:49 +0000

In reply to Jenny Hansen. Thanks Jenny. And thank you for the opportunity to share my experience with other writers.

By: Eldred Bird

Eldred Bird — Thu, 06 Aug 2020 01:34:52 +0000

In reply to ecellenb. Yeah, that can turn into a big mess. In that case, I like Terry's idea of putting the link in you signature line. When you reply to emails like that people will automatically get the option to signup for future mailing. The PDF thing came to me when I was setting up my first giveaway. I was worried some people might not have the ability to read the file if I chose the wrong format. PDF solved that.

By: Jenny Hansen

Jenny Hansen — Wed, 05 Aug 2020 22:37:00 +0000

This is definitely a lot of initial work. It is so so helpful to see it laid out like this!

By: ecellenb

ecellenb — Wed, 05 Aug 2020 16:46:14 +0000

About that big no no. I once joined in with a group who put together a nice prize as reward for email addresses. I used a WIX site for this instead of putting all the address in MailChimp. I am so glad I did. What a hot mess! Many of them declined. For the few I kept, I sent separate email making sure they actually wanted to stick with me. Those have been my most loyal followers.

I like your idea of sending a PDF as it seems most versatile.

Automation is something I still need to use more.

Great suggestions. Bob!

By: Eldred Bird

Eldred Bird — Wed, 05 Aug 2020 15:04:07 +0000

In reply to Terry Odell. Great suggestion on the signature line. I'll be borrowing that. I do change out my giveaway file from time to time just to keep things fresh. I completely agree with you about NOT adding people to your mailing list without permission. That's a big no no!