I have managed to publish five books with KDP and about to add another. I have had a few sales but nothing to get excited about. I am now looking seriously into promotion. Has anyone experience of this, using the KDP or any other source? I haven't found the KDP site very helpful in understanding what is actually required and how it works.
Areas of interest
Yes Amazon KDP is not very informative. But they do get your work in print and Digital.
As for marketing and promotion, this should always be undertaken by the Author, ideally before first chapter is written.
Social media great start. Build your audience, get the buzz going. Target your audience.
Then of course I assume you have your own author website. This also helps.
But unless you want to pay for marketing via Amazon, or other professionals, best to plan and do it yourself.
Perhaps with the help of a pay as you go Virtual Assistant who can help plan and promote if you don't have the time. Depends on your budget.
I have been a typesetter for self-published authors for over 13 years, and no matter how good the books are, if they don't promote and market themselves, it wont do very well.
Feedback and reviews are key. Both print and ebook is key.
Hope this helps.
But i can help if you need ideas and motivation. Let me know.
Can I ask something?
Promotion is where most authors realize the hard truth: publishing on KDP is the easy part, but getting readers is the real challenge. From my experience, a combination of strategies works best. Amazon Ads can help, but only if you target the right keywords and are patient enough to test and refine them. Optimizing your book’s categories and keywords is crucial niche categories and search terms your readers actually use make a big difference in visibility. Outside of Amazon, promoting your book through social media, newsletters, and book promotion sites gives your listings a much-needed boost and can help trigger Amazon’s algorithm to rank your book higher. Building a small, engaged reader base also pays off over time, because loyal readers will follow your future releases. The key is consistency and persistence; promotion isn’t a one-off task but an ongoing effort, and gradually, as you apply these strategies, momentum builds and sales start to grow.