tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post6582101048436925948..comments2024-03-18T06:16:18.802-05:00Comments on A Newbie's Guide to Publishing: Another Update on The List ExperimentJA Konrathhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08778324558755151986noreply@blogger.comBlogger156125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-66773335583775456312011-04-04T09:05:06.954-05:002011-04-04T09:05:06.954-05:00Joe said: "There's probably a formula in ...Joe said: "There's probably a formula in it somewhere."<br /><br />Newton's law of motion: A body in motion tends to stay in motion.<br /><br />It certainly applies to this experiment. Very exciting.Giselehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12954959858871289162noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-52696412373013812952011-03-30T19:00:12.688-05:002011-03-30T19:00:12.688-05:00another notable moment...
joe hasn't made a b...another notable moment...<br /><br />joe hasn't made a big deal<br />about his price-reduction<br />to $.99 for his book "origin",<br />but it has been constantly<br />moving up the chart, albeit<br />in a rather wobbly fashion...<br /><br />nonetheless, it's now at #99,<br />marking its first appearance<br />in the top-100 list. it might<br />continue to wobble, certainly,<br />or its presence on that list<br />might help it remain there,<br />but either way, joe now has<br />2 books in the top-100 list.<br />so watch out, john locke! :+)<br /><br />-bowerbird<br /><br />p.s. here are some of the<br />origin wobbles during its<br />2-week trip to the top-100:<br /><br />#284, 2011/3/17, 2pm<br />#202, 2011/3/18, 2am<br />#187, 2011/3/18, 11pm<br />#190, 2011/3/19, 12pm<br />#195, 2011/3/20, 3pm<br />#200, 2011/3/21, 1pm<br />#176, 2011/3/21, 8pm<br />#190, 2011/3/22, 9am<br />#177, 2011/3/22, 11am<br />#169, 2011/3/23, 9am<br />#173, 2011/3/23, 3pm<br />#159, 2011/3/24, 1am<br />#169, 2011/3/24, 8am<br />#181, 2011/3/24, 3pm<br />#156, 2011/3/25, 1am<br />#166, 2011/3/25, 1pm<br />#161, 2011/3/26, 2am<br />#147, 2011/3/26, 11pm<br />#138, 2011/3/27, 11am<br />#146, 2011/3/27, 7pm<br />#141, 2011/3/28, 7am<br />#125, 2011/3/29, 1am<br />#132, 2011/3/29, 11am<br />#138, 2011/3/29, 8pm<br />#149, 2011/3/30, 1am<br />#099, 2011/3/30, 5pmbowerbirdhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05962115094107919533noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-60860600932608309192011-03-30T14:00:23.739-05:002011-03-30T14:00:23.739-05:00it's march 30th, noon pacific,
and "the c...it's march 30th, noon pacific,<br />and "the color of heaven" has<br />bounced 14 spots up to #189.<br /><br />"the list" is currently at #63,<br />3 spots worse than yesterday.<br /><br />-bowerbirdbowerbirdhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05962115094107919533noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-62773176498786951332011-03-29T14:00:47.443-05:002011-03-29T14:00:47.443-05:00as of march 29th, noon pacific,
"the color of...as of march 29th, noon pacific,<br />"the color of heaven" is at #203,<br />18 spots worse than yesterday...<br /><br />and "the list" is currently at #60,<br />1 spot worse than yesterday...<br /><br />-bowerbirdbowerbirdhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05962115094107919533noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-3091619677672175762011-03-28T14:00:41.477-05:002011-03-28T14:00:41.477-05:00as of march 28th, noon pacific,
"the color of...as of march 28th, noon pacific,<br />"the color of heaven" is at #185,<br />down 7 spots since yesterday...<br /><br />and "the list" is currently at #59,<br />2 spots worse than yesterday...<br /><br />-bowerbirdbowerbirdhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05962115094107919533noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-11408545688966689812011-03-27T14:30:09.397-05:002011-03-27T14:30:09.397-05:00as of march 27th, at 12:30pm,
"the color of h...as of march 27th, at 12:30pm,<br />"the color of heaven" is at #178,<br />_unchanged_ since yesterday,<br />a refreshing change-of-pace...<br /><br />and "the list" is currently at #57,<br />2 spots _better_ than yesterday.<br /><br />-bowerbirdbowerbirdhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05962115094107919533noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-76516937833398011332011-03-26T13:30:46.965-05:002011-03-26T13:30:46.965-05:00as of march 26th, at 11:30am,
"the color of h...as of march 26th, at 11:30am,<br />"the color of heaven" is at #178,<br />down 30 spots since yesterday,<br />losing 91 spots the last 4 days.<br /><br />and "the list" is currently at #59,<br />down 2 spots since yesterday...<br /><br />-bowerbirdbowerbirdhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05962115094107919533noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-35344091529722066562011-03-25T14:00:43.299-05:002011-03-25T14:00:43.299-05:00as of now, march 25th, at noon,
"the color of...as of now, march 25th, at noon,<br />"the color of heaven" is at #148,<br />accelerating its traumatic spiral,<br />down 23 spots since yesterday,<br />losing 61 spots the last 3 days.<br /><br />and "the list" is currently at #57,<br />down 6 spots since yesterday...<br /><br />-bowerbirdbowerbirdhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05962115094107919533noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-14257451740459781962011-03-24T17:01:03.497-05:002011-03-24T17:01:03.497-05:00the john locke juggernaut
continues to astound us....the john locke juggernaut<br />continues to astound us...<br /><br />as of 3pm on march 24th,<br />6 of his 7 books are now<br />listed in the kindle top-20.<br /><br />-bowerbirdbowerbirdhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05962115094107919533noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-26849888516255085032011-03-24T14:35:44.514-05:002011-03-24T14:35:44.514-05:00yet another milestone today...
at one time, there...yet another milestone today...<br /><br />at one time, there was some<br />speculation that many of the<br />people who bought "the list"<br />hadn't yet read it, and thus<br />it wouldn't impact the sales<br />of other konrath books yet.<br />this speculation was based<br />on people's own self-reports<br />that they hadn't read it yet...<br /><br />i made the suggestion that<br />we could assume it was true<br />until the number of reviews<br />for "the list" had _doubled_<br />from the 80 it had when the<br />"experiment" was undertaken.<br />objective measures are nice...<br /><br />just now, the total number of<br />reviews hit 110, meaning that<br />the book has gotten 30 more<br />since the experiment began...<br />not nearly the 80, not yet, but<br />the total is growing, steadily...<br /><br />so, if you're looking for effects<br />which are _immediate_, you're<br />probably gonna miss a bunch...<br /><br />-bowerbirdbowerbirdhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05962115094107919533noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-72310805384464018832011-03-24T13:00:17.220-05:002011-03-24T13:00:17.220-05:00in today's price-switch report,
on march 24th ...in today's price-switch report,<br />on march 24th at 11am pacific,<br />"the color of heaven" continues<br />its dramatic free-fall, dropping<br />to rank #125 as of this moment.<br />it's lost 38 spots in just 2 days!<br />barring a price-drop back to <br />the $.99 point, odds are slim<br />that it will regain the top-100.<br /><br />robin advised us to watch this<br />book because she hoped that<br />it would maintain its position<br />even after its price went up,<br />but the book has been steadily<br />losing ground ever since then.<br /><br />it has still managed to pile up<br />a bunch of cash as the lethargy<br />of the list dynamics let it stay<br />in the top-100, even when it<br />no longer deserved to remain,<br />and that pile of cash certainly<br />will serve as a lure to authors<br />who will try to repeat the trick,<br />but at least those of us who see<br />this "tactic" as exploitation can<br />rest easier knowing that it's one<br />which eventually self-corrects.<br /><br />"the list" is currently at #51,<br />down 5 spots since yesterday.<br />aside from the symbolism of<br />dropping out of the top-50,<br />another mental marker today<br />is that "the list" has just today<br />been a crossing ship with the<br />worst-ranked john locke book,<br />"follow the stone", which is<br />now lodged at position #47...<br />this means all _7_ of the books<br />by john locke (all $.99) are now<br />firmly within the top-50, with<br />6 of the 7 lodged in the top-25.<br />so it seems that you can _visit_<br />the top of the list with a "sale"<br />at the $.99 price-point, but you<br />can _reside_ there if you make<br />the $.99 price your steady one.<br /><br />-bowerbirdbowerbirdhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05962115094107919533noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-66814244242796723412011-03-23T12:00:46.742-05:002011-03-23T12:00:46.742-05:00today's price-switch report
is an absolute sho...today's price-switch report<br />is an absolute shocker, folks!<br /><br />as of march 23rd, 10am pacific,<br />"the color of heaven" dropped<br />from rank #87 yesterday to<br />rank #106 right now, which is<br />a stunning fall of _19_spots_...<br /><br />i would normally just call that<br />an extraordinary wobble, and<br />expect it to bounce back near<br />to where it had been before...<br /><br />but this is a special situation,<br />since the book has fallen out<br />of the top-100 bestseller list,<br />and thus now lacks the very<br />visibility it got from the list...<br />which handicaps it greatly in<br />terms of climbing back there...<br /><br />it still has the word-of-mouth<br />it had yesterday and last week,<br />and the star-rating and reviews,<br />so i'm not writing it off entirely,<br />but it has suffered a _big_ blow.<br /><br />further, even if the book _does_<br />manage to stage a comeback<br />of sorts, the overall downward<br />trend it's been on is very clear:<br />the price-switch up to $2.99<br />basically knocked it off the list.<br /><br />in other news...<br /><br />"the list" is currently at #46,<br />_up_ 1 spot since yesterday...<br />perhaps all of those people<br />coming here to joe's blog is<br />more effective at selling books<br />than joe professes to realize...<br /><br />-bowerbirdbowerbirdhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05962115094107919533noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-41138186448525328772011-03-22T13:38:59.836-05:002011-03-22T13:38:59.836-05:00in the last 2 hours, another
interesting thing hap...in the last 2 hours, another<br />interesting thing happened...<br /><br />"run", from blake crouch,<br />has been "honestly" priced<br />at $2.99 all along, and has<br />steadily moved up the charts.<br /><br />"dirty parts of the bible"<br />has jumped from $.99 to<br />$2.99 and back again and<br />back again and back again<br />and now is priced at $2.99.<br />all that price-switching has<br />caused it to bounce around<br />between #250 and #500...<br /><br />what has just happened is<br />that "run" has now eclipsed<br />"dirty parts". (run is #372,<br />and dirty parts is at #419.)<br /><br />i think the feeling among<br />some people here is that<br />you can use price-changes<br />to yo-yo your book up and<br />down at will, but the reality<br />might be that that ends up<br />being counterproductive,<br />as opposed to a firm price.<br /><br />-bowerbirdbowerbirdhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05962115094107919533noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-68529955258140398262011-03-22T11:40:17.844-05:002011-03-22T11:40:17.844-05:00and here's today's report on
the price-swi...and here's today's report on<br />the price-switch experiment.<br /><br />as of now, march 22nd, 9:40am,<br />"the color of heaven" is at #87,<br />down 2 spots since yesterday,<br />down 70 spots since i started<br />watching, at #17 on march 6th,<br />an average fall of 4 spots a day.<br /><br />"the list" is currently at #47,<br />down 3 spots since yesterday,<br />down 24 spots since its price<br />was raised back up to $2.99,<br />when it was #23 on march 16th,<br />an average fall of 4 spots a day.<br /><br />-bowerbirdbowerbirdhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05962115094107919533noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-80443322443588673462011-03-22T10:42:18.790-05:002011-03-22T10:42:18.790-05:00Dear Joe, my first time visiting, and I am LOVING ...Dear Joe, my first time visiting, and I am LOVING the fierce-eyed view. As someone who has been published conventionally, I'm very intrigued about the self- determination and empowerment in this new e-world. I'll sift back though your posts, but I'm curious about how one succeeds in creating critical mass in the medium. It seems a subject under-served.<br /> Again, many thanks. And cheers!<br /> -Lynn B @ skydiariesLynn Biederstadthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09268884299821392452noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-50487047497312492122011-03-21T23:31:17.502-05:002011-03-21T23:31:17.502-05:00Joe,
You are further ahead of me on this path, b...Joe, <br /><br />You are further ahead of me on this path, but I've learned from you and a few others that have been this way.<br /><br />Early on you said it right. Success as a writer comes down to persistence and hard work. You've done both; ok and just maybe a little luck. <br /><br />I think that a .99 or even a "lost lead" (free) gets readers to read your work but then the quality of your work has to speak for itself. And you have to have more than one or two titles out there.<br /><br />Once they are hooked, you have to keep them hooked. Yup, there you are again. You have to deliver. It all comes back to hard work - again. (It a good thing that we all have such a passion for this crazy craft.)<br /><br />Best of luck and thank you for sharing the journey. I'm learning, writing, and trying to figure out an effective marketing plan. <br /><br />Best wishes,<br />MartaMarta M. Sproutnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-41928501282960831092011-03-21T19:26:06.603-05:002011-03-21T19:26:06.603-05:00Some thoughts on pricing: when I was in public acc...Some thoughts on pricing: when I was in public accounting I went to a seminar on how to increase revenues in accounting firms by strategic pricing. The presenter had an illustrative anecdote about his father, who had owned an antique store someplace in New England. He said that whenever his dad had a piece of inventory that had remained unsold for too long he would move it to another location in the store. If that didn't work, he would raise the price, and that almost always did the trick. I'm not sure what this teaches about pricing eBooks, if anything, but I suppose it's possible that just changing something up gets it exposed or noticed by a different mix of potential buyers, and it's the increased exposure that moves the merchandise. Worth thinking about anyway.Jonah Gibsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15718378638626020770noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-36292570242202400012011-03-21T15:00:36.272-05:002011-03-21T15:00:36.272-05:00it might also be instructive
to look at "orig...it might also be instructive<br />to look at "origin", which is<br />joe's latest attempt to move<br />a book of his into the top-100.<br /><br />> 2011/03/17, 1pm, #284<br />> 2011/03/18, 2am, #202<br />> 2011/03/18, 9pm, #187<br />> 2011/03/19, 1pm, #190<br />> 2011/03/20, 2pm, #195<br />> 2011/03/21, 1am, #196<br />> 2011/03/21, 1pm, #200<br /><br />after a big immediate jump,<br />the book has been "stalled"<br />for four days around #195...<br /><br />will joe wait out this plateau,<br />or is he just too impatient?<br /><br />-bowerbirdbowerbirdhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05962115094107919533noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-2873421803581719552011-03-21T14:29:23.607-05:002011-03-21T14:29:23.607-05:00and here's today's report on
the price-swi...and here's today's report on<br />the price-switch experiment.<br /><br />as of now, march 21st, at noon,<br />"the color of heaven" is at #85,<br />down 2 spots since yesterday.<br /><br />"the list" is currently at #44,<br />down 5 spots since yesterday,<br />but still making tons of money!<br /><br />time to lower your price, folks,<br />so you can get in the top-100,<br />then raise your price back up,<br />and make a killing just like joe!<br /><br />you know other authors are<br />doing it. don't let them push<br />your books out of the race...<br /><br />-bowerbirdbowerbirdhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05962115094107919533noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-52760307692293464992011-03-21T13:58:58.682-05:002011-03-21T13:58:58.682-05:00That's why I became a writer- so I could do ma...That's why I became a writer- so I could do math. UGH. Thanks for the numbers, Joe.<br /><br />BarbBarbra Anninohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10178069602463458520noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-81922397274651604102011-03-21T06:12:18.336-05:002011-03-21T06:12:18.336-05:00@PatriciaW Thanks for sharing the Zoe Winters arti...@PatriciaW Thanks for sharing the Zoe Winters article. She raises several valueable points, the most important one being that 99cent eBooks will mostly attract people that buy according to price and doesn't necessarily create long-term readers. And I like the Wal-Mart reference because I've worked in sales for more than 10 years and I have first hand experience knowing that when you price something too cheap, you tend to attract people that will complain about anything. In addition, they may just purchase 99cent eBooks, load up their Kindles that it may be months before they start reading yours. Will they even remember you when they're done? Maybe. However when an eBook is priced higher at $2.99 or more, then you tend to attract more quality readers. People that will more likely read the entire story because they invested in it. And if they enjoyed it, then you'll more likely get a review or blurb from them, which is something all authors need.<br /><br />Russell Brooks<br />Author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Pandoras-Succession-ebook/dp/B00486U6O2" rel="nofollow">Pandora's Succession</a>Russell Brookshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13877653195121083326noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-73410385489020666512011-03-21T00:51:43.354-05:002011-03-21T00:51:43.354-05:00A sale is just that--a sale, not the official list...A sale is just that--a sale, not the official list price. Every smart business uses some form of sales promotion to drive traffic to their location, business or site. <br /><br />My bestselling suspense thriller DIVINE INTERVENTION has made numerous top 100 lists over the years, and when I put the Kindle edition on sale last week, it almost immediately jumped into 3 lists, 2 in the top 40 and 1 in the top 3.<br /><br />DIVINE INTERVENTION's price will go back to $2.99 soon, but for now the $0.99 sale price is helping me reach more readers--and that's something every author needs. :-)<br /><br /><a href="http://ow.ly/4i0LX" rel="nofollow">DIVINE INTERVENTION, a psychic suspense - $0.99</a><br /><br />Cheers!<br /><br />Cheryl Kaye Tardif,<br /><a href="http://www.cherylktardif.com" rel="nofollow">www.cherylktardif.com</a>Cheryl Tardifhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15160526951596806898noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-35530710810486229122011-03-20T23:20:05.431-05:002011-03-20T23:20:05.431-05:00simply take me at my word.
ok
:)<i>simply take me at my word.</i><br /><br />ok<br /><br />:)Tara Mayahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09095632631554776002noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-53956944628230559412011-03-20T21:26:34.164-05:002011-03-20T21:26:34.164-05:00"What does this mean?
Hell if I know....&quo..."What does this mean?<br /><br />Hell if I know...."<br /><br />Haha. Nothing like being frank about it. But it's comforting that I'm not the only one confused.J. R. Tomlinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01109874615059334200noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11291165.post-48303095375675984122011-03-20T21:20:24.215-05:002011-03-20T21:20:24.215-05:00christy said:
> Joe is creating
> a &qu...christy said:<br />> Joe is creating <br />> a "loss leader," <br />> just like <br />> any other retailer. <br /><br />except it's not "a loss leader"<br />because joe never took a loss.<br /><br />when a retailer pays more for<br />a product-unit than it sells for,<br />_that_ is taking a loss. but joe<br />didn't pay anything for each<br />additional unit which he sold.<br /><br />every penny on every sale was<br />_profit..._ totally pure profit...<br /><br />i'm also always perplexed why<br />people here -- not only christy,<br />but everyone -- seem to want<br />to equate digital markets with<br />physical stores of yesterday...<br /><br />they are completely different,<br />and it's smarter to figure out<br />those differences, and exploit<br />them, than to try to artificially<br />find points of similarity, when<br />those points rarely match up...<br /><br />the _total_ absence of _any_<br />variable costs is the hallmark<br />of the new digital environment<br />-- its most significant aspect --<br />and that _never_ occurs with<br />physical products in the world.<br /><br />-bowerbirdbowerbirdhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05962115094107919533noreply@blogger.com