Tag: tinyurl.com

Your Books’ Buy Links Simplified

Purchase links can be hideous, long, octopi-like disasters.

What happens on sites like Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble, and others, is that the path you take to get to the link becomes attached – part of the “history” of the link. The next thing you know, you have something like this: http://www.amazon.com/Postcards-Mr-Pish-Cross-Country-ebook/dp/B0072YXQGC/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1370798259&sr=1-1&keywords=postcards+from+mr.+pish+by+k.+s.+brooks. Ugly, for certain. What this tells anyone who takes the time to look at it is – the person providing the link didn’t have a dedicated link saved or bookmarked somewhere, so they searched on Amazon.com using the keywords “postcards from mr. pish by K. S. Brooks” to get to the book they wanted. Sure, sometimes doing a search is faster than pulling up a bookmark, but the results do not look professional. The only part of that link that you actually need to give someone is: http://www.amazon.com/Postcards-Mr-Pish-Cross-Country-ebook/dp/B0072YXQGC/. Much better, right? Continue reading “Your Books’ Buy Links Simplified”

Twitter Tutorial Tuesday – Don’t Be a Mystery

Author K. S. Brooks
Author K. S. Brooks

Yeah yeah, I know.  You’re on Facebook, Goodreads, Twitter, LibraryThing, Google+, LinkedIn, eHarmony and who knows what else.  If you’re like me, you’re wondering if these things are helping at all in the promotion of your book(s).

Sometimes it’s not about where you are, but “how” you are using those tools.  Here’s a tip on how you can use Twitter just a little bit better – and it’s something you only have to do once!

Now you’re saying “It’s 140 characters. Who cares?” Well, honestly, think about it – you probably get those emails all the time which say: “so and so is now following you on Twitter”. All it says under the person’s cryptic handle is “likes cake”. Sure, I like cake too, but who is this person? Do they write? Are they a reader? A publisher? A reviewer? Do I want to follow them back? Is that what people think when YOU follow THEM?

Stay with me here. This is very quick and very easy. All we’re going to do is “spruce up” your profile. It’s really about making yourself more accessible – and giving people the opportunity to find out more about you in a quick and convenient fashion. Continue reading “Twitter Tutorial Tuesday – Don’t Be a Mystery”

Tuesday Tutorial: Shorten that Link!

Let’s just say you’ve been asked to do a blog interview, or your sending out a press release, or you’re sending out a e-newsletter. In each of those cases, you want to provide a clickable purchase link to your book. Of course you’re more than happy to do that, right? You want people to buy your book – who doesn’t? So why would you give them THIS UGLY LINK????  http://www.amazon.com/Bad-Book-ebook/dp/B007SAVB7G/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1335018955&sr=1-1-fkmr0

Ugly, isn’t it? Then don’t do it. Not only is it hideous, it looks unprofessional. But Kat, what choice do I have? you ask. First of all, you may refer to me as Czarina. Secondly, there is an easy and free option: TinyURL.com.

BITLYNow before everyone jumps down my throat for not saying the popular Bitly.com – if that’s what you’re more comfortable with, use it. Bitly does offer quite a bit of functionality, reporting and more. Continue reading “Tuesday Tutorial: Shorten that Link!”