ConvertKit – Digital Marketing for Authors

ConvertKit is an email marketing solution designed specifically for authors. The web-based platform offers a way for writers to develop deeper relationships with their readers through direct email campaigns. ConvertKit also offers features that enable authors to automate their book marketing and capture leads from places like Amazon, LeanPub, and Udemy.

Before you can start sending emails to your readers, you’ve got find out who your readers actually are. Use ConvertKit to create opt-in forms that you can add to your website or blog. You should also build a landing page using ConvertKit’s DIY tools. ConvertKit offers three templates to choose from, which makes creating a landing page a short and easy process. Upload a photo of your latest book cover to your landing page, or contact ConvertKit and ask to have one of the company’s graphic designers design a cover for you. Using ConvertKit’s marketing automation tools, you can reach out to your fans via email when the time is right, sending educational messages to online readers who’ve downloaded sample chapters of your books or discounts to fans after they’ve subscribed to your blog.

By adding “bonuses,” like special videos, into their Amazon books, authors can point readers back to their landing pages and generate more attention for their future endeavors. Pointing visitors from Amazon, LeanPub, and Udemy back to their landing pages is also a powerful way for authors to capture more leads from online sources.

Practical Uses:

• Build better relationships with your readers
• Let your fans know what you’ve been up to since your latest book release
• Create pre-launch landing pages for your books
• Add email opt-in forms to any website or blog

Insider Tips:

• Use template tags to greet subscribers by name in marketing emails
• Offer bonuses in your Amazon book to capture more leads
• Have one of ConvertKit’s graphic designers create a custom book cover
• Choose from one of ConvertKit’s landing page templates

What we liked:

• Fans are prompted to enter their email addresses in exchange for book chapters
• Authors can build their own landing pages in minutes
• Automated drip campaigns decrease the work involved in book marketing
• ConvertKit’s emails are designed to look great on mobile devices

What we didn’t like:

• Authors only have three landing page templates to choose from

Alternatives:

• Constant Contact – http://www.constantcontact.com
• StreamSend – http://www.streamsend.com
• Vook – https://vook.com

Company Info:

• Launched: October 2014
• Privately Held
• Headquarters: Boise, Idaho
• Founded by: Nathan Barry
• Web site: http://convertkit.com

Costs:

• Hobbyist plan is $29 per month
• Author plan is $49 per month
• Professional plan is $129 per month
• Bestseller plan is $249 per month

Rating:

• 4 out of 5 (great)