Kosta Ouzas is himself a publisher, filmmaker, and entrepreneur. He has helped hundreds of fiction writers market their books on Amazon and other online retailers.
Finding a person/mentor who is truly on a journey to help is hard, but Kosta is one amongst them. A man who is on a mission to help writers create a full-time income selling their novels online.
Writers are brilliant at what they do. Creating characters and stories and inviting the reader into a world of their own creation. But when it comes to marketing and advertising… they have a lot to learn. Kosta argues that the process of becoming a writer is a difficult one. It can take years to master the discipline and creativity it takes to complete a novel. Marketing and advertising is in itself a completely separate skillset. But to succeed as a self-published author these skills must also be mastered as well.
Kosta believes and is confident when he says that authors without a proven Digital Marketing Strategy have no chance of reaching their audience. This is because of the proliferation of books uploaded each day online. An author must stand out from the crowd.
He says the key is this: paid advertising.
By using paid advertising authors can leverage the power of search engines, display ads and direct targeting to put their books in front of readers. Once authors have built a stable following then they need to stop thinking, ‘How can I reach the largest possible audience?’ and start thinking ‘How can I write the best quality fiction for my current audience?’. They will then find that their focus will be on the thing that matters the most. Making the actual book the best that it can be.
Kosta advises anyone who wants to excel as a writer and self-published author that they must treat their time and their work like a professional. Self-publishing is a business. Writers become entrepreneurs and business owners. When this distinction is made, between the creative process and the business process, remarkable things can happen. He suggests that authors shouldn’t waste time on social media either; paid traffic is the fastest way to grow an audience and the most effective. Connecting with your audience via social media comes later.
It is important for authors to set aside thoughts of making millions overnight. At least initially. Instead, focus on making their novel the best that it can be. This is how they can gather a high-quality audience that wants to have a genuine relationship with them and their characters. To get the ball rolling a new author must have a digital marketing strategy in place.
Once authors acquire their fanbase they spread the word about the authors books, whether that’s through word of mouth, social media and positive reviews. These natural connections can be endless. And Kosta does not understate them. He just believes that an author cannot get to this point without a proper Digital Marketing Strategy in place.
Ultimately, Kosta’s advice to authors is to go out and write books that deliver! Then the marketing and advertising is as simple as following his proven formula.