Mastering the Amazon KDP Algorithm to Increase Book Sales!

Self-publishing is currently having its moment in the sun, and indie authors who are making wise decisions and being strategic about their publishing plans and processes are seeing more success than ever before.

There are many reasons for the current “boom” this industry is experiencing, but I believe, more than anything, authors have seen the light when it comes to traditional publishing and all its pitfalls.

With easier access to resources and more information available to us, authors are more aware than ever that these big, corporate, billion-dollar conglomerates are taking 80% or more of book royalties, seizing authors’ rights to their books, and basically trading on the crushed dreams of aspiring writers.

Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP) has played a pivotal role in this revolution, providing a platform for authors to maintain control of their content, publish when and where they want, sell their books to a global audience, and keep a much larger percentage of their earnings.

But there’s one thing standing in the way of many authors’ success when it comes to self-publishing, and that is understanding and mastering the Amazon KDP algorithm.

Hell, some authors don’t even know about the algorithm, let alone understand it, so in this post, I’m going to break down the most crucial things you need to know about the Amazon KDP algorithm, so you can use it to achieve self-publishing success.

Understanding the KDP Algorithm

First, it’s important to note that there isn’t just ONE big algorithm on Amazon.

In fact, there are several “mini” algorithms that, when used together, make up the whole shebang, from the search algorithm to the ranking algorithm to “also-boughts” and more.

But thankfully, as utterly complex as this sounds, understanding and mastering these systems and using them to your advantage is relatively easy once you know what to do.

The purpose of the overall algorithm on Amazon is to sell as many products as possible.

And to do that, the platform uses all those little algorithms to figure out what consumers (readers) are buying most and what sellers (authors) are successfully listing that attracts those consumers, and it puts that information together and spits out the products MOST LIKELY to sell.

First, the algorithm considers the sales performance of each product.

This tells Amazon whether it should recommend your book to readers.

If a product (or book) is not getting attention from consumers, Amazon has no reason to push that book and take up valuable real estate when it isn’t likely to sell.

Second, the algorithm considers where a certain product fits into the marketplace.

Based on the information gathered, Amazon determines to which readers they should recommend your book, so buyers see books they’re much more likely to purchase.

How Conversion Rates Factor In

When your book goes live on Amazon, its system “monitors” your book’s performance during the first 24 hours, then they check again after a few days.

If your book isn’t selling well or even getting any clicks, while they don’t “punish” you, they see your book as being a product they don’t need to push on the results page.

Why? Because clearly, consumers are not receptive to that book. Sad but true.

This is why it’s CRUCIAL to have an effective, strategic marketing campaign in place LONG BEFORE your launch, but we’ll talk about that in a minute.

The Amazon algorithm doesn’t only consider the number of books sold in any given period of time.

It also measures how many clicks your listing receives, how many of those people click to add your book to their cart, and how many then follow through and purchase your book.

And of course, rankings and reviews factor in, but that’s a conversation for another post.

My point here is that while the number of books you sell, especially during the launch phase, is super important, it’s not the be-all, end-all factor.

Think about it this way.

If a book is clicked on 1,000 times in one week, but only 5 people wind up purchasing that book, Amazon’s algorithm tells them something is off and that consumers simply don’t like what they see.

The 3 Gateways to Converting Searchers to Buyers

You may have heard me talk about the “3 Gateways” authors must unlock for readers and convert them from simple “searchers” on Amazon to “buyers.”

These gateways are in a specific order for a reason…it’s based on what Amazon searchers will notice first, next, and last, just before deciding whether to buy your book, and they are:

The first thing that will catch Amazon searchers’ eyes when scrolling through the results page will be the thumbnails of each book cover.

This is why having a professionally made, intriguing, genre-appropriate, and trending cover made for your book is not so much a suggestion but a “must-do!”

Nowadays, you can hire a professional cover designer to make all the files you need for less than $300 and even make payments on that amount.

But people DO judge books by their cover, and if yours is unprofessional, clearly made in Canva, and not reflective of the storyline and your genre, readers will just keep on scrolling.

If they do that, you’ve lost them at Gateway 1.

But a beautiful, compelling cover that is on-trend and fits your genre will unlock that gateway, at which point, searchers look on to…

Readers will next look slightly to the right of the cover image thumbnail and read the title and maybe even the byline.

If your title is unclear, doesn’t fit your genre or current trends, or tells them nothing at all about the story you’re about to tell them, they’ll scrunch their eyebrows in confusion, and you lose them at Gateway 2.

But if you have a title that fits current genre trends, is not too long or too short, and gives at least some clue as to what they can expect from your story, you’ve unlocked that gateway, and they move on to…

I cannot emphasize strongly enough how crucial it is that your Amazon book description (aka “the blurb”) be compelling, clearly written, and intriguing.

If your blurb is nothing more than a run-on paragraph that simply summarizes the storyline and there’s nothing there that POPS and grabs the readers’ attention, you lose them at Gateway 3.

But if you write a blurb that introduces the protagonist, conflict, villain (if one exists), and the stakes, you’re off to a great start.

Bonus points if you emphasize words and sentences with bold and italic letters, include a book testimonial/review, and end on a note that hooks the reader and makes them feel as if they HAVE to buy your book, they’ll “Add to Cart” and buy your book.

If you can unlock all 3 Gateways for your readers, your conversion rates will skyrocket, and Amazon will show your book more frequently and higher on the results page.

Then, almost immediately, you’ll see your book sales and revenue skyrocket!

The Most Important Factor of All

Above all else, in order for you to master the KDP Algorithm, increase conversion rates, and sell more books, you must have a strategic launch plan in place LONG BEFORE your book is released on Amazon.

The worst mistake I see authors make every single day is waiting until their book is ready to launch or even launched THEN thinking about ARC Reviewers and scrambling at the last minute to beg people to buy their books.

But at that point…too little, too late.

And there’s no book fairy coming to sprinkle pixie dust on your book to make it magically successful.

You need to build a big, strong fanbase filled with readers who are not just willing to buy your book but who are actively seeking books like yours, and you need to start doing this DAY ONE.

It takes a minimum of three months to build a sizeable audience big enough to support a successful book launch.

That’s why you must start finding your ideal readers, connecting with them where they are, engaging with them through organic (non-paid) content on social media, newsletters the day you begin writing your book.

Then, by the time your book launches, your fanbase will be rushing to Amazon to find and buy your book.

This will happen not because you begged a bunch of strangers in Facebook Groups to please go check out your book on Amazon but because they now know you, like you, and trust you.

Want to know how you can grow your reader fanbase and increase book sales in just eight weeks?

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If you are reading this post after October 9 (kickoff day for the workshop), there is still a way you can work with me.

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