MSI Press Blog

  It is Tuesday. Monday's madness is over, and Wednesday will take us over the hump, so Tuesday it is--for some serious discussion with authors. Tuesday talks mean to address authors in waiting and self-published authors who would like to go a more traditional route or who would at least like to take their steps with a publisher by their side.  Today's topic takes a look at how a book gets into the Top 100 on Amazon, based on the experience of our press. From what we have seen, there are at least three ways to get onto this very desirable list: 1.       The first month after your book is released, hustle like crazy to get sales. It is much easier to get into the top 100 of “hot new releases” because you are only competing with other books coming out that month, not with all books available on Amazon. 2.       Concentrate your book sales into a short time period if you can. (If you are selling at a workshop, for example, or a pu...

If authors understood only one thing about Amazon, it should be this: Amazon rewards movement. Not prestige, not quality, not awards— movement . And the metric that captures that movement is  sales velocity . Everything else—pre‑order buttons, Prime shipping, “In Stock” status, Buy Box control, overnight delivery—flows from that one concept. Let’s break it down. 1. What Sales Velocity Actually Means Sales velocity is  the rate at which your book sells over time . Not total sales. Not lifetime sales. Speed. Consistency. Recency. Amazon’s algorithm tracks: How many copies sold today How many sold yesterday How many sold this week Whether the trend is rising, flat, or falling A book that sells 20 copies in one day after selling none for a month looks “hot.” A book that sells 20 copies every week looks “reliable.” A book that sells 2 copies a month looks “dormant.” Amazon adjusts its behavior accordingly. 2. How Sales Velocity Affects Amazon’s Decisions A. Pre‑Order Button Activa...

    It is Tuesday. Monday's madness is over, and Wednesday will take us over the hump, so Tuesday it is--for some serious discussion with authors. Tuesday talks mean to address authors in waiting and self-published authors who would like to go a more traditional route or who would at least like to take their steps with a publisher by their side.  This week, we suggest that authors can do a rudimentary analysis of their lack of sales on their own. From that, they should be able to develop plans to approach marketing and promotion more effectively. Book Reviews This is a biggie. Book reviews , more than anything else, sell books. While it is difficult to come up with a number that will make a difference--depends on the genre, number of competing books--typically, books with fewer than 50 book reviews are not selling, and 75-100 is considered by some in the industry to be critical to springboarding to "bestseller" status. So, How many reviews does your book have? If a paltry...

It is Tuesday. Monday's madness is over, and Wednesday will take us over the hump, so Tuesday it is--for some serious discussion with authors. Tuesday talks mean to address authors in waiting and self-published authors who would like to go a more traditional route or who would at least like to take their steps with a publisher by their side. This week we discuss Amazon categories. Such an enigma! Intentionally so. Amazon does not reveal much about its inner workings, but thanks to some research, we have been able to determine the following that might be helpful for authors to know. 📚 How Amazon Book Categories Work (with Niche and Volume Dynamics) 🧭 Initial Category Assignment When books are distributed via Ingram (LSI) , Amazon pulls metadata from Ingram’s feed, including BISAC codes. These BISAC codes help Amazon place the book into relevant genre categories (e.g., “Spiritual Memoir,” “Parenting,” “Historical Fiction”). Authors and publishers can influence category placemen...