The Exact Playbook we used to get an Amazon Bestseller

Number One in three categories in three countries within three days of launch

Fleur:
When Gunnar first subscribed to the Author Growth Substack, I knew he was serious. Serious about writing. Serious about book marketing. And serious about getting Happy Habits, his 28th book, into the hands of more readers around the world. As a Founding Member, he received a full book marketing plan as part of his subscription, including a strategy for Amazon keywords and categories designed to give him the best possible chance of hitting number one in a few carefully chosen categories.

Gunnar had achieved Amazon Bestseller status before, but it had taken some luck, persistence, and solid connections. This time, he wanted to stack the odds in his favour right from the start. But when we first looked at the categories he’d chosen: Self-Help and Motivation, they were overcrowded with thousands of books and big-name authors. Even with great content and solid pre-orders, Happy Habits would’ve been buried.

Gunnar:
I’ve been through this process many times despite many publishers didn’t care too much. Now mainly self-publishing, I still find Amazon’s category system maddening, even after getting quite some experience. I’d already spent hours trying to find a fresh angle, and I was nearly ready to settle for the same crowded categories I would typically use. When Fleur stepped in and read an advance copy of Happy Habits, she saw what I couldn’t. That this wasn’t just a motivation book. She came back with a list of category options I never would’ve considered, many of which had very little competition but still matched the message of the book.

We uploaded everything to KDP and prepared for a Monday 28 July launch. Or so we thought.

Hear the rest of the story on the Author Growth Substack Newsletter.