Bait and Switch? No, Bait and Bait!

Bait and Bait! Bait and Bait!

Have you ever bought a book based on the cover, description, or back copy and found that it was nothing like what you expected? Or you got an ebook and it turned out to be shorter than you expected? It’s annoying, and you feel as if you’ve been involved in a bait and switch.

So learn a lesson from your own experiences and don’t make your book a bait and switch; make it a bait and bait.

  • Make your cover accurately reflect your content. Don’t use a pretty picture if it has nothing to do with the characters or action of your novel.
  • Write your description and back copy based on what happens in the book. I know it sounds obvious, but sometimes, it doesn’t seem to work out in reality. Just describe the book.
  • Use examples, if necessary. There’s nothing wrong with saying that your book is similar to another work. It will help readers understand exactly what they are getting.
  • Just state how long the ebook is. Most readers don’t seem to know or care what makes a novella different from a novel, but they will get awfully angry if they end up with a book shorter than they expected, even if it blatantly says novella. Just put your word count right there in the book description and give the corresponding page count for your paperback, if it exists. People might still complain, but at least you know you were very, very clear about what to expect.

Make sure your readers know exactly what they are getting before they order, get angry, and then leave a negative review for something as simple as not having an adequate description of your own product.

3 thoughts on “Bait and Switch? No, Bait and Bait!

  1. Awesome advice. You are like our free class on self-publishing. You should probably charge us, but I’m not complaining 🙂

  2. I wouldn’t ever charge for doing this! If I charged you’d expect results, but I can’t guarantee positive results, even for myself. Everything I’ve done is a risk. A calculated risk, but a risk nonetheless. I’d rather give hope away for free.

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