Is your book dripping with deliciousness? Seething with steam? Boiling with sultry heat? Congratulations! You just wrote yourself into an advertising problem. Mainstream authors can earn new readers through mass market advertising networks. But not you, my naughty friend. Your racy blurbs and steamy covers flout the rules set forth by important ad platforms like Facebook, Google, and Amazon. Marketing Steamy Romance distills what I’ve learned as a 15-year digital marketing veteran and writer of erotic romance into actionable advice for authors. The first part introduces decision points around whether to advertise on major platforms, then presents strategies for creating book covers, titles, blurbs, video trailers and ads and other assets that are less likely to be rejected by ad networks. The second part presents a litany of tips, tricks and hacks for getting the most out of well-known marketing opportunities if you write in racy genres. Additional opportunities for authors who can’t, or just plain don’t want to, tone down their creatives are also presented here. A third part practical matters like dealing with reviews from offended readers, bans and blocks on social profiles, and thinking through disclosures and disclaimers, is included. A meaty final chapter discusses being smart about budgeting, setting ad performance expectations and measuring advertising results. This is a book about anticipating challenges, navigating around problems, and helping authors of steamy content understand their place in the marketing ecosystem. Its wisdom comes not only from romance novel marketing, but also from my experience advertising other restricted products for non-literary clients. Marketing Steamy Romance is crafted to transcend the advice of well-meaning marketing manuals-advice that simply doesn’t fit for purveyors of racy content-and to divert authors from mistakes that cost time, frustration and money.
