Guest post by Emily Lyman, CEO & Founder of Branch & Bramble
As book communities grow and develop, their expectations for publishers evolve with it. According to the 2025 Edelman Trust Barometer, overall trust has declined significantly, particularly trust in businesses. With people increasingly distrustful, this makes cultivating brand trust difficult, yet more important than ever before.
Luckily, the key to achieving trust and preventing backlash or boycotts is simple (but definitely not easy): empathetic marketing. This approach is a complete game changer with how you engage with readers, ensuring you stay relevant and achieve your sales goals.
What is Empathetic Marketing?
At its heart, empathetic marketing recognizes, understands, and appeals to the role that emotions have in the decision-making process. Neuroscientist Antonio Damasio famously said, “We are not thinking machines that feel; rather, we are feeling machines that think,” so it only makes sense that emotions would drive our buying behavior. However, too often, marketers across industries overlook the emotional motivators and focus solely on data—instead of effectively marrying the two.
For publishing, this means readers don’t just expect quality books—they expect publishers to align with their values, show transparency, and engage authentically. Book communities are vocal and interconnected, and they’re going to speak the loudest for brands that share their ideals. Publishers who cannot meet these expectations risk losing trust and their ability to remain competitive across widespread demographics. By practicing empathetic marketing and connecting with readers on an emotional level, publishers make genuine relationships that create lifelong fans.
Emotional Motivators for Connection
At the heart of empathetic marketing lies a deep understanding of emotional motivators. Readers aren’t just here for the books—they’re looking for an experience that resonates with them on a deeper level. They’re not reading dragon books just because they want a pet dragon—they also long for the relationships, community, and self worth the main characters develop along the way.
Knowing this, publishers can craft marketing campaigns that feel personal and purposeful. For example, instead of focusing solely on a book’s content, a campaign might highlight the themes of found family or the immersive setting of the story. An in-person activation is a great way to bring books to life in ways that are meaningful and marketable.
Putting Empathy into Action
Empathetic marketing isn’t just a concept—it’s a practice that publishers can start implementing right this minute. Start by listening to your target audience. Pay attention to reviews, social media conversations, and content that resonate most with your audience. Studies show that even the best marketers can have empathetic blind spots, so it’s important to view this as more than data gathering. It’s about understanding the values and emotions that drive their decisions.
Next, shift the focus of your storytelling throughout your marketing materials. Instead of centering your marketing around a book, share what kind of reading experience your audience can expect to have with the title. How will this story make them feel? How does it reflect their experiences or open their eyes to completely different points of view? If a reader can see themselves in your messaging, they’re more likely to connect, engage, and ultimately convert.
Finally, make engagement simple and meaningful. Whether it’s through a preorder incentive, an interactive newsletter, or a community-focused event, give readers clear and compelling ways to connect with your brand in a manner that will mean something to them. Forget a cheesy tchotchke (although everyone still loves bookmarks) and instead cultivate an experience that aligns with values data you’ve collected. These engagement efforts don’t have to be big to build trust—even small actions cultivate profound loyalty.
With BookTok and other marketing channels hanging in the balance, practicing empathetic marketing is crucial for publishers who want to survive and thrive. By recognizing the power of emotions in decision-making, aligning with reader values, and building meaningful connections, publishers can build trust that lasts and sells books.
Emily Lyman has spent a decade working in-house with global publishers such as Penguin Random House and Simon & Schuster managing both corporate and title marketing initiatives. Today, she is the CEO and Founder of Branch and Bramble, an award-winning marketing agency for lifestyle brands.
Emily’s specialty is in blending data with heart and values to create meaningful audience connections for my brand partners which include Patagonia and Paramount. She’s worked with companies with household names to individual authors just trying to get their books out in the world.
Publishing professionals from across the industry descended on Nashville, TN at the end of September to attend the Publishing Innovation Forum, hosted by the Firebrand Group. This premier in-person event was designed to unite individuals from various segments of the book publishing industry to share insights, explore new trends, and discuss strategies to adapt to a rapidly evolving publishing landscape. With approximately 150 participants, the forum encouraged collaboration and innovation, ensuring attendees gain valuable knowledge and connections to drive future success in the industry. Expert keynote presentations, and three dedicated breakout tracks for Business, Technology, and Marketing, resulted in lively conversation and important takeaways. For our audience at NetGalley Insights, we have collected some key themes and tips from the highly experienced speakers.
Attendees at the inaugural Publishing Innovation Forum, 2024
Session: Innovations in Book Promotion: Publicity Trends That Move the Needle
Speakers: Kimberly Sneed (Digital Media Director, PR by the book) and Marika Flatt (Owner, PR by the Book)
Kimberly Sneed and Marika Flatt of PR by the Book kicked off this session by explaining that the goal for publicity efforts is to drive author and book recognition, visibility, and overall exposure. The wider the name recognition in the world, the greater chance that book and that author have to build and grow. Exposure is extremely important in early promotional efforts because you are planting seeds for a long trail that follows, even into the backlist. Some important avenues for modern publicists to focus on include:
Podcasts: There are hundreds of thousands of podcasts available. Find the right ones in both subject matter and audience for your individual authors.
NetGalley and other platforms: Maximize title pages on every platform to include assets like videos, advanced praise, author pages or social media, etc.
Social Media: Both presence and promotion matter. Identify and engage with niche, micro audiences, prioritize authenticity, align your messaging with their values.
Immersive Storytelling Techniques: Design “expert” pages for your authors, create additional materials like exclusive content, serialized content, short videos, and adjacent narratives to drive engagement and customize media outreach.
One size does not fit all in book marketing and publicity. Step outside the box and don’t be afraid to try something new! No matter what, always connect and build on what you have. Sneed’s and Flatt’s approach is centered on flexibility, experimentation, and working closely with authors to tailor strategies to individual needs and audiences.
Session: Influencers vs. Community: Strategic Activation for Your Book Campaigns
Speakers: Sarah Walsh (Brand Strategist, Branch & Bramble) and Hallie Fields (Social Media Assistant Manager, NetGalley)
Each speaker presented two distinct yet powerful marketing approaches: Sarah Walsh highlighted influencer campaigns, while Hallie Fields emphasized community-driven campaigns.
Walsh showcased how partnerships with influencers can boost brand awareness, leaning on examples like #marcreadsabook and HarperCollins’ #shelvesinthecity. These examples demonstrated the importance of personalized and trend-focused initiatives. It’s important to note that these campaigns were certainly in the high-budget realm; however, there are lessons to be learned from these exciting campaigns that even a publisher with a smaller budget should keep in mind:
Jump on trends and interact with followers as part of the community, not an administrator or organizer.
Consider the best type of influences to engage. Micro influencers can have big engagement numbers.
Give influencers time and opportunity to tell their stories. Bring them to beautiful spaces, or give them Instagrammable assets.
Form ongoing partnerships, not just one-off posts, which allows the influencer to create ongoing content that is more organic and authentic.
Fields focused on examples from Camp NetGalley, a community-based challenge campaign, and #MyNetGalleyYear, an annually recurring checkpoint campaign. These examples encourage user-generated content (UGC) by asking audiences to complete a task and share it with their followers. These campaigns allow you to engage with, and unite, the entire community, and allow you to secure your brand’s place in a recurring social landscape.
Know your community. At NetGalley, we know our members love fun, nostalgic, interactive experiences, so we built Camp NetGalley with that in mind.
Prizes can be simple and digital! In the case of Camp NetGalley, it was a digital badge members can share, and which appear in their NetGalley accounts. For #MyNetGalleyYear, a template we created for them makes it easy for them to brag about everything they’ve read.
UGC is excellent to share back to your community, help them feel involved, and take some load off your own content creation.
Consider creating campaigns that can be recurring, which gives the community something to look forward to.
Both strategies – influencer campaigns and community engagement – underscore the importance of creating meaningful, relatable experiences that resonate with audiences, while maintaining authenticity and connection.
Session: Book Marketing at Any Budget
Speakers:
Kim Lauber (Vice President of Marketing at Abrams)
Ashley Marie Mireles-Guerrero (Director of Sales and Marketing at Familius Publishing)
Allison Marie Pond (Director of Marketing at Mad Cave Studios)
Jin Yu (Director of Marketing at Berkley/PRH)
It was exciting to see these top leaders from across the publishing spectrum in one space, delving into practical approaches for maximizing impact in the marketing, publicity, and advertising spaces. The collective in-house wisdom from publishers large and small, who publish across many diverse categories, was too vast to fully cover in this short article, but here are a few key points:
Know your audience: Identify where the niche is, where and in what format they will buy, speak to them directly, customize your metadata to reach them.
Maximize metadata to boost discoverability, and feed the search engine with more content – announcements, bumpers, reviews – which will expand your reach.
Not all marketing involves advertising, and not all marketing has to be expensive.
When you do advertising, consider self-serve ads where you can control where the spend is placed. If you do have an ad budget, consider Amazon ads which one speaker said “are expensive, but are worth it.”
Events are a good way to connect with your community. Library and bookseller communities are especially relationship-based. Be sure to identify what you want to get out of it before deciding to attend since they can be expensive.
Virtual events have lower cost and can work if you’re creative on how you approach them.
Give out QR codes or offer to include items in grab-bags, like bookmarks or other items, which are a great way to stimulate interest.
PR is a lot of effort, make the most of it. Continue to utilize the results and keep it updated, making sure to leverage any media hits by letting additional outlets know it’s being talked about.
Session: Building Brand Trust: The Role of Empathetic Marketing in Publishing
In this popular and engaging session, Lyman emphasized that understanding audience values and emotions is key to creating impactful marketing campaigns. By analyzing consumer patterns in reviews and social interactions, publishers can tailor their messaging to resonate with their audience, and shift from transactional hooks to more meaningful communications.
Our values drive our emotions, which drive our decisions.
Make small shifts toward empathy, like altering email subject lines to be more engaging vs. a flat statement or sales hook.
Example from Alleyoop: Their customer feedback popup doesn’t ask what kind of makeup they like, or why, but rather asks the consumer about themselves and what issues they want to solve. For instance, one response is “I can only spend 5 minutes on my makeup.”
To maintain authenticity as you move into more empathetic language, start shifting your hooks to focus on the consumer. Stop making statements like, “Available now!” and shift to how readers will benefit from it. Questions are a great way to do this. A more empathetic subject line would be, “Need more time with your family?”
Bottom line: Empathy strengthens the connection between brands and consumers.
Session: Challenges in Audiobook Marketing and How to Overcome Them
Barto began this session by pointing out three main audiobook audiences: those who want, need, or happen to discover audiobooks. She emphasized that each of these audiences listens to audiobooks for their own reasons and that marketers should keep each of them in mind when considering their marketing language and campaigns–your approach can and should be slightly different when promoting to people who love the audio format, versus those who need to listen to audiobooks due to lifestyle or accessibility constraints. And never forget about those listeners who don’t yet know that they will love audiobooks! A few tips from Barto:
Think about audiobook marketing holistically. Integrate audiobooks into the broader marketing efforts through all aspects of the launch and ongoing campaign efforts. Start by educating authors that the audiobook will be available and is just as exciting and desirable as the hardcover. Make sure you update audio metadata at the same times as you update the other formats’ metadata.
Incorporate audio-specific keywords in metadata. Keywords like “dual-narrator” or “full cast recording” are important.
Market the production process. Listeners romanticize the publishing and in-studio processes. Lean into this!
Encourage narrators to be part of the promotion. Offer them announcement assets to share, ask them to record in-studio content, and leverage their audiences.
Create custom content (bonus chapters, interviews, music, bloopers, etc). If you’re going to pitch bloopers as a fun, custom bit of content to media outlets, be sure you’ve asked the studio not to discard or cut these bloopers during the recording process.
Barto pointed out that some publishers still seem to hold on to the notion that audiobook sales will somehow cannibalize print sales, but there has been no evidence of this! If anything, consumers will seek out the format they want. Make it easy for them to find. Audiobooks are more likely to be an “in addition” purchase than they are to replace a print sale.
Overall Themes
As you can see, themes of audience-centric and empathetic messaging ran throughout all of these marketing-focused sessions. Our expert speakers encouraged a shift from pushing books at people and, instead, connecting with readers.
Remember that not every influential reader is a celebrity, and they won’t all ask you for thousands of dollars to promote your books. Identify your core micro influencers, niche communities, and those who are passionate about the types of books you publish. These are the influencers that will drive word of mouth for your books most effectively and authentically.
Don’t be afraid to experiment! Get creative. Find fun ways to engage with your audience. Try new advertising techniques and assess whether they work for you. Adjust as needed.
We are thrilled that the inaugural Publishing Innovation Forum was received so positively by attendees, who told us they were inspired and leaving Nashville equipped to try out some of the strategies outlined above. We hope to see you at another Publishing Innovation Forum in the future!
– The NetGalley Team
NetGalley team members at Publishing Innovation Forum, 2024: Lindsey Lochner, Kristina Radke, Hallie Fields, Tarah Theoret, Darcy Piedmonte
It’s been a couple of years since we last answered some of publishers’ burning questions about promoting audiobooks on NetGalley. Now, with even more data to draw upon, we’re excited to share updated recommendations for audiobook publishers!
How early should I add my audiobook to NetGalley?
As early as possible! In most cases, we’ve seen that publishers are uploading their audiobooks to NetGalley within one month of pub date. This makes sense for most audiobooks, where the final file is not available until very close to the release date. However, if you have a highly-anticipated title, consider building extra buffer time into the production schedule to take advantage of a longer pre-pub marketing timeline. This can help you piggy-back the audio format alongside the earliest marketing and publicity efforts for a simultaneous hardcover release.
67.5% of audiobooks are added to NetGalley 30 days or less prior to the pub date.* However, if you have a highly-anticipated title, consider building extra buffer time into the production schedule.
In the chart below, you will see that a small selection of titles were added to NetGalley much earlier than one month pre-pub.
67.5% of audiobooks are added to NetGalley 30 days or less prior to the pub date.
How long should my audiobook be available to NetGalley members?
3-4 months is our recommendation for audiobooks to remain active on NetGalley. Generally, the longer you keep an audiobook active on NetGalley, the more impressions it will receive, and we’ve seen that 90 – 120 days of activity is the sweet spot! Right now we’re seeing that most audiobooks are active on NetGalley for only 2 – 8 weeks but, based on our data, activity continues to grow all the way up to 4 months. Keep your audiobooks active for longer so you don’t miss out on members who discover and request a copy in those additional few weeks!
Audiobooks that are active on NetGalley for 90-120 days receive the most impressions, on average.
Audiobooks that are active on NetGalley for 90-120 days receive the most impressions, on average.
How can I drive more activity for my audiobook on NetGalley?
In addition to the organic interest that’s found on NetGalley, there are a number of ways to drive additional activity:
Widget: The NetGalley Widget is the quickest and easiest way to invite your key contacts to access your titles. Simply include the widget link in your pitch email and use our template language to ensure they have all the information they need to get started right away. This tool is included as part of your NetGalley subscription.
Detailed Activity & Feedback Reports – Use your Detailed Activity and Feedback reports for comp titles to identify key contacts who may be interested in your new title, and invite them to listen using the NetGalley widget. These reports, and more, are available on demand within your account.
NetGalley Promotions – Audiobooks can be included in any NetGalley promotion, from email promotions like newsletters and eBlasts, to on-site promotions like Category or Dashboard Spotlights, Featured Title placement, etc. There are also a number of audio-dedicated promotions available throughout the year. The link above suggests options based on specific goals like gaining overall exposure, introducing a new imprint, or driving activity during a particular time period. You can also view our Media Kit to see more information about open and click rates, editorial calendars, and pricing.
Audiobooks can be included in any NetGalley Promotion!
What should I expect from NetGalley members’ audiobook reviews?
In our article, How to Write an Audiobook Review, we recommend that NetGalley members discuss a number of audio-specific features in addition to commenting on the content of the book. For instance, we ask them to focus on the narration, discuss how the audiobook flows, mention unique elements like music or if it is a full-cast recording, and share a specific recommendation.
Members are highly likely to submit audiobook Feedback on NetGalley and share it widely with their audiences.
The Feedback Rate** for audiobooks is 58%, which continues to be higher, on average, than it is for digital review copies (36%). This means that approved members are highly likely to submit Feedback on NetGalley and share it widely with their audiences. We are thrilled that NetGalley members continue to embrace the audio format.
Kristina Radke is the Vice President of Business Growth and Engagement at NetGalley, a service that helps publishers and authors promote digital review copies and audiobooks to book advocates and industry professionals, including reviewers, booksellers, librarians, educators, media/journalists, and other book trade professionals. With over 15 years of experience in book marketing, publicity, and client relationships, Kristina joins us on the BookSmarts Podcast to discuss NetGalley’s expansion into the audiobook market, along with trends and strategies for publishers to be aware of when uploading audiobooks to NetGalley.
Data in this podcast is based on audiobooks created on NetGalley.com between July 1 2023 – June 30 2024 unless otherwise noted.
“For audiobooks, the feedback rate is absolutely astounding, we’re seeing about 60% of approved members sending their feedback in after listening to an audiobook.”
Joshua Tallent is an acclaimed teacher and guide on the role of data in publishing, and a vocal advocate for high quality book metadata. In his spare time, Joshua enjoys playing complex board games, playing Minecraft, and fiddling with his 3D printer.
NetGalley offers a wealth of insightful data that sheds light on the latest trends and preferences, and we’re thrilled to focus on Romantasy books this month. If you haven’t browsed Romance + Fantasy categories recently, you may be missing out! In the past 12 months, publishers have added over 550 new books that have both of these categories, generating a lot of engagement and excitement from the NetGalley community.
Read on for a glimpse at some of the Most Requested and Highly Rated Romantasy books
Although there is not a “Romantasy” category on NetGalley, we looked at books that publishers added to both the Romance and Fantasy categories on NetGalley. Here’s a glance at some of the top performers:
Most Requested*
On average, Romantasy books receive about 560 requests and auto-approvals. This includes activity generated when a publisher invites a reader to access the book using the NetGalley widget or makes the book available to ‘Read Now’, in addition to organic requests from NetGalley members. The Feedback Rate (amount of Feedback returned based on all types of approval) is 29%.
* Most requested status changes regularly.Books listed in this article were among the most requested in July 2024.
Top Performing**
** “Top Performers” refers to the amount of Feedback titles received. Books listed in this article were among the Top Performers in July 2024.
Case Study: Evocation by S.T. Gibson
Touted by NetGalley members as “Gibson’s best book to date”, Evocation had us intrigued with its opulent gothic fantasy vibes and fresh spin on the “romance” side of the “Romantasy” genre. Plus, who doesn’t love a secret society story? Here’s more of what NetGalley readers thought about Evocation by S.T. Gibson:
271 Feedback as of August 8, 2024
Average 3.8 star rating
100% of Booksellers would be likely to recommend this audiobook to their customers
Over 100 thumbs up on the cover!
Major love for the audiobook narrator – the majority of all member types on NetGalley said that they enjoyed the narrator!
Launch your frontlist or leverage your backlist! We have both on-site and email promotions for every budget, goal, and type of book. Learn more or view the full Media Kit here.
This Dedicated eBlast was sent to 14,700 members and saw a 67% open rate!
Information in this article is from July 2024, unless otherwise specified.Data includes details from NetGalley.com.
Catching the attention of readers in a crowded genre
Terina Adams, author of The Unbroken Queen, thought NetGalley was just for traditional publishers. She was pleasantly surprised to find a Romantasy audience eager for her books, and a new social media following who are now excited for the next book in her series.
In this case study, Adams shares her writing routine, the impact and importance of social media, and how NetGalley has helped The Unbroken Queen succeed in ways Adams could not have predicted.
Romantasy is a very popular genre right now! Did you always think that would be the direction you would take your writing?
I’m a very eclectic reader and have already written in four different genres under various pen names, so I’ll likely find my muse leading me to new genres in the future. I write for my enjoyment as well as for my readers, and I find it difficult to confine myself to just one genre. Currently, I’m thoroughly enjoying the romantasy genre and plan to stay here for a while—I already have another series planned and ready to begin.
Talk us through what a typical day of writing looks like for you.
I’m envious of all those morning people because that’s just not me. I love the idea of starting my day super early and finishing earlier, but my brain doesn’t function optimally first thing in the morning. My workday typically starts around 9:00 AM, after I’ve made my daily pilgrimage to the local coffee van and walked the dog. I usually warm up by re-reading the previous chapter. I used to write in one-hour blocks, taking at least a 10-minute break in between to move and stretch. However, I’ve recently purchased an under-the-desk treadmill, which has been fantastic. I can now work continuously until lunch. In the afternoon, I write for a few more hours and handle emails and the business side of writing. Depending on how my day goes, I usually wrap up around 4:00 PM and either go for a jog or walk the dog again.
How has social media impacted / influenced you as both a writer and a marketer?
Social media is definitely a weak point for me—it’s never been something I particularly enjoy, and so I have had to work at it. However, it can be an author’s best friend and a fantastic way to connect with readers. Gone are the days when authors were hidden behind a wall and readers had to send letters to publishers in the hope they may receive a reply from their favorite author. Social media allows authors to be real, personable, and foster direct relationships with their audience. It also has revolutionized book sales. Platforms like Bookstagram and BookTok have become essential hubs for avid readers to share recommendations and discover new books. These sites are invaluable for authors to stay in touch with trending tropes and understand what readers are looking for. Marketing on social media has taught me how to distill the core essence of my book into concise phrases, catchy memes, and enticing hooks. It’s a great way for authors to peel back the layers and get to the heart of describing their books.
I appreciate the extended availability period for my book and the diverse readership it reaches. NetGalley has helped me connect with readers I might not have been able to reach otherwise.
This is your first experience using NetGalley. What drew you to using our services for The Unbroken Queen?
I’m always looking for new ways to market my books, and one strategy I use is to get my book into as many readers’ hands as possible before release. I’ve experimented with different platforms and initially thought NetGalley was mainly for traditional publishers. However, once I explored it further, I was excited by the opportunities it offered. I appreciate the extended availability period for my book and the diverse readership it reaches. NetGalley has helped me connect with readers I might not have been able to reach otherwise.
Toni Morrison on rewriting says, “The revision for me is the exciting part; it’s the part that I can’t wait for—getting the whole dumb thing done so that I can do the real work, which is making it better and better and better.” Did you use any of the feedback or conversations you had from listing your book on NetGalley as an impetus to edit?
No, I didn’t. Most of the feedback I received from reviewers was based more on personal preferences rather than structural, plot, or character issues. As an author, it’s important to remember not to edit by committee. I rely on my developmental editor and a few trusted beta readers to prepare my book for publication. I would consider revising details if I saw recurring reviews mentioning significant issues, such as confusion about the plot, major plot holes, or errors. If there’s a recurring theme in their preferences, I might take that into account when starting another series.
What is your general rewriting process like from the time you start sharing your book with reviewers to when it’s in publication?
My rewriting process isn’t particularly lengthy because I do a lot of editing as I write. I also work with a developmental editor who helps address major structural, plot, and character issues. After that, I share the manuscript with trusted beta readers in my genre, who help fine-tune it. By the time the book reaches reviewers, I’ve already gone over it multiple times. If I notice recurring critiques from reviewers, I’ll make minor tweaks, but I usually leave the book as it is. However, I may take those critiques into consideration for my next series, especially if I believe they can help me craft a more compelling story. It’s important to remember you can’t write a book that pleases everyone.
Writing can be a lonely process, how has using NetGalley helped you build a community for your most recent book and how can you leverage that community for your forthcoming book?
NetGalley has been fantastic for building a community around my books. I’ve connected with Bookstagrammers I wouldn’t have reached otherwise, thanks to the platform’s extensive user base. With the second book in the series being released this month, NetGalley has provided me with a list of enthusiastic Bookstagrammers eager to review and feature it. It’s been an invaluable resource for expanding my reach and engaging with passionate readers.
The most crucial aspect of any book’s success is how well you market it to your target audience.
With over 4,000 Impressions, 500+ Members with Access, and more than 130 Members (and counting!) who have left Feedback, your book has gained a lot of traction since listing it in our catalog in March. What do you think makes your book stand out to readers?
Honestly, I’m not entirely sure, but it certainly helps that romantasy is a popular genre right now, with many readers actively seeking books in this category. However, the most crucial aspect of any book’s success is how well you market it to your target audience. First impressions matter, so your cover should be clear and genre-specific. It should stand out while still aligning with the visual expectations of the genre. Once you’ve caught the attention of your ideal reader with the cover, the blurb must then convince them the story inside is exactly what they’re looking for. It’s also beneficial to understand your genre conventions, and you’ll earn extra points if you’re familiar with beloved tropes within the genre. Knowing these elements can help you better meet readers’ expectations and enhance your book’s appeal.
Which specific features of NetGalley have felt the most exciting to you as you ushered your book into the world?
The NetGalley feature I loved the most was the promotions, which significantly boosted the visibility of my book after the initial excitement from its listing started to fade. The reports feature was also great, providing valuable insights into how readers were perceiving and receiving my book. It was fantastic to see positive responses to my cover and blurb, as they are crucial in shaping readers’ interest and expectations, and it was reassuring to know I got those right. I also enjoyed seeing how many people indicated they would recommend my book to others.
Where is the most value you have found in using NetGalley as a tool for The Unbroken Queen?
The most valuable aspect of using NetGalley for me has been connecting with Bookstagrammers and BookTokers. Book marketing often involves extensive outreach, and while you can DM book influencers and anyone on social media interested in books, it requires a lot of research to find the right people for your genre, and there’s no guarantee on how long their TBR list might be. NetGalley, however, provides access to a large list of avid readers already searching for their next read. I was thrilled to see how many people shared my book on their social media pages, sparking a lot of conversation around it.
With the archive date for your book in the fall, what do you hope to achieve on NetGalley in the next few months?
I’ve been very pleased with the results from NetGalley so far. I continue to receive requests, and I’m happy to let the process run its course until the archive date.
NetGalley has been the perfect complement to my other marketing efforts, helping to expand my book’s reach and visibility.
What are the takeaways you have gained from your experience using NetGalley and how will they impact marketing your forthcoming book, The Reluctant Queen?
I will definitely use NetGalley again. It’s an excellent way to reach a diverse range of readers effortlessly. The key is to build buzz around your book before its release, gathering a group of enthusiastic fans who are excited to discuss your book and share it with others. NetGalley has been the perfect complement to my other marketing efforts, helping to expand my book’s reach and visibility. Thanks to NetGalley, I have a list of Bookstagrammers and BookTokers who are keen to help me spread the buzz about the second in my series The Reluctant Queen.
