If you want your book to succeed, it needs to be seen—and when it comes to online book sales, Amazon is the biggest marketplace in the world. But here’s the truth: most authors know Amazon is important but have no idea how to make their books visible there.

Amazon Ads can change that. They’re not magic wands that turn a struggling book into a bestseller overnight, but they do provide steady, consistent momentum that builds over time. Done right, they can help your book gain visibility, attract the right readers, and keep sales growing long after launch day.

Why Amazon Ads Work

Amazon Ads improve your book’s chances of being discovered in three important ways:

• Boosting Best Seller Rank – Every single sale improves your ranking, which increases your visibility in Amazon’s category lists.
• Strengthening “Also Bought” Connections – Ads help your book appear alongside similar titles, connecting you to readers who enjoy books like yours.
• Improving Organic Search Results – Consistent sales tell Amazon’s algorithm your book is relevant, moving it higher in search results.

It all comes down to visibility: getting your book in front of people already looking for something like it. Once you’ve captured their attention, your book’s cover, description, and reviews do the rest.

Building Effective Amazon Ads

1. Structure Your Campaigns

Think of campaigns like separate “folders” for your marketing efforts:

• Auto-Targeting – Let Amazon’s algorithm find readers for you. Great for gathering data.
• Keyword Targeting – Choose specific search terms readers might use to find your book.
• Category & Product Targeting – Place your book alongside others in relevant categories or next to specific titles.

2. Choose the Right Targeting Method (or use all three)

Keywords:

• Start with broad, relevant phrases for your genre. Think about what real shoppers would be typing in to the search bar to find books like yours.
• Include author names, book titles, themes, settings, and plot elements related to your book.
• Don’t bloat your list with too many. Advertisers used to recommend adding as many keywords as Amazon would allow (1000), but now, best practice is to have a more focused list. Aim for 100 – 300 phrases. They’re easier to come up with than you think!

Categories:

• Target categories where your ideal readers browse.
• Test multiple categories and track which bring the best results. Then, you can take phrases associated with that category, or individual titles listed in its best seller list, and make new Individual Product and Keyword ads.

Individual Product Targeting:

• Target books your ideal readers already buy.
• Look for strong sellers without overwhelming competition.
• Use ASINs (Amazon’s product IDs) for precision targeting.

3. Set Budgets That Make Sense

• Cost Per Click (CPC): You decide how much you’re willing to pay Amazon when someone clicks on your ad. I recommend authors start around $0.35–$0.50, but this varies based on genre, royalty percentage, and the primary goal or desired outcome for the ads. Then, increase bids on strong performing targets and pause or lower the bid on underperformers.
• Daily Budget: $10/day per campaign is a good starting point, knowing you’ll often spend less than that.
• Monthly Budget: Spend only what you’re comfortable losing while testing. Many authors start around $100/month. Once your ads are profitable, you can increase the budget in $50 or $100 increments.

4. Monitor & Adjust Weekly

Look for:

• Keywords getting impressions but no clicks (remove or refine).
• Targets getting clicks but no sales (pause or replace).
• Winning keywords that could benefit from higher bids.

Amazon Ads work best when you approach them with the right mindset. They aren’t meant to turn a book into a best seller overnight like some other forms of marketing. What they accomplish I believe is much more important—a constant drip of new sales, new readers, new reviews, and new fans. This ensures your book never drifts into obscurity when your launch or promotion efforts are on pause. Start small, track your results, refine your targeting, and allow momentum to build overtime. When managed correctly, Amazon Ads can help your book become (and remain) a perennial seller.

If all this marketing/math talk sounds like a foreign language, you aren’t alone. Most authors struggle with this aspect of their writing career. Fortunately, our Amazon partner can assist. Contact us if you’re interested in having our partner work on your ads, improving them over time, and allowing you to focus on other marketing tasks, or most importantly: writing the next one.

Looking for more book marketing tips? Check out: 

• Why a Holistic Marketing Strategy Is Needed to Drive Book Sales for Self- and Hybrid Authors

• 3 Simple Ways to Earn Money from Your Book

• The Benefits of Using NetGalley for Authors