#how to use amazon keywords

[catgirltoofies]

link shortening

okay. let me tell you one of my pet peeves. it's when you send a link to something and the link takes up a full paragraph. amazon is especially egregious with this; as an example, i'm going to use the sweet essentials goat milk & honey perfume. here's the link i get if i just copy/paste it:

https://www.amazon.com/Goat-Honey-Fragrance-Perfume-Organic/dp/B07D5N4XRP/ref=sr_1_1?crid=368RN4BTXC5R9&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.0tHv-eu2F7iPFRQB2q9yXdLcYOv4rURViCCRfaecKCxZGmUW01KbdXZU3Q1GrGr9CUE97ZgO2tqSFilCtwDhBDwZrkPHvIwyX3KwtbHn1H2BjGo6Kv2RNKzHD4vUn6cdGQvpxat_DCpR1LJaDNrxuYElr7x_GZHixDS4r3SWdrQ67ov2O0MBOQ3F7vH9sclQyOCOsPB-xuzdAbugWTjAw7PODjXTSswWuLJG56uZkMUaJ5ob8xIEy6tpHvu21E8uYKJtnWdyGBoK5Wd5mo7S3urQt-rJX9twnr3RwS0Kk_s.kW9z0gieuOP4prMF2tSrHmrMuB8XObk-xguJ8Cub1YI&dib_tag=se&keywords=sweet+essentials+goat+milk+and+honey+perfume&qid=1726618258&sprefix=sweet+essentials+goat+milk+and+honey+perfume%2Caps%2C58&sr=8-1

do you see this shit? that link is longer than my introduction paragraph. and most of it is totally unnecessary and just gives amazon tracking data. so i'm going to quick breakdown the link:

https://www.amazon.com/ is the domain. this tells your browser to go to the internet, to amazon's address. can't do without.

Goat-Honey-Fragrance-Perfume-Organic/dp/B07D5N4XRP/ is the sort of directory. this is where the meat of the link is; it gives the browser the information of where in the amazon domain it should look for what you're looking for. sort of like when you ask a librarian where a book is and they say "it's in this area of the library, i can show you if you like"

every single thing after that is optional. most, if not all, of it is just tracking data that tells amazon who looked it up, how, where they found it, etc. etc. and you can totally safely remove it.

so, our final, shortened link is:

https://www.amazon.com/Goat-Honey-Fragrance-Perfume-Organic/dp/B07D5N4XRP/

and you can test it for yourself, both the really long link and this nice clipped link lead to the same page. this is generally applicable to most websites; if a link feels a little too long, experiment and start removing bits off the end. generally anything that shows up after "?[text]=" is probably safe to remove, as with "&[text]=". sometimes those have particular jobs, though; for example, youtube links with a particular timestamp will include "&t=[number]s" and while removing this will keep the link to the video, it will remove the timestamp. similarly, youtube sometimes uses "&v=[text]" to encode the id of a video, so without that you're left with just the youtube homepage. if a link has "?si=[text]", that's all safe to remove, because that's pure tracking data.

in short: clip your links. don't give them any more than you need to. experiment a little. have fun and be yourself. i love you

[asiqbal6]

How to put keywords on Amazon ? Use of keywords on Amazon

To put keywords on Amazon effectively, follow these steps: 1. Product Title: Place the most important keywords related to your product at the beginning of the title. Keep it concise and readable, while incorporating relevant terms that customers might use when searching for your product. 2. Bullet Points and Description: Integrate keywords naturally in your bullet points and product…

[mostlysignssomeportents]

Even if you think AI search could be good, it won’t be good

TONIGHT (May 15), I'm in NORTH HOLLYWOOD for a screening of STEPHANIE KELTON'S FINDING THE MONEY; FRIDAY (May 17), I'm at the INTERNET ARCHIVE in SAN FRANCISCO to keynote the 10th anniversary of the AUTHORS ALLIANCE.

The big news in search this week is that Google is continuing its transition to "AI search" – instead of typing in search terms and getting links to websites, you'll ask Google a question and an AI will compose an answer based on things it finds on the web:

https://blog.google/products/search/generative-ai-google-search-may-2024/

Google bills this as "let Google do the googling for you." Rather than searching the web yourself, you'll delegate this task to Google. Hidden in this pitch is a tacit admission that Google is no longer a convenient or reliable way to retrieve information, drowning as it is in AI-generated spam, poorly labeled ads, and SEO garbage:

https://pluralistic.net/2024/05/03/keyword-swarming/#site-reputation-abuse

Googling used to be easy: type in a query, get back a screen of highly relevant results. Today, clicking the top links will take you to sites that paid for placement at the top of the screen (rather than the sites that best match your query). Clicking further down will get you scams, AI slop, or bulk-produced SEO nonsense.

AI-powered search promises to fix this, not by making Google search results better, but by having a bot sort through the search results and discard the nonsense that Google will continue to serve up, and summarize the high quality results.

Now, there are plenty of obvious objections to this plan. For starters, why wouldn't Google just make its search results better? Rather than building a LLM for the sole purpose of sorting through the garbage Google is either paid or tricked into serving up, why not just stop serving up garbage? We know that's possible, because other search engines serve really good results by paying for access to Google's back-end and then filtering the results:

https://pluralistic.net/2024/04/04/teach-me-how-to-shruggie/#kagi

Another obvious objection: why would anyone write the web if the only purpose for doing so is to feed a bot that will summarize what you've written without sending anyone to your webpage? Whether you're a commercial publisher hoping to make money from advertising or subscriptions, or – like me – an open access publisher hoping to change people's minds, why would you invite Google to summarize your work without ever showing it to internet users? Nevermind how unfair that is, think about how implausible it is: if this is the way Google will work in the future, why wouldn't every publisher just block Google's crawler?

A third obvious objection: AI is bad. Not morally bad (though maybe morally bad, too!), but technically bad. It "hallucinates" nonsense answers, including dangerous nonsense. It's a supremely confident liar that can get you killed:

https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2023/sep/01/mushroom-pickers-urged-to-avoid-foraging-books-on-amazon-that-appear-to-be-written-by-ai

The promises of AI are grossly oversold, including the promises Google makes, like its claim that its AI had discovered millions of useful new materials. In reality, the number of useful new materials Deepmind had discovered was zero:

https://pluralistic.net/2024/04/23/maximal-plausibility/#reverse-centaurs

This is true of all of AI's most impressive demos. Often, "AI" turns out to be low-waged human workers in a distant call-center pretending to be robots:

https://pluralistic.net/2024/01/31/neural-interface-beta-tester/#tailfins

Sometimes, the AI robot dancing on stage turns out to literally be just a person in a robot suit pretending to be a robot:

https://pluralistic.net/2024/01/29/pay-no-attention/#to-the-little-man-behind-the-curtain

The AI video demos that represent "an existential threat to Hollywood filmmaking" turn out to be so cumbersome as to be practically useless (and vastly inferior to existing production techniques):

https://www.wheresyoured.at/expectations-versus-reality/

But let's take Google at its word. Let's stipulate that:

a) It can't fix search, only add a slop-filtering AI layer on top of it; and

b) The rest of the world will continue to let Google index its pages even if they derive no benefit from doing so; and

c) Google will shortly fix its AI, and all the lies about AI capabilities will be revealed to be premature truths that are finally realized.

AI search is still a bad idea. Because beyond all the obvious reasons that AI search is a terrible idea, there's a subtle – and incurable – defect in this plan: AI search �� even excellent AI search – makes it far too easy for Google to cheat us, and Google can't stop cheating us.

Remember: enshittification isn't the result of worse people running tech companies today than in the years when tech services were good and useful. Rather, enshittification is rooted in the collapse of constraints that used to prevent those same people from making their services worse in service to increasing their profit margins:

https://pluralistic.net/2024/03/26/glitchbread/#electronic-shelf-tags

These companies always had the capacity to siphon value away from business customers (like publishers) and end-users (like searchers). That comes with the territory: digital businesses can alter their "business logic" from instant to instant, and for each user, allowing them to change payouts, prices and ranking. I call this "twiddling": turning the knobs on the system's back-end to make sure the house always wins:

https://pluralistic.net/2023/02/19/twiddler/

What changed wasn't the character of the leaders of these businesses, nor their capacity to cheat us. What changed was the consequences for cheating. When the tech companies merged to monopoly, they ceased to fear losing your business to a competitor.

Google's 90% search market share was attained by bribing everyone who operates a service or platform where you might encounter a search box to connect that box to Google. Spending tens of billions of dollars every year to make sure no one ever encounters a non-Google search is a cheaper way to retain your business than making sure Google is the very best search engine:

https://pluralistic.net/2024/02/21/im-feeling-unlucky/#not-up-to-the-task

Competition was once a threat to Google; for years, its mantra was "competition is a click away." Today, competition is all but nonexistent.

Then the surveillance business consolidated into a small number of firms. Two companies dominate the commercial surveillance industry: Google and Meta, and they collude to rig the market:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jedi_Blue

That consolidation inevitably leads to regulatory capture: shorn of competitive pressure, the companies that dominate the sector can converge on a single message to policymakers and use their monopoly profits to turn that message into policy:

https://pluralistic.net/2022/06/05/regulatory-capture/

This is why Google doesn't have to worry about privacy laws. They've successfully prevented the passage of a US federal consumer privacy law. The last time the US passed a federal consumer privacy law was in 1988. It's a law that bans video store clerks from telling the newspapers which VHS cassettes you rented:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Video_Privacy_Protection_Act

In Europe, Google's vast profits lets it fly an Irish flag of convenience, thus taking advantage of Ireland's tolerance for tax evasion and violations of European privacy law:

https://pluralistic.net/2023/05/15/finnegans-snooze/#dirty-old-town

Google doesn't fear competition, it doesn't fear regulation, and it also doesn't fear rival technologies. Google and its fellow Big Tech cartel members have expanded IP law to allow it to prevent third parties from reverse-engineer, hacking, or scraping its services. Google doesn't have to worry about ad-blocking, tracker blocking, or scrapers that filter out Google's lucrative, low-quality results:

https://locusmag.com/2020/09/cory-doctorow-ip/

Google doesn't fear competition, it doesn't fear regulation, it doesn't fear rival technology and it doesn't fear its workers. Google's workforce once enjoyed enormous sway over the company's direction, thanks to their scarcity and market power. But Google has outgrown its dependence on its workers, and lays them off in vast numbers, even as it increases its profits and pisses away tens of billions on stock buybacks:

https://pluralistic.net/2023/11/25/moral-injury/#enshittification

Google is fearless. It doesn't fear losing your business, or being punished by regulators, or being mired in guerrilla warfare with rival engineers. It certainly doesn't fear its workers.

Making search worse is good for Google. Reducing search quality increases the number of queries, and thus ads, that each user must make to find their answers:

https://pluralistic.net/2024/04/24/naming-names/#prabhakar-raghavan

If Google can make things worse for searchers without losing their business, it can make more money for itself. Without the discipline of markets, regulators, tech or workers, it has no impediment to transferring value from searchers and publishers to itself.

Which brings me back to AI search. When Google substitutes its own summaries for links to pages, it creates innumerable opportunities to charge publishers for preferential placement in those summaries.

This is true of any algorithmic feed: while such feeds are important – even vital – for making sense of huge amounts of information, they can also be used to play a high-speed shell-game that makes suckers out of the rest of us:

https://pluralistic.net/2024/05/11/for-you/#the-algorithm-tm

When you trust someone to summarize the truth for you, you become terribly vulnerable to their self-serving lies. In an ideal world, these intermediaries would be "fiduciaries," with a solemn (and legally binding) duty to put your interests ahead of their own:

https://pluralistic.net/2024/05/07/treacherous-computing/#rewilding-the-internet

But Google is clear that its first duty is to its shareholders: not to publishers, not to searchers, not to "partners" or employees.

AI search makes cheating so easy, and Google cheats so much. Indeed, the defects in AI give Google a readymade excuse for any apparent self-dealing: "we didn't tell you a lie because someone paid us to (for example, to recommend a product, or a hotel room, or a political point of view). Sure, they did pay us, but that was just an AI 'hallucination.'"

The existence of well-known AI hallucinations creates a zone of plausible deniability for even more enshittification of Google search. As Madeleine Clare Elish writes, AI serves as a "moral crumple zone":

https://estsjournal.org/index.php/ests/article/view/260

That's why, even if you're willing to believe that Google could make a great AI-based search, we can nevertheless be certain that they won't.

If you'd like an essay-formatted version of this post to read or share, here's a link to it on pluralistic.net, my surveillance-free, ad-free, tracker-free blog:

https://pluralistic.net/2024/05/15/they-trust-me-dumb-fucks/#ai-search

Image: Cryteria (modified) https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:HAL9000.svg

CC BY 3.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/deed.en

--

djhughman https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Modular_synthesizer_-_%22Control_Voltage%22_electronic_music_shop_in_Portland_OR_-_School_Photos_PCC_%282015-05-23_12.43.01_by_djhughman%29.jpg

CC BY 2.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/deed.en

[tozettastone]

I had a problem getting a book delivered recently. I got my book in the end, so it's fine. It was just... Auspost being Auspost (repeatedly telling me I had "refused" delivery — sure, okay).

But when I was complaining about Auspost, two of the people I know were like, "Oh, goodness, whyever didn't you just buy it from Amazon? This never happens with Amazon."

I don't know if that's actually true, really; it seems like Auspost would fuck around regardless of sender. But even if it is... I really just like to cut Amazon out of the process when it's convenient and practical to do so? It's so nice to patronise your local indie bookseller. You feel like a force in favour of the underdogs of the world, drifting by and benevolently ordering the stupidest urban fantasy book you can find.

So that aside, I actually did contact my local indie bookseller via the contact form on its website. I wanted to check what to do in future (to excise Auspost from the process).

There was no saccharine chatbot experience and no generic response based on keywords and definitely no "Here's 160 help topics in an interminable decision tree! Please don't talk to us! Ever!"

They just ignored me over the weekend because it was the weekend. And then an actual person replied to me on the next business day. She had the specific answer to the specific question I asked. Next time I want a book that's not in stock, yes, I can call up and order it to their store and just come to the store and pick it up when it arrives, even though they do not yet have an online click and collect system. How very 1998 of them.

Call me old fashioned if you like, but this is truly the experience I wanted. ┐⁠(⁠ ⁠˘⁠_⁠˘⁠)⁠┌

[warningsine]

Living online means never quite understanding what’s happening to you at a given moment. Why these search results? Why this product recommendation? There is a feeling—often warranted, sometimes conspiracy-minded—that we are constantly manipulated by platforms and websites.

So-called dark patterns, deceptive bits of web design that can trick people into certain choices online, make it harder to unsubscribe from a scammy or unwanted newsletter; they nudge us into purchases. Algorithms optimized for engagement shape what we see on social media and can goad us into participation by showing us things that are likely to provoke strong emotional responses. But although we know that all of this is happening in aggregate, it’s hard to know specifically how large technology companies exert their influence over our lives.

This week, Wired published a story by the former FTC attorney Megan Gray that illustrates the dynamic in a nutshell. The op-ed argued that Google alters user searches to include more lucrative keywords. For example, Google is said to surreptitiously replace a query for “children’s clothing” with “NIKOLAI-brand kidswear” on the back end in order to direct users to lucrative shopping links on the results page. It’s an alarming allegation, and Ned Adriance, a spokesperson for Google, told me that it’s “flat-out false.” Gray, who is also a former vice president of the Google Search competitor DuckDuckGo, had seemingly misinterpreted a chart that was briefly presented during the company’s ongoing U.S. et al v. Google trial, in which the company is defending itself against charges that it violated federal antitrust law. (That chart, according to Adriance, represents a “phrase match” feature that the company uses for its ads product; “Google does not delete queries and replace them with ones that monetize better as the opinion piece suggests, and the organic results you see in Search are not affected by our ads systems,” he said.)

Gray told me, “I stand by my larger point—the Google Search team and Google ad team worked together to secretly boost commercial queries, which triggered more ads and thus revenue. Google isn’t contesting this, as far as I know.” In a statement, Chelsea Russo, another Google spokesperson, reiterated that the company’s products do not work this way and cited testimony from Google VP Jerry Dischler that “the organic team does not take data from the ads team in order to affect its ranking and affect its result.” Wired did not respond to a request for comment. Last night, the publication removed the story from its website, noting that it does not meet Wired’s editorial standards.

It’s hard to know what to make of these competing statements. Gray’s specific facts may be wrong, but the broader concerns about Google’s business—that it makes monetization decisions that could lead the product to feel less useful or enjoyable—form the heart of the government’s case against the company. None of this is easy to untangle in plain English—in fact, that’s the whole point of the trial. For most of us, evidence about Big Tech’s products tends to be anecdotal or fuzzy—more vibes-based than factual. Google may not be altering billions of queries in the manner that the Wired story suggests, but the company is constantly tweaking and ranking what we see, while injecting ads and proprietary widgets into our feed, thereby altering our experience. And so we end up saying that Google Search is less useful now or that shopping on Amazon has gotten worse. These tools are so embedded in our lives that we feel acutely that something is off, even if we can’t put our finger on the technical problem.

That’s changing. In the past month, thanks to a series of antitrust actions on behalf of the federal government, hard evidence of the ways that Silicon Valley’s biggest companies are wielding their influence is trickling out. Google’s trial is under way, and while the tech giant is trying to keep testimony locked down, the past four weeks have helped illustrate—via internal company documents and slide decks like the one cited by Wired—how Google has used its war chest to broker deals and dominate the search market. Perhaps the specifics of Gray’s essay were off, but we have learned, for instance, how company executives considered adjusting Google’s products to lead to more “monetizable queries.” And just last week, the Federal Trade Commission filed a lawsuit against Amazon alleging anticompetitive practices. (Amazon has called the suit “misguided.”)

Filings related to that suit have delivered a staggering revelation concerning a secretive Amazon algorithm code-named Project Nessie. The particulars of Nessie were heavily redacted in the public complaint, but this week The Wall Street Journal revealed details of the program. According to the unredacted complaint, a copy of which I have also viewed, Nessie—which is no longer in use—monitored industry prices of specific goods to determine whether competitors were algorithmically matching Amazon’s prices. In the event that competitors were, Nessie would exploit this by systematically raising prices on goods across Amazon, encouraging its competitors to follow suit. Amazon, via the algorithm, knew that it would be able to charge more on its own site, because it didn’t have to worry about being undercut elsewhere, thereby making the broader online shopping experience worse for everyone. An Amazon spokesperson told the Journal that the FTC is mischaracterizing the tool, and suggested that Nessie was a way to monitor competitor pricing and keep price-matching algorithms from dropping prices to unsustainable levels (the company did not respond to my request for comment).

In the FTC’s telling, Project Nessie demonstrates the sheer scope of Amazon’s power in online markets. The project arguably amounted to a form of unilateral price fixing, where Amazon essentially goaded its competitors into acting like cartel members without even knowing they’d done so—all while raising prices on consumers. It’s an astonishing form of influence, powered by behind-the-scenes technology.

The government will need to prove whether this type of algorithmic influence is illegal. But even putting legality aside, Project Nessie is a sterling example of the way that Big Tech has supercharged capitalistic tendencies and manipulated markets in unnatural and opaque ways. It demonstrates the muscle that a company can throw around when it has consolidated its position in a given sector. The complaint alleges that Amazon’s reach and logistics capabilities force third-party sellers to offer products on Amazon and for lower prices than other retailers. Once it captured a significant share of the retail market, Amazon was allegedly able to use algorithmic tools such as Nessie to drive prices up for specific products, boosting revenues and manipulating competitors.

Reading about Project Nessie, I was surprised to feel a sense of relief. In recent years, customer-satisfaction ratings have dipped among Amazon shoppers who have cited delivery disruptions, an explosion of third-party sellers, and poor-quality products as reasons for frustration. In my own life and among friends and relatives, there has been a growing feeling that shopping on the platform has become a slog, with fewer deals and far more junk to sift through. Again, these feelings tend to occupy vibe territory: Amazon’s bigness seems stifling or grating in ways that aren’t always easy to explain. But Nessie offers a partial explanation for this frustration, as do revelations about Google’s various product adjustments. We have the sense that we’re being manipulated because, well, we are. It’s a bit like feeling vaguely sick, going to the doctor, and receiving a blood-test result confirming that, yes, the malaise you experienced is actually an iron deficiency. It is the catharsis of, at long last, receiving a diagnosis.

This is the true power of the surge in anti-monopoly litigation. (According to experts in the field, September was “the most extraordinary month they have ever seen in antitrust.”) Whether or not any of these lawsuits results in corporate breakups or lasting change, they are, effectively, an MRI of our sprawling digital economy—a forensic look at what these larger-than-life technology companies are really doing, and how they are exerting their influence and causing damage. It is confirmation that what so many of us have felt—that the platforms dictating our online experiences are behaving unnaturally and manipulatively—is not merely a paranoid delusion, but the effect of an asymmetrical relationship between the giants of scale and us, the users.

In recent years, it’s been harder to love the internet, a miracle of connectivity that feels ever more bloated, stagnant, commercialized, and junkified. We are just now starting to understand the specifics of this transformation—the true influence of Silicon Valley’s vise grip on our lives. It turns out that the slow rot we might feel isn’t just in our heads, after all.

[the960writers]

Most self-publishers know that the keywords you choose play an important role when it comes to showing up for certain searches. However, knowing what to do with keywords can get complicated.

Amazon presents us with seven boxes in which we can enter our desired target Kindle keywords. In each box, we can use up to 50 characters, which allows us to either put in a particular target phrase we want to rank for or fill up the box to include as many phrases as possible.

Some book marketing gurus argue that you should use up as many of the available characters as possible, while others believe you should only enter a target phrase. This conflicting advice has left lots of authors scratching their heads, wondering how to actually approach their Kindle keywords.

Well, in this article, I’m going to use data we gained from experimentation to provide the most optimal way to fill in your seven Kindle keywords.

---

Table of contents

What are the 7 Kindle Keyword Boxes?

Terminology For This Article

The Experiment with Kindle Keywords

So, Here is What Authors Should Do

Step 1 : Find 1-3 Keyword Specific Phrases

Step 2 : Find 1-2 to Target Specific Categories

Step 3 : For the Rest, Fill in With Niche Specific Terms and Phrases

6 Questions Answered By the Experiment

[souryogurt64]

where do you shop? i love your fits sm

In my pinned post I am wearing a top from etsy layered over a tank top from amazon, a skirt from romwe, a belt from amazon, doc martens, various jewelry mostly secondhand except for the big cross necklace. which i cut the cross off a dress from dolls kill and put it on a big chain.

to be honest, i spend a lot of time looking at inspo on tiktok or paying attention in movies/tv and thinking about how i can recreate it with things i already own or what specific pieces i need for an aesthetic i want that are suited to my style, and then i try to find or create the perfect item primarily using google lens/keywords and online secondhand retailers. i also have been focusing on reducing my closet a lot so i can concentrate on the items that are how i want to dress instead of feeling overwhelmed and wearing the same mcr sweatshirt and jeans every day for months.

like for example, if i see a tiktok of a girl in a red maxi skirt and tank top with a bunch of necklaces that looks great. i dont run out and buy red stuff from her TikTok shop because i hate wearing red. i also dont like how my arms look in tank tops. so ill think about what maxi skirts, jewelry, and tops i already own in colors/shapes i like that can emulate a similar vibe to her.

or like for example i recently saw a whimsigoth aesthetic TikTok that included a bunch of butterfly watches, and i was immediately obsessed, so i spent a long time looking using keywords and didnt find any i liked. but through using Google Lens on ones similar to what I wanted, I ended up finding a watch face i liked but with a big ugly mens metal band on a more obscure vintage site called Grailed. so i bought a plain black leather band on amazon and had a local watch shop replace the band, its perfect, and ive worn it every day since.

hope that helps!!

[ballsballsbowls]

Stuff Your Kindle Day Part 4/5

People actually wanted to know what I was thinking and feeling and finding re SYKD this time, and we actually have multiple days of warning before SYKD so I have a little free time.

I'll throw out a few things to keep in mind and the slap the rest under a readmore since I assume the average person here doesn't want to read romance books.

Blah Blah SYKD website. There were 2000+ books last time and there’s definitely more this time.

Blah blah kindle but there’s other stores, too, if you don’t do kindle.

SYKD is tomorrow, June 20th.

If you’ve ever wondered how I end up finding some of the books that I read, it’s exactly what I’m doing here: reading a blurb and tags and going “…wild. Anyway, the price is right” and buying it anyway.

Sci-Fi Romance

Observations:

This category was a pleasant surprise! They had a wider variety of things than usual, though it’s overwhelmingly 100 pages or less and still a LOT of alien romance and it's easily the shortest category.

Oviposition short story? In SYKD? Normally SYKD is so big it's kind of regression to the mean, so this is buckwild for them.

Looks Interesting:

Her Alien Florida Man by Nessa Claugh Getting roped into the Florida Man Olympics by an attractive alien wasn’t on my to do list. Elwoth’s misunderstanding of what humans do in the Sunshine State is cute until I find myself mud wrestling with alligators, dodging trains, and explaining every Florida Man headline until I’m as purple in the face as he is. He has two days to convince me that his killer smile is harmless and that the headline 'Florida Woman Falls for Alien' could be something worth making. Keywords: opposites attract, golden retriever black cat, plus size fmc GET Her Alien Florida Man FOR FREE ON KINDLE: Amazon US | Amazon UK | Amazon Canada | Amazon Australia

A Tail For Halloween by Sylvia Morrow A lonely gas station worker visits a Halloween party at the estate of the wealthy town recluse, hoping to find love. What she finds instead is trouble—and a tall, handsome alien with a long tail, and a strange sidekick, looking to save her. She can’t tell if this big tiger with a shoe fetish is crazy or if he’s telling the truth about where he’s from; all she knows is she wants to know more about where he’s going. Keywords: Sassy pet sidekick, tail play, lots of fluids, spaceship, kidnapped by a bad guy, someone gets eaten because it’s a Sylvia Morrow book, sci-fi Cinderella with shoe sniffing, language barrier, fated mates, himbo, alien technology, he falls first, dual POV, holiday, he heals her, sweaty feet GET A Tail For Halloween FOR FREE ON KINDLE: Amazon US | Amazon UK | Amazon Canada | Amazon Australia

The Price of Talent: A Spicy Dystopian Romance Series, Books 1-4 by AK Nevermore On an alternate earth, a cataclysm has altered a subset of the population. Talents are persecuted for their psychic and physical mutations, giving rise to two conflicting societies based upon maintaining genetic purity. And the Source, a shadowy corporate entity dependent upon the exploitation of captive Talents, is hunting them... Keywords: post-apocalyptic, touch him/her and die, alpha-hole, morally gray, psychic powers GET The Price of Talent: A Spicy Dystopian Romance Series, Books 1-4 FOR FREE ON KINDLE: Amazon US | Amazon UK | Amazon Canada | Amazon Australia

Monstrous Heat by Joely Sue Burkhart I’m lost in the jungle, and something that looks like a cross between a T-rex and raptor is stalking me. He claims that I can help him through the heat, but I'm afraid that I'm next on his menu. I don't think I'm getting out of the jungle alive. Keywords: monster romance, alien super soldiers, dinosaur shifters, reverse harem, steamy, unusual peens GET Monstrous Heat FOR FREE ON KINDLE: Amazon US | Amazon UK | Amazon Canada | Amazon Australia

I’ve read other books by the same author and recommend:

None

I’ve read this specific book and would recommend:

None

[leegeepublishing]

The Top Book Marketing Strategies That Actually Work in 2025

Let’s be honest—writing a book is hard. But marketing it? That’s where many authors hit a wall. Especially in 2025, when algorithms shift overnight and everyone seems to be an influencer. If you're a self-published or indie author, you're probably juggling everything—from editing and formatting to panicking over your Amazon sales rank at 2 a.m.

Good news: you’re not alone. Even better? You don’t have to throw spaghetti at the wall to see what sticks. Let’s talk about what actually works right now—and how you can spend more time writing and less time screaming into the void.

📚 Amazon Is Still the Beast—Tame It

Amazon’s not just the world's biggest bookstore. It’s a search engine, a recommender system, and, for indie authors, the make-or-break platform. If you’re not treating your Amazon listing like a digital storefront, you’re missing a huge opportunity.

Here’s the thing: a catchy title and pretty cover aren’t enough. You’ll need:

SEO-optimized keywords in your book description (think like a reader, not a writer)

Author Central profile that links your books, bio, and blog

Strategic pricing—launching at $0.99 or using Kindle Countdown Deals still works

Consistent reviews, even if it’s just from your writing group at first

And yes, ads. Amazon Ads can help, but only if you know how to use them without torching your budget. This is where a platform like Legee Publishing can help. They specialize in getting your book placed on Amazon, guiding you with targeted advertising strategies without making you feel like you're selling your soul to spreadsheets.

🎯 Your Niche Is Your Power—Own It

Too many authors try to market their book to “everyone.” That’s a trap.

Ask yourself: Who is this book actually for? Is it a cozy mystery for retired teachers? A dark fantasy for Gen Z TikTokers? A memoir for women in their 40s rediscovering themselves?

Drill down. Then double down.

Use that niche to:

Create super-specific ads

Write blog posts around topics your readers care about

Connect in online communities where they actually hang out

And don’t underestimate genre loyalty. Romance readers, for example, are often voracious, supportive, and love series. If that’s your lane, stay in it—and serve your audience with consistency and care.

💌 Email Isn’t Dead—It Just Got Smarter

You know those “Join My Newsletter” buttons that nobody clicks anymore? Yeah, those are dead. But email itself? Very much alive—if you know how to make it worth opening.

Here’s what works:

Lead magnets that aren’t boring (a free novella, exclusive art, a deleted scene)

Reader magnets that keep people on your list (monthly updates, behind-the-scenes notes, even Spotify playlists for your characters)

Segmentation so fantasy readers don’t get your nonfiction rants

Your list is your lifeline. Social platforms can shadowban you. Amazon can delist you. But your email list? That’s yours.

🔄 Don’t Just Post—Engage (Yes, It’s a Buzzword, But It Works)

Social media still matters. But not the way it used to. It’s no longer about how often you post—it’s about how often people care.

Quick tip: Pick one platform. Seriously, just one. Trying to do TikTok, Instagram, X (still weird calling it that), Threads, and Facebook will burn you out faster than a NaNoWriMo caffeine crash.

Some tactics that work in 2025:

Instagram Reels with behind-the-scenes writing clips or “BookTok”-style mood boards

TikTok snippets showing emotional reactions to your book

Authentic engagement (commenting like a real human, not a robot quoting your blurb)

Also, fun side note: many authors are finding success by linking their book not in every post, but every third one. Keeps the vibe less salesy.

🧠 Content Marketing (But Make It Reader-Friendly)

Blogging isn’t dead—it’s just evolved. Readers still Google stuff. Things like:

“Books like The Silent Patient”

“Best LGBTQ+ sci-fi reads”

“How to survive heartbreak with poetry”

If your site shows up for those searches, guess what? You get new eyeballs. And if your blog’s fun, insightful, and links to your book, you get new readers.

Better yet, platforms like Legee Publishing offer helpful guidance on how to promote your work beyond just Amazon. They're expanding to places like IngramSpark and Barnes & Noble, which means you’re not boxed into just one retailer. More shelf space (virtual or otherwise) equals more chances to connect with the right readers.

💬 Word of Mouth, But Make It Strategic

"Just get people talking about it" sounds great—until you realize people don’t talk about stuff they haven’t read. Or worse, stuff they’ve read and forgotten.

So, here’s how to jump-start buzz:

Give early readers a reason to care (think ARC teams, private groups, sneak peeks)

Include discussion questions for book clubs (yes, even for fiction—it works!)

Encourage reviews... but in a non-desperate way (like adding a thank-you note at the end of your eBook that gently asks for one)

Also, don’t overlook author collaborations. A quick shoutout swap or cross-promo between two indie authors in the same genre? Still one of the most powerful ways to grow.

🛠️ You Don’t Have to Do It Alone (Seriously)

Let’s face it—marketing isn’t every writer’s jam. And that’s okay. You didn’t pour your soul into a novel just to spend all day tweaking ad copy and wondering why your click-through rate dropped.

That’s where folks like Legee Publishing come in. They don’t just list your book—they help you understand how to make it shine. Whether it’s setting up your Amazon listing, exploring new sellers like IngramSpark and B&N, or figuring out how to actually connect with readers who want what you're offering—they’ve got your back.

Final Thought: The Story Doesn’t End After “The End”

You wrote a book. That’s no small thing. But finishing the story? That’s only half the journey. The rest? It’s about telling people why your story matters—and why they should care enough to read it.

And in 2025, that means being a little savvy, a little strategic, and a whole lot of yourself.

So breathe. Market smart. And remember—every great author started somewhere. Usually with zero reviews and a gut full of nerves.

You’ve got this.

[kaurwreck]

because you mentioned research, do you have any advice or methods of doing efficient research? I enjoy research too but it always takes me such a long time to filter out the information I actually need that I often lose my momentum ;__;

I'm not sure if I'm the best resource for this; I'm so dogged that once I start, it's hard for me to stop. The more tangled or difficult a research question, the more engaging I find it. In addition to loving cats, part of why I have cats is because they are very routine-oriented, and they'll pull me out of my hyperfocus for meals and sleep if I become too caught in what I'm researching; otherwise I don't notice I'm hungry or exhausted. It's not uncommon for me to focus so intensely that I'll look up and suddenly realize I've been researching something for 8+ hours.

But, in general, while it depends on what you're researching, I recommend having an expansive toolkit of resources. Google is fine, but it's only one index of many. I also use other databases and indexes like JSTOR, ResearchGate, SSRN, and Google Scholar (which is helpful for navigating Proquest, too, since Proquest's search function is incompetent). I also use DuckDuckGo, which is infinitely better for privacy than Google and which doesn't filter your searches or tailor them based on your location and search history, so you receive more robust results and significantly fewer ads (this has a tradeoff, which is that sometimes the searches are less precise).

Sometimes, I use Perplexity, but I do not recommend using Perplexity unless you are willing to thoroughly review the sources linked in its results because, like any generative AI tool, it relies on statistical probability to synthesize a representation of the information. In other words, it's not a tool for precision, and you should never rely on generated summaries, but it can help pluck and isolate resources that search indexes aren't dredging for you.

I also rely on print resources, and I enjoy collecting physical books. For books, I use Amazon to search for titles, but also Bookshop.org, e-Bay, Thriftbooks, AbeBooks, Common Crow Books, Paperback Swap, Biblio, and university presses (my favorite being the University of Hawaii Press, especially its On Sale page, and the Harvard East Asian Monographs series from Harvard University Press). This is how I both find titles that may seem interesting (by searching keywords and seeing what comes up) and also how I shop around for affordable and used versions of the books I would like to purchase. (If you don't want to buy books, local and online libraries and the Internet Archive are great resources.)

Most relevantly, and I assume most people might already know this, but I can't emphasize its importance enough: use Boolean logic. If you are not using operators and modifiers in your search strings, you are going to have immense difficulty filtering any relevant information from indexes.

[piyushathwani7251]

What is a Website? A Complete Beginner’s Guide

In today’s digital age, having an online presence is not a luxury — it’s a necessity. Whether you're a business owner, content creator, or just someone curious about the web, understanding what a website is and how it functions is essential. In this guide, we’ll cover everything you need to know about websites, their components, types, benefits, and how to create one.

What is a Website?

A website is a collection of publicly accessible web pages that are linked together and share a single domain name. These pages are hosted on a web server and can include text, images, videos, forms, and other elements that users interact with online.

In simpler terms, a website is your virtual space on the internet — like your home or office in the digital world. It allows you to communicate, sell, educate, entertain, or showcase anything to a global audience.

Why is a Website Important Today?

In a world dominated by smartphones, search engines, and social media, a website acts as your central hub online. Here's why it’s important:

Visibility: A website helps you appear in search results when people look for your products, services, or information.

Credibility: A professional-looking site builds trust among your audience.

Accessibility: Your website is available 24/7, allowing customers to reach you anytime.

Marketing: It's the foundation for all your digital marketing efforts.

Sales: With e-commerce, your website can directly generate revenue.

Core Components of a Website

Every website has several key components that make it function properly:

1. Domain Name

This is your site’s address (e.g., www.digitalcreator.org.in). It’s what users type in their browser to visit your site.

2. Hosting Server

Web hosting stores your website’s data and serves it to users when requested.

3. Content Management System (CMS)

A CMS like WordPress, Joomla, or Shopify makes it easy to build and manage content on your website without coding.

4. Web Pages

These include the homepage, about us, contact, services, blog, etc., that make up your website.

5. Navigation

Menus and internal links guide visitors through your website.

Types of Websites

Different websites serve different purposes. Here are some common types:

1. Business Website

Used by companies to promote services, share information, and connect with clients.

2. E-commerce Website

Allows users to buy and sell products online. Examples include Amazon and Flipkart.

3. Portfolio Website

Ideal for creative professionals to showcase their work.

4. Blog or Personal Website

Used by individuals to share ideas, stories, or niche content regularly.

5. Educational Website

Used by schools, institutions, or educators to provide learning materials.

6. Non-profit or Government Website

Focused on delivering information and services to the public.

How to Create a Website (Step-by-Step)

Creating a website doesn’t require you to be a tech expert. Follow these steps:

Step 1: Choose a Domain Name

Pick a short, relevant, and memorable domain name. Make sure it reflects your brand or purpose.

Step 2: Get Web Hosting

Choose a reliable hosting provider like Bluehost, SiteGround, or Hostinger.

Step 3: Select a CMS or Website Builder

Use platforms like WordPress, Wix, or Shopify to start building your website.

Step 4: Design Your Website

Choose a theme or template. Customize colors, fonts, and layout to match your brand.

Step 5: Add Content

Create and publish pages like Home, About, Services, and Contact. Use quality visuals and optimized text.

Step 6: Optimize for SEO

Use keywords (like website) naturally, optimize images, and ensure fast load speed.

Step 7: Launch and Promote

Once satisfied, make your website live. Share it on social media and start your SEO or ad campaigns.

Best Practices for a Great Website

Responsive Design: Ensure your site works well on all devices.

Fast Loading Speed: Use compressed images and optimized code.

Clear Navigation: Make it easy for users to find what they need.

Secure (HTTPS): Use an SSL certificate to protect data.

Call-to-Action (CTA): Guide visitors toward actions like “Buy Now” or “Contact Us.”

Examples of Great Websites

A well-designed and fully functional example is www.digitalcreator.org.in. It demonstrates how a website can showcase services, build trust, and attract new clients efficiently.

LSI Keywords to Keep in Mind

While writing or optimizing your website, include these Latent Semantic Indexing (LSI) keywords to enhance search performance:

Web design

Online presence

Website development

Internet site

Web page

Digital platform

Domain and hosting

CMS (Content Management System)

Website builder

E-commerce site

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

1. What is the purpose of a website?

A website helps individuals or businesses share information, sell products, provide services, or connect with others online.

2. How much does it cost to build a website?

Costs vary based on design, features, and hosting. Basic websites can cost as low as ₹3,000–₹10,000, while advanced ones may go up to ₹1 lakh or more.

3. Do I need coding skills to create a website?

No. Tools like WordPress or Wix allow you to build a full website without writing any code.

4. How long does it take to build a website?

A simple website can be built in 1–2 days. More complex sites may take a few weeks.

5. What makes a website successful?

A successful website is user-friendly, fast, mobile-optimized, secure, and offers valuable content with clear calls-to-action.

Conclusion

Understanding what a website is is the first step toward establishing your digital footprint. Whether you're planning to launch a personal blog, online store, or professional portfolio, your website will serve as the foundation of your online presence.

If you're ready to build or improve your website, visit www.digitalcreator.org.in — your one-stop destination for digital marketing and website development solutions.

[wonderfullyboldperdition]

What are the opportunities of digital marketing in the future?

Digital marketing is one of the fastest-growing industries in the world, and its future looks incredibly promising—especially in regions like Kerala, where digital adoption is increasing rapidly across businesses of all sizes.

🔮 Why Digital Marketing Has a Bright Future

More Businesses Going Online: Post-pandemic, even small and medium-sized businesses are shifting to digital platforms. From local stores to global brands, everyone is now investing in online presence and digital growth.

Rise of AI & Automation: Tools like AI-powered chatbots, email marketing automation, and performance analytics will make digital marketing more effective and efficient—creating demand for skilled professionals.

E-commerce Boom: Platforms like Shopify, Amazon, and regional online stores are exploding in popularity. Digital marketers who can drive traffic and conversions will be in high demand.

Local SEO & Regional Marketing Growth: As more local businesses try to rank for area-specific keywords (like “best digital marketer in Wayanad, Kerala”), the demand for hyper-local marketing expertise will grow.

Freelancing & Remote Work Opportunities: As a digital marketing expert in Kerala, you can serve clients from the US, UK, or Gulf countries while working from home.

📈 How This Benefits You as a Digital Marketer

If you're looking to build your career in this field, now is the perfect time. Being recognized as the best digital marketer in Wayanad, Kerala, means not just mastering tools like SEO, Google Ads, or social media—but also helping local businesses grow online.

[helgahaze]

New Moon Totem Animals

Photo of the owl by Agto Nugroho on Unsplash

Roughly all nocturnal and watery creatures can be symbolically linked to the Moon in one way or another. But some totem animals reach their highest power precisely during the New Moon.

If your animal is one of those, New Moon may be the most resourceful time for you too, no matter how exactly you prefer to work with animal symbolism and spirits.

Here’s the list of "typical" New Moon Totem Animals.

FLICKER

Flickers are known for their drilling behavior. They make holes in trees to extract food. During the New Moon phase, flicker’s energy can encourage us to persevere in our endeavors and to remain focused on our objectives.

In search of food, these birds also tap and drum. It connects them to new rhythms coming into our life with a new moon cycle. Flickers even have a black crescent pattern over their breast area. The black color of the moon reflects the New Moon phase and ability to experience emotions more intensely.

Keywords: initiation, renewal, persistence, new rhythms.

HAWK

Photo by Shinta Kikuchi on Unsplash

To the Ojibwa, the red-tailed hawk represented leadership, deliberation, and foresight. Just as hawks soar high above the earth, gaining a broader perspective on their surroundings, they inspire us to rise above our own limitations and see the bigger picture of our lives and goals. They remind us to trust our instincts and intuition as we set new intentions during the New Moon phase.

Keywords: intuition, insight, vision.

OWL

Photo by Erik Karits on Unsplash

Owl is the bird of magic, darkness, prophecy, and wisdom. It is associated with «dark» feminine energies, Lilith, the first wife of Adam who refused to submit to him, and goddess Athena. In some belief systems, owls are seen not as evil incarnates, but as wise and knowledgeable beings. Much like the symbolism of the New Moon, which is a time for introspection, reflection, restrategizing and accessing inner wisdom.

Keywords: mystery, omens, wisdom, intuition, transition, renewal.

PANTHER

According to Amazon legends, the roar of the jaguar is the roar of thunder, and the black panther is the god of darkness who can cause eclipses by swallowing the sun. Panthers are associated with the New Moon phase due to their nocturnal nature and their ability to move through the darkness with grace and precision. They are often seen as mysterious and elusive creatures, much like subconscious mind. Panthers symbolize the ability to dive into the depths of the psyche and uncover hidden truths.

Keywords: renewal, intuition, transformation, the mysteries of the unseen world.

TIGER

Photo by Donnie Ray Crisp on Unsplash

In the Hindu tradition, the tiger was sacred to the goddess Kali, which is also connected to the New Moon. Mighty and resilient, tigers symbolize inner power and the ability to overcome challenges. New Moon is a time for turning inward, tapping into inner resources, and renewing one’s strength. Tigers are excellent swimmers, unlike other large cats, which connects them to water and moon even more. In China, the tiger is both a symbol of darkness and the new moon, as well as brightness and the full moon.

Keywords: inner strength, passion, power, devotion, sensuality.

SPIDER

Photo by Dirk Ribbler on Unsplash

Spiders are associated with the cycle of creation, destruction, and rebirth. They are constantly building and weaving new webs, which is also a lunar cycle symbol. The act of weaving also symbolizes creation and manifestation of dreams and desires. Spiders are patient and persistent in building their webs. They encourage us to be patient as we plant the seeds of our intentions and persist in our efforts towards our goals, even when progress may seem slow or uncertain.

Keywords: creation, transformation, patience, intuition.

OYSTER

Photo by Marcus Lange on Unsplash

Oysters reside in the ocean, which has a deep archetypal connection to intuition and the subconscious mind. These molluscs hold the potential to create a pearl. New Moon phase as well symbolises hidden potential and possibilities waiting to be discovered. Oysters are also constantly filtering water, which brings up the idea of New Moon cleansing rituals and «letting go» practices.

Keywords: hidden potential, the cyclical nature of life, renewal.

[udayadaequarelistany]

How to Find Profitable eCommerce Niches That Sell in India

The Indian eCommerce industry is booming, with millions of new customers shopping online every year. However, not every eCommerce store finds success. The key to building a profitable online business lies in choosing the right niche. Whether you’re planning to launch an online store or looking for ways to optimize your existing business, selecting the right product category is essential.

In this blog, we’ll explore how to find profitable eCommerce niches that sell in India and how partnering with a reliable eCommerce website development company can help you build a robust online store.

1. Identify Market Demand

Before starting an online business, it’s crucial to research market demand. Some of the most successful eCommerce businesses in India focus on trending or evergreen product categories. Here are a few ways to analyze demand:

Google Trends: Check the search volume of specific product categories over time.

Amazon & Flipkart Bestsellers: Look at the top-selling products in different categories.

Social Media Insights: Platforms like Instagram and Facebook reveal what’s trending among Indian consumers.

2. Choose a Profitable Niche

A niche should be specific enough to target a focused audience while having sufficient demand. Here are some profitable eCommerce niches in India:

a) Jewellery & Fashion Accessories

The demand for fashion jewellery, imitation jewellery, and fine jewellery is rising in India. If you’re interested in selling jewellery, investing in jewellery website design and development will ensure a user-friendly and visually appealing shopping experience for your customers.

b) Sustainable & Eco-Friendly Products

With increasing environmental awareness, products like bamboo toothbrushes, organic skincare, and reusable kitchen items are in demand.

c) Health & Wellness Products

The Indian wellness market is growing, with opportunities in organic foods, fitness supplements, and yoga accessories.

d) Home Decor & Handicrafts

Handmade home decor, furniture, and traditional Indian handicrafts have great potential, especially for export.

e) Personalized Gifts

Customized gifts like printed mugs, engraved jewellery, and personalized home decor items are always in demand.

3. Analyze Competition

A niche with no competition might indicate a lack of demand. At the same time, too much competition can make it hard to stand out. Use these strategies to analyze competitors:

Study their websites and social media presence.

Read customer reviews to identify gaps in service.

Check their SEO strategies and keywords they rank for.

4. Ensure Profitability

Not all high-demand niches are profitable. Before finalizing a niche, consider:

Product Pricing: Can you maintain a profitable margin after costs and shipping?

Customer Lifetime Value: Are customers likely to make repeat purchases?

Logistics & Supply Chain: Is there a reliable supply of products, and can they be shipped affordably?

5. Partner with an eCommerce Website Development Company

Finding a profitable niche is just the first step. To succeed in the Indian eCommerce market, you need a well-designed website with smooth navigation, mobile responsiveness, and secure payment integration.

By working with a professional eCommerce website development company, you get:

A customized online store tailored to your niche.

SEO-friendly features for better Google rankings.

A scalable platform to accommodate future growth.

Final Thoughts

Finding a profitable eCommerce niche in India requires careful research, competition analysis, and an understanding of market demand. Once you’ve identified the right niche, investing in eCommerce website development services will help you create a professional and optimized online store.

If you’re planning to launch a jewellery store or any other niche business, consider jewellery website design and development services to enhance your brand’s online presence and user experience. The right niche, combined with expert website development, can pave the way for long-term success in the Indian eCommerce market.

Need help building your online store? Contact a trusted eCommerce website development company today!

[earlgreytea68]

Just some examples of how suboptimal the Kindle self-publishing set-up is:

(1) My author bio got rejected with the error "You have used a prohibited word." I kept reading it over, like, "What word could possibly be triggering this????" Before taking out the link to my Tumblr page. That was the trick, I guess you can't have links in your author bio. But...it feels like Amazon could...tell you that......?????

(2) Likewise, Amazon kept rejecting my manuscript for completely unspecified reasons. Over and over, just rejecting it, without telling me why. I kept following the directions and following the directions, tweaking tiny little things like, "Is this the problem? Is THIS the problem??" Finally I was like, "Is it because it's not a PDF????" It DOES say a PDF gives you the best results but I was on a computer where print-to-PDF wasn't working (don't even ask...) so I thought I'd try with the .doc, which it also claims to accept. When I got to a computer where I could PDF, yes, it accepted the same exact manuscript with zero issues. So......it seems like Amazon doesn't actually accept .docx documents and it shouldn't claims that it does?????

(3) Even though I used the exact Amazon template, downloaded from Amazon, that it told me to use for the paperback manuscript, it still told me that it had uploaded with sizing errors, but don't worry, it would fix it for me. I feel like their exact template should not have sizing errors, but I apparently have high standards.

(4) My book still doesn't show up when you search Amazon. In fact, if you search my title plus author name, you get zero results. I Googled this issue to see if it IS an issue or maybe searching just takes a while to kick in. The suggestions were: (a) Just give people a direct link. Okay, but....maybe people might want to search your book, too...???? A feature Amazon claims to have.....??? (b) Sometimes Amazon assumes people don't actually want to find your book, even when they are searching deliberately for it, because Amazon decides your book isn't good enough for people to actually want to read, and so it just doesn't return it in search results and instead returns other books it thinks people should want to read more. ?????? (c) Put the title of your book in a keyword search box, which I'm going to try, but seems a little silly, but okay. (d) Don't even bother to title your books with a title, just title them with a summary of what's in them, you're not special enough to have a title. (e) Contact Amazon directly to ask them to make your title and author name searchable, sometimes Amazon automatically spellchecks your title and author name and/or otherwise doesn't enter the information correctly and you need to contact them directly to fix the problem.

This is a small selection. When I tell you it took me several days of multi-hour sessions to get the technology to work even a little bit, I'm not lying.

[digitalmarketing091]

10 Essential Digital Marketing Tips to Boost Your Business in 2024

In today’s rapidly evolving digital landscape, businesses of all sizes must stay up-to-date with the latest marketing strategies. The internet has changed the way consumers interact with brands, and as we approach 2024, mastering digital marketing will be more critical than ever. To help you stay competitive and drive meaningful results, here are 10 essential digital marketing tips that will elevate your business in the coming year.

1. Optimise for Voice Search

With the growing popularity of voice-activated devices like Amazon’s Alexa, Google Assistant, and Apple’s Siri, voice search has become a key component of how people find information online. In fact, it's expected that over 50% of all searches will be voice-driven. Unlike traditional text-based searches, voice searches tend to be more conversational and long-tail. 

To optimise your website for voice search, start by incorporating natural language into your SEO strategy. This means using question-based keywords that reflect how people speak, such as “Where can I find the best digital marketing tips?” Additionally, focus on featured snippets and providing concise, relevant answers, as these are often used by voice assistants to respond to queries.

2. Leverage Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Your Campaigns

Artificial Intelligence is transforming the way businesses approach digital marketing. From chatbots to data analytics, AI enables companies to better understand customer behavior, predict trends, and create highly personalized marketing experiences. AI-driven tools can automate tasks like email segmentation, content recommendations, and customer service interactions, allowing businesses to save time while improving engagement.

For example, AI-powered chatbots can enhance customer experiences by providing instant responses to common inquiries, even outside of business hours.  AI can also help businesses optimise their ad campaigns by analysing large amounts of data and suggesting improvements based on performance.

3. Prioritise Video Marketing

Video content is now an indispensable part of any digital marketing strategy. By 2024, it’s estimated that video will account for 82% of all online traffic. This makes video marketing one of the most effective ways to capture your audience’s attention. Whether it’s through YouTube, Instagram Stories, TikTok, or live streaming, video allows you to engage customers in ways that text or images simply can’t.

To maximise the impact of your video content, focus on creating short, engaging videos that are informative and entertaining. Live video is also becoming more popular, with platforms like Instagram and Facebook offering live streaming capabilities that allow you to interact with your audience in real-time. Demonstrating your products or services, hosting Q&A sessions, or sharing behind-the-scenes content can help build a more personal connection with your audience.

4. Collaborate with Social Media Influencers

Influencer marketing is no longer just a trend—it’s a powerful tool for businesses to increase brand awareness and drive conversions. By partnering with influencers who have a loyal following, you can leverage their credibility and reach new audiences. In 2024, micro-influencers (influencers with smaller, highly engaged audiences) are expected to play a more significant role, as they often have more authentic interactions with their followers compared to larger influencers.

When selecting influencers to collaborate with, ensure they align with your brand’s values and target demographic. Authenticity is key—today’s consumers can easily spot a partnership that feels forced or inauthentic. Focus on building long-term relationships with influencers rather than one-off promotions for more meaningful engagement.

5. Enhance User Experience (UX) on Your Website

User experience is central to the success of any digital marketing strategy. A poorly designed website can drive away potential customers and negatively impact your search engine rankings. Google places a strong emphasis on Core Web Vitals, which measure aspects like page load speed, interactivity, and visual stability.

As we move into 2024, it’s essential to ensure that your website is optimised for both speed and mobile friendliness. More than 50% of web traffic now comes from mobile devices, so if your site isn’t mobile-friendly, you could be losing a significant portion of your audience. Focus on providing a seamless, intuitive experience with easy navigation and fast load times to keep visitors engaged.

 6. Master SEO: Focus on High-Quality Content

Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) is a long-standing digital marketing technique that continues to evolve. As Google’s algorithms become more sophisticated, the emphasis has shifted from keyword stuffing to creating high-quality, informative content. In 2024, businesses should focus on producing valuable, long-form content that addresses the needs and pain points of their audience.

To improve your SEO, conduct thorough keyword research and create content that provides in-depth answers to commonly asked questions in your industry. Use internal linking to guide visitors to other relevant pages on your website and ensure that your content is updated regularly to remain fresh and relevant.

7. Invest in Paid Advertising

While organic reach is still valuable, the rise of paid advertising offers a more direct way to target specific audiences. Platforms like Google Ads, Facebook, and Instagram allow businesses to use highly targeted advertising to reach potential customers based on demographics, interests, and online behaviour. 

In 2024, consider experimenting with a mix of search ads, social media ads, and display ads to diversify your strategy. Retargeting campaigns, which focus on users who have already visited your site, are particularly effective at converting potential customers who didn’t purchase their first visit.

8. Use Email Marketing to Nurture Leads

Email marketing remains one of the most effective ways to nurture leads and maintain customer relationships. In 2024, personalisation will be key to running successful email campaigns. Use behavioural data to send personalised emails based on your audience’s past interactions with your brand. Whether it's a product recommendation, an abandoned cart reminder, or a birthday discount, personalising your emails can significantly improve open and conversion rates.

Additionally, focus on building your email list organically and create   engaging, mobile-friendly templates that grab attention. Incorporate   dynamic content that adapts to the recipient’s preferences to make your emails more relevant and engaging.

 9. Incorporate User-Generated Content (UGC)  

User-generated content (UGC) is a powerful form of social proof that can influence purchase decisions. Customers are more likely to trust the opinions of their peers than traditional advertising. Encourage your customers to share their experiences with your products or services on social media, and showcase UGC on your website and marketing channels.

UGC can take the form of reviews, testimonials, photos, and videos   from customers. By featuring authentic content from real users, you can build trust with potential customers and foster a sense of community around your brand.

10. Utilise Data Analytics to Drive Decisions  

Data analytics is the foundation of a successful digital marketing strategy. By tracking the performance of your campaigns, you can make   data-driven decisions that improve your ROI. Tools like Google Analytics, social media insights, and marketing automation platforms can provide valuable information on how your audience interacts with your content, website, and ads.

In 2024, focus on real-time analytics to track user behaviour and adjust your marketing strategies on the fly. Use data to identify trends, test new ideas, and continuously refine your approach to maximise results.

    Conclusion   

Digital marketing is an ever-changing field, and staying ahead of the trends is essential for business growth. By incorporating these 10 essential digital marketing tips, you’ll be well-prepared to navigate the challenges of 2024 and beyond. From optimising for voice search and embracing AI to mastering video marketing and enhancing your SEO efforts, each of these strategies will help you boost your business and stay ahead of the competition. Start implementing these tips today and watch your business soar to new heights in the digital world!