is it safe to advertise a book on facebook?

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   accofrancoposted 14 years ago

   i am considering putting up a facebook advert for my book that is being published in the states...but the publisher told me that i should be careful with that idea...please what's the negative implication and benefit please help.

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      ssaulposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      i would consider Facebook to be the most powerful form of advertising, just don't see the negative in doing that!

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         Website Examinerposted 14 years agoin reply to this

         You speak with such confidence and authority. What are your personal experiences, or professional experiences, with book marketing on Facebook?

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            ssaulposted 14 years agoin reply to this

            i have a girlfriend who offered her educational services as well as promoting her ebook on the subject matter on FB and have gotten gainful exposure. I would not have spoken the way i did, if i didn't know what i am talking about!

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               Website Examinerposted 14 years agoin reply to this

               In that case, you could have been a bit more articulate in your first post, so that we could all learn from your experiences? Thanks for answering.

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   Website Examinerposted 14 years ago

   I don't know anything about Facebook in particular. But for a newly published book, I can see the potential for someone to leverage Facebook to give your book a bad reputation. Such negative publicity could be fatal for a newly released title, so that would be something to consider.

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   thisisoliposted 14 years ago

   Facebook is an intensely powerful advertising tool, I am not sure what the negatives would be.
   
   For instance when you are placing your advert you could even search for book clubs that target your particular genre and ONLY advertise to them. The trick to facebook advertising is clearly defining your audience, and then find that target audience on facebook.

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   Website Examinerposted 14 years ago

   Maybe the pros and cons depend on what the book is about?

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   Website Examinerposted 14 years ago

   With all due respect, I think the above comments reflect a lack of appreciation for the difference between "advertising" and "publicity," which are two very different things. Negative publicity can hurt a newly published book tremendously, and a place like Facebook is not an environment that is under the author's control.
   
   Usually, successful launching of a book does not start with marketing, but with getting reviews from carefully selected reviewers. This is done in the hope of generating favorable publicity, so that the marketing will be credible once it sets in.

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      ThomasEposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      But the OP is asking specifically about advertising, and not publicity. Facebook is a very powerful advertising tool, they did 1.86 billion dollars of advertising lasy year.

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         Website Examinerposted 14 years agoin reply to this

         Yes, but once the book is on Facebook, anyone - competitor or foe - just might get the idea of using Facebook to give the author and the book a bad reputation. Which was what I suggested in my first post. It would be naive to think that there is no such risk - all depending on the type of book being published.
         
         Which is probably why the OP's publisher is concerned.

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            ThomasEposted 14 years agoin reply to this

            But if a competitor wants to use facebook to do that, what's stopping them doing it anyway?

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               Website Examinerposted 14 years agoin reply to this

               I see it as an issue of timing. Not to use Facebook prematurely, but build a solid publicity campaing first. Getting some reputable reviews, then all will be fine.

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   mega1posted 14 years ago

   Since so much of marketing is about "name recognition" I'd get both my author name and my book out there in as many places as possible - can't think of any reason Facebook would be "unsafe" - any more so than anywhere else in the media.  Just remember, once you have all that attention and fans and money, you'll need your little hideaways and so be sure to come back to Hubpages (

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   kephriraposted 14 years ago

   I think the main drawback, which no-one has mentioned, would be that it might not turn out to be cost effective so you would lose money. How much do you get per book sale?

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   thisisoliposted 14 years ago

   I don't think the warning about publicity is needed, it is an advertisement for a book, there is no negative publicity involved here because it is an advertisement. Unless the advertisement itself is bad you will not receive much in the way of bad press.
   
   Here is the real issue on this though.  Advertising is publicity. 
   
   Yes you may get bad publicity if your product is bad, but if you are releasing a book then you will have done the best you can, and you really need to put your name out there to make sales.  If you do not put any effort in to advertising you will not make any sales. You need to create as much advertising as possible, you need as much publicity as possible.
   
   I dont think there is any other advertising situation that comes close to Facebook for control. You can narrow your advertising down to the highschool that people want to, or people who live in one exact village. No other medium offers the same amount of control to your advertising audience.

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   Website Examinerposted 14 years ago

   The advertising space may be controlled, but the publicity is not. Do people buy a book because they have seen it prominently advertised (advertising) or because they actually have heard it is good (publicity)?

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