Topic 4 - Help Readers Find Your Book

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Topic 4 - Help Readers Find Your Book

WHAT THIS TOPIC COVERS

After reading this topic, you'll know:

How categories and keywords help readers find your book
How to choose the right categories and keywords for your book

YOUR PROGRESS

You've completed Milestone 1. Now you're working on Milestone 2. After you're done entering your book details, you'll format your manuscript and cover (Milestone 3), and then set rights and pricing (Milestone 4).

HOW TO HELP READERS FIND YOUR BOOK

	Choose categories Categories are the broad sections of the Amazon site where customers can find your book. Think of them like the sections of a physical bookstore. When choosing categories, think like a reader; imagine how they'd search for your book. Learn how to choose browse categories.
	Choose keywords If categories are like the sections of a physical bookstore, keywords are like the bookstore associate who guides customers to the right spot on the shelf. They give an even more specific description of your book. Useful keywords say something about your book's setting, characters, plot, themes, tone, and more. Again, think like a potential reader. Learn how to make your book more discoverable with keywords.
	Update categories and keywords You can choose two categories and up to seven keywords. If you want to update your information, you can make changes before and after you publish.

ACTIVITY

Find five bestselling books with content similar to yours on Amazon. On their detail pages, find the browse paths. You can find these by scrolling down to the "Look for similar items by category" section. Take notes on the categories selected for these books and write down what you'll enter for your book.

Before your book’s detail page is unveiled to the world, think about what readers will need to do to find it. For tips on making your detail page as easy as possible to find, read the categories and keywords section of this article.

Need help choosing categories and keywords?

Watch this webinar to learn how to make your book more discoverable on Amazon.

Video: Discovering Metadata

WHAT TO DO NEXT

Save the categories you researched for your book.
Research potential keywords and save them for when you're ready to enter your book details.
Go to Topic 5, which explains how to build your Amazon detail page. You'll learn how to enter your book details, including the book description you wrote in Topic 3 and the categories you researched here.

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