A book — your book — makes the perfect gift for the holidays. But how do you get people to buy your book as gifts for others? There are different strategies you can use but for them to be effective, you need to get your plan in place now. People generally start doing their holiday shopping as early as October, so the earlier you can get them interested in your book as a gift idea, the better the chances are of boosting your book sales. Let’s look at some ideas to help you do this.

1.      Create your holiday marketing plan.

Before you start anything else, create a marketing plan specifically for holiday sales. Get it all in writing, and mark key dates on your calendar so that you know what to do when. Having your plan clearly set out like this helps you keep track of what needs to be done and who needs to do it.

2.      If you’re publishing print copies, ensure that you have enough ready.

You don’t want readers to order a print copy of your book, only to find you’ve run out of stock. So, ensure that you have enough printed. One great thing about books is that they’re not perishable (your book is not a banana!) so if you don’t sell all the copies you thought you would during the holidays, you’ll be able to sell them afterwards. Also, and this is important, if you need to order from your publisher or through IngramSpark, for example, everyone is trying to get enough physical copies for the holiday season so order early or risk the books not arriving in time.

3.      Ensure that your website is up to date.

Unless you’re doing your own web design, you want your website to be up to date for the holiday sales season before your web designer shuts down for the holidays. If you’re planning on selling books directly through your site, you also need to check that you have reliable payment methods available for readers to use, and that the “buy now” buttons work.

4.      Get any other promotional materials ready.

If you’re thinking of using promotional materials other than your book, you need to get them ready now before printers close for the season. So, get those bookmarks, postcards, holiday cards, and other materials designed and ready.

5.      Offer special discounts for October and November’s big shopping days.

More and more people are taking advantage of Black Friday to get their holiday gift shopping done, even in Canada. Black Friday is the day after U.S. Thanksgiving, and in 2024 it falls on Friday, November 29. The following Monday, December 2, is Cyber Monday, which is perfect for selling your eBook at a special price too.

But before these post-Thanksgiving shopping days, 2024 also sees two big shopping days in October: Amazon’s Prime Big Deal Days are October 8 and 9.

But wait! Isn’t it counterproductive to sell your book at a reduced price when the aim is to get more sales—and more money? No. Not if you keep the big picture and long term in mind. Most people love a special offer and may use that as an excuse to buy something they wouldn’t otherwise have bought. And if you can get them to buy your book, they might leave a review, which will boost your book’s position in the rankings, increasing the chances of catching the eyes of those last-minute shoppers in December.

6.      Offer a free giveaway for a limited time.

Similar to special offers, free giveaways are a great way to rack up those all-important reviews.

7.      Target organizations that may do bulk shopping.

Some employers may be looking for gifts for their employees. If they’re in an industry that aligns with the theme of your book, you have a potential audience—and a potential bulk sale—right there.  

8.         Consider holiday bundles.

There are different ways to create holiday bundles that will make your book more enticing as a gift. For example:

• If this isn’t your first book, consider selling it in a bundle with your other books. This strategy is especially effective if your book is part of a series.
• Team up with other authors and sell your books together as a bundle. While it makes sense that you should choose authors whose books align with yours in terms of theme, this isn’t a must. For example, a popular Australian YouTuber who specializes in baking and whose husband often appears in her videos, regularly offers her recipe book in a bundle with her husband’s YA novels.
• For print copies, you can include an item like a custom bookmark with a signed copy of your book.
• You can also team up with a gift store to sell your book as part of a gift bundle that includes one or two items they sell. Some authors are teaming up with creators on Etsy, which is a great way to have customized gift items to go with your book too. You can get creative here: what about a piece of jewellery in the shape of a symbol you use in your book? Or a food item like homemade jam, hot sauce, or tea?    

9.      Ramp up your social media presence.

Your potential readers won’t know about all those special offers and holiday bundles unless you tell them. And one of the most effective and cheapest ways to do this is through your social media. So, be sure to post often, and to post quality. For example:

• Stage photographs of your book against a holiday-themed background, for instance on a festive table with Christmas or Hannukah decorations, or on a beach towel for those readers who are heading for warmer climes for the December break.
• Share your favourite songs for the holidays. You can even make a playlist with songs that you find inspiring during this season, and songs that inspired you while writing your book.
• Share pictures from past holidays, like a childhood performance in a Nativity play or a holiday dinner with friends. This creates a sense of intimacy for your followers.
• Write an essay or a short story that you can share on social media. Otherwise, post an extract from your book. Facebook is especially great for this because you’re not limited by word count, you can add photographs to go with the text, and your followers don’t need to click on a link to read it. The idea is to get people to want to read more of your work.
• Have readers sign up for a holiday card, then send them a personalized card by snail mail.

10.            Get into the spirit of the season on Amazon.

There are different ways to use Amazon to get your readers into the festive spirit. For instance:

• Update your keywords to include the holidays, to optimize your Amazon ads.
• Update your author photo to include a holiday theme, such as wearing a Christmas sweater.
• Instead of the image you regularly use for your book, use one that shows the book with a gift ribbon wrapped around it. You can create this in Canva. This way, you’re positioning your book as a gift idea.
• Offer free shipping or a special discount for a limited time, for example on Boxing Day.  

Over to You!

If you’ve got some great holiday book sales ideas that have worked for you in the past, we’d love to hear them! Let us know in the comments below how it goes when you try our tips above or others. As one of our authors likes to say, “A rising tide floats all boats!”