How do you run Amazon ads for a book?
- Start with Sponsored Products campaigns.
- Target comp-author keywords and rank-similar books.
- Daily budget: $5-$20 for the first month.
- Optimize weekly based on ACoS.
- Target ACoS: under 40% backlist, under 70% launch.
You run Amazon ads by starting with Sponsored Products campaigns targeting comp-author keywords and BSR-rank-similar books, setting a daily budget of $5-$20 for the first month, and optimizing weekly based on ACoS (advertising cost of sales). Most working indies aim for ACoS under 40% on backlist, under 70% on a launch.
Chapter i·Why it matters
Amazon Ads is the most consistent paid-acquisition channel for indie authors. Authors who run ads without optimization burn money; authors who optimize weekly turn ads into a reliable royalty multiplier. The skill is in the ongoing tuning, not the initial setup.
Chapter ii·What to include
- Sponsored Products campaigns (start here).
- Comp-author keyword targeting (your top 10 comps).
- Category-targeting in your subgenre.
- A starting daily budget: $5-$20 for the first month.
- Weekly optimization: pause poor-performers, raise bids on winners.
- An ACoS target by stage: 70% launch, 40% backlist.
Chapter iii·Example
A working romance author runs Amazon Ads on her 12-book backlist: $80/day total budget across 12 campaigns, weekly optimization (45 minutes Friday afternoons). Average ACoS: 32%. Monthly ad spend: $2,400. Monthly attributable royalties from ads: $7,500. Net contribution from ads: $5,100/month — about a third of her total income.
Chapter iv·Related questions
In WriteLoom
A launch plan, not a launch day
WriteLoom holds your Amazon Ads spend and ACoS data per book, so backlist optimization happens in one project.
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