# Mark Dawson's Ads for Authors OPEN -- What I've Learned



## SkyScribe (Aug 18, 2014)

I just got word that Mark's course has officially opened up again for new entrants. I know there are a lot of members here who are already in, but for those who aren't and are considering it, I have nothing but good things to say about it.

Self Publishing Formula's Ads for Authors

I joined about a year or so ago, and although I was doing well before it has made a big difference and taken my fiction to another level. What's really impressed me is how the course is frequently updated with new material that gets added at no additional charge. If there's one thing I've learned, it's that change is constant and you can't place all your eggs in one basket, whether it be promo site ads, Facebook ads, etc. Now there's info in the course on Amazon Marketing Services ads, Youtube ads, Twitter, and more. I guess it's time to get with the program for 2017.


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## Paul Kohler (Aug 14, 2013)

I was planning on taking it when it came back around, but the price increase put it right back out of my budget. Perhaps in another year, as long as Mark's next price increase doesn't take it to far over a grand.


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## A. N. Other Author (Oct 11, 2014)

This will sound negative at first, but please bear with me.

I really want to take things to the next level and I've had a good year with sales, so for the first time, I'm in a financial position to buy this. I'm definitely very interested, and the 30-day no-quibble money-back guarantee makes it tempting. I did buy a different course by another author which wasn't any good for me (nothing to do with Mark) and they did refund me quickly, so I know this tends to be a genuine condition. But the sheer numbers involved makes me feel like such a time-waster if I get the course then discover it requires me to spend more than I can afford before I see a return. Even paying FB/AMS on an interest-free credit card is a big risk if it backfires. 

So here's what I'd like to ask the community:

We only seem to hear about the outliers for these sorts of courses, either those who make $5,000, $10,000, $20,000, even $50,000 per month, or the ones who say it's useless and everyone should avoid it like the plague. Is there anyone out there who went from prawn to mid-lister thanks to a course like this (or Mark's specifically)? 

I'd love to hear from those authors who perhaps went from making very little to making enough to at least quit the day job. I'm bringing in around $1,000 per month consistently, which is a really nice boost to my regular income and is allowing us to remortgage and expand our house, but I'm aiming to improve this much further, without relying on the mighty BookBub every three months. 

Anyone go from $1000 per month to maybe $4,000 or $5,000? More importantly how did your investment grow? Did you start on, say, $100 then optimize the ads so you increased the investment as your ads returned more?


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## MonkeyScribe (Jan 27, 2011)

ADDavies said:


> We only seem to hear about the outliers for these sorts of courses, either those who make $5,000, $10,000, $20,000, even $50,000 per month, or the ones who say it's useless and everyone should avoid it like the plague. Is there anyone out there who went from prawn to mid-lister thanks to a course like this (or Mark's specifically)?


This is a really good question. It would be great to know the median results for the course, or at least to have some more data points besides outliers.


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## Patty Jansen (Apr 5, 2011)

MonkishScribe said:


> This is a really good question. It would be great to know the median results for the course, or at least to have some more data points besides outliers.


My guess is that the median authors try some Facebook ads, don't have that much success with it, and don't have the time or money to go on with it. From the look of things, there is a lot of other good stuff covered in the course. Anything that you can't learn yourself by googling and hanging around here for a year or two? I'm not sure. I've thought a few times that i would do the course, but I've realised I much rather write than fiddle with Facebook ads which only cost buttloads of money. And out of all thing I really hate, hate, hate being up-sold to. Really HATE.


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## Elizabeth Ann West (Jul 11, 2011)

I didn't know it at the time, but now I can honestly say the Facebook course helped me take a JAFF release and make it an over 2000 copies sold in 90 days compared to my other releases that are 1000-1500. This is at $9.99 and I invested about $400 into Facebook video ads during the first 3 weeks of that book's release. At the time, I couldn't 100% say if those Facebook ads contributed much but I have since done 3 releases without the $400 ad spend and not see the same sales. They've been in the 1000-1500 copies moved, one release was barely 500 copies moved but that was a minor character and expected.

Now I am also tackling Google Adwords because Facebook ads are hit and miss in that, and this is true for everything, once you have something figured out? It changes.  And that's more or less what happened with Facebook ads after Mark's course.... so many new people were now throwing money at Facebook ads that things that worked before, suddenly not so much. A year ago I got .01 a view on video ads. It was GREAT! 1,000 new people to see my brand cost $10. Now it's more expensive, but neither did I keep my mouth shut...  

I would say if you are an author really looking to go to the next level, and you haven't already done his 3 free videos and joined the SPF ads for authors Facebook group (warning it's a LOT of noise with no signal), do that. If at teh end of the 2 weeks you still want the course because that's how long it is open for, sign up for the monthly payments, that's how I bought the course last time.

With teh course you also get into the mastery group where there's a lot more experience and help. And you always get updates and other things the guys are cooking up. If for nothing else I appreciate that, but I like to be bleeding edge and often seek that out myself. I see Mark Dawson always willing to help someone truly trying to help themselves in both groups, he does author events, and the man has always answered any PM I have ever sent him (I respect his time). He's one of the only people who's done the popular path that didn't laugh at me about my $9.99 experiments or put me down, not the only, but one of a small group and for that I'd have to say I'm pretty loyal. They also have a healthy return policy, no one has had issues getting a refund, and they've even allowed that at their detriment (like they can tell if someone watched all of the videos and then asked for a refund). 

It's been 2 years now and I have yet to hear anyone say a negative business experience. The course may not have worked for them for a variety of reasons, but not anything like "I couldn't get my money back" or "I had these technical difficulties and the staff wouldn't help" FWIW.


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## thesmallprint (May 25, 2012)

I enrolled with 'Intake2' but by the time I got round to studying the lengthy and detailed course, I'd missed the Facebook ads boat. As Elizabeth Ann says (and we probably all know by now) things change very quickly in our business. When something advantageous is highlighted we're like those murmurations of starlings sweeping all over it. I suspect AMS will be the next big thing and Mark has a module on that coming out soon. If you want in on a thoroughly professional service run by people of the highest integrity, then go for it if you can afford it. The course itself won't guarantee payback, but the course plus lots of very hard work on your part will give you a great chance of recouping costs and maybe much, much more.

It's worth mentioning the savings offered on products like websites, covers and peripheral services. Mark has secured some good discounts for students.

Good luck.


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## Rick Gualtieri (Oct 31, 2011)

Elizabeth Ann West said:


> I would say if you are an author really looking to go to the next level, and you haven't already done his 3 free videos and joined the SPF ads for authors Facebook group (warning it's a LOT of noise with no signal), do that. If at teh end of the 2 weeks you still want the course because that's how long it is open for, sign up for the monthly payments, that's how I bought the course last time.


Wise words, and seconded.

I took the course about a year and a half back and it helped tremendously. The way I looked at it was that, rather than investing in a one time service like Bookbub, this was more a longer term investment in myself. And I think that turned out to be right.

All of that said, FB was a different ad space then than it is now. Tons more competition and I think some audiences are definitely suffering from ad fatigue. However, the advice and support of the group remains excellent with strategies that can most certainly be applied elsewhere, and Mark has been true to his word in that once you're a student, you continue to get whatever updates the new students get. I mean, seriously, that right there says a lot to me.

Personally, I think anyone looking to kill it with FB ads in the short term might be disappointed, just because the market has tons of competition at the moment. However, if you look at it as an investment in your own ability to do online marketing, building a war chest of knowledge and strategies that can applied across a broad spectrum, then I'd say it may very well be worth your time and money.


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## A. N. Other Author (Oct 11, 2014)

Good advice all round, plenty to think about. I've been studying AMS a lot lately and I'm ready for a big push. I think I'll use what I've learned so far and if that doesn't take in the next week or so I'll probably sign up.


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## Deke (May 18, 2013)

I don't make lots of money off writing. I could use marketing help. But I think I'll wait until I have more titles to market before spending $750 on the course.


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## Doglover (Sep 19, 2013)

I started the course November before last, I think, but I could only do the installment plan which was then $47 a month. Because of an old giant dog and hefty vet bills, I couldn't keep it up. I would like to have another go, but now it is $75 a month and the exchange rate being what it is, that's not much less in pounds.

I will say that whenever I can do a facebook ad, I follow Mark's advice and it nearly always gets me an ROI of 100%, but affording the ads is hard. On the testimonial videos there are some people saying you can pay for the ads with what you make on Amazon, but that is ridiculous because Amazon don't pay out for two months after sales whereas Facebook want paying at the end of the current month. So, I have been in a situation where I have done well with the ads, but then at the end of the month, FB have stopped my ads because I can't afford to pay them so then I have to wait till I get paid from Amazon and off we go again.

But, if you have a good product and you follow the course, it works.


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## Lu Kudzoza (Nov 1, 2015)

Rick Gualtieri said:


> Personally, I think anyone looking to kill it with FB ads in the short term might be disappointed, just because the market has tons of competition at the moment. However, if you look at it as an investment in your own ability to do online marketing, building a war chest of knowledge and strategies that can applied across a broad spectrum, then I'd say it may very well be worth your time and money.


Good advice from both Elizabeth and Rick. Marketing as a whole is a long term process that builds your brand and collects dedicated customers (readers). Online marketing platforms like FB, Twitter, Google all have their place, but require different strategies. You can learn them quick by paying someone, or learn them over time by your own research and testing.


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## Mark Dawson (Mar 24, 2012)

Some very kind and helpful comments here. Thanks! I'm not going to say anything, save that (1) we've never turned down a refund request in the first 30 days (even when we knew a student had videoed the course and pirated it) and (2) if anyone is on the fence and wants an honest opinion as to whether it's too early or otherwise inappropriate to take the course, please ask. I've dissuaded quite a few over the last couple of days.


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## David VanDyke (Jan 3, 2014)

With market maturity, everything's getting harder and more expensive.

FB is getting lower results. Dawson and others are raising their prices in order to make the most profit for themselves (nothing intrinsically wrong with that, but don't make the mistake of thinking people selling $745 courses are doing you favors--they're in it to make money--do the math--with 200 signups he just made $150K). Readers are getting saturated. Top indie authors are settling in and defending their own territory with similar methods, so you have to go uphill against increasingly savvy competition.

So, the success curves will get flatter and flatter. If you pay for a program like this, you have to commit to working it for all it's worth. I guarantee you that 95% of the people (99%?) never work a program like this to its full potential, and 75% of buyers try a few things and then write it off and never use it again, like that $1500 elliptical trainer sitting unused in your basement.

Before buying, you need to mentally commit to using the program and investing further money in ads in hopes of getting a positive ROI. Otherwise, you're wasting your money.


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## Rick Gualtieri (Oct 31, 2011)

David VanDyke said:


> like that $1500 elliptical trainer sitting unused in your basement.


(leaves to check for the hidden cameras)


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## Anarchist (Apr 22, 2015)

David VanDyke said:


> If you pay for a program like this, you have to commit to working it for all it's worth.


That's a great point.

Moreover, that commitment can accelerate the learning process.

Consider the advice found on KBoards. Some of it's solid. Some of it's terrible. Some of it's given by authors with proven sales track records. Other advice is given by authors who don't sell.

That's a time sink. It's also costly.

If you commit yourself to a course taught by a reputable personality, you can skip the nonsense, learn the basics, and build a foundation on which to grow your sales via your own testing.

As reputable personalities go, Dawson's tough to beat.


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## anotherpage (Apr 4, 2012)

ADDavies said:


> This will sound negative at first, but please bear with me.
> 
> I really want to take things to the next level and I've had a good year with sales, so for the first time, I'm in a financial position to buy this. I'm definitely very interested, and the 30-day no-quibble money-back guarantee makes it tempting. I did buy a different course by another author which wasn't any good for me (nothing to do with Mark) and they did refund me quickly, so I know this tends to be a genuine condition. But the sheer numbers involved makes me feel like such a time-waster if I get the course then discover it requires me to spend more than I can afford before I see a return. Even paying FB/AMS on an interest-free credit card is a big risk if it backfires.
> 
> ...


It is a big expense for some, so be smart.

Most of what can be learned in that course can be found by searching through the help files of FB and AMS. ( or even browsing youtube videos)

Also. Look up the books of the testimonials on amazon and see their rankings. Some are saying they are making money and maybe they were at one time but their books aren't ranking well now and some haven't released a book since last year. Unless they are writing under pen names?

Mark is different as he actually DOES write and DOES this. ( so I can't say a thing bad about the guy. He walks the walk.)

Nick Stephenson is slightly different. Guy has a course out but hasn't released a book in ages and the last one died under reviews. I think he makes his money from selling courses. Nothing bad in that but I prefer to see folks who say they are winning, actually winning.

In all internet marketing, the good courses feed into desperation and secrecy.

Most buy into the idea that some "hidden secret" is going to be given out, and that causes them to think they are getting some angle that can't be found anywhere else.

It's usually wrong.

However, I like Mark and i think he offers a service and a solution that is "convenient for folks who aren't savvy enough or don't have the time to dive into knowledge base files, or experiment"

In which case. I think what he offers is good.

But go in with the right expectation. Just because you have a BOOK, it doesn't mean it can sell even if you know how to get in front of the right people.

Mark shows you how to lead readers to your water. He can't make your readers drink it.

At the end of the day he offers a refund so people can dive in, see for themselves if there are any secrets and if there isn't he will give your money back.

But lets be clear, you can learn a lot just by observing what others do and experimenting yourself, and asking questions on internet marketing forums and browsing youtube videos.


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## IntoTheAbyss (Mar 20, 2017)

I've been a lurker on Kboards for a while, but just recently decided to create an account. I felt like I'd add my two cents to this conversation since I work in digital marketing. I think the below could be a start for someone with a really low budget who wants to learn. 

You may want to try some online courses on Udemy that teach you how to do Facebook marketing. You can usually google and find a code somewhere that is current that will allow you to buy any Udemy course for 10 dollars. I've purchased multiple courses on there and have always found a code before buying something, so I've never paid $10 or more for a course. They have multiple courses related to Facebook advertising, and even one or two geared towards authors. 

I don't know what Mark's course teaches, but it may be worth it to try some cheaper courses first and see if you can get results on your own first. A lot of internet marketing is just constantly testing and tinkering with things, such as do you get better results leading to a sales funnel page with a conversion pixel tracking clickthroughs, direct linking to your book on Amazon, using a clicks to web ad, page post engagement ad, etc... You may also want to try a free trial on Adespresso. It allows you to create a ton of ads at once with very easy tracking, thus allowing you to split test and find a winning ad faster. 

Whatever you do, good luck.


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## Craig Andrews (Apr 14, 2013)

Rick Gualtieri said:


> I took the course about a year and a half back and it helped tremendously. The way I looked at it was that, rather than investing in a one time service like Bookbub, this was more a longer term investment in myself. And I think that turned out to be right.
> 
> All of that said, FB was a different ad space then than it is now. Tons more competition and I think some audiences are definitely suffering from ad fatigue. However, the advice and support of the group remains excellent with strategies that can most certainly be applied elsewhere, and Mark has been true to his word in that once you're a student, you continue to get whatever updates the new students get. I mean, seriously, that right there says a lot to me.


I couldn't agree more. I purchased the course last year and have been working my way through the videos, taking diligent notes, and beginning to put that knowledge into action (I wanted to promote my boxed set, as opposed to a single title since those tend to have a higher return). With any luck it'll pay dividends longer than a week long stacked promotion which routinely costs me a similar amount. Additionally, that $750 grants you with unlimited access to the class for life, so it's the gift that literally keeps on giving.


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## Fel Beasley (Apr 1, 2014)

Mark Dawson said:


> Some very kind and helpful comments here. Thanks! I'm not going to say anything, save that (1) we've never turned down a refund request in the first 30 days (even when we knew a student had videoed the course and pirated it) and (2) if anyone is on the fence and wants an honest opinion as to whether it's too early or otherwise inappropriate to take the course, please ask. I've dissuaded quite a few over the last couple of days.


Mark is a great guy that really does care more about an author's circumstance than making a buck. Back when the course was first opened, I asked if it was right for me since I didn't have any books out. He was honest with me. Told me I should wait.

I didn't listen and bought the course then. (Patience has never been my strong suit). I don't regret it because now that I'm in a place to put the information in place, I spent a lot less on the course  I'm particularly excited for the upcoming information on AMS.


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## Deuces Deleted (Dec 21, 2015)

I tested the waters in Mark's course last summer while trying to complete my Business Calculus course and had to bow out unfortunately because of the time commitment needed and warranted to focus on my studies. Being that I was just returning to writing seriously again and studying marketing in school... I requested a refund. They didn't blink or bat an eye and he and James were nothing but honest and fair. I've still hung around a bit in the non paid student groups and they are in my opinion well balanced in how much they invest in making the videos professional.  I'd be willing to wager they have poured tens if not hundreds of thousands of dollars into the course materials since its inception.  

I'm in social media marketing/communications for my "day job" and the truth is some of the things I remember from the course did bolster what I learned in my college courses in marketing. They didn't ask me to post or come defend them. The course is so comprehensive when people I know ask me about teaching other authors about marketing I refer them with not one six pence of referral money to Mark because he has done so thorough a job there is no need for me to make an attempt. 

If I could have stayrf in the course and given more time and attention I would not have requested the refund. As a full time student with freelance clients and other personal responsibilities last summer was not the right time to add , so I asked for a refund. I've NEVER been so sorry to have my money back. 

Mark and James and the lot are pretty stand up and the course for those who have the money to spend and want to add it to their arsenal of long term author tools may find it a worthwhile investment.


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## RightHoJeeves (Jun 30, 2016)

The way I look at it, Facebook can be a bit of a money sink if you're not doing it well. If you are doing it well, it can be immensely powerful. 

Whether or not you can get the value out of a $10 ebook is another question... not saying Mark's course isn't worth it of course. It looks like an absolutely great course. But I do wonder if the information couldn't be just accessed out of a book. Of course different people have different styles of learning as well.


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## Issy (Aug 25, 2013)

deleted because VS are shady


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## A. N. Other Author (Oct 11, 2014)

We can offset the 2-month gap between paying facebook and receiving payment from Amazon via a 0% credit card, which I use for all my writing expenses, so I'm not too concerned about that. 

My big concern is the declining effectiveness of FB. This is mitigated somewhat by the lifetime membership to ads for authors, and the brainstorming and constant tips from the groups - and indeed Mark himself. So it isn't just a course.

Personally, I'm going to give it a little more thought. I'm one of the people Mark deterred when it first launched, so I have no doubts about the integrity of the course. I now have far more books, all of which sell through the series fairly well whenever I get people to read the early ones.


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## Doglover (Sep 19, 2013)

ADDavies said:


> We can offset the 2-month gap between paying facebook and receiving payment from Amazon via a 0% credit card, which I use for all my writing expenses, so I'm not too concerned about that.


We can't all get a credit card though, 0% or otherwise. If we could persuade Facebook to wait until we get paid, we'd be ok.


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## Mark Dawson (Mar 24, 2012)

True story: Adam Croft, when he hit the mother lode, was getting money from friends and family to pay for the ads. FB certainly takes money before Amazon pays it.


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## Doglover (Sep 19, 2013)

Mark Dawson said:


> True story: Adam Croft, when he hit the mother lode, was getting money from friends and family to pay for the ads. FB certainly takes money before Amazon pays it.


That's my point, Mark. I am a pensioner with only my state pension and no credit cards nor relatives to borrow from. I doubt I would anyway. When I can afford a facebook ad, it does really well, but then, as I said, they get stopped while waiting for Amazon to pay out.


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## IreneP (Jun 19, 2012)

Mark Dawson said:


> True story: Adam Croft, when he hit the mother lode, was getting money from friends and family to pay for the ads. FB certainly takes money before Amazon pays it.


If I had a tagline like Adam Croft, I would take money from the Devil to get it in front of readers.


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## BlueGen (Jun 14, 2014)

I took Mark's course in the very first year it came out. Since then, I have made a shedload of money out of FB ads. I went from around 3k a month income to a steady $15k/m. It generally only took around a 2-3k a month ad spend to get all that extra income.

I have Mark to thank for that. He is a super straightforward and honest chap, and I have nothing but good to say about the content of the course.

But...

Every single one of my ads has suddenly (and massively) increased in price. The CPCs today are literally triple what they have been for the past few months. I have a horrible feeling it's down to a sudden influx of new ads from all of Marks's latest new students. I do wonder whether FB is becoming somewhat saturated with book ads.

Perhaps it's down to something else... ley lines, or the weather or something. I do hope so.


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## anotherpage (Apr 4, 2012)

IreneP said:


> If I had a tagline like Adam Croft, I would take money from the Devil to get it in front of readers.


The interesting thing about Adam Croft is while his name is associated with this course. If you actually go listen to the interview he did with Joanne Penn, he said that FB was doing hardly anything for him until he started writing from a HOOK.

It was the hook that caused the change in response.

Once he advertised that hook, that was what pulled them in.

That's why i say, it's not entirely the advertising platform that makes or breaks a writer it's usually the product, and his case.... the hook. He had a good hook.

That's also why some books can do extremely well WITHOUT any advertising (and only amazon and a list) if they have the right cover, the right hook, and the right categories.


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## Doglover (Sep 19, 2013)

lostones said:


> The interesting thing about Adam Croft is while his name is associated with this course. If you actually go listen to the interview he did with Joanne Penn, he said that FB was doing hardly anything for him until he started writing from a HOOK.
> 
> It was the hook that caused the change in response.
> 
> ...


That's not what he said on the facebook group that goes with the course. In fact, I recall him showing screenshots of his sales graph and saying things like Facebook ads do work. I haven't quoted that because those were probably not his exact words. If it wasn't the ads that shot his sales up, why did he have to borrow thousands on credit cards and from relatives?


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## RightHoJeeves (Jun 30, 2016)

Doglover said:


> That's not what he said on the facebook group that goes with the course. In fact, I recall him showing screenshots of his sales graph and saying things like Facebook ads do work. I haven't quoted that because those were probably not his exact words. If it wasn't the ads that shot his sales up, why did he have to borrow thousands on credit cards and from relatives?


From memory I think he noticed that the particular hook of Her Last Tomorrow was working really, really well with Facebook ads. Recognising that he had a really good ad for a really good product, he then poured a lot of cash into it.


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## Doglover (Sep 19, 2013)

RightHoJeeves said:


> From memory I think he noticed that the particular hook of Her Last Tomorrow was working really, really well with Facebook ads. Recognising that he had a really good ad for a really good product, he then poured a lot of cash into it.


I'm sure it did work well, but I was addressing the post that said it was the hook that did it, not the ads. Apart from the amount Mr Croft spent on ads, a lot of his reviews state that they found the book through the facebook ads.

I'm not contradicting anything Mr Croft is saying; you can spend a fortune on advertising whatever you want, but nobody is going to buy it if it isn't worth their hard earned. What the FB ads do is to get you that visibility, get your book before the audience. After that it is up to you.

I have one book that I published back in June 2014 when I hadn't been at this very long and knew nothing about advertising. It shot up the rankings straight out of the gate with no advertising whatsoever and still sells steadily, but I don't know why. My friend says it's the title and perhaps it is, but it is still my most popular individual book.


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## RightHoJeeves (Jun 30, 2016)

Doglover said:


> I'm sure it did work well, but I was addressing the post that said it was the hook that did it, not the ads. Apart from the amount Mr Croft spent on ads, a lot of his reviews state that they found the book through the facebook ads.


Oh, yeah, I was just trying to clarify because it wasn't just the hook or the ads in isolation.

I also remember Adam acknowledging that it didn't work so well with other books, probably because at the end of the day, Her Last Tomorrow had a balls-out awesome hook that was absolutely perfect ad copy. In all honesty, I suspect Her Last Tomorrow worked as a standalone with Facebook ads because (aside from generally being a really good book) it had an X factor that would be quite difficult to replicate.

Mark Dawson said he couldn't make stand alone books profitable, which is why he sells box sets (or advocates using Facebook ads to drive email sign ups). And that's hardly surprising - Mark's books are great, don't get me wrong, but the John Milton books don't have that sucker punch tagline.

Indeed, I will be interested to see if Adam has success (or attempts) with Facebook ads for his next book. I already bought it, but that was because I signed up to his email list.


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## anotherpage (Apr 4, 2012)

Adam Croft said:


> This.
> 
> Facebook ads *do* work, but only when used properly, and with a decent book. If it was a case of use Facebook ads and your career would take off, things would be lovely and rosy but it tends to require much more than that.


There we go. Right from the horses mouth. There are many ingredients but only with a decent book.


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## Doglover (Sep 19, 2013)

lostones said:


> Go listen to the interview. It's pretty clear in the interview in the audio that FB was not working for him (even though he was throwing money at it ) until he wrote the hook for that book.
> 
> I'm not saying ads didn't play a role. I'm saying that it's only one part in the engine.
> 
> ...


I believe that's what I said, that facebook ads give you the visibility, but you need a product worth paying for to go further.


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## John Etzil (Nov 15, 2016)

So I do recommend the course but you must be realistic. Have you got a quality product? Have you got spare cash? Have you got the resilience to try, fail, try something different, etc etc etc, during the ad-testing phase? Have you got the time to really dedicate to it?
[/quote]

This.

A long term, business owner, mindset increases the odds of success. A lot.


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## josielitton (Jul 21, 2014)

BlueGen said:


> I took Mark's course in the very first year it came out. Since then, I have made a shedload of money out of FB ads. I went from around 3k a month income to a steady $15k/m. It generally only took around a 2-3k a month ad spend to get all that extra income.
> 
> I have Mark to thank for that. He is a super straightforward and honest chap, and I have nothing but good to say about the content of the course.
> 
> ...


First, congratulations on your success. That's fantastic! I can't speak to what's happened to your FB ads but hopefully the problems won't last. However, I recently pulled all of mine when costs went up significantly (in one case) and otherwise results plummeted. I have no idea if FB's admitted problems with ad metrics and the efforts to fix that could be connected, but you can read about them here and draw your own conclusions. https://techcrunch.com/2016/11/16/facebook-overhauls-ad-metrics-admits-4-bugs-and-errors-led-to-misreported-numbers/

You might also find these comments from the CEO of P&G, the world's largest marketing spender, interesting. Basically, he's warning FB and Google to clean up their act or lose billions in revenue. https://www.bloomberg.com/gadfly/articles/2017-02-01/facebook-and-google-have-a-problem-with-crappy-advertising

I have great respect for what Mark has accomplished. I took his course, learned a tremendous about from it, and for awhile really benefited from FB ads. But the recent problems there have caused me to pull back and wait to see what happens.


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## Anarchist (Apr 22, 2015)

doctorshevil said:


> This was much longer than I expected to write, but I thought maybe it would be helpful to some people.


I found it helpful.

I've been doing FB since its inception, and therefore wasn't going to buy Dawson's course. But at this point, $750 is a great investment, even if I only learn one new thing that I can leverage to grow my business(es) faster.

Thanks for posting.


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## RightHoJeeves (Jun 30, 2016)

Ha, I've been at my day job for a year today, and my manager just came as said as an "anniversary present" they'd pay for me to do a course in anything I wanted. Didn't have to be business related.

I was like.... Mark's Ads For Authors course? I got a "sure, why not?" in response.

Only problem is I'm waiting to hear back on a job application I put in a few weeks ago... aghh!!


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## EC (Aug 20, 2013)

Delusion 

Contact Facebook and they will give you a professional account manager. 

Free.


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## Doglover (Sep 19, 2013)

EC said:


> Delusion
> 
> Contact Facebook and they will give you a professional account manager.
> 
> Free.


Actually, no. Facebook will not give you an account manager until they decide you are worth investing in, timewise. When that happens, they will post a banner on your author site, asking you to contact them to arrange a phone call with your rep. I did that back last year sometime and am still waiting.

Facebook reps don't give you much more than you can find on their help pages and they are not specifically targeted at authors, which is the big advantage of Mark's course. The other big advantage is that he is himself an author and has been there and done that and got where he has through trial and error. That is what he is passing on.

To call something 'delusion' when you have obviously never tried it, is not very helpful. There would hardly be so many people here singing his praises if it was delusion. It is not for everybody, but if you can afford it, and can learn from it, it is worth doing.


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## Nicole Simon (May 16, 2014)

*IF* you are serious about marketing and making this your career, yes, this is a very good offer. Not only does Mark speak from experience but he also caters it to you as the writer and explains very well. Note that I have never used his course but worked through his free previews - I teach this stuff myself and would happily send people there even if they are not just writers.

Compare: as an experienced writer, you do not read my full book to determine if I can write well )

But just buying the book is not enough. You need to apply this - and work at understanding marketing / advertising. It could be worth the money alone for having somebody else keeping up with all of the changes on the different platforms.

FB ads are diminishing - sure. But at the same time, FB is a highly complex advertising ecosystem and you should be able to transfer your knowledge. If oyu worked with FB, then ads in other systems should be a breeze for you. Learn once, apply many times.

hth
Nicole


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## Nicole Simon (May 16, 2014)

Nicole Simon said:


> *IF* you are serious about marketing and making this your career, yes, this is a very good offer. Not only does Mark speak from experience but he also caters it to you as the writer and explains very well. Note that I have never used his course but worked through his free previews - I teach this stuff myself and would happily send people there even if they are not just writers.
> 
> Compare: as an experienced writer, you do not read my full book to determine if I can write well
> 
> ...


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## Nicholas Erik (Sep 22, 2015)

I enrolled on this go round. Here are my thoughts after watching all the videos over the past 10 days and implementing the info.

*GENERAL*

> if $750 is a lot of money to you at this point (i.e. you're gonna charge it), then don't sign-up. It's not gonna be helpful. This is why I skipped out the last few times it was offered; the course cost was gonna eat up basically all of my free cash flow for that month. *Facebook (and most PPC platforms) thinks money is delicious*. If you're used to AMS not spending jack and think FB will do the same, you're in for an unpleasant surprise. I've been billed $80 over the past 5 days. Those are for minimum budget $5 ads, mostly for three campaigns, across four ad sets (so $20/day). Your promo dollars are probably better spent elsewhere if your funds are limited.

> more on the subject of cash flow: *you really need a decent amount of cash to make this work because you'll have to test things*. You'll also need a website, decent landing page and decent ad image. You'll need Zapier ($20/mo) if you're using LeadGen ads and don't want to be miserable manually exporting the .CSVs from Facebook. There are exceptions, but the competition on FB, like Amazon, has tightened significantly over the past couple years, which means general costs have risen. Unfortunately, any money you put out won't be seen for 2 months - and that's if you're going for sales, not mailing list sign-ups. For ads running today (April 1), I'm gonna get that money back in _3_ months. That's a long time.

> if you don't have a few books to test this on, I'd just use the free videos and muck around to see if it'll work. Facebook doesn't work with all books, so you need a few things to test.

> don't charge the ads to a credit card you're not gonna pay off at the end of the month. Please, please don't do this. I don't care what the APR is; that's just a terrible practice. Credit card companies don't give out low or 0% APR rates out of generosity; they know human psychology, and know that most people don't pay in time to avoid interest. The idea is always "yeah, I'll make it back" when my book blows up; I did that with some covers three years ago that I'm still paying off. Not all books respond to Facebook ads, and if you go for mailing list sign-ups, your timeline for payback is longer.

*ABOUT THE COURSE*

> professional all the way through. Excellent presentation/usability. Well produced video and audio. Many of the videos have been redone for March 2017, which is nice. Minor quibble: I would've liked to see more recent examples from students; some of the ones that were from 2015 struck me as outdated and not relevant/not competitive in today's environment. That being said, Mark has run some of the same ads since March 2015 (!), so I could be wrong about the outdated part.

> bonuses: these are nice if you need a website, Book Funnel etc, and the discounts can bring the (relative) price of the course down. I watched the bonus course on blurb writing provided by Brian Cohen and threw up some test ads using his formula (although you could also just read his book, which is $3, I think). There's a bonus course on YouTube that I'll get to once I have video ads; it looks well put together.

> the information is rock solid but there are no secrets. Common misconception: *a good course is not about information*; I've never learned any info that couldn't be uncovered with some GoogleFu or a few $15 books in _any_ premium course I've taken. *A good course is about structure* (e.g. assembling the information in a usable fashion) and _accountability_ (e.g. you paid $750, therefore you'll implement it). *The structure here is very good*, and allows you to follow along easily. If you're not going to follow along and pause the videos as Mark is doing things to do exactly as he says, you should save your money, as it'll be a giant waste of time and funds.

> some good info on avoiding certain ad placements and also not messing with certain options. Just streamlining the process probably cuts off 15+ hours of random ass rabbit hole testing all the useless options FB has. So that's good.

> on video ads: there's not much here, but they function pretty much the same as regular ads from what I can tell.

> more on info: a decent portion of the stuff is fairly basic, like using the Power Editor; some of the other stuff is covered in his free videos. I was moderately familiar with the ad platform, but had been dragging my feet rolling out a bunch of ads. This info was still fairly redundant, and I definitely wasn't a super power user.

> that being said: Mark is very clear and thorough, so the above might be good if you're intimidated by the platform or not particularly technologically savvy. Keep in mind that I'm 27, so my opinion on the Power Editor's intuitiveness might not be particularly relevant.

> *the really valuable stuff is his conversion metrics and targets*. This is all gold; seeing how much he spent was an eye-opener, because I thought I was spending a lot on ads. Surprise. I was amateur hour. That was worth $750, easily (which is a weird thing to say). On the other hand, I was freaking out about my 75%+ open rate on the first email of one of my autoresponders, and wondering how to optimize it. Surprise #2: that was really good. Just having things to aim for - and knowing when something is "good enough" - is incredibly helpful.

> there's some pretty clever stuff with the affiliate links (a system to use them for conversion traacking) that I hadn't thought of. Very useful.

> very brief mention of AdEspresso, but no breakdown (I'm assuming Mark doesn't use it); would've liked to see some exploration of A/B split-testing options, but probably not relevant to most authors.

> we'll have to wait and see if the "Ads for Authors" moniker is more than a rebrand. Not a complaint, since I bought this to learn FB. There's a YouTube course, and AMS/Twitter are coming in May, I think. We'll see if those are robust; the YouTube course is obviously much shorter (3 - 4 hours). Again, not a negative - but if you're not gonna use FB, then this course probably isn't going to be super helpful at this point.

I know that sounds less than glow-y or effusive, but that's not the case. I thought the course was well put together. The structure is really good; most people talk about secrets, so that sounds like death by faint praise. It's not; if a course has terrible structure, it's no better than a collection of random blog posts. *This is really easy to implement, which is huge.* Nothing you probably don't already know/can't find out if you're at an intermediate level or so, but I think if you _are_ above that level, then it's still easily worth it just for a peek into his dashboard/thought process.

For me, it was important to also have accountability. I don't like Facebook, so I've avoided using it for the most part. I did each of the exercises as I watched the video. I've spent more for other courses, but I decided to immediately do the stuff for the first time with this course. Even the really obvious stuff I would pause along and just do it step-by-step.

Surprise: it worked.

Thus, *I recommend it in the following circumstances*:

A) you have 40 hours to implement the info (the course is about 18 hours long; double that since you'll be pausing it to do things in real-time)

B) you have a big backlist (5+ books)

C) you have free cash that you won't need in awhile (the initial $750 outlay and $200+ month, minimum); you'll also need some decent images, a website, a landing page, and patience.

D) you're willing to actually implement things immediately as you go along, rather than hoard information. This is probably #1; if you're just gonna watch the videos and then do stuff later, save your $750. Again, 95%+ of the info can be found elsewhere; Mark has even shared some of his ad spends for launches, so even that's not a secret. I've been guilty of information hoarding before; buying courses as "entertainment" and simply watching them without doing much. This goes hand-in-hand with C - you need some money that you can burn without remorse as tuition funds.

E) you're willing to test/tweak. I was testing things really stupidly before. It's not so much that Mark goes into split-testing (he doesn't), rather that I was trying to avoid Facebook as much as possible and thus wasn't using the platform correctly/to benefit my Amazon blurbs etc. I bought the course to force me to use it. Which, again, is a unique user case, since most people can't be torn away from Facebook.

*RESULTS*

I basically copied what Mark did, just for an urban fantasy book/series. Partially because I was lazy, partially because I just wanted to paint by numbers and see what would happen.

*I've added 60 - 70 subs thus far over the past 5 days. Cost $80*. Done zero optimization, and my upsells are garbage; the conversion on the landing page is also a sad 28%, so I need to wrangle those pieces of the funnel. Running some Lead Gen ads that are getting me signups at $0.45, which is reasonable in my book. Also, Facebook devoured some money early on, because it thought it was reasonable to charge me $1+ a click. I thought that was unreasonable, but not before it played Hungry Hungry Hippos with a few dollars.

I'm just starting with the paid box sets, so nothing to report (well, 2 sales from an ad I started a few hours ago; not bad). They've been doing kinda okay in AMS (getting page reads and stuff, but AMS likes spending only like three cents a day, so I'm not retiring). Also, AMS' reporting is from like 1998, so who knows exactly what all that's really done.

If I can get this to work with box sets and scale, I'll be ecstatic. Thus far, AMS has resisted all attempts at throwing more filthy lucre its way; since Facebook has no such qualms about vacuuming up enormous amounts of cash, if you find a winner, you can really ride it.

*RANDOM STUFF*

> Reports of Facebook's decline in effectiveness have been wildly exaggerated. Not to claim that I'm all of a sudden a FB Ads master, but this is easily apparent. I think the super low hanging fruit days are over (a la Amazon, where you didn't even have to upload a cover and could sell hundreds of copies). A few of the examples, as I stated before, looked pretty questionable to me; I would suspect running those in 2017 would yield disappointing results.

> the image is king. Targeting is second. Copy is probably a distant third. So Facebook is a great platform if you're semi-visually savvy, or can write good hooks but hate writing blurbs. Be prepared to get a few images from your designer if you don't have ones you can use. I repurposed some book covers; they've been doing well, because I have a striking picture of eyes that I cropped out.

> As ad spends get higher, I think I'd consider splitting out the ads on a desktop/mobile basis. IIRC, Mark used to do this (it was in the old free videos I saw last year), but it wasn't emphasized that much in the course. Might be easy to miss, so I'll throw in a mention.

> You can set the bid manually and still get clicks. Mark recommends automatic bidding, which works well in most instances; the first ad I put up resulted in some clicks for $1+, which made me almost [crap] myself. But manually setting that to $0.50 dropped it to _below_ that, with Facebook still using the daily budget. So be willing to do that.

*WHAT SHOULD I DO IF I CAN'T AFFORD IT?*

1) Watch Mark's free videos. See if you can get an ad or two working cheap. Remember, even at $5/day, that's $150/mo. So you still need some money to play, unfortunately. 
2) Join some Instafreebie/author cross promos. You can get like 500+ subs for free, or $20. Facebook can't match that, although I'm not sure how the sub quality compares. 
3) Use standard promo sites that deliver (ENT/Robin Reads etc.)
4) write more books and save your $$/tweak your cash flow; if you have a larger backlist, that means you can spend more on advertising (whether Facebook or elsewhere) and still turn a profit. Further, each mailing list sub you add is now worth more, since you can sell them more books.

Anyway, I'm glad I joined; it's a good course, and if you meet the right criteria, it's definitely worth $750 without question.

Nick


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## Rae B. Lake (Mar 7, 2017)

This looks sooo intriguing and I need soooo much help with my marketing but I just can't foot this amount. I know that it is an investment, unfortunately my whole book process is an investment, I just don't have an extra 750 bucks to invest. I wish there maybe a less in depth one that is less expensive. I know if I want the best I have to pay for the best but...sheesh, i am going to make myself bankrupt before I even get to publishing the actual book...lol


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## A. N. Other Author (Oct 11, 2014)

Thank you, Nicholas Erik. Awesome post.


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## Guest (Apr 1, 2017)

Nicholas, thank you for the awesome and thorough write up of the course!  It was very helpful, and helped confirm what I already suspected - that I'm not nearly ready to take it as I'm lacking the things needed like a backlist and the $$$ to really get into the ads, while also confirming that when I am at that place, I should give it a whirl


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## morrighansmuse (Mar 27, 2016)

I missed signing up for the course the last 2 times and ended up signing up for another course that was a waste of time (wish I had canceled before the 30 days was up) so I swore I'd sign up the next time Mark offered it, and as soon as my royalties came yesterday, I did. I've been doing FB and AMS ads to some degree of success but I knew I could do better. I also needed input from a more knowledgeable group and also more support which I was not getting from the other wanna-be course.  It's a lesson learned and one I'm chalking up to experience.  

I'm also glad Adam Croft chimed in because I have a reason to fangirl a bit. I remember listening to Joanna Penn's podcast and there was another one, too, maybe Rocking Self-Publishing (I could be wrong) and man, but that hook is the best ever. Even I bought the book and my husband, who is an audiobook person, asked me to get the audiobook version after I mentioned the hook.  That's one thing I need to find for my books right now - covers, the right hook, perfect ad copy, and the budget for those ads


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## Writer&#039;s Block (Oct 29, 2014)

Nicholas Erik said:


> I enrolled on this go round. Here are my thoughts after watching all the videos over the past 10 days and implementing the info.


Thank you for this, Nick. Excellent post. I have bookmarked to reread later.


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## JustinBell1974 (Feb 20, 2016)

I signed up for this course about a week ago knowing that I'm a prolific writer but a horrific marketer.  To all the folks saying that the information is readily available via Google, KBoards and other places, you are absolutely correct, of course it is, but it's so easy stumbling down a rabbit hole and ending up in places that really lead you in the wrong direction.

As Nicholas said, when it comes to courses like this, it's not just about the content or material, it's about the structure and being able to easily follow through Mark's fantastic step-by-step instructions.

I took his SPF101 course and I've only started scratching the surface on implementing some of his suggestions and already I've gone from around 50 downloads of my first novel (permafree on Amazon) to nearly 7,000.  Those 7,000 downloads have cascaded into improved sales for Book 2 (nothing dramatic, but a 125% increase over what it was doing) and have given me the confidence and the structure to develop future release plans.

I think having a direction is invaluable.  That's been my biggest struggle as an independent author, just not knowing the steps to take and not having any direct resources (that didn't often directly conflict with each other).  Mark's courses have been extremely valuable in setting a foundation and making me feel at least a little bit smarter and more confident about where I want to take my writing career.

This is coming from someone who is scraping the bottom of the barrel for sales ($80 earned so far in 2017   ) but as someone who only made $80 all of the last 2 years on his own work, this is a decided uptick, especially considering I've only begun putting his recommendations in place.


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## Germanikus (Nov 14, 2016)

Nice try - adding the affiliate code and getting this post back into visibility ...


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## Andra M (Feb 19, 2020)

SkyScribe said:


> I just got word that Mark's course has officially opened up again for new entrants. I know there are a lot of members here who are already in, but for those who aren't and are considering it, I have nothing but good things to say about it.
> 
> Self Publishing Formula's Ads for Authors
> 
> I joined about a year or so ago, and although I was doing well before it has made a big difference and taken my fiction to another level. What's really impressed me is how the course is frequently updated with new material that gets added at no additional charge. If there's one thing I've learned, it's that change is constant and you can't place all your eggs in one basket, whether it be promo site ads, Facebook ads, etc. Now there's info in the course on Amazon Marketing Services ads, Youtube ads, Twitter, and more. I guess it's time to get with the program for 2017.


I just got a notification that this course was open and it's one I've been thinking about. Does anybody know how many books you should have out before you should get the course? I only have 1.


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## Doglover (Sep 19, 2013)

Andra M said:


> I just got a notification that this course was open and it's one I've been thinking about. Does anybody know how many books you should have out before you should get the course? I only have 1.


I bought this course last year. I couldn't tell you how many advantages it has, because there is just so much stuff! It makes no difference if you have one book or 100, it is worth getting. You can be learning how to launch your first book or how to wake up your others. Also, it is always up to date. Any new stuff, any changes are automatically added to the rest. There's not as lot of stuff I recommend, but if you're serious, I definitely recommend this.


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## josephdaniel (Jan 30, 2019)

Excellent, excellent course.


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## PermaStudent (Apr 21, 2015)

Andra M said:


> I just got a notification that this course was open and it's one I've been thinking about. Does anybody know how many books you should have out before you should get the course? I only have 1.


You can email and ask. They're very friendly responsive.

For anyone else who's wondering: It's $849 this year, or a little more if you opt for the monthly payments. That made me pause because I'm a thrifty saver since birth. It's a lot of money, even if you view it as an investment or business expense.

I signed up. I've got a decent backlist now, too many names that I trust have endorsed it, and I'm ready to commit the hours.


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## markpauloleksiw (Jan 15, 2019)

My pause is this. It can get expensive to take a course like this and then you have to really start spending on ads.

There are a lot of free resources out there. Tons. Take a first shot at those and you need to invest the time.

Facebook ads work well if you can narrow your demographics and genre. For some genre's they don't work.

Before spending this kind of money...however, good the course...you need to think of what your strategy and objectives are.

Most importantly...don't believe what people are telling you about their profits/sales. Don't. Many are selling or getting a referral (affiliate fee).

Mark


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## Doglover (Sep 19, 2013)

markpauloleksiw said:


> My pause is this. It can get expensive to take a course like this and then you have to really start spending on ads.
> 
> There are a lot of free resources out there. Tons. Take a first shot at those and you need to invest the time.
> 
> ...


I am pretty sure Mark Dawson's courses have no affiliate associations to offer. I would agree that people sometimes exaggerate their sales figures, but you need only look at their rank if they sell on Amazon to discover the truth. Mark Dawson's books are always among the best sellers; he is one person who practices what he preaches. Yes, advertising is expensive and can gobble up any profits for months or even years to come, but that depends on what you want out of it. I can honestly say that I haven't made much so far, but that's because I haven't had much to spend.


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## PermaStudent (Apr 21, 2015)

Doglover said:


> <Snip>
> I would agree that people sometimes exaggerate their sales figures, but you need only look at their rank if they sell on Amazon to discover the truth. <Snip>


This is the truth, and it's part of what I did to evaluate my interest in the course. I went back through this forum and others to find those who took the course, looked people up on Amazon, and then counted how many in my genre had better ranks than me. Some have clearly moved on from publishing, some are still hanging in the hobby range (nothing wrong with those choices, btw), and more than I would have expected are ranking better. Obviously, one never knows what people are spending vs. earning to hit those highs, but what I could see from my internet stalking was good enough for me.


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## Doglover (Sep 19, 2013)

PermaStudent said:


> This is the truth, and it's part of what I did to evaluate my interest in the course. I went back through this forum and others to find those who took the course, looked people up on Amazon, and then counted how many in my genre had better ranks than me. Some have clearly moved on from publishing, some are still hanging in the hobby range (nothing wrong with those choices, btw), and more than I would have expected are ranking better. Obviously, one never knows what people are spending vs. earning to hit those highs, but what I could see from my internet stalking was good enough for me.


Look at Mark's own ranking; that always sways me. If someone is offering a super duper marketing course, but their own books rank no higher than mine, I think they are making little from their books and trying to boost it up with selling courses. Also, Mark's a really genuine bloke who'll always help you. You also get facebook groups where you can mill over stuff with other members and you've got 30 days to get your money back.


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## anotherpage (Apr 4, 2012)

markpauloleksiw said:


> My pause is this. It can get expensive to take a course like this and then you have to really start spending on ads.
> 
> There are a lot of free resources out there. Tons. Take a first shot at those and you need to invest the time.
> 
> ...


Yeah, maybe the only one benefiting here is Mark, which kudos to him for coming up with the idea. Selling How To's has been around since the beginning of time.

I will say this, Mark is a genuine guy and deserves to do well for his efforts. ( Whether those efforts will help you is another thing entirely)

Long before he did this course he had found ways to sell his own books ( though the marketplace was very different back then ).

However, like any course online, I would caution newbies, don't take the words of those who have purchased, whether in video form, testimonials or forum posts (as they will always justify their purchase even if they aren't getting success. No one wants to look gullible, and no one wants to admit they didn't follow instructions.)

The key is and this applies to any course, take everything with a grain of salt.

In this case, be sure to look at the authors' book rankings who gave testimonials... NOT Marks (He had a massive backend of subscribers that was built long before he did this course)

Look at the books of authors who have taken the course... That's what determines if what they are doing on the backend is working.

If their rankings aren't below 5,000, chances are they are struggling to sell.

If they haven't released a book in years, ask yourself why.

FB advertising isn't what it used to be 2,3, or even 5 years ago. It's been saturated by a flood of indies and regular businesses and that's driven up the cost, leading authors to throw in the towel (I've made it work but through grunt work and years of testing but even I encounter ads that fail. And I will tell you it's not what it used to be. It's not a magical way to sell books.)

That's because creating ads is only ONE part of the selling machine.

Your covers, title, blurb play a massive role and make up a larger percentage.

If you have crap covers that don't fit with the genre or look amateur ( Ding! Sorry, you are out)
If you have a title that doesn't fit in with the genre (Ding! Sorry, play again)
If you have a blurb that makes no sense and is waffling (Ding! Sorry, you lose)

Then of course it goes without saying, if you manage to sell, the book must be good otherwise people won't come back.

If you can tell a good story you can build a loyal audience.

As for Amazon?
.
Amazon advertising isn't brain surgery if you can take the time to dig into the help files, browse a few youtube videos, forums, and are willing to test by spending lots of money you can make it work. (i.e Working means.....For every $1 you spend you should get that back PLUS more )

Also after shelling out whatever the cost is for the course, you must have money ready to go and are willing to spend (i.e $1000 or more a month ), and, ideally at least 3 books or more.

However, if you need someone to hold your hand, you think this is some magical push-button method, or you just enjoy hanging around an FB group singing kumbaya, then, by all means, jump in and get wet but don't go complaining to others if you come out soggy and with little to show.

Please, also note that if you come out soggy it may have nothing to do with the course, and everything to do with your expectations, if you applied the contents, and your book covers, titles, and blurbs.

What Mark is offering here is great for newbies, lazy bums who don't want to read help files, and those who think Aladdin is real.

For the rest of us, we'll do the heavy lifting and see you in our rearview mirror.


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## PermaStudent (Apr 21, 2015)

anotherpage said:


> What Mark is offering here is great for newbies, lazy bums who don't want to read help files, and those who think Aladdin is real.


Also, those of us who have more money than time to throw at a problem. All I'm expecting is to achieve a level of competence in a few hours/days that otherwise might have taken me weeks/months. I'm happy to dig into help files once I know enough to know what I'm looking for.

I have heard people with a hard-earned, working mastery of ads describe them as magic, though. So, I guess I do believe.


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## Corvid (May 15, 2014)

Someone with a great reputation and proven track record, who knows a lot more about this critical thing to your business than you do, is selling their expertise, and they can greatly increase your knowledge-base a lot faster than if you were to do it yourself. If you have the means, why wouldn't you do this? Seems kind of a no-brainer.


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## markpauloleksiw (Jan 15, 2019)

I like to learn from my own mistakes and control my own destiny. I just believe everyone has there own sweet spot and it starts with a good book and a passion.

Success cannot be stored in jar, sold and replicated. Why? 

1)  Social media marketing has changed dramatically over not just 7 years but one year.  
2)  You cannot teach dumb luck. Most success stories have an element of just dumb luck.
3) Not everyone has the ability to risk money they cannot afford to lose. There is no guarantee spending thousands a month on facebook ads will work.

I am fine with someone making their living selling a story to other authors. My advice is to save the money and figure out your own path.

Mark


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## Crystal_ (Aug 13, 2014)

Ads are a multiplier, for sure. They can do wonders for a marketable product. But how well they do really depends on the product, and how well you can communicate "this is why you should buy this book" to readers across platforms and with your packaging.

Obviously, it's not easy or everyone would do it.

Mark's class is great for newbies and you will easily save $800 in ad costs from his knowledge. But, yes, you really shouldn't take it if $800 is a stretch, because even with the class, you will still have a trial and error process with your ads. And it might be another $800 before you're seeing a solid ROI. Or it might be more, if you don't have a product that's easy to sell.


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## Doglover (Sep 19, 2013)

I am reading people stating here that it is great for newbies and yes, it is. I also know someone who makes a good living from her books and has even written and sold books on marketing herself. Yet, after that, she paid for Mark's course. She must have felt there was more to it than what one can learn from the help files.

What Mark does is go into the intricacies of every ad platform to give your ads a fighting chance of being seen. He started off with $5 a day budget.

Of course, if your books don't appeal, then you will be wasting your money.


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## markpauloleksiw (Jan 15, 2019)

Last word of caution. Facebook ads are not what they started out to be. Facebook only cares about your data and cash inflow. They don't make money by you selling books.

This is why I warn people to thread carefully in putting money into Facebook. Mailing lists etc....were all good strategies when no one else was doing them. Nowadays, people are inundated with emails and the impact is not what it once was as a strategy.

Same for free giveaways...People have hundreds to thousands of books on their "to read" lists unlike just 5 years ago.

Mark


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## Doglover (Sep 19, 2013)

markpauloleksiw said:


> Last word of caution. Facebook ads are not what they started out to be. Facebook only cares about your data and cash inflow. They don't make money by you selling books.
> 
> This is why I warn people to thread carefully in putting money into Facebook. Mailing lists etc....were all good strategies when no one else was doing them. Nowadays, people are inundated with emails and the impact is not what it once was as a strategy.
> 
> ...


Well, I'm getting a 250% return on my ads, on Facebook, so yes they do work, providing you target them properly and have something to sell. At the end of the day, with Mark you can't lose because you can try it for 30 days and if it doesn't work for you, you can get a refund.


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## SkyScribe (Aug 18, 2014)

Doglover said:


> Well, I'm getting a 250% return on my ads, on Facebook, so yes they do work, providing you target them properly and have something to sell. At the end of the day, with Mark you can't lose because you can try it for 30 days and if it doesn't work for you, you can get a refund.


I agree. Facebook makes money on their ads and doesn't care one way or another how many books you sell, but that doesn't at all mean that they can't be used correctly to sell your books in an efficient manner that makes a profit. It's a competitive marketplace, and when the alternative is to sit on your hands and stare at a flat line in your KDP reports, doing something to get the word out about what you have for sale is necessary to see a better result.


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## jb1111 (Apr 6, 2018)

I've never advertised.

I've seen at least one KBoarder swear by FB ads.

Also, I've seen at least a handful of FB eBook ads in my FB newsfeed, and they seemed to be aligned with many of the things which I've 'liked' on FB. At least reasonably well. FWIW.


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## SND (May 26, 2017)

I got the 101 course a couple of years ago. For Ads I'd rather save myself the $800 and instead pay approx. $15 in total for:

Amazon Ads Unleashed by Robert J. Ryan
Bookbub Ads Expert by David Gaughran
Help! My Facebook Ads Suck by Mal Cooper


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## markpauloleksiw (Jan 15, 2019)

For newbies...$800+ on a course is good chunk of change for most authors. There are NO GUARANTEES with any course you take. And no one should be posting that anything which gives that appearance.

There are a lot of freebie tools and your best investment is your own time doing research...just my opinion.

Mark


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