How to Choose Amazon Book Categories: A Guide for Authors
Have you heard the buzz about the recent changes in Amazon’s book category selection process? Amazon has made a major update that gives authors like you more control and clarity when choosing categories for your books. So, let’s dive in and explore the previous system, the new system, and how you can make the most of it!
Why Amazon Book Categories Are Important?
Choosing the right categories for your book plays a crucial role in increasing your book sales:
- Discoverability: Categories help readers find books that match their interests. By placing your book in relevant categories, you improve its visibility to potential readers. This enhances the discoverability of your book and can lead to better sales.
- Better Targeting: Each category represents a niche or genre, and readers who are interested in those categories are more likely to be interested in your book. By choosing the right categories, you can effectively market your book to the right audience.
- Higher Ranking: Different categories have varying levels of competition. If you select less competitive categories, you have a better chance of ranking higher in those categories and therefore gain more visibility.
The Old Book Category Selection System on KDP
In the past, when uploading a book on the Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP) system, Amazon required authors to select two categories. These categories were determined by the BISAC Subject Codes, an industry-standard system that didn’t always align with the actual categories in the Kindle Store. This often caused frustration as finding the right category became a challenge. It was not uncommon for books to end up in different categories than intended. To add to the confusion, the categories visible while browsing on Amazon differed from the ones available on the KDP dashboard during the upload process.
The New Book Category Selection System on KDP
Now, Amazon has decided to hand over the reins to authors! When you upload or edit your book details on KDP, you can see all the available Amazon categories and select three that best represent your book. This game-changing update not only gives you more control but also ensures that your book ends up in the most relevant categories.
Of course, there’s a catch – if Amazon believes a category, you selected isn’t the right fit, they’ll put it in draft mode until you choose a more suitable category. It might sound a bit strict, but it’s all about making sure your book finds its rightful place. So, choose your categories wisely!
A Free Tool to Find the Best Categories for Your Book on Amazon
Go to Amazon and search for books on your topic and copy their ASINs from the Amazon book product page.
Then go to the free tool BKLNK and paste them here one by one.
You will see all the categories where each book is listed on Amazon. Repeat this process with all your competitors’ books and note down all categories that suit your book. If you click on the small button “Catalize,” it will show you also, other categories that are related to the ones listed for the books in that genre.
Then find these categories on Amazon and check out the Best Sellers Rank of the bestselling books in each of them. Click on the book that is taking the #1 spot in each category and scroll down to its “Product Details” section to see its Best Sellers Rank. It shows where each book ranks compared to other books within the entire Kindle store.
The general rule is – the bigger the number, the fewer sales the book is making. Create a list of categories that look promising by noting the category name and the bestseller’s Best Sellers Rank in each category to see the dynamics and how easy/difficult it would be to move up to the top.
(Remember to switch to Kindle Paid store in order not to get confused by data of free eBooks and printed books, because they have their tops).
Keep in mind that categories with books ranking less than #20,000 are highly competitive, and it would be very difficult to become a bestselling author in them; however, it’s still a good idea to list your book in these categories to reach a bigger audience and exposure.
You may want to choose only those where it’s easier to rank the highest but don’t because very small niche categories might not receive a lot of traffic. There is no point in selecting an obscure category, thinking that since there aren’t many books in the category, it will quickly move to the top and get the bestseller label. While that may be true, this book won’t get many sales and will quickly lose its rankings. Why? Those categories are so uncompetitive because not many people browse them to find books. And if your book has a bestseller label next to it, but no one buys it, what’s the point?
Therefore, a better strategy is to choose one very competitive category and try to reach at least the number ten spot, and others that are less competitive and enable you to hit the #1 Bestseller spot at least in one of them. This way, you have a chance to get the desired bestseller label in a smaller category, plus you get visibility in popular categories.
Since manually searching through numerous categories can be time-consuming, tools like Publisher Rocket offer a search feature and additional category research to streamline the process.
A Quick Way to Find Book Categories with the Help of Publisher Rocket
If you use Publisher Rocket, finding the perfect categories for your book is a breeze. With just a few clicks, Publisher Rocket unveils category details, statistics, and trends over time, and even provides insights into the types of books within each category.
To easily find relevant categories for your book, head over to the “Category Search” section on the Publisher Rocket. Select the “Kindle” option and enter at least the first three letters of your keyword in the search box. In an instant, the tool will display a comprehensive list of parent categories and subcategories that are suitable for your topic.
To gain deeper insights into a specific category, simply click on the “Insights” button. This will provide you with a detailed analysis of the chosen category. You’ll discover valuable information such as the sales trends within the category, the level of competition you can expect, and the types of books listed there. You can even find out if the majority of the books in this category were published by large publishing houses or independent writers.
By utilizing Publisher Rocket, you can save time and make informed decisions about the best category for your book. Understanding the sales trends, competition, and the landscape of books in a category will empower you to position your book for success. So, take advantage of their “Category Search” and “Insights” features and unlock the potential of finding the perfect categories for your books.
With this valuable data at your disposal, you can make well-informed decisions and gain insight into the number of sales required to reach the coveted #1 position in your chosen category. Additionally, you may discover categories that were previously overlooked but prove to be even more suitable for your book’s genre or theme.
Update the Category List for Your Book
After compiling a comprehensive list of relevant book categories, analyze them, searching for categories that meet the following criteria:
- Natural Fit: Identify categories where your book naturally belongs.
- Ranking Potential: Assess the likelihood of achieving a high ranking within those categories.
- User Traffic: Determine if the selected categories have sufficient user traffic to make achieving a high ranking worthwhile.
When you have chosen the three most promising categories, go to your KDP dashboard, find the Book Details section, and update the category list for your book. Save the changes and publish your book. Avoid changing categories too often, because Amazon advises against frequent modifications to maintain consistency.
Take your time and make thoughtful decisions! Learn more about KDP category selection on the Amazon help page.
