This is a guest post from the creators of The Library@Facebook App.
The Library@Facebook is a free app that allows people to share books they are happy to give away and get new books in return.
Our goal is simple but big: Before buying a book see if you can get it for free. List the books you are done with, send them to people that request them and earn credit for new books. Involve your friends, exchange books, share experiences and get ideas on what’s good to read
Our goal is simple but big: Before buying a book see if you can get it for free. List the books you are done with, send them to people that request them and earn credit for new books. Involve your friends, exchange books, share experiences and get ideas on what’s good to read
When we looked online we found that online book-sharing sites were popular in America and some European countries however they were standalone communities that only a really committed book reader was likely to join. Facebook of course was the ideal avenue but we didn’t find anything on there that really matched our needs so we figured: let’s build it.
We wanted to expand our Facebook skill-set so we figured, at worst, The Library @ Facebook would make a good training project. We mapped out the idea and we began to research and spec how it might work. The beta version has just been completed and over the coming weeks we are looking for feedback (good and bad!) as we look to fine-tune the launch version.
We wanted to expand our Facebook skill-set so we figured, at worst, The Library @ Facebook would make a good training project. We mapped out the idea and we began to research and spec how it might work. The beta version has just been completed and over the coming weeks we are looking for feedback (good and bad!) as we look to fine-tune the launch version.
We now have over 5,000 members in 30+ countries after our first few weeks, and are growing at a rate of about 150+ per day.
We are now adding an author’s section where you can promote your book to the community and their friends on Facebook. The process is really simple:
1. Donate 5-10 books to the membership
- We will advertise your donation to the members and we can select who will get your donated books based on your criteria e.g. You may only want US residents to get the books, women aged 25-44, etc.
- The Library updates the newsfeed of the person that gets your book so all of their friends will see that they are reading your book. On average our members have 187 friends on Facebook. They will also see any review that the person posts of your book. You can use these reviews to publicise your book.
- You can set up an Author’s Bookclub and invite people to join your club in the library.
- Alternatively you may want this discussion to take place on your Facebook page or your own website. We will be guided by your requirements.
- We will list your book launch in our weekly membership email, The Library Card.
- We will announce your book launch on twitter, LinkedIn, and all relevant social media. You just tell us where you would like us to send the users.
Cost
The listing cost will rise as our membership increases but we are offering an initial offer of $69 for authors that sign up now.
If you’ve got any questions or comments, or need to get in touch for any reason, don’t hesitate to email me: aidan.skehan@luceytechnology.
Alternatively, find us on
Facebook: http://on.fb.me/k9tOYx
Twitter: http://twitter.com/ Widget by Css Reflex | TutZone
I was looking at this yesterday, but I didn't sign up only because getting to the post office with any amount of regularity is not a simple thing when you've got three children always with you. Now reading this, I don't understand the cost thing at the end. What are they charging the authors for?
ReplyDeleteHi Memarie,
ReplyDeleteThat's completely understandable, we understand its not practical for some people and we're always working on ways to make the process quicker and easier.
The service we provide is promotion of the book, we have an e-mail newsletter that goes out to thousands of avid readers every week.
In it, we give a synopsis of the book, as well as links to the authors sites and the books Amazon page and do a competition where we give away a few copies of the book.
Also, we promote the book on our app page and all our social media pages.
Thanks for your comment.
@Memarie Lane,
ReplyDeleteYou don't have to go to the post office to mail a book. You can wrap it, using wrapping paper or just plain printer paper and calculate the cost... usually 6 stamps for a regular paperback. Then put it in your mailbox. Easy peasy! HTH!
Wow you've made me look a little foolish Nicole, that's an excellent idea! :)
ReplyDeletewww.royalmail.com - if you have scales you just weigh the item, calculate the postage, buy it online, print it, and drop it in the post! No trip to the post office needed at all! :) (Scales are cheap - I picked up an electronic one at Argos for under ten quid.)
ReplyDelete