Metadata for Marketing

Your title and author metadata powers online discovery and sales. It’s used by algorithms to understand what the book is about, and your audience experiences metadata in many different ways. Keep in mind that title metadata is often the first discovery mechanism for any book – whether print or digital – online, and it is also frequently the last thing potential buyers see when they are deciding whether to the buy the book.  

Key metadata and marketing assets 

Your book title and description, cover image, and other key consumer-facing (and algorithm-driving) metadata elements and assets are fundamental to your marketing foundation. Each should provide rich, detailed, and accurate information optimized for both machines and humans in general search, and at point-of-sale.  

Core title and author data

Don't forget the basics.

• Title, subtitle, and series information 
  Distinctive and descriptive title and series data helps your book stand out in search (and in consumer’s minds). Beware of overly generic titles that could create confusion and make it hard for potential buyers to find your book.
  
• Contributor name and role
  Make sure to include all relevant contributors to the work and their appropriate role. Contributor names should be correctly (and consistently!) spelled to help ensure they are accurately connected to the right author entity in online channels.

Images and previews

Consumers shop with their eyes. Attractive and informative covers, additional product images, and content previews get your audience's attention and improve conversion.

• Cover image 
  They say don’t judge a book by its cover, but your potential buyers do just that. Make sure the cover image is clear and legible at thumbnail and larger sizes. Consumers often only see the cover of your book in search results or retail pages before making a decision about whether or not to learn more. 
• Look Inside / Search Inside the Book / Previews
  Previews power book search and improve discovery. Consumers are also more likely to purchase if they can ‘see’ the book content before they buy. Remember they can't pick your book up in the store, so you want to give them the information they need decide. Include internal image samples for highly illustrated works like children's picture books, graphic novels, and art books; and include the table of contents, first chapter, and/or index for consumer non-fiction titles like self-help books as well as professional and academic works. 

Detail about the book and author

Give your potential buyers and search engines rich, descriptive information. 

• Product description
  Provide detailed information about your book – what it is, what it's about, and why someone should buy. Start with a bold headline to capture consumers’ attention, and use structural elements such as paragraph breaks, unique formatting, and bullet points to highlight key aspects of the book. Include lots of descriptive detail. What it is about? Who is it for? What are the key topics and themes? Are there any special features to note? This type of information helps potential buyers find your book and aids the decision making process. 
• Author or contributor bio
  Provide as much detail as possible for each relevant contributor. The author bio should complement the description and offer more information about the author as related to this particular book.

Keywords and categories 

• Keywords, topics, and phrases
  Use language that speaks to your target audience in ways that they will understand. (How do potential buyers talk about and search for books like this?) Incorporate this language into the product description and keywords metadata field.
• BISAC codes and categories 
  Specify three (3) BISAC codes. These should as precise as possible. When possible, they should come from more than one top-level category. 

Additional descriptive metadata to include

• Professional / editorial reviews 
  Include high-quality review excerpts highlighting a diversity of perspectives on the book when possible. 
• Audience and age-range
  Specify the correct audience code and provide age, grade, and/or leveling guidance as appropriate.