Paid Ads: Necessary for Authors?

So far, in my time as an indie author, I have noticed that there’s an ever-increasing pressure on authors to use paid ads to reach readers. Nowadays, it’s almost everywhere, except Smashwords perhaps. I recently joined Kobo directly, and after my preliminary investigation, I found that ads (both free & paid) are a big deal there. If you’re an author who does not have a good-sized following, you can’t run away from ads. And not just ads, but paid ads.

For the record, I’m not very comfortable about paid ads dominating the industry. It makes it like the survival of the richest, and these massive companies like Amazon and Facebook make lots of money from them. So where does that leave the new author who has neither money nor following?

I said authors are being pushed towards ads, right? But what about readers and other ordinary people? Of course, they’re being pushed too, by the exact same people who are pushing authors. Especially in “developed” countries, ads have become almost a part of daily life. They influence your decision on the kind of utensils you use, the kind of food you eat, the gadgets you use, the bank you store your savings, and even the candidate you vote for! Ads, ads, everywhere you turn. Anywhere there are more than a few people, ads will be there, constantly being thrown at your face. On your apps, on YouTube, on Facebook, everywhere. And maybe one day soon, in the labor room, when the child is about to pop out from between the mother’s legs, the lights and other systems in the labor room might just decide to suspend operation to allow for a ten-second ad about baby diapers and formula lol. Ads, ads, everywhere!

Like I asked before, where does the culture of paid ads leave penniless and fanless newbie indies? Of course, those who are paid to put up the ads and those who paid them to do so will not be happy with this rant of mine, but forgive me, I like to think in terms of comfort and equal prosperity for everyone. If there cannot be such prosperity, there should at least be equal chance or a level playing field for everyone.

I mean, let’s face it: sales from paid ads are competing for superiority with sales from loyal fans. Hell, in many cases where experts are involved, sales from paid ads even have the upper hand! So, for the third time, I ask: where does that leave the penniless and fanless new author? He has to build a following? Easier said than done. He has a day job, and a family to look after. What if it’s a single mom with two sets of feral twin boys? What if she’s a natural introvert? The only hope for such an author used to be good ol’ organic sales. “Used to be” because ads have almost killed organic sales (and word of mouth only works when very high-quality works are involved).

People have been bombarded with so many perfectly planned ads that organic sales don’t even stand much of a chance anymore, unless you know exactly how to position your books to catch the sun rays of the organic buyers out there, and even that requires paid expert advice!

Remember, ads mostly show you things based on what you previously showed interest in or what they feel is related to you in some way or the other. It’s a cagey robot function which dictates/funnels/seduces you into also carrying out a cagey robot function. The idea is to push you into buying the sort of paranormal romance that you just clicked on. And if you click on this new one, it will suggest another similar one and it goes on and on in an endless chain of similarities. Similar author, similar genre, similar price, similar this and similar that. You’re encouraged to lose your absolute freedom to choose. You’re given a strict set of options and seduced into picking one. The end result is that the owners and placers of the ads make money.

Of course, it’s possible that you might not like what you saw in the ads and you decide to type in the search bar instead or browse through random titles/authors in a particular genre/category which will lead to an organic sale (if you find what you like), but what are the chances of that happening? In cases where the ads are created by highly experienced experts, they use their good knowledge of consumer and general human behavior to grab and keep your attention. Even if you were determined to carry out an organic purchase, you might get distracted by some fine ads and end up forgetting your mission.

So, this is why I’m not very comfortable with using paid ads as an author, even though I can now afford to. It will worry my conscience, you know. I feel it’s a little unethical to have an unfair advantage over poorer authors who can’t afford to put up these ads. It feels like I’m hoodwinking or mocking them. You know, some of these people do not even know how effective ads are or that they even exist! And the worst part is that those who can afford to pay for these ads do not necessarily know how to use them effectively. Maybe some sites help with that, but I’m sure Amazon and Facebook do not.

Either way, whether your ads fail or succeed, it’s a win-win for them because you don’t get refunded lol. But I think I’ve been ranting so far like a self-righteous idiot or a “crazy, lazy socialist” or like some indies would say, “You’re angry because nobody’s buying your books” lol. I find that people only advocate against something when they’ve been a victim of that thing, otherwise they don’t care.

So what do you think about paid ads or even ads in general? Are they necessary for indies? Do YOU think they should be necessary?