Electronic Books, or E-books are books with both text and graphics and can be packed full of information. The e-books can be downloaded and read on computers and other electronic devices. These books can be instructional or the digital version of a conventional book.

If a person can read and write, they can create an e-book. Being successful with e-books, however, requires an e-book marketing strategy.

A successful marketing strategy includes both short-term and long-term strategies. Both strategies are essential, but vary greatly in their outcome.

Short-term strategies will bring in temporary awareness to the e-book quickly. Pay-per-click advertising is one form of short-term strategies. This type of advertising targets the particular audience for this e-book. It allows the e-book writer to only pay for the results. Payment is determined by a set amount for each visitor.

Forums are another form of short-term strategy. These forums allow authors to share their experiences to potential customers. While most forums will allow a signature to be added, spamming is not allowed. Care must be taken to not come across as advertising on the forums.

Another form of short-term strategies are search engines where e-book authors can list their e-book sales page with the top search engines on the Internet.

While short-term e-book marketing is a good way to start, it should not be relied on solely. One needs to couple the short-term strategies with long-term to get the most from their marketing strategy.

Long-term strategies for e-book marketing provide a steady stream of traffic from potential customers that last for years to come.

One form of long-term strategy is E-zines or an electronic magazine. These online publications enable an e-book publisher to build a list of potential customers. These E-zines are emailed on a regular basis to potential customers. This will allow e-book marketing personnel to reach their target group.

Free trial offers of the e-book is a very rewarding long-term e-book marketing strategy. Offering a free condensed version of an e-book draws customers in to what the e-book has to offer. Once they have read a portion of the book, they are more willing to purchase the full version to finish reading what they have started.

One of the most effective long-term e-book marketing strategies is writing articles. These articles are written about the e-book. These articles are written and distributed freely to many different webmasters and editors. The articles should be written on topics closely related to the e-book. There should be a link to the website to purchase the e-book.

E-books can also be listed at various e-book sites. These sites typically pay a percentage of the sales for the e-book. Whatever site an author uses, they need to be very careful to retain all their rights for their e-book.

There are many forms of e-book marketing strategies. When used together they can provide the writer with a successful experience and increase sales. Keeping a log of what strategies are working will help with future sales.