J is for Jackback

letter jEven if you have no idea what a jackback is, chances are good you have read plenty. Want to bet?

You walk into a bookstore and drink in the scent of freshly pressed books and old leather covers. Along the rows of shelves, a cover calls to you. You read the front or merely soak in the image. Like a light switch in your head, you instantly flip the book over to the (jacket) back.

Hooked!

In terms of convincing readers to purchase books, no element is more important than the jackback. Very few authors enjoy sales based solely on their names, title or cover art. Without the jackback to open the cover, as it were, readers would just stop into bookstores to look at the covers.

Jackbacks contain some standard elements:

  • ISBN
  • Barcode
  • Publisher insignia

After these, author (and marketer) creativity kicks into full gear.

Art: Whether art which wraps from the front cover or complementary art, jackbacks often have art.

Author headshot: Some authors put their face on all of their books for personal brand recognition.

Author bio: When an “About the Author” section is foregone inside, the jackback (or dust jacket) will contain biographical information about the author.

Awards: The authors who presented their manuscripts for awards will often put award insignia or text on the jackback.

Plot summary: Giving the reader an idea what the book is about is a premium idea.

Reviewer quotes: Pre-release reviews are often quoted in single lines to grab attention.

Consistency

You made sure the front cover grabbed the browser’s attention. You, your beta team and your editor made sure what was inside was the best it could be. Take the next step and make the sale. Do not trip at the finish line.

123Using all of the steps, make the back cover the marriage between the front cover and the text. Stylistically, the back cover should complement the front cover, even in cases where you do not have wraparound or additional art.

The font face should be easy to read. If you choose headlines or headings, ideally you will use the same or similar to the title font. Text must be in a contrasting color to the base cover. It needs to be clear of artwork. If the text is layered over artwork, consider a shadow box to make the reader’s first encounter with your book one which will not tax the eyes.

Fine Tuning

Have the jackback edited. Even if you do not write it, have someone (who is not you) edit it. Shy only a misspelling on the front cover, mistakes on the back cover are most revealing. Your browser thinks, If the author cannot get 300 words without a typo, how horrible is the inside of the book?

Do you have an answer?

Moderation

Jackback for Moments Money and Memories

Art, a window into the book. Just enough. (Click to enlarge)

It may be tempting to fall into the trap of I need to tell the reader everything to catch the most interest.  Especially in books which offer elements from different genres, it could seem logical to put a buffet of everything on the jackback. This is a calculated risk, albeit a large risk.

If your plot includes everything and the kitchen sink, the eclectic nature is likely going to turn off as many as it attracts. While the romance may appeal to some, the zombie hunt in chapter 18 may not go over well. Vampire readers may love your story, until they get to the mini-plot of the detectives solving the environmental crime.

A jackback which is nothing but pre-release adulation can actually drive away customers. What in all of the hoopla makes the browser interested in becoming a buyer? Your jackback portrays you as a meme who’s only supplied reasons for buying the book are you convinced people to read free copies of it in advance and you chose the best quotes from the reviews. What is between the covers?

Spoilers are a really illogical choice. If you solve the book on the back, why would the reader buy it?

Tough

A survey of authors will show the closest to unanimity you will ever find in creative people: Jackbacks are not easy to write.

For the author, condensing one’s opus magnum into 300 words is demoralizing, demeaning and devaluing. (See temptation above.)  Hiring a writer to pen the jackback can be disastrous. Most per-project writers will not invest the time to read the whole book. Skimming leads to skimpy, inaccurate jackbacks.

Who do you turn to for a quality jackback? Your support network of beta readers and editors. Take a survey.

  • Why did you like my book?
  • Would you give me a plot summary or book report?
  • What would you tell your friends about my book?

Helpful hint: Ask more than three people.

What you will gain is a pool of information about what readers get from your book. This is what potential readers buyers want to know.  This is the information you will use to create a jackback which gets readers excited about buying your book.

Recap:

  • Easy to read
  • Grabs interest
  • Tied to front cover and contents
  • No spoilers
  • KISS
  • Get input from readers


Have you ever bought a book without reading the jackback? Ever been iffy about a book and the jackback sold it to you? What do you like to see on the jackback?

Hashtags: #AtoZChallenge #marketing #jackback

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44 Comments

  1. I did not know this term. But you are right….have read plenty. And I love good jackback! 😉

    After reading the jackback I will usually (if physically holding) open the book to the first page and read the first couple of sentences. If those 2 combined don’t get me then I don’t buy the book.
    C. Brown recently posted..Dear North Korea,My Profile

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    • You are in the majority by reading inside. I wonder if we have all read too many where the jackback was better than the book. Hmm. xxx

      Reply
  2. I see that you are steaming ahead with these A to Z offerings my great friend, and I am still trailing behind at the moment but after the weekend I am going to push forwards with them 🙂 lol

    I have enjoyed reading this one and you are right an interesting snippet will often nudge someone into buying books but then in the same token the books are not always as good as what one thought 🙁 Luckily that is not usually the case…

    Have an enjoyable start to your Friday Red 🙂 xxxx

    Reply
    • Glad to see you. I hope your weekend is off to a great beginning. I think those that disappoint have taught many in this group to peek inside to be certain.

      Reply
  3. I loved to read the precis on the back of a book, but my voracious appetite for reading material often followed the book series and favorite Authors although new books had a similar effect! 🙂

    Love and hugs!

    Prenin.
    Prenin recently posted..Thursday – Doomsday looms.My Profile

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  4. I always read them, always. This is true even if someone recommended the book to me, even if the book was free. Like a few others, I will often read the first paragraph or two of the book combined with Jackback, if you don’t get me with those two you don’t get the sale. The only time this isn’t true is if I am reading a series from an author I know well and enjoy.

    This is a great strategy for how to develop a Jackback. I had never considered the idea it might be demoralizing for the author to have to write one, hmm.

    Reply
    • I do as well. I have a harder time taking recommendations than most. Far too many assume I read everything which goes to press. 😉

      Reply
  5. When I was visiting someone who held meetings at her house and had a small captive crowd there, I was surprised to have her come into the room holding her copy of Forty Grains of Black Powder and give it a glowing recommendation [what else, when I was present ; ) ]. But when she was about to lay it aside, I blurted out, “Show them the back. The story’s on the back!” Well…not the whole story of course, but I was proud of that back, jack or not (paperbacks have just backs…right?), it being my first.

    Reply
    • Well, not strictly my first….first in the saga. Even I tend to forget Floyd and Cully. Each now has a different back for those second editions.

      Reply
    • Yes, paperbacks only have backs, yet they are still paper on the front. Also, when the book goes to hardback, the jackback transfers to the dust jacket. Even paperbacks have jackbacks.

      Reply
  6. I always read the jackback, then flip through a few pages to see if the writing style interests me.

    The blurb should give me something enticing so I need to have the book. Sometimes, I have been disappointed anyway. It’s like the movie trailers where the best part of the story is in the trailer and that’s IT!
    tess kann recently posted..Flash in the Pan – ReservationsMy Profile

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    • Oh, I think movies are the worst! After two hours, all of the excitement is contained in the 3-minute trailer and the ending is a head scratcher. Bah.

      Reply
  7. This is really interesting stuff, Red. Truly interesting. I had not heard of ‘jackback’ before.
    Noeleen recently posted..Drunk Woman Passed Out On The Couch? What Happens Next?My Profile

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    • Although plenty have not, I can bet you have read a fair share of them. Good to see you today.

      Reply
  8. Red add me to the long list of buyers/readers who do read the Jackback first.
    I’ve often wondered, why they are always written in third person or very impersonal.
    Why is that the case?
    Is it seen as arrogance to write the Jackback info from a personal point of view?
    Is it seen as unprofessional?
    If the book is a memoir or autobiography wouldn’t it be more appropriate to write the Jackback info from personal point of view?
    Phil recently posted..Matrimonial TestimonialsMy Profile

    Reply
    • It is unprofessional. The jackback is to interest readers in the book, not to get to know the author. They will do that in the pages and in the ATA (About the Author), foreward, afterword and/or author’s notes. To be frank, professional ATA are also written in the third person. This is due in large part to the history of having an interviewer create them by judging what the reader will find relevant as opposed to what the author is willing to divulge. Overall, it is a good practice.

      As to the memoir question, the answer is no. The author’s perspective is gained in the pages and should be the reward for interest in the book… not cause for it. Readers do not like to be told why the author thinks they should read a book because there is an ulterior motive: The author is trying to sell the book. The third person rendition translates to the reader as an interpretation of the book which provides a (perceived) impartial synopsis.

      Reply
  9. –I look at the cover
    –I read the back page
    –if I am interested, I read the first paragraph.
    –if the words do not GRAB me, I discard the book immediately!

    Sending you lots of love from MN, Red. Xxx
    My Inner Chick recently posted..Big Hats, Buck House, & Beautiful HarryMy Profile

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    • I think you have boiled it down for most of the M3 Readers. So very great to see you, Kimmy. I hope you are having a wonderful time!! xxx <3

      Reply
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