You might already have heard about the importance of having a good book cover – especially – if you want your novel to sell. The thing is that a good book cover matters the most if you want to make a good impression on your potential readers.

Many newbie authors make the mistake of ignoring their book covers as they think they have amazing content inside the book and that it will suffice to impress the target readers.

The thing is that irrespective of how well you might have written the book – your cover will be the first touch point for your readers. You will want to look at it from your personal experience – how do you feel when you walk into a bookshop and look at the books that are displayed on the bookshelf?

Obviously, you don’t know what is inside the book until you open it. And naturally, the first thing that you will be attracted to is the book cover.

With that said, a good book cover can do the following things:

• Get the reader’s attention.
• Make your book stand out on the shelf.
• Make your book look great in a promotional email.
• Instigate a reader to click on the preview sample.
• Make your book appear professional.

On the contrary, a bad book cover can do the following things:

• Turn off the potential reader before they can pick up the book and peek inside it.
• Make a potential reader doubt the book’s quality – they will think that if the author hasn’t paid attention to the cover, they might have ignored the quality of the content as well.
• A bad book cover also gives a bad image of the author.

You get the point – in order to make a good first impression about your book, you will want to focus on getting the book cover right.

Practical Tips to Design a Good Book Cover

Now that we have established the importance of having a good book cover, the following tips will help you get an amazing book cover design.

Read on to learn more!

Do Your Research

You might already have a book cover in mind – or design – but to make your book cover attractive to your target readers, you will want to research and look at the book covers of other authors of your niche.

Also, research the best-selling books and their covers. You will want to assess how your book cover relates to theirs. You can also get the opinion of your friends and ask them which book cover would tempt them to pick up the book and read about it.

When doing your research, you will want to assess the various components of the covers of the best-selling books. You will want to assess their font type, colors, and other aspects, such as whether the author’s picture has been displayed on the book cover or not.

It is important to mention here that this research doesn’t imply that you have to copy someone’s work – but – you are only looking for inspiration and collecting ideas that have worked for other authors. Subsequently, you will want to integrate those ideas into your book cover.

Make Sure the Book Cover Matches the Genre

Although you might have integrated brilliant book cover ideas, and your book cover might be attractive and essentially interesting, you will want to ensure that your book cover matches the genre.

For instance, if you are writing a fantasy book, you will want to ensure that the cover matches the genre and that it doesn’t look like a bibliography cover. If you are confused about your book cover, you could hire one of the best freelance book cover designers in the UK and get it done by a professional.

The best part about hiring a professional is the knowledge that your book is in good hands. However, let the professional book cover designer know the feeling that you want for your book cover. Also, tell the genre of your book along with the plot summary.

The professional designer with their professional expertise will be in the best position to determine what potential images they can use on the cover. Rest assured, the book cover designer will use high-quality images, better angels, and better color.

We recommend asking for a few different options with images, font, and color.

Don’t be Shy of Asking for Feedback

Now the thing is that the cover might look great from your perspective, but it doesn’t mean that it looks great to everyone. You will want to keep your target readers in mind while designing the book cover. The objective of having a good book cover is to attract your target readers to the book.

Ask your friends and family for their feedback. However, we also recommend asking strangers, who are more likely, to tell the truth rather than sparing your feelings. You can also ask for votes on social media between your cover and another author’s book cover.

Doing so will give you a better idea of what your potential readers might like regarding a book cover.

Look at the Online Version

You will want to assess the book cover from different perspectives. You will want to know how your book cover will look online, where it is displayed in a smaller size. The thing about the book cover is that when your target readers view your book online, they look at a small thumbnail representing your book.

With that said, you will want to assess how your book cover looks in small size. You will want to know whether the book cover can attract your target readers when it is in a small size. If it appears obscure or complicated, then you will certainly have to revise the book cover and simplify it a bit so that it looks good in the eyes of the potential buyer.

Also, make sure that your book cover has all the essential components, such as an image, a title, and the author’s name. If there is anything less than this on the cover, it means that the cover isn’t a cover.