Toronto, the vibrant and cultural hub of Canada, is not just a city renowned for its iconic skyline, diverse cuisine, and bustling arts scene, but also a thriving nucleus of literary talent. With an impressive number of world-class authors and publishers calling this city home, it’s no wonder that Toronto is also home to a distinguished array of book marketers. As an author, if you’re on the lookout for professionals who can help get your book into the hands of readers and make it a resounding success, you’ve come to the right place.

In this blog post, we will spotlight the top 6 book marketers in Toronto, who, through their expertise, creativity, and comprehensive marketing strategies, have helped countless authors turn their publishing dreams into reality.

1. Amanda Lee

Amanda Lee is an accomplished book marketer specializing in metadata and keyword optimization. With 8 years of experience in traditional publishing, she offers her expertise to breathe life into your stories​1​. Amanda’s unique skill set allows her to optimize your bibliographic metadata, a crucial element that impresses both people and computers. She meticulously crafts blurbs showcasing your book’s best qualities and generates keywords to draw your audience in​. Her services are particularly valuable for non-fiction genres like Biographies, Memoirs, Self-Help, and various fiction genres​. Amanda’s notable professional history includes a Principal Consultant role at her own firm and significant roles at House of Anansi Press and Groundwood Books, and Dundurn Press​. In her notable projects, she has successfully created compelling metadata, improving books’ sales ranking on Amazon.

2. Laura MacDonald

Laura MacDonald is an experienced marketer who specializes in Kids & YA literature. With a Master’s in Children’s Literature and experience in Canadian publishing, she transitioned into influencer marketing in 2021​. Laura has worked with top publishers including Simon & Schuster and HarperCollins Canada, and offers services ranging from full-scale marketing plan development to social media content planning and copywriting​. Testimonials from bestselling authors highlight her strategic and creative approach​. Her work as an Influencer Marketing Account Manager and as a Marketing Assistant at Simon & Schuster Canada showcases her proficiency in managing successful campaigns​. One notable campaign, a Bookstagram Tour for “These Violent Delights,” achieved an impressive 5.3% engagement rate, significantly above the industry standard​.

3. JD Caron

JD (Denis) Caron is a renowned book marketer, helping authors overcome obscurity and achieve their dream of becoming a full-time writer​. He employs data-driven strategies and proven methods to skyrocket book sales, ensuring authors’ works stand out in a competitive market​. With Caron, authors can unlock their book’s true potential, achieving literary stardom​.

Caron’s expertise encompasses Marketing Strategy, Email Marketing, Advertising, and Metadata & Blurb Optimization​1​. He is a Facebook Certified Digital Marketing Associate and an Approved and Recognized Member of the Alliance of Independent Authors (ALLi)​. He provides unparalleled coaching, offering masterful marketing expertise and tailored, step-by-step guidance​. Prospective clients can take advantage of a free 30-minute discovery call, a key step towards embarking on their unique journey towards authorial success.

4. Liz Poder

Liz Poder is a seasoned book marketer who specializes in packaging books for publishing or re-launching, with a focus on running Facebook ads and promos to attract more readers​. Her services range from writing engaging book blurbs, setting optimal keywords and categories, improving the look of your Amazon page, to choosing the right combination of advertising and promotions, among others​.

Her experience includes serving as a book blurb writer for self-published authors and working as an in-house copywriter for a book marketing coaching service​. Among her success stories, she helped reinvigorate a stalled horror series, boosting sales by 312% in just 3 months​, and repackage a Christian Adventure Thriller which resulted in a 41X sales increase in the first month of relaunch, leading to the book becoming a bestseller and winning the 2022 Firebird Book Award for Action/Adventure​. Liz offers a free 30-minute discovery call to potential clients to discuss their needs and outline a collaborative strategy​. Her service is marked by its clarity and efficiency, focusing on proven strategies that help you achieve success from the get-go​​.

5. Ben Galley

Ben Galley is a seasoned self-publishing and marketing consultant, offering a comprehensive range of services to help authors navigate the publishing landscape. With his unique “Shelf Help Method,” he provides affordable, professional guidance on various aspects of publishing and marketing​​. He can assist with optimizing blurbs, keywords, and categories, paid advertising, building and leveraging a mailing list, and more​. Galley also advises on all areas of independent publishing, from prepping your book for the market to seeking representation​. His services include Marketing Strategy, Email Marketing, Advertising, and Metadata & Blurb Optimization​. An award-winning author himself, Galley has been helping authors and companies publish and sell books globally since 2012​1​.

6. Chris Brandt

Meet Chris Brandt, a passionate and experienced marketer who brings decades of experience from the music and nonprofit industries to the world of book marketing. Chris has successfully coached over 100 authors worldwide in the last three years, with a particular focus on non-fiction authors, thought leaders, entrepreneurs, and public speakers​. Chris crafts strategies that incorporate the book as part of a larger business ecosystem, ensuring that the author’s goals are met at every stage of the publication process.

His services span various non-fiction genres, including Business & Management, Finance & Accounting, Health & Wellbeing, LGBTQ Non-Fiction, Music, and Self-Help & Self-Improvement​. His expertise includes bestseller campaigns, brand building, and Amazon advertising, a skill set that has earned him the TELUS Innovation Award in 2017​.

Beyond his work in book marketing, Chris has made significant contributions in the field of music business education, authoring a curriculum and instructing a part-time studies program at the British Columbia Institute of Technology​​.

These top Toronto book marketers have proven their ability to make a book stand out in a crowded market. Each one offers a unique approach, marrying creativity and strategic thinking, making them indispensable partners for authors seeking to make their mark in the literary world.