How can Christian authors sell their books through mainstream channels?
How can Christian authors sell their books through mainstream channels like Amazon and reach mainstream readers? With the closure of Lifeway and more Christians buying from mainstream retailers, this topic is more relevant than ever. Joining us to discuss it today is Rob Eagar, a marketing consultant who has coached over 600 authors. He has helped both fiction and nonfiction books hit the New York Times bestseller list, advised top publishing houses, written five books, and created his own courses.
What challenges do Christians face when selling in a mainstream world?
Rob: The key is to understand what “mainstream” really means. In my view, it refers to where the majority of book sales are happening. By now, most of us realize that Amazon is by far the number one retailer, and it continues to grow, especially with Lifeway and Family Christian having closed.
For authors, this means you must ensure your book looks as compelling and appealing as possible on Amazon so it will reach the widest audience. For example, look at Boundaries, The Five Love Languages, and Girl, Wash Your Face. All three are Christian books by Christian authors and published by Christian houses, yet their Amazon pages don’t shout “Christian book.” They may mention God or biblical truth, but they avoid insider “Christianese” that only lifelong churchgoers would understand.
Selling well in the mainstream market requires understanding where sales happen and who’s seeing your book, then using language that appeals to them rather than alienates them.
Thomas: That’s exactly what Paul did in the New Testament. When he preached to Gentiles, he didn’t quote the Hebrew Bible because they didn’t know it. Instead, he used their own language and even referenced their writings to make his point. He only quoted the Old Testament when speaking to someone familiar with it, like Festus, who had a Jewish wife.
If you’re nervous about reducing the amount of “Christianese,” remember that contextualizing the message for your audience isn’t new; it’s biblical. It’s about communicating spiritual truth in a way that people can actually understand.
Why does language matter so much in marketing?
Rob: Absolutely. The principle I teach my clients is that language is the power of the sale. That’s especially true on Amazon.
Around 70% of all book sales now happen online, and most of those are on Amazon. Even with all the technology of social media, online ads, and podcasts, it still comes down to words. People buy books because of the language they see on the screen or hear from a friend.
If a potential reader doesn’t understand your message, their answer will almost always be no. Confusion kills sales. As a Christian, I’m not saying to hide your faith, but rather to express it clearly and in a way that resonates with a broad audience instead of confusing them.
Thomas: Part of that means focusing on tangible benefits and how your book helps people in their daily lives. If you deliver on your promise, readers will embrace your spiritual worldview because you’ve helped them solve a real problem.
That’s the brilliance of The Five Love Languages. Millions of people struggle with relationships, and the book promises to help strengthen them. It delivers on that promise, and that’s why it’s endured. If Gary Chapman had written a book about “how to pray better,” that promise wouldn’t resonate with the general public because most people don’t recognize that as a felt need. But everyone knows what it feels like to have relationship struggles.
To reach readers, you must start with the pain they already feel, not the one they don’t yet know they have.
What should authors emphasize when marketing Christian books?
Rob: A related principle is to focus on the results your book offers rather than the doctrine it teaches. Readers won’t care about your theology until they see how it meets a need or solves a problem.
Most Christian nonfiction books fall into categories like advice, self-help, encouragement, or inspiration. When you focus on the result, what your book helps people achieve, your message becomes much more appealing.
When you look at the reviews of The Five Love Languages, you’ll repeatedly see comments like “This book saved my marriage” or “This book changed my life.” That’s the kind of response every Christian author hopes for. We aim to write something, through God’s wisdom and guidance, that genuinely changes lives.
Our ultimate goal should be to write in a way that helps, heals, and transforms. When you focus on that, both your message and your marketing language become much stronger.
Thomas: That’s an excellent point. People don’t read your doctrine to decide yes—they read it to decide no. Doctrine only functions as a disqualifier. If you’re too explicit about denominational distinctives, you risk alienating readers unnecessarily.
It’s fine to have doctrine, but keep it inside the book, not on the cover or sales page.
How has Amazon changed the Christian book market?
Thomas: Now that we’ve talked about positioning and messaging, let’s discuss how the rise of Amazon has changed the landscape. Most Christians now buy their books on Amazon, which isn’t a Christian company. How has that affected selling books to Christian readers through mainstream channels?
Rob: In some ways, Amazon’s dominance has been a good thing. While it has reduced competition, which isn’t healthy for the industry overall, it has forced Christian authors to make sure their books can compete in a mainstream market. If our books can’t hold their own in that space, they’ll disappear quickly.
When I wrote my first book 17 years ago, it was a Christian book on relationships. I still remember seeing it on the shelf at Barnes & Noble. Honestly, that gave me more satisfaction than seeing it in a Christian bookstore. It meant I had written something that could stand on its own in the mainstream environment. Books only stay on the shelves if they sell, so that was a moment of validation.
Now, because Amazon sells most books, every author faces that same challenge. Your book has to be strong enough to succeed in the mainstream world. The Christian retail channels have shrunk dramatically over the last few years, so there’s really no avoiding it.
How can authors increase Christian book sales through mainstream channels?
Thomas: What tips do you have for authors who are selling through mainstream channels but want to increase their sales to other Christians?
Rob: Over the last decade, I’ve been fortunate to work with several highly successful Christian authors. For example, I coached Lysa TerKeurst to her first New York Times bestseller, worked with Wanda Brunstetter, who has sold over 10 million novels, and helped with the Boundaries franchise by Dr. Henry Cloud and Dr. John Townsend.
These authors all shared a few key traits. First, they used strong marketing language and wrote about felt needs and topics people were already motivated to buy. Second, they were excellent at expanding their audience reach. They used advertising, podcasts, and free ebooks to draw new readers. People are more likely to try an unknown author if they can sample the content for free.
Third, they create at least one reliable source of book sales that they control. Authors who depend entirely on others to sell their books put themselves in a weak position. The best way to control your own sales is to build a large email list. Studies show email is 10 to 20 times more effective at selling books than all social media combined.
Another method is securing media coverage like podcasts, blogs, online magazines, or print features. These give you free exposure you can manage directly.
How can authors use scarcity to sell more books?
Rob: Finally, there’s the powerful but often overlooked strategy of creating artificial scarcity.
One challenge of today’s market is that our books are available 24/7. On the surface, that sounds great. Someone can buy your book in the middle of the night. But the downside is that people keep postponing the purchase. They think, “I’ll buy it tomorrow,” and tomorrow turns into next week or never.
To counter that, you can create artificial scarcity. The goal is to make readers feel they need to buy now rather than later.
Thomas: Scarcity is a powerful psychological trigger. It’s tricky with books because they’re inherently ubiquitous, especially ebooks. Seth Godin illustrates this idea with a graph showing that money is made at the extremes of ubiquity and scarcity. Coca-Cola thrives on ubiquity; Tiffany’s thrives on exclusivity. The middle ground, being somewhat available but not special, is where most products struggle.
For authors, one natural way to create scarcity is by building events around your book. A live event has limited seating and natural deadlines. You can sell books at the event, offer exclusive bonuses, or include registration perks like signed copies. I’ve also wondered if authors could borrow from the art world and sell signed, numbered editions like artists do with lithographs.
Rob: It’s really only limited by your creativity. Let me give you a personal example. I have a series called The Author’s Guide. It includes The Author’s Guide to Marketing Books on Amazon, The Author’s Guide to Email Marketing, and The Author’s Guide to Write Text That Sells Books.
Like most launches, my sales spiked at first, then dropped off faster than expected. About eight weeks later, I used the principle of artificial scarcity to reignite sales, and I doubled what I had sold during the original launch.
I offered an exclusive, private webinar with new teaching not included in any of the books. The only ticket was proof of purchase. I told my audience, “Buy any of my books this week, send me your receipt, and I’ll send you the link to this special webinar.”
That one campaign doubled my book sales. You can do the same with bonus content, deleted chapters, Q&A access, or exclusive teaching. It’s limited only by your willingness to do it. Creating scarcity gives you control over your sales, helps reach a wider audience, and nudges hesitant readers off the fence to buy now rather than later.
Thomas: Hosting an online event like a webinar also changes the anchor point for pricing. Scarcity, urgency, and anchoring are all powerful psychological triggers. People expect to pay $10, $20, or even $100 for a webinar, so getting access through a $10 book feels like a bargain. In contrast, if that same book is compared to others priced at $5 or $9, it suddenly feels expensive. Context changes perception.
What mistakes do Christian authors make when trying to go mainstream?
Thomas: What mistakes do you see Christian authors making when they try to bring their books to a broader audience?
Rob: The number one mistake is using too much Christianese or insider phrases that the average reader doesn’t understand. Review your back cover copy and your Amazon description carefully. Even better, show it to a friend who isn’t a believer and ask if it makes sense to them.
Beyond language, the biggest mistake is mindset. Many Christian authors assume that mainstream readers won’t embrace their books. That misconception becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy. If you believe your book won’t appeal to anyone outside the Christian bubble, you’ll market it that way and limit your reach.
Even if your book is filled with Scripture and overtly Christian themes, it can still inspire or help people who aren’t believers. Remember, the Bible—the bestselling book of all time—is for the whole world. Jesus commanded His followers to take His message into the world. So don’t hide your book within Christian circles. Treat it as a tool that can encourage, inspire, or even introduce someone to faith for the first time.
Ask yourself honestly whether you are the obstacle keeping your book from reaching the mainstream. Once you recognize that, you can change how you market your book through language and outreach.
How can Christian authors branch out beyond Christian media?
Rob: For example, if your book includes Christian content, don’t limit yourself to Christian podcasts, interviews, or events. Look for mainstream opportunities that are open to Christian ideas but reach a broader audience. Identify how your book connects with the issues those audiences care about.
Also, don’t view your backlist as “old.” A five-year-old book is brand new to someone discovering it for the first time. Don’t label your work as a “Christian book.” See it simply as a book that helps people. Once you start thinking that way, you’ll naturally find more doors opening into the mainstream world.
Why is it important to think beyond the Christian/non-Christian divide?
Thomas: That shift in thinking is crucial. We don’t live in a world that’s neatly divided between Christian and non-Christian. There are many consumers in between, ranging from people who consume only Christian media to those who mix both.
Some Christians read Christian novels and watch secular movies. Others only engage with mainstream entertainment. And there are non-Christians who read Christian books out of curiosity or because a friend recommended them.
If you target only Christians who read exclusively Christian books, you’re narrowing your audience to a small circle within a circle. If your story is engaging, why couldn’t a Christian who normally reads secular fiction enjoy it? Sometimes the only way to reach those readers is through mainstream outlets like podcasts, magazines, or shows they already follow.
Many self-identified Christians rarely attend church or read Christian books anymore, yet they’re still open to spiritual ideas. The line between the sacred and secular isn’t as clear as it once was. And within churches, there are people still exploring faith. When you expand your marketing mindset, you realize there are far more people to reach than you might think.
How can authors create strong book hooks that attract readers?
Rob: I know this discussion about language sounds easy in theory, but it’s harder in practice. To help with that, I have a free resource for listeners. On my website, you’ll find three free ebooks, including Mastering Book Hooks for Authors, How to Find Readers and Sell Books on a Shoestring Budget, and The Ultimate Book Marketing Plan Template. Mastering Book Hooks is also available for free on Amazon.
Creating a great hook is one of the biggest challenges authors face. You can have a strong message and clear results, but if you don’t capture a reader’s attention right away, they’ll never read the rest. Your hook needs to stop them in their tracks and make them say, “I’ve never heard that before” or “I need to know more.”
Some Christian authors worry that crafting a strong hook feels manipulative. But it isn’t about tricking people; it’s about opening the door so they’ll listen. If you can’t grab attention first, you’ll never have the chance to share your message.
Your hook should appear front and center on your Amazon page. That’s what readers see first, and if it doesn’t catch them immediately, they’ll scroll to another book within seconds. At the end of the day, language truly is the power of the sale.
What final advice do you have for authors?
Thomas: It’s all about meeting people where they are. When Jesus spoke to the woman at the well, He didn’t start with spiritual water; He started with ordinary water. He met her in her context and led her deeper from there. There’s nothing wrong with doing the same in your writing and marketing.
Rob: My final tip is simple: He who owns the biggest list wins. It might not sound spiritual, but it’s true. Every successful Christian author I’ve worked with has a large, growing email list.
Building your email list gives you direct control over your sales. The easiest way to grow it is to offer free content in exchange for an email address. Once someone’s on your list, you can stay in touch, encourage them, and share new releases without relying on algorithms or retailers.
Email marketing is both more affordable and more effective than almost any other method. I wrote The Author’s Guide to Email Marketing because it’s the single most powerful tool for long-term success.
Connect with Rob Eagar
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