Category Archives: Book Marketing

Posts about Book Marketing and Selling Books

How Book Design and Book Marketing Will Keep Your Book Alive

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Too many authors spend all their time on writing, then scrimp on book design and book marketing. They hope that their publisher will handle all the details of book design and book marketing, so that they can just sit back and rake in the millions year after year.

Then, if these same authors decide to self-publish, they’ll quickly get lost in the morass of print on demand publishers and the time and money sink hole of self-publishing. In fact, most authors would rather die than think about book marketing, or spend money on book design.

Facing your book marketing competition

In 2005, around 172,000 books were published with an ISBN number, according to Bowker, which compiles publishing statistics. An ISBN number will get you into Books in Print, and allows your book to be distributed to bookstores and online sites like Amazon and Barnes & Noble. According to some sources, nearly one quarter of these books were printed by Print on Demand (POD) companies.

I’d estimate that number to be much higher, as many small publishers are having their books printed by Lightning Source, which also provides printing for many of the larger POD companies.

Additionally, Lulu Press, who publishes over 1500 books per week, says that only about 5% of their books get an ISBN number. That’s another 80,000 or so books circulating in the market each year, although most of Lulu’s books are only sold through Lulu Press on their web site.

The definition of “Best Seller” has changed

It only takes 300 book sales to get on Lulu’s all-time top 100 bestsellers list. 300 books! For some people, that can be attained simply by selling books to their extended family. While AuthorHouse, iUniverse, Xlibris, and other big players in the POD market might print more books with ISBN numbers, their sales records aren’t much better.

Some sources estimate that the average book sells no more than 150 copies, and other sources put that number at below fifty copies. In many cases, authors end up losing money on their books, which is why Lulu Press is so popular. At Lulu, you can upload your book interior and cover (you do all the design work), and have a book on your doorstep within days – all for the “cost of printing” (which is highly inflated, by the way).

The services and prices of POD companies vary widely, which is why we’re in the final stages of creating a comprehensive guide on self-publishing. It can be a confusing morass of information and data, with many unsubstantiated claims. The truth shall be revealed.

Will you be one of the winners, or part of the majority?

Will your book be dead before it hits the streets? If you have any intention of selling more than 50 books, then you’ll have to invest time – and money – into the production and marketing of your book. Here are the basic steps you’ll have to consider:

1. Write a great book that’s got an audience.

One of the biggest mistakes people make is to assume that people will read their book just because it’s “good.” People will read a book if it is either applicable to their lives (non-fiction), or if it really is a damned good book (fiction). Even then, you’ll have to market your book. “How to sell a book” or “How to market a book” are two of the top questions we get, and search engine analysis shows that these are frequent search terms. If you haven’t written your book with an audience in mind, then you’re down to three legs on your four-legged marketing stool.

2. Spend some money on book cover design and book editing.

The second leg of book marketing is the interior and exterior design of the book. People do judge a book by its cover, so if you’re not spending some money on getting an outstanding cover, you’re losing sales. Then, people will open the book and read the intro or first few pages. Is it well-written? Easy to read? Is the interior book design clean, consistent, and well-implemented. I’ve seen many POD books in which the margins were too small, the fonts poorly chosen, and the images fuzzy. Who’s going to buy a book like that?

There are many great book cover designers. Then for editing, contact Charity at Mighty Pen Editing for your editing needs. Don’t scrimp on the editing because you WILL make mistakes (trust me on this – there are probably a few in this article).

3. Choose a good quality publisher.

Lulu Press is great if you just want to print a few books for your friends, or create a low-cost galley to send to editors, agents, or distributors. You’ll often be asked to send a “galley” of your book, which is simply a printed copy of your book with a blank cover. Lulu Press is great for creating galleys at minimal cost.

As we’ll show you in our upcoming comprehensive guide to self-publishing, which POD company you choose depends on your intentions and desires. If you want to have your book professionally edited and the cover professionally designed by your publisher (instead of outsourcing to some unknown person), then companies like Cold Tree Press might be a good choice. Other companies offer a varied level of marketing packages. Personally, I’d rather stay away from having these publishers market my book, and instead go to a good book marketing expert or media specialist.

But, there are a few small publishers (like Cold Tree Press or Arbor Books) who have excellent book marketing packages, ranging from several hundred to several thousand dollars (you get what you pay for!).

4. Take a “no holds barred” approach to book marketing.

If your book is your life, or is a major part of your business marketing plan, then spend some money on publicity and book marketing. Too many people, especially business people, write a book, put a page up on their web site (and on Amazon), and hope that they’ll get some sales. Your book is like a 250 page business card, and it should be used accordingly.

If your book is your life story or a novel, you still need to spend some money on marketing, although your approach will be different. Definitely check out a media relations specialist (Marika Flatt at http://www.prbythebook.com ) or Book Marketing Specialist (Penny Sansevieri).

5. Use the Internet to market your book.

The old ways of marketing books, such as book tours, are dead and gone. Sure, you can still do them, but if you really want to sell books, you’ll have to go online – and not quietly.

Use techniques such as blogs (blogging), Podcasting, and Videocasting (something like online infomercials). Be sure to check out the advanced book marketing teleseminar series at http://www.writeandpublishyourbook.com. You should also learn how to do a Virtual Book tour (a class Penny Sansevieri will be teaching through Write and Publish Your Book).

So, write a great book, find a good book cover designer and book editor, work with a quality publisher, market the heck out of your book, and use the Internet to market your book with podcasts, blogging (an author blog), videocasts, and virtual book tours.

Good luck. Good writing. Good selling.

If you’re a writer or solo entrepreneur, then you need to visit the Publishing and Self-Publishing website. Tips & resources for writers; advice on publishing or self-publishing, and relatively unbiased media relations assistance. Check out our Avanced Marketing teleseminars on Podcasting, Self-Publishing, Publishing and Marketing for writers and solo entrepreneurs.

Author: Sid Smith
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
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PyroMarketing – The Secret of Book Marketing Success

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Book marketing professionals know the secrets of success that drove the sales of Rick Warren’s The Purpose Driven Life to a chart-busting best-seller and Mel Gibson’s “The Passion of the Christ” into a huge cinema phenom. Those of us in the business understand that sales of both blockbusters were driven by techniques outlined in a new book called PyroMarketing by Greg Stielstra who gained fame in book publishing circles when he served as the marketing director for The Purpose Driven Life, the best-selling hardcover book in history.

PyroMarketing embraces an idea that really has been in use for some time – niche marketing. That tool is well-known and used every day by book promoters but Stielstra lays out the niche marketing principles with a new, crystal clear message that is so compelling that it is a must-read for anyone who wants to promote an idea, service or product.

In a nutshell, PyroMarketing involves finding the “driest tinder” (customers most apt to buy), touch it with a match (customers experiencing a benefit), and fanning the flame (customers’word-of-mouth marketing), and save the coals (keeping a record of customers).

As a book-marketing expert, Stielstra found the driest tinder when the Rick Warren organization tapped into the Christian faith community in America to market The Purpose Driven Life. An initial six-week campaign for Purpose Driven Life involved 1,200 people who read the book each day, listened to sermons each Sunday, and met with friends each week in book study groups. At the end of six weeks, 400,000 people were intimately familiar with the book. Within four months, 2 million books were sold. More than 5,000 churches signed up during the fall 2004 campaign.

“From the first campaign and for the next couple years,” explains Stielstra, “it seemed that for every book sold at a discount to someone in a church-based campaign, five more books were sold through retail stores. By focusing on the driest tinder within the church and encouraging them to spread the word, we were rewarded with many more sales to people beyond its walls. Fanning the flames didn’t just double the campaign’s impact, it multiplied it by a factor of five!”

In an exchange I had with Rick Warren, the author emphasized that his personal pre-existing contacts with pastors and church leaders was key in creating initial interest in his book. That very limited, specific market was the driest tinder, the book study groups was the match which produced customer benefits, and ministers and study group members talking up the book was the all-important fanning of the flame. The bookkeeping function of saving the coals by recording customers into a database is a sometimes-overlooked step which promises to deliver repeat customers.

Early on film producers wouldn’t touch “The Passion” and so Gibson employed PyroMarketing techniques to generate $500 million to become the top-grossing R-rated movie of all time. By the fifth day alone, the film had earned $125 million in box office receipts against only $45 million in combined production and marketing costs.

While it is amazing when you look at the success of Warren and Gibson, PyroMarketing techniques are not a collection of hidden secrets suddenly discovered. In my own practice, I find it helpful to re-evaluate all my processes to make sure all elements are followed and to look for new angles to pursue. Part of this constant evaluation of how I meet customer needs involves keeping up on what’s going on in marketing, promotion, public relations, and publishing. To accomplish this I am reading constantly to keep pace and better understand how my colleagues are thriving. That’s why I recommend anyone read Stielstra’s book, PyroMarketing: The Four Step Strategy to Ignite Customer Evangelists and Keep Them For Life. I have experienced success promoting authors using the same basic principles Stielstra spells out in his book and found that discussion to be a very helpful check-point.

In book marketing, a book cannot be promoted without first identifying who the readers are in advance of a single sale. When we find the reasons why that reader will read that book, we then craft the most effective message to be conveyed to the information sources that reader relies upon. We don’t bombard the market with propaganda but send out promotional information to selected streams that reach specific persons. That approach has always worked and always will. Salesmen know that you can’t sell a refrigerator to an Eskimo because he has no need of one, but you’d have a shot at selling him thermal underwear.

So in drawing up a promotion plan for a client, I first find the niche(s) the client can go after and determine how that specific media can be pursued. Getting media coverage is all about creating interesting angles. I try to find out everything I can about the author using a questionnaire that even asks about fraternities or sorority membership, roommates in college, and other tidbits about them personally and about the book itself.

To successfully market a book, Westwind Communications determines who will read it and then targets that media directly. By way of example, one of my clients has published a book of poetry. Now the average person won’t buy a collection of poetry. However, certain people love poetry. So we aim our book marketing efforts for this client to poetry magazines, poetry web sites and poetry societies who are the “driest tinder.”

The reason most authors seek book reviews is that the people reading them represent the “driest tinder.” You don’t read book reviews unless you are looking for a book to read or give. So, it makes sense to target reviewers at media outlets. Furthermore, people will tell their friends about a book review they read in a magazine or newspaper, see on television, or hear on the radio because the media is a third party, disinterested source disseminating the information. That’s why getting book reviews is so important in starting the “word of mouth” every successful author desires. The challenge is that these reviewers are bombarded with hundreds or thousands of books every year and it takes skill to cut through the clutter to get a book reviewed.

For any author, we make sure galleys and the finished books are sent to the reviewers at major publications and broadcast outlets. We write and send press releases, pitch letters in an electronic press kit, and make follow up phone calls to media outlets encouraging reporters and reviewers to write about our client’s book. Being reviewed by The New York Times, Washington Post, The Chicago Tribune, The Los Angeles Times and USA TODAY are major goals. In fact USA Today has 4.3 million readers every day. Furthermore, it gets more notice from the other media than the other four newspapers combined. That’s a major reason why we will make a concerted effort to get our authors noticed by USA TODAY.

We also contact national magazines and others that may be interested in the author’s personal story. Sometimes the media is more interested in the author than the book itself and that is just one more angle we’ll use to promote our client’s book. We contact TV and radio outlets. Every day thousands of interviews are conducted on TV and Radio stations across North America and several hundred are with authors. We have developed relationships with many producers over the years and those contacts combined with well-thought-out pitches produce results.

I regularly attend major media events in New York City for face-to-face meetings with journalists, editors, writers and producers from top national magazines, newspapers and radio/TV programs. I have successfully pitched such media outlets as 20/20, Prime Time, CNN, People, Good Morning America, Newsweek, Time Magazine, Dateline NBC, The View, Oprah’s O magazine, Cosmopolitan, Fox News, Good Housekeeping, Newsweek to name a few.

Details on Stielstra’s PyroMarketing approach are given at http://www.pyromarketing.com.

Scott Lorenz, is President of Westwind Communications, a public relations and marketing firm that has a special knack for working with individuals and entrepreneurs to help them get all the publicity they deserve and more. Lorenz has handled public relations and marketing for numerous authors, doctors, lawyers, authors inventors and entrepreneurs since 1980 and is an integral part of the strategy for many authors in their own book marketing. Learn more about Westwind Communications’ book marketing approach at http://www.westwindcos.com/book or contact Lorenz at scottlorenz@westwindcos.com or by phone at 734-667-2090.

Author: Scott Lorenz
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
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Top Ten Reasons Why Your Book Marketing Strategy Is Not Working

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The publishing business has changed dramatically in the past few years. Today, nearly anyone can publish a book it seems. Hundreds of thousands of new books hit the shelves every year. But very few people are successful at all in regards to marketing their books, with the average number of sales being around 200 over the life of the author. Marketing books is a real challenge for many people. In my work with hundreds of authors, I have identified 10 primary reasons why a book marketing strategy may fail.

1. THE BOOK AND/OR THE AUTHOR ARE INVISIBLE

Today the Internet is the primary source of information for book buyers. But even those who buy books in the ‘real’ world use the Internet to do research before buying in the real world.

Book buyers, while doing their research, will NOT search by your name or your book’s title. They will instead search using a very generic phrase like ‘children’s book’ or ‘thriller’ or ‘spy novel’.

It is a fact that hardly anyone goes beyond page three of search engine results. Authors who hope to be visible to the book buying public must be on one of the first three pages for the GENERIC SEARCH TERM (like ‘children’s book) that describes their books. If you are not on one of the first three pages for that generic term, you are virtually invisible to nearly all book buyers. If you are invisible, nothing else you do in regards to marketing your book will matter much.

2. THE AUTHOR MAY BE USING THE WRONG APPROACH

If you are using book marketing ideas and book marketing strategies that USED to work (when bookstores were the primary book outlets) those marketing strategies will most likely not work much at all in an Internet. In fact, you will likely fail.

Today, Internet sites have taken center stage in regards to being the primary book outlet. To be successful in regards to selling books today, you must have traffic to your book marketing site, and you must have a lot of it. You must know how to convert that traffic into book sales. All the traffic in the world will not matter if it does not convert to sales.

3. THE AUTHOR LACKS AN EFFECTIVE SEO STRATEGY

In the ‘old days’ (just a few years ago) the strategy was to tell as many people as possible that a book existed and wait for sales to come in. This ‘yell and tell as many people as possible’ strategy simply does not work today, as the Internet is search engine driven. Telling a lot of people is very hard work, is very expensive in regards to both money and time, and relies on huge numbers to produce small results.

In today’s Internet environment, the potential book buyer begins by typing a generic phrase into a search engine, in essence saying ‘Here is what I’m looking for’. Book sites are then indexed by the engines based upon how important they appear to be in regards to the generic phrase entered and in regards to how that particular site stacks up against the competition for that generic phrase.

SEARCH ENGINES decide who is important and they decide who ends up being seen by the book buying public. Think of a search engine as a yellow page directory. You will only be listed in THIS one-of-a-kind gigantic online yellow page directory if you understand and follow the SEO rules given you by the engines. If you don’t know and understand the rules, you will be at the end of the listings. And, if you are at the end of the listings, no one is going to find you, as they will likely look at just the first three pages.

4. THE AUTHOR IS PRESENTING THE WRONG MESSAGE

Book buyers are interested in one thing, and one thing only – WHAT YOUR BOOK WILL DO FOR THEM.

Often authors like to talk about other things. But the book buyer is not really interested in the author’s history, how the author came to write the book, what lead the author to write it, how the author struggled. They want to know what this book will do for THEM. You must speak to THE BUYER’S NEEDS SPECIFICALLY. The author must do this. If not, they will have a visitor, but not a book buyer.

That desired message must be communicated to the book buyer in less than 30 seconds. You must know what your target market profiles really want, and you must provide it more effectively than the competition. If you are not saying what the potential book buyer wants to hear, they will never buy your book. Your book marketing strategy must speak to the needs of the buyer.

5. THE AUTHOR IS NOT COMMUNICATING A STRONG BRAND

When the Internet shopper goes to the engines, the shopper is presented with millions of authors and author sites. You may look very much like everyone else. Your book may be ‘just another book’ to that shopper. What are you telling that potential buyer that NO ONE ELSE is saying? Without a sharply researched, one-of-a-kind brand that speaks directly to the needs of buyers, as THEY perceive those needs, you WILL appear to be just like everyone else. A great book marketing strategy must communicate a strong brand.

6. THE AUTHOR IS NOT POSITIONED PROPERLY

Type a generic phrase such as ‘children’s book’ into the Google engine today and you will get over 30 million listings. Every one of those pages is presented to that potential book buyer. Your book is just one of those millions of listings. As an author, YOU know your book is not like all the rest, but the BOOK BUYER does not, unless you have taken a strong marketing position. An effective book marketing strategy must position you in relation to the competition.

7. THE AUTHOR IS NOT USING EFFECTIVE CALLS TO ACTION

All marketing sites are websites, but very few websites are marketing sites. A book marketing site must be sharp and clear, clean, and it must brand the author and position the author better than the competition. There must be a logical, step-by-step map for the visitor to follow and there must be compelling calls to action in all the right places. If you do not do this, you might end up with visitors but remember: a visitor is not a book buyer and won’t become a book buyer without a sharp brand, proper positioning and a strong call to action.

Anyone can build a website. But a website is just another website. A book marketing website, on the other hand, should be a results-producing machine and should produce the results you seek. An effective book marketing strategy will incorporate effective calls to action in all the right places on every page of the website.

8. THE AUTHOR MIGHT BE BORING THE BUYER

Most authors are not boring. But do remember always that the attention span of the searcher is very short. There are millions of competitors and competing websites, just one single click away. You have just a few seconds to present YOUR brand, YOUR position and the primary reason why someone should buy YOUR book. A good book marketing strategy will deliver a powerful and compelling message in just a few seconds.

9. THE AUTHOR’S APPROACH MAY BE PERCEIVED AS SELLING, RATHER THAN TELLING

An effective Internet marketing strategy can be compared to fishing. When fishing, no one jumps into the water, jams the hook into the fish’s mouth and tries to force it to bite the hook. This is what many book selling strategies are like – they are ‘in your face’ sales messages.

If you yell out your sales message, attempting to jam your really great book hook in their mouths, don’t be surprised when they swim away. (Think about how YOU feel about spam, pop up ads, Twitter-blab and commercials). It is a fact that no one likes to be sold. Internet shoppers do however love to find what they seek.

Instead, in this environment, you must offer irresistible bait instead, through the use of effective marketing language. The shopper (or in this case, the fish) will then come running, they will tell all their friends and they will bite your book hook willingly. A great book marketing strategy does not sell, but rather entices the visitor to action.

10. THE AUTHOR’S EXPECTATIONS MAY BE SET TOO HIGH

* Don’t put up a book marketing website and believe people will magically just show up. They will not.

* Don’t put up a book marketing website and expect people to buy. They will not.

* Don’t put up a book marketing website and believe you are finished. You are not.

As regards real world businesses, building success takes years and a great deal of effort. In the Internet environment, building your online store may take just as long – perhaps longer. It will require a lot of ongoing effort to make it succeed. The Internet is not a magic bullet. A real world business may have a few competitors just down the street. Your Internet business has millions of competitors, all right next door, just one click away.

Today, the whole world is your potential book buyer base. But this will not matter if you don’t learn how effective book marketing strategies work in today’s Internet environment. If you are not getting good results, don’t complain. Get some help. Visit the free publicity focus group at http://www.freepublicitygroup.com. There you will find a free, no cost, no obligation individualized personal marketing strategy analysis. This analysis will answer all your questions and will provide rock solid solutions to your marketing challenges.

Don McCauley is a marketing strategist with over 30 years of experience. He helps individuals, small businesses and professionals create low cost publicity and marketing campaigns to increase sales. He demonstrates how anyone can develop a massive marketing and publicity campaign for little or no money by utilizing cutting edge strategic marketing and publicity resources. The goal is alway to produce bottom line results

Don serves as facilitator of the Free Publicity Focus Group. He is an author and currently writes for regional and national print and electronic publications. He serves as host of The Authors Show radio program, a production of eBroadcastMedia.com. He is an Inbound Marketing Certified Professional and is Web CEO University Certified. Prior to establishing his marketing and publicity consulting business, Don spent many years as a marketing manager and trainer for several large US corporations. He has also personally built three highly successful service businesses from scratch across three different industries.

He spent 8 years as marketing director of a regional corporation. During this time he was responsible for developing, implementing and managing marketing and publicity campaigns.

More information is available at http://www.freepublicitygroup.com. He can be reached by email at don@freepublicitygroup.com

Author: Donald E. McCauley
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
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Book Marketing 101 – Enhance Your Publisher’s Efforts

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Congratulations! You have found a publisher well suited to your book. The contract has been signed. You are a published author! What’s next? What will your publisher do? What should you do to enhance the publisher’s efforts?

Authors covet traditional (trade) publishers because those publishers are experts in taking a book from manuscript to retail stores with perfection. No matter how many articles you might have read about the enticement of self-publishing or “vanity” publishers, trade publishers know what must be done, how to accomplish the tasks and they can do it in a timely manner. They have the artists, printers, distribution channels and retail connections that you require. That’s why you should be willing to share some of the profit with trade publishers.

Without a publisher, you would need to be an expert at cover art, graphic design, editing, printing, acquiring distribution channels, web site design, marketing to retail booksellers and all facets of sales. Very few excellent writers are also experts in all of those areas. And, even if you were an expert in all of those fields, would you have the time to accomplish all of those tasks, as well as restock retail stores? In today’s highly competitive and rapidly changing retail book market, even trade publishers cannot do everything. So, unless your last name is King or Clancy, you will need to chip in with some time and effort to make your book a smashing retail success.

What can you expect from your publisher?

A trade publisher will edit your book, create cover art, print the books, contract with distributors and then place your book on the Internet sites of Amazon, Borders, Barnes & Noble, Target and other major global retailers. Your publisher will market your book globally and arrange for distribution in all relevant countries. The publisher will then process the books to sales outlets and restock them on a regular basis. Your publisher may also promote your book at book fairs, through catalogs, through an e-mail or fax blast, generate media publicity, arrange book tours, create a web site, solicit reviews and arrange book signings. And, despite all of this effort on the part of your publisher, you’ll receive royalties, which a pretty nice feeling.

However, in today’s ever-changing book sales market, a great deal of additional work remains to be done by the author. Much of this is electronic marketing. Because of the changing nature of the publishing world and the revolution in electronic book purchasing, someone needs to market your book throughout the Internet world. Because this work is extremely labor-intensive and detail-oriented, few publishers have the time, workers and enthusiasm to make it happen. This is where the author must step in, with the motivation to work hard on behalf of his or her book. The bad news is that there is a lot of work for the author to do. The good news is that almost no expertise or money is required to accomplish these vital tasks.

Viral marketing:

The Internet has turned the publishing world upside down. Even mammoth publishing houses are today petrified with this abrupt change. People can purchase on the Internet, bypassing brick and mortar stores. They download books to their Kindle. They can even download books on the Internet for free. People today make purchasing decisions based upon what they can see and read on the Internet. For example, Amazon not only allows you to describe your book, display its cover and details; it also has a feature called “Search Inside” that allows prospective buyers to sample many pages of your book before buying. Bookstores and publishers are frightened and losing profit margin. But here is where you can step in and help your publisher.

What should you do to help your publisher? You can contact your local newspapers, magazines and on-line Blogs in order to solicit articles about you and reviews for your book. You can contact local bookstores and arrange for book signings. You can sell books on your own through local organizations. You can try to obtain reviews and interviews about your book everywhere in town. One of the fastest ways to solicit business for your book is through the media. Since you require positive reviews to sell your book, newspapers, magazines and book clubs are a great place to start. When you encounter serious interest, send them a review copy. If your publisher runs out of review copies, send them the e-book as a review copy, or ask them to purchase the Kindle version.

But, the world is a lot bigger than your neighborhood. If you want a great many people to read your book, you will need to create a global electronic marketing campaign. Fortunately, almost all of this can be accomplished with your computer. Better yet, it won’t cost you a dime.

First, create a viral marketing campaign. Viral marketing means many things, including web pages, Blogs, social networking, video marketing and all other electronic means of selling your book. It sounds difficult. In reality, it is simple and free. Use effective search terms in Google or Yahoo to find places and people related to your book. For example, a book about the history could be promoted to schools, public and private colleges, universities, historical societies and organizations dedicated to historical preservation. Thousands of people, places and organizations that might use such a book can be located with Internet searches.

Once you uncover these people, places and organizations, all that remains is to contact them with a sales pitch for your book. E-mail marketing is cheap and fast. However, your sales pitch must grab the reader’s interest quickly. You must construct an e-mail cover page that is informative, has embedded links to your web sites and the publisher and will sell the value of your book instantly. More about e-mail marketing later in this article.

Web site marketing:

Most publishers will create a web page for your book. But never rely on the public finding that one page, or even your publisher’s web site. Anyone can create a free web page for his or her book. Just visit Yahoo, Google, Hotmail, WordPress, Blogspot, Goodreads, or Geocities and begin building your site. There are many other Internet sites where you can build a web site or Blog for free. The instructions are simple and fast. The more web pages that you create for your book, on your own, the more chances buyers will discover it. I have dozens of such sites.

You can create a free web page that includes many detailed facts about your book, including review excerpts, historical data and links to your Blogs and web sites, as well as your publisher. To keep readers on the site, add dozens of interesting and useful links about the topic of your book. Then, you can create another free web site that includes a syllabus for your book, packed with features and reasons why people should purchase it. Connect these web pages to each other via links. This is FREE. All it takes is some of your time.

The secret to success with Internet web sites is to make them interesting and to use effective key words. Key words (a.k.a. “tags”) are the way that search engines find web pages. Select your key words very carefully. The more accurate and appealing your key words, the better the chance that search engines will uncover your book.

Some people recommend that you give away downloadable copies of your book on the Internet, as a marketing tool. Publishers may disagree. However, if you allow someone to download your e-book, or e-mail it to them, there is a chance that they will enjoy it and tell their friends about it. Since most people do not wish to read a book on their computer particularly a long book, print sales will increase as a result. Someone recently asked me if I was disappointed that so many people were reading my book from the local library, rather than paying for it at a bookstore. I don’t mind at all. People who enjoy your book will tell friends and family about it. In the end, giving away books judiciously is an effective sales tool.

There is no limit to the number of web pages that you can create. The more times you create a new web page, and the more times you update an existing page, the more times people will discover your book. Continue to perform maintenance on your key words and update your sites with new links. Before you are done, go to this web page http://www.google.com/addurl/?continue=/addurl. Here you will be able to submit your web sites to Google’s search tool. This step is critical, so that your web sites will appear on all future Google searches.

Blogs:

Blogging about your book, or writing on other Blogs about it can be a powerful tool to increase sales. Anyone can create a Blog for free and use it to promote a book. I Blog on two of my own sites. Blog about anything of interest to you, or any particular expertise you have acquired. It doesn’t have to be related to your book. Note that you can easily promote your book on Blog pages, through links and sidebar widgets. Just be sure to sign off each post as, “Author of …” below your name.

Perhaps more importantly, you can comment on other people’s Blogs, vastly increasing your book’s visibility. Use a Google search feature to troll the Internet searching for key words related to your book’s topic. When you find Internet newspaper or magazine articles about your book’s topic, visit the site and write something there about your book. Always sign off on Blogs with the title of your book and a link to your book’s web site under your name.

Similarly, you can comment on articles in magazines and newspapers via their Internet versions. In most cases, you will need to register. It’s free and the time you put into registering is a small price to pay for the ability to promote your book in all future iterations of that newspaper or magazine. Most Internet news media allow reader comments after an article. When you find an article related to your book, write your comment and then sign your name and, “Author of …” after your name. Be sure to include the title of your book and a link to its web site under your name.

Write articles:

Anyone can write articles and have them published on the Internet. Where is your expertise? In what way can you provide people with valuable information? Writing articles is not simple or swift. You may need to conduct some research. Take your time and write carefully. Your topic need not be connected with your book. I have had articles published on topics as wide ranging as publishing, psychology, religion, life, death, war, happiness, prejudice and philosophy. Each article is a chance to sign off with your book’s name and a link to its web site.

Establish a Goodreads account. Goodreads is a web site for readers and authors. It is a terrific place to see and be seen. There is no more natural place to sell your book’s value to potential readers. Although Goodreads is not a retail site, it offers an opportunity to network with other authors who have similar interests and problems.

Social networking:

Join as many social networking sites as possible. MySpace, Twitter, Facebook, Goodreads, Ziggs, Yahoo, LinkedIn, Multiply, Urbis, Squidoo… They are all valuable ways to make your book known. You may be able to generate your own Wikipedia page. At each of these social networking sites, you can create a profile, including a description of your book and stores where it is sold. But your work there is not finished. Join groups within the sites that are related to your book, your writing, or anything related to the topic. Promote your book through Facebook, MySpace and Twitter by joining groups related to it. LinkedIn is an excellent place to network with professionals of all types. At LinkedIn, you can create a profile to describe your book that will be seen by countless readers. You can also join groups of interest related to your book. You can reach literally thousands of people within these groups.

Amazon:

Amazon is not only a place to sell your book. It is a place to post a Blog. Amazon has a new sponsored link called “Filedby” that includes an author biography page where you can post a Blog and relevant articles. Also within Amazon, each content section has forums in which people start topics or respond to the topics of others. You can post messages and responded to messages in Amazon forums as wide ranging as history, fiction, war, romance, art, science, religion, literature, etc. Again, each time you write, sign off with your name and the title of your book. You will instantly reach thousands of potential buyers.

Another Amazon feature allows anyone with an Amazon account to create a review for any book sold there. Think about every book that you have read. You can locate the book on Amazon and create your own customer review. Just scroll down the Amazon page for any book until you see a button that says, “Create Your Own Customer Review.” Follow the instructions to rate and then review the book. When you are done, be sure to write, “Author of …” after your name. Every time someone reads your review of that book, the name of your book will appear. Since the reader is already on Amazon, they can purchase your book by typing its name at the top of the page. You can review as many books as you wish, each time marketing your own book under your signature.

Email marketing:

You can personally contact tens of thousands of critical people and organizations with e-mail. Never count on your publisher doing this. They can only dream of having the time and labor to accomplish such a task. All that you need are e-mail addresses, an effective sales letter and some time.

Use the Internet to search for lists of people who would have a natural interest in your book. You can uncover literally thousands of e-mail addresses related to your book’s topic. Organizations often include membership e-mail addresses. All that is left for you to do is to create an effective e-mail cover letter and send it to each member electronically. This is not spamming because the addresses are publicly posted.

While few of us are brave enough to open an attachment from a stranger, we are all willing to open a hyperlink. Embedding Internet hyperlinks into your e-mail cover page is simple and fast. In most e-mail programs, you can right-click on any word in an outgoing message and then select the “Hyperlink” option. Follow the instructions to embed the hyperlink. That word will appear in all future e-mail versions of your letter in blue or red. When your reader clicks on the blue or red word (while compressing the “Control” key), your web site will emerge in their browser. With this method, the reader can access all of your book’s important web sites, including your publisher’s web site, book reviews, the book’s Amazon page, another web site that contains a syllabus, author interviews and much more.

Hyperlinks are also vastly superior to typing in lengthy Internet addresses. For example, the Amazon Internet address for many books can be quite lengthy and would occupy at least two lines in an e-mail pitch page. Instead, simply hyperlink the word “here” at the end of a sentence. Clicking the word “here,” which will appear in blue or red, will transport the e-mail reader to the book’s Amazon page.

Your e-mail cover page message must be brief and concise – less than one page; while compelling the reader to learn more about your book. No one will bother to read a lengthy dissertation about your book while the rest of his or her daily incoming mail is piling up, waiting to be read. Just grab their interest quickly, hyperlink the best web sites and provide contact information. The e-mail is only designed to command their interest. The embedded web sites will sell your book. At least one of your embedded web sites should allow the reader to instantly purchase the book. Another hyperlinked web site should contain the book’s syllabus, access to your best reviews, the author’s biography and links to other relevant sites, articles, Blogs and books.

Once you have created an impressive e-mail cover letter, save it in generic form for future use. Then, each time you wish to contact someone new about your book, retrieve the file and customize it to that particular receipient. In most cases, you will require only a few minor changes to your original letter. This will allow you to contact literally hundreds of people rapidly.

Only a few days are required to create and modify e-mail cover letters, web sites and Blogs appropriately. It will cost nothing. In fact, some large Internet companies, like Google, will pay you per click if you allow them to advertise on your site. Instead of paying for web site development, create your own site and make money by selling advertising on it. Learn more about the “affiliate programs” at Google and Amazon.

Conclusion:

The world of book marketing and sales is undergoing considerable, rapid change. People who formerly explored books and purchased them at their local bookstore now increasingly accomplish this task from home or work on the Internet. Since publishers are still required to edit, print, distribute and market in traditional ways, and since they have fewer staff due to lower margins, it falls upon the author to accomplish many new tasks related to electronic marketing and sales.

You can construct web sites and Blogs that can be used to attract the public to your book and accomplish the sale with a few mouse clicks. You can solicit reviews, articles and sales by creating several attractive and concise web pages, by using appropriate key words in those web sites to attract search engines and by implementing an effective e-mail marketing campaign. You can accomplish all of this right from your own computer – and it is virtually cost free.

Marketing a book can be time consuming and frustrating. But do not count on your publisher to accomplish everything, particularly if you are a new author. Be willing to implement your own marketing campaign with web sites, Blogs, by writing articles and with an effective e-mail blitz. The harder your effort, the larger your royalty checks will become.

Charles S. Weinblatt
Author, “Jacob’s Courage: A Holocaust Love Story”
http://jacobscourage.wordpress.com/

Author: Charles Weinblatt
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
Provided by: Guest blogger

What is a Virtual Book Tour

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I would like to welcome D’vorah Lansky to my Author Website. I e-met D’vorah online because of my interest in her website Book Marketing Made Easy. I have listened to quite a few of her webinars and attended her conference. I received a wealth of information.

I asked D’vorah to share with you and she chose to talk about What is a Virtual Book Tour. Her subject is perfect since I am in the middle of one myself , getting ready for the launch of The Book of Ruth-A Story of Love and Redemption. I hope you find D’vorah’s article informative and helpful.

What is a Virtual Book Tour

http://www.deborahhbateman.com

D'vorah Lansky

By D’vorah Lansky, author of Book Marketing Made Easy: Simple Strategies for Selling Your Nonfiction Book Online.

I’d like to share with you a few tips regarding virtual book tours and outline a few things that you can easily put into play, for your own book. The good news is, a book tour does not just have to be for a newly published book. You can create a book tour for any of your books, at any time. The key is to be passionate about your topic, be willing to share the message of your book and be committed to connecting with and building relationships with others.

What is a Virtual Book or Blog Tour?

A Virtual Book or Blog Tour is much like a traditional book tour but instead of the author flying from city to city, they are featured on a wide variety of blogs and websites across the internet. Your tour can consist of guest blog posts, videos, audio interviews and even an online book study.

Your book blog is the online hub for your book tour. It is where people will come to find out more about you and your book. It is where the hosts of your tour can access your media kit and it is where your visitors can view your videos and purchase your book. Once you set up your blog you can easily add pages to host the above mentioned content. (For an example, you can view my book blog and check out the 21-Day Virtual Book Tour, http://BookMarketingMadeEasy.com/tour)

Another thing you can do, in preparation of your virtual book tour is to connect your blog to the social networks with a WordPress plugin such as Twitter Tools (which you can locate on WordPress.org) or the Facebook application called Networked Blogs (NetworkedBlogs.com). These tools allow you to automate announcements of your new posts to the social networks.

There are numerous things that you can do to spread the word about your book tour. A few examples are:

  • Set up an event page on Facebook and invite your Facebook friends, who are interested in your topic
  • Update your Author Central page on Amazon. Here’s my page as an example: http://budurl.com/bydvorah
  • Add your new book to several of the social networking sites for authors, such as GoodReads.com and AuthorNation.com

You Can Also Use Video as Part of Your Blog Tour

Video adds a compelling component to your book tour. It provides a way for people to both connect with you and find out more about you and your book, “in living color”. The simplest way to create a video is by using a program called Animoto.com. They allow you to upload images and video and then either upload your own, royalty free, audio or select from the wide collection of audio tracks on their site. Animoto also makes it really easy for you to upload your video to YouTube or post to your site.

Over the course of my 21-day virtual book tour, I shared lots of tips and examples, about virtual book tours, that you can apply to your own book tour. And of course, there are lots of action-packed, easy to understand and implement book marketing strategies available to you in Book Marketing Made Easy!

If you have participated in a virtual book tour, either as a host or as the touring author, I’d love to hear your story, results and tips. Here’s to your book marketing success! D’vorah

http://www.deborahhbateman.com

Book Marketing Made Easy by D'vorah Lansky

D’vorah is the author of Book Marketing Made Easy: Simple Strategies for Selling Your Nonfiction Book Online – Visit her book blog and check out the full virtual book tour schedule at: www.BookMarketingMadeEasy.com.

D’vorah offers programs for nonfiction authors interested in growing their brand and their book sales through online book marketing practices and strategies. You can purchase her book on Amazon at: www.BookMarketingMadeEasy.com/amazon

 

Leave a comment and thank D’vorah for sharing with us and let us know what new information you learned from this post!