Tag Archives: Self-Published Books

A Strategy For Getting Your Self-Published Book Into Stores

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I’ve spoken to self-publishers who are quick to say that they don’t need brick and mortar bookstores. This is usually expressed after they realize that, even though their books are listed in Books in Print or are in the Ingram catalog, not even one bookstore has ordered a copy.

If you are actively promoting your book off-line as well as on-line, you will find that it is possible to break into bookstores, even if you have to do it one store at a time.

The key is local events. Start in your local community when your book is launched. Send out press releases to local daily and weekly papers. Contact local radio and TV stations. Offer to do readings at local libraries, and then hit the bookstores.

Start with a chain bookstore. I love independent bookstores, but if you want to make a big push to get your books into stores nation-wide, you’re going to have to aim for the chains.

Go to the manager or buyer at your store, and explain that you’re doing a local media push. Let her know what speaking engagements and interviews you’ve already lined up, and the press you’re expecting to receive.

Explain that you want to point all those readers to one particular store to buy the book, and ask if she can help you out by ordering a quantity of books.

If she says no, move on to the next largest chain, or if there’s only one chain in your local area, the largest independent store.

Keep going until a bookstore says yes. Usually your largest independent bookstore will agree to stock the book, and host a reading.

But don’t be discouraged if all of them refuse you. It’s not likely, but it can happen.

In that instance, push the book through your own website. You want to be able to track sales through your promotions, so set up a page where people can enter their Amazon receipt number to get a bonus directly from you.

Do your media blitz in your city, and document the sales it generated.

Now you can begin a blitz in a neighboring city, following the exact same steps, but this time when you approach bookstores, you’ve got documented information about how many books are likely to sell. Use that information to try to get into a chain this time.

Once you do get your book accepted, even if it’s on a limited basis, into a chain. Do a big, big push. Use everyone you know, and every contact you have to sell as many copies of that book as possible.

Once your book has a sales history in a chain, it’s easier to get restocked, and to get your books into other stores in your state.

The more you sell, the more likely it is that someone at head office will see a ‘trend’ and give you a call, as the publisher of record, to find out what the appeal is, and get your books throughout the region, or even the country.

Most importantly, never give up on off-line promotion. Seek out radio interviews, send out press releases, and market your book for all it’s worth.

You’ll sell more books, and realize that dream of seeing your book, face out, at a brick and mortar store.

Wendy Woudstra has been writing about publishing and book marketing for more than a decade. Learn more about book promotion at her website, http://PublishingCentral.com

Author: Wendy Woudstra
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
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20 Economical Book Marketing Techniques

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*The succeeding article is about Marketing Self Published Books, Profitable Book Marketing, Book Marketing Strategies, and many other useful tips about online book marketing.

Whether you are an upstart author or a self published author, an efficient book marketing plan in these times of economic recession need not be expensive if you just know your target market, find the most economical means to inform this market of your works, and establish a lasting, trustworthy relationship with your new-found markets.

Study carefully your expected demographic market’s spending behavior and changing lifestyle habits, given these trying times, and then find effective ways and methods that they may be convinced and persuaded in buying your book. Also, compare the effectiveness of your book marketing plan with the competition of the same genre, and consider relevant marketing factors such as the pricing of the book, the common qualities of the bestselling authors, the present market demand for the genre, and the strengths and weaknesses of the competition.

Try choosing or combining any of these effective book marketing techniques so that you will not only save on your book marketing investment but will become an efficient “author-preneur” as well:

1. Conduct book signing campaigns at local/statewide bookstores, book fairs, and literary conventions, which lets you market for free or for a very minimal registration fee.

2. Strategically schedule the announcement of your new book or continuing publicity with a relevant national news event, a new blockbuster movie, or a trade fair.

3. Write articles on topics of current interest and correlate it with the beneficial features and advice found in your book, then submit at free PR websites.

4. Participate in various online authors’ or genre-specific blog sites. This is one tried-and-tested avenue for the so-called “viral marketing” to flourish because in manifesting your thoughts and perspectives to thousands of online bloggers, you make them appreciate your knowledge and expertise on a particular subject matter of interest, which is related to the book you are writing. In this manner, you are actually and indirectly promoting your book with your interesting ideas shared online.

5. Publish actual portions or excerpts of your book together with a concise feature article that can be distributed in high visitor web portals and article data bases on the Internet.

6. Deal with a reliable print-on-demand publisher that offers complete and extensive distribution services.

7. Consider more promising, diversified literary text formatting options for your works like having a full text version of your book stored in pdf format, having an e-book version of your writing, and having downloadable versions of your book to Internet-capable handheld computer owners.

8. Participate often in writers’ conventions, writing guild conferences and symposia and the like. You could gain crucial, practical inputs from seasoned authors who will give you effective marketing advice that may not be found elsewhere.

9. Have yourself available as a public forum/special events speaker in the field or area of your expertise. You may not actually sell books, but may issue author cards for the program participants who may be your future book buyers.

10. Consider listing your book on online classified ads websites.

11. Send e-mails to your friends and reader fans of scanned excerpts of your book with a matching explanatory note.

12. Place an ad in social networking sites that allow the marketing of your books/latest work for free or for a discounted fee.

13. Be a proactive author like giving complimentary copies of your book to celebrities and well-known resource persons, sending opinion articles for newspapers, and getting actively involved in community projects and charitable events.

14. Contact genre experts, independent book critics, and well known book review companies for favorable endorsement comments,

15. Send PR’s to newspapers in your city or state for the purpose of being featured and getting book reviews.

16. Find local or state area radio stations and television stations that actually feature programs about writers, literature, or books then try to find out if you can send a PR of your book or better still, get a radio or television interview.

17. Make your own creative video presentation of your book and upload it to video-sharing websites.

18. Be your own book broadcaster. Make a podcast-able audio presentation of your book. This marketing option is ideal for authors of language and speech books, business and economics books, and even of the fiction genre.

19. Find author marketing websites that offer free ad listings of your book. This is the Internet version of the conventional bulletin board display.

20. Find book marketing services providers that offer bundled marketing programs at a discounted rate. Compare prices according to your book marketing needs, the kind of services that you prefer, the quality of the services offered, and the limits of your marketing budget.

Learn more about the dynamics of marketing self published books, Press release campaign, book marketing strategies, and many other useful tips about online book marketing. Visit http://www.bookwhirl.com for more info.

Author: Jake Olvido
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
The economics of product pricing

Abridging Books Into eBooks

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For people who are authors of books and have perhaps self published previously it might be a good idea to turn your book into an eBook. If your book is a nonfiction book it may be possible to break the chapters down and perhaps elaborate on some of the subjects and 2-3 E-books from that one work. It does not make sense to take a book which you may have produced that perhaps sold less than 10,000 copies since you self published it and then not turn it into something that can be seen by many more people.

If you break down the subjects properly into the books you may be able to get quite a few more people reading your book and you can charge a very low price. The lower the price the more people who will afford it can buy it and eBooks cost very little to produce.

There are many successful online eBook writers and authors and you can go to Lulu.com and see all the eBooks there available to all online Internet buyers. What do you have to lose? And why would you allow such information that you spent so much time and hard work and effort in producing go to waste. Isn’t it time that you made a second edition anyway and this might be a way. Think of this in 2006 and maybe you might find success in the eBook business.

“Lance Winslow” – Online Think Tank forum board. If you have innovative thoughts and unique perspectives, come think with Lance; www.WorldThinkTank.net/. Lance is an online writer in retirement.

Author: Lance Winslow
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
Electric pressure cooker generations

How to Publish Your Informational Book, Part 3 – Self Publishing

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In previous installments of this series, I described the four basic methods of publishing your information book – Traditional Publishing, Self-Publishing, Print-on-Demand, and eBook – and wrote at length about the pros and cons of Traditional Publishing. In this article we’ll look in depth at the next method: Self-Publishing.

Self-Publishing is a topic that is near and dear to my heart, because that is the method I chose more than eight years ago when I published my first fiction book. It required a steep learning curve, but became profitable quickly, and in fact, I have since self-published five more books, all of which sold well and continue to sell well.

Here’s what you need to know:

Self-Publishing essentially means that you take on the role of publisher as well as author. And with this new role comes a long list of new tasks, and a whole new set of people that you need to interact with. You are responsible for supervising the book printing, the cover, the layout and artwork, the paperwork for procuring an ISBN number (the number that’s required to create the bar code, so that your book can be sold in retail stores and online), shipping, storage, distribution, and more.

It can be a pretty daunting list.

So why in the world would someone want to take on all that responsibility? Because the list of positives is even longer. Here are a few of the main benefits to Self-Publishing:

1. Guaranteed Publication – 99% of all manuscripts submitted to editors and publishers are rejected. Unless your subject has instant mass appeal, your chances for publishing your informational book are even higher. Instead of trying to please some faceless editor or publisher, why not let the buying public determine if you have a winner or not?

2. Speed – If you want to get a book out quickly, or if you are dealing with time sensitive material, then self-publishing is the way to go. Unlike traditional publishing processes which can take a year or more to complete, a self-published book can go from completed manuscript to physical book in as little as 30 days.

3. Control – Self-Publishing gives you the ability to create your perfect vision exactly as you see it. Cover art, subject matter, tone and feel… it’s all up to you, and no one can overrule your decision. When you work with a traditional publisher, it is a constant negotiation, and the author rarely wins.

4. Money – Samuel Johnson once said, “No man but a blockhead ever wrote, but for money.” If the purpose of your book is to bring in cash, than self-publishing may be your best option. The reason is simple: since you are your own publisher, you get to keep all the money. For example, if I print a book for $2.23, and sell it for $10, the difference – $7.77 – is mine to keep. Contrast that with traditional publishing, where royalties can often measured in pennies.

When I released my first self-published children’s adventure, I generated more profit in the first few months than other authors I know generated in years. And I did it not because I sold more books, but rather because I made far more profit on each book that I did sell.

Self-Publishing is not for everyone. It takes an entrepreneurial mindset and a love of learning new things beyond just authoring a book. Yet, in many cases, it can be the fastest, more profitable way to get your book to market.

Understanding all of your publishing options certainly brings you one step closer to a successful book. But nothing happens until you can interest people in buying it. So what should you do next? What can you do to entice people to try your book? These are exactly the questions I’ve spent the last 10 years researching, and you can find out the answers by visiting me at http://www.FictionSecrets.com. Download a 30-page report and receive a 5-day eCourse covering this subject.

Kevin Franz is a successful fiction author and online marketer. For more than twenty years he has made his living putting words to paper, and he has helped thousands create their first written works. He is currently showing internet marketers how to incorporate the techniques of great fiction into their online sales efforts. You can find the details on his blog – http://www.kevinfranz.wordpress.com.

Author: Kevin Franz
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
Electric pressure cooker generations

How to Finish Your Self-Published Book Fast

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Started a book and then got bogged down? Like many of my bookcoaching clients do you say, “I have so many other demands, I just can’t get to the book.”

This isn’t procrastination or fear. Most writers get stuck when they don’t know how to move forward, finish, publish and sell their unique, useful book to audiences just waiting for it to come out. Let me share two ways to speed up your process.

One. Take One or More High Level Action Each Day

Another to do, you groan? Not really. If you don’t make your book one of the top three priorities in your life, it won’t finish it.

Get real. How many hours can you give to your book a week?
If not ten, I say you may never get your book out. Clients get so discouraged when they don’t do their fieldwork for our coaching calls, so I came up with one solution of doing one High Level Activity or more each day for five days a week. (HLAs) Go ahead; take the weekend off like I do.

Some HLA steps include:

– Write on a chapter that you have passion for first.

– Write 2-3 pages a day on just one chapter.

– Finish one chapter before you move on.

– Write 3-6 questions you need to answer for your audience for each chapter before you write a word.

– Read a book on how to put a chapter together the fast way

– Write in your organizer each day the specific HLAs you will do

– Contact a book coach who has low-cost teleclasses, small group coaching groups, or writes books on the topic you need help on.

– Write a sample chapter introduction with a hook and thesis to direct your reader to the meat.

-Write compelling copy so your reader will turn all the pages and recommend your book to others.

Sample Organizer Page

Write your intention: I finish this book (name the title) by (name date and year)

Affirm: I stay on track every day with my HLA’s.

Take Action: My HLAs for Wednesday, date, year

1. Contact a cover person for my how to book

2. Answer three questions for chapter 6. For example,

– Can I write print or eBook at the same time?

– What’s the best eBook format for my book’s purpose and me?

– How much will it cost to self- publish? (A lot less than you think)

– Add front and back material to sell more copies

Think of the Payoffs.

The trick is to finish these three HLAs or even one before you go to bed that day. If you finish fully, you’ll feel confident and your guilt will disappear.

Two. Write Fast-Forward, Well-Organized, Easy-to-Read Chapters

Do you try to use past research for your chapters? This is not necessary. All you need to do is answer your reader’s concerns and questions.

Your reader wants your to solve his problem or challenge, whether it be to make more money, save more money, create better relationships, connect with their inner self, or to communicate better.

If you don’t answer these in each chapter, your reader will say “ho hum” or “I’m confused, what’s the point of this chapter? They will put your book down and not recommend it to others.

One common mistake writers make with their books:

They don’t complete one chapter with all its parts including the sizzling hook and introduction, the middle with stories or how tos with engaging headlines, and the ending that inspires the writer to keep going to the next chapter.

When you sidetrack, you get off focus, and that’s also a big challenge for book writers. When you focus, you write so much faster, and with a little professional help, get to market so much sooner. Results? More cash flow so you can market and promote properly.

Judy Cullins ©2005 All Rights Reserved.

Judy Cullins, 20-year Book and Internet Marketing Coach works with small business people who want to make a difference in people’s lives, build their credibility and clients, and make a consistent life-long income. Judy is author of 10 eBooks including Write your eBook or Other Short Book Fast, Ten Non-Techie Ways to Market Your Book Online, The Fast and Cheap Way to Explode Your Targeted Web Traffic, and Power Writing for Web Sites That Sell. She offers free help through her 2 monthly ezines, “The BookCoach Says…,” “Business Tip of the Month,” blog Q & A at [http://www.bookcoaching.com/opt-in.shtml] and over 170 free articles.

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Email her at Judy@bookcoaching.com. Phone: 619/466-0622 — Orders: 866/200-9743

Author: Judy Cullins
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
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