Best Seller Authors

Book Marketing, Publishing, Author Resources

Video Opportunity in Los Angeles

Author 101 University is a must attend event for authors who are serious about making it in publishing.

imageI’ve told Rick Frishman that the “101” title is misleading. This has become a networking event that we go back to again and again.

The next one is March 3-6 in LA. I’ll be shooting video segments for my TV show.

Time will be tight, so I’m giving priority to my readers. You do have to be attending Author 101. If not, we’ll have other opportunities announced here in the future.

To get on the schedule, leave a comment below and let me know you’ll be there.

Author 101 is Sold Out

Last I heard, the event is sold out. Publishers, agents, book marketing professionals and authors gathering like this has a tendency to draw a crowd fast.

If you don’t have a ticket, but want to come and be in a video. let me know. I may be able to get a ticket. (leave a comment with your and I’ll email you privately).

Best Seller Author Success Story: Geri Winters

Guest post by Geri Schneider Winters, Wyyzzk, Inc.

Geri-Schneider-Winters_69578[1]Marketing your own book is a necessity, especially when you are published by a "real" publisher. This is a lesson I learned the hard way.

In late 1996, I was asked to teach a class on a specific technique for writing software requirements. The students loved the class, and asked me if there was more information on the topic. At that time, there was not. Someone said, "Will you write a book for us on this topic?"  So I said yes!  I talked to a friend who had published a software book, and when he found out the topic, he got really excited. His publisher (a top publisher of software books) was looking for a book on exactly that topic! My friend introduced me to the publisher, and a book was born.
And so, by a very lucky sequence of events, I was a published author of a best selling book with the top publisher for the industry  There were no other books on that topic for 3 years, and the topic was hot.

I knew nothing. I thought the publisher would take care of everything. So there I was riding the top of a great wave, and I did nothing about it. No marketing, no followup, no promotions, no speaking engagements. No method for finding out who was purchasing my book.

The publisher promoted the book for a while, primarily by sending notices to book sellers and text book salesmen. But over time, they had other, newer titles to promote.  And because I knew nothing, my contract drastically limits my options as to what I can do myself.

Fast forward to 2005, and I had become interested in marketing and promoting my business. Over several years, I learned all kinds of things about how to promote my self as an expert. Warren taught me the things I should do as an author.  And I have been kicking myself these last several years for not doing this earlier.

You see at this point, I am trying to build a market, when 10 years ago, I had one.  I gave up all the advantages of being an author, and it is really hard to bring that back.  People want to know "What have you done for me lately?", not what did I do over 10 years ago. If I contracted with a publisher today, I would retain rights to e-books, books on tape, or at least be able to give away sample chapters.

Once my book is out of print, I can apply to recover the copyright and do anything I want to with it. But the book is still in print and still selling a hundred copies or so a year. So chances are, by the time I get the copyright back, no one will be interested in the topic.

I have also learned that books stay in print far longer than I ever thought. I have to consider 10 years or more of demand for my books, and consider how I will satisfy the demand for the book, as well as follow on products and services.  And that means I have to know who buys the book.

What am I doing today? I wrote another book last fall, and am testing it on a few people in my market.

I have some refinements planned based on feedback, and have some nice quotes from reviewers. When I am happy with the book, I will create a full marketing plan for it, along with plans for follow up products and services. Will I go with a regular publisher? I have not yet decided. I will be looking a lot more carefully at my options, and making sure that any contract I sign gives me the flexibility to promote my new (and future) books. Because now I know the publisher will not do it.
Warren’s advice in this area is priceless. He has taught me – and many, many other people – what to do to avoid the mistakes I made the first time. I hope I have a great topic again, but I am not going to depend on that. I am going to do the right job with marketing and promotions, and use the book to increase my business.

Why Don’t They Care About MY Book?

No doubt you are anxious to share your message with everyone you meet and talk about your baby.  You have an emotional bond with your book, your topic and are excited to share it.

Authors love their books.

Readers aren’t like you. They have motivations and emotional triggers and their own goals. You and you book are not at the top of their lists.

So How Do You Get Their Interest?

In all your book marketing, social media, interviews and interactions with readers, make it about them.

fascinate_coverSally Hogshead, wrote a book explaining how to be fascinating. FASCINATE: Your 7 Triggers to Persuasion and Captivation

I just finished reading Sally’s book and have dozens of questions for her whenever I get a chance to do an interview. She’s an expert on her topic and I imagine could produce more content, talk for hours and fascinate you with what she knows.

However, on Sally’s Blog, there are interviews with other authors that would be on interest to anyone wanting to know more about persuasion and fascination.

Sally marketing is for her readers. Provides information that readers will love and draws you in with an appeal to your emotional needs, not hears.

Your Appeal To Readers Emotions

unmarketingcoverWatch Sally’s video below. It’s a short and simple interview with best selling author Scott Stratton about UnMarketing: Stop Marketing. Start Engaging.

This short interview asks questions that would interest readers of Fascinate, and focuses on a message Scott is sharing.

Scott practices this too. The interview is not “why buy my book” or him. His answers are directed to the subject, from the hear and great advice for any author.

Watch for the information. Watch for the method and think about how you might go beyond selling your book and think about what appeals to your readers emotions.

How to get readers to care about your book.

Three Sure Fire Ways to Attract Readers

No matter what topic you write about, putting it in terms that your readers want to hear will always have more appeal.

These three are strong buying motives. When you talk about your book, write descriptions, advertising copy or get interviewed about your book, keep in mind that potential readers are more interested in the outcome they can get from reading than the contents of your book.

When you speak in terms of a positive outcome for them, you’ll be much more likely to get attention, interest and sales from the conversation. Putting your best foot forward is stating benefits in the way your reader wants to hear.

Make sure you state the benefits in a way that covers one of these three whenever you can

Make Money

salesgraphCan your readers or clients get more money if they follow your advice?  Tell them.

Don’t assume they know this… spell it out.

“reading this blog will give you specific advise to sell more books, and convert readers into buyers”

Be as specific as you can. Tell the story of a successful outcome of a past reader or client.

“One author I worked with used his book to land a million dollar consulting contract”

Most everyone wants more money. If you have a business topic, this is obvious, but you might also show the dollars and cents someone can get from better health or habits, that they get from reading your book.

Save Money

moneybagMaking money is attractive. Saving money can be nearly as powerful.

“Using my promotion strategy, one author cut his publicity budget by 65% while landing on a national best seller list and getting three times as many leads in a month”

Again, be as specific as possible. You can make saving money the focus of your book, like Brandi Funk did with “Cut Your Health Care Cost Now” where she sites examples of people getting massive discounts on hospital bills, and provides resources for any family wanting quality health care at an affordable price.

You can use save money in many ways. Staying fit reduces medical costs. Motivation make you more productive, saving time and money.

Better Life

happyRegardless of how much money someone can make or save, the outcome from reading your book, or busying your services will no doubt help someone have a better life.

This is where every author can add value to their books, products or other services.

Once again, don’t assume that people know this. I’ve talked to hundreds of authors who decide to write a book to share their story, give back to the world, or share an important message. When you live the topic, you know how important it can be.. but most of your readers will be buying your book without that experience. Very seldom that someone will purchase thinking they know as much as  you Smile

Spell it out. Make sure your readers know how reading your book or engaging your business will positively affect their lives.

When they know, they’ll be more apt to buy. It’s as simple as that.

Free Facebook Promotion When Your Share This

altWhile working with authors who have joined our free Facebook page to promote good health, helping people and sharing great books during November, I found some authors are still having trouble with Facebook

That’s because Facebook is NOT a place to sell book directly.. it’s a HUGE RESOUCE for building a network that will help you sell more books than you ever thought possible.

The key to Facebook, social media, and ALL future book marketing and promotion: Today RELATIONSHIPS are more important than transactions.

Think about this.. you go into a bookstore and see a bargain bin. Do you expect to find the best ideas and help there?  NO. Those are the losers. The books that aren’t worth full price.

While some of the old rules of retailing apply to books and information products (i.e., having a sale).. for the most part, the more direct selling an author does, the lower the value of his expertise.

What you want is readers BEGGING FOR HELP and ANXIOUS TO ENGAGE. Social media is perfect for this.. and Facebook is the hands down leader.

So what do you do?

You stop saying “come buy my book” and start building relationships.. it’s as simple as that.

Here’s the action plan:

Start by finding like minded authors. I’ve talked to thousands for non-fiction expert authors over the past decade. Nearly every author I meet understands that their book is like a business card… just the start of relationship.

Finding authors in your niche, or related topics is easy today. Many of them already have a Facebook Page.

For an example.. I’ll use Brandi Funk’s “Cut Your Health Care Costs Now”

You’ll want to join us on this one.. It’s current, it’s gaining momentum fast, and (BIG HINT) It’s the one Warren is working on right now, so you know you’ll get more promotional oomph immediately Smile

Go to Our FACEBOOK PAGE and LIKE the page

Make Sure You Use the Facebook LIKE Button

The button below is very important to our networking. It’s active and link to the page we’re talking about. If you see a thumbs up and the word “Like” then you need to click it to “like” the page (used to be called “be a fan”)

If you see an unlike link, you know you have already “liked”

When you “like” using this system, you aren’t really making much of a commitment.. just networking and letting others know you are interested.

I suggest you LIKE the page of any author you know or want to network with. If there ever is a reason to disconnect, you simply click again (the owner of the page does not get notice)

No big deal how many pages you like/unlike with this.. VERY
important to use this when you network on Facebook

Now you are ready to cross promote with our network.

Our partners are posting on blogs, their Facebook pages, their newsletters, Twitter and more about others in the promotion. These tell people about Brandi’s book, and the idea of getting healthy information out this month. So here’s what you do:

  1. Post on your blog that you are one of the authors supporting this promotion. You’ll want to mention Brandi’s book and link to the Brandi’s Facebook page.
    It can be a review of the book, a description of the promotion, or short narrative of why you are joining us to promote good health and healthy helpful authors. Anything BUT an ad for your book (we’ll get to that)
  2. Tell Facebook and Twitter. Tell your readers, Tell your network.. Tell the world.
  3. We will do the same. The traffic you get will be to that post.. and the world will see you are a giver
  4. More people come to this page, some buy the featured book and some go back to your gift announcement.

This  publicity is permanent because the links on the web will be left up, indexed by search engines, and found by readers again and again.

Brandi will continue to post health tips here and network with the partners in the program. Soon there will be thousands of LIKEs (fans of the page) and high authority link juice (that’s SEO talk for “Google will like you more”)

When you start promoting like this… Shining the light on others besides yourself, you’ll find plenty of other pages and others to help out. They will be happy to tweet and talk about you AFTER you have done it for them. Simply LIKE their page, comment on their blog, share a link, blog about them or whatever else you can think of to promote their good work (for free and in just a few minutes of your time) and they will LOVE YOU.

Remember. You can get anything you want out of life if you help enough other people get what they want. While it’s normal for you to include your web site with your signature, mention your book or blog in a post, or share a resource that will lead to making you money.. more and more, people are attracted to those who HOLD OFF selling and help others first.

As all of your partners work to build the network. You can create your own Facebook page, cross promote new products, all that marketing stuff… but READERS want to see conversation. Makes sure you start with conversation!

Build the network and you will build your own brand. The next step is ON FACEBOOK