By: Helen Hecker

source: http://www.articlesisland.com/writing-and-speaking/book-marketing/book-publishers-best-marketing-tips.html
Your book selling, book marketing, and book promotion planning should begin before the manuscript is completed. Assuming you’re a self publisher or book publisher and you’ve already published your book, you need to immediately implement a strong, no-holds barred, book marketing and promotion strategy to sell your books fast. You can have the best book in the world, but if no one knows about it, no one will buy it; publicity, promotion, marketing and a focus on selling more books should now be a big part of your daily life.

Don’t underestimate the value of a good press release for making book sales. When picked up by wire services, a press release can easily end up generating hundreds of mentions for your book. Make sure your press release spells out the ‘who, what, where, when, and why.’

Send out at least 10 press releases to the print and broadcast media in your area every month. Send out the same press release to the editor of your local daily newspaper every week until you are called for an interview or are written up. Make sure you have at least one good press release, written in AP style, which you can send out for the lifetime of your book.

Press releases can generate thousands of dollars in sales when picked up by national trade or print media. Using press releases can be a very effective marketing tool if used properly.

Your sales letter or flier should include an eye-grabbing headline, the benefits to the buyer, the book features, book sales information and testimonials. Create an online contest and list it in online contest directories to drive traffic to your website. Find a non-exclusive distributor with a good reputation to carry your book for the book store trade, as well as for other retailers.

Get as many testimonials about your book, as possible, from experts in the field relating to your title, not customers; use on your fliers and back of books. Make sure to promote and market your book each and every day, both online and offline. Market your book to your number one market first, and then go after the secondary markets.

Every day it’s important to focus on a variety of marketing approaches. Submit articles to online article directories that focus on your book’s topic to drive customers to your website. Print and online publications provide longevity to your marketing campaign in terms of having something tangible for people to reference ongoing.

When you get a nice write up or feature about you and/or your book, have it laminated and set it up on an easel at trade shows. Build a web site that provides another avenue for ordering, a virtual online press kit and link exchanges with sites that relate to your topic. Women buy more books then men; see how you can fit your book into the women’s market.

If your book fits a specialty market, find a store that fits the genre and offer to leave books on consignment; many publishers have sold thousands of books this way. Remember to make sure your book is listed in Books-in-Print; don’t assume it’s already listed.

It’s important to publish a website that focuses on your title; you’ll be able to refer editors and customers and all interested parties to your book information with the click of a mouse. Offer to trade writing a monthly column in a trade publication in your books’ genre, in trade for display ads on the same page.

Now promote, promote, and promote your book some more! Don’t delay another day if you’ve fallen by the wayside; make sure to focus on promoting, selling and marketing your book each and every day. Use your book promotion and book marketing dollars wisely; go after the free and cheap resources daily.

About The Author– For more information on book marketing tips and selling more books go to http://www.TwinPeaksPress.com founded in 1982, specializing in help for authors, self publishers, ebook and book publishers with tips, advice and resources, including information on media, library and other mailing lists, and press releases – online, wire service and offline distribution

Article Source: Articles island – Free article submission and free reprint articles

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Every self-published author will go through the roughs and bumps of publishing their book before reaching the pedestal of success. When working your head and heart out on your manuscript, not everything is beyond your control despite you can never accurately predicting if majority of the market will love or take a spike at your book.

Face it. The intense competition within the market from established authors, famous books, and whatnots will most likely intimidate you. But unless you learn how to face it, you will find it difficult to move forward. Face it. That’s the way to make it through.

Make the most of what you have. If you are confident with your skills then lessen outsourcing the labor for your book’s marketing. For example, in generating publicity, it is advisable that you write your own press release. If you have experience in journalism, why would you hire a publicist? As an author, it is your responsibility to bring out the best of your book.

Embrace resilience. There will be times when things won’t go your way. So, learn to constantly love change and make the best out of it.

Leave little room for cynicism. Being optimistic fuels your drive to achieve bigger dreams. However, looking at both the positive and negative outcomes will help in making decisions. Thinking of the worst result of every situation will prepare you for whatever may happen and allow you to create the necessary contingencies.

Dreams don’t just happen unless you work hard for it. Working hard means having initiative and persistence and doing what makes a lot of sense.

It’s easier to react than to create. Expect having your share of critics and tormentors. No matter how you do things right and work hard, not everybody will love what you write. Keep in mind though that negative reviews and impressions are opinions; it does not necessarily make them facts.

Do not give up if things go wrong. Failure is a necessary step in your growth process. It’s a sign that you are doing something to reach your goal.

Readers, more often than not, are complicated. Writing is an art. Not everyone will have the eye to appreciate what you have written. Failing to successfully penetrate the preference of readers does not necessarily diminish you and your work. Diversity is the beginning of art.

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by: Phoenix

source: http://bookmarketing.phoenix-blogs.com/have-you-written-a-press-release-yet-to-get-your-book-free-publicity/

So, you have finished your book and have published it yourself. Now how are you going to get sales?

Perhaps the books page of one or more of the national papers with their countless numbers of readers will pick it up and run a fantastic review for you. Maybe you could contact the advertising sales department of the newspaper and its competitors and purchase some advertisements. But if it were me I would see if I could not get some free PR. There are a couple of reasons, not only does it cost you less, but an article in the body of the publication will be better received by the readers.

Most magazines and newspapers need to find copy to fill the pages between their paid advertising, this is a commercial fact of life. Now if you have an interesting angle to tell about your book then use your ability to write a press release and send it to the Editor. The general advice I was once given was to find out the name of the Editor and address it to him or her. Telephone the publication’s office if you need to, or look it up on the web or in the directories of publications at most libraries. If you are able to persuade them, with your well crafted press release, to run a piece you will find that free publicity will out rank any bought space that you might take in a publication. Why? Well as marketing students are often taught, readers of magazines and newspapers give more credence to what is written in an article than an advertisement. The public have a healthy distrust of an obviously paid for advertisement, and yet an article in the very same publication is given more weight. Most readers have no idea that the reporters do not write everything themselves and they would probably be shocked to know that it is not unheard of for a press release will be printed almost word for word.

My own experience of once phoning a features editor to try and get an article written on some creative work done by a man that I was helping promote. To begin with I was told that they were not interested. But, after a short phone conversation, the features editor realised that there was an interesting angle in the story. The subject was a man in his early eighties and he was financing his travelling around the world in his retirement by his work. When the piece came out it was, to my amusement, nearly a word for word copy of my own press release about him. The paper, however, had added a photograph taken from his website and the whole thing covered half a page of their publication. Now how much would that have cost from the advertising department?

To make sure that you write in their style you should first take a look at the articles that they have published and then try to write your press release in the same tone used by the journal that you are submitting it to. The aim is to help the hard-pressed sub-editor from having to rewrite it to match their house style and so easily use it. Do it right and it can massively help them decide if your press release gets used at all.

This sort of advice features in the Write Your Way To Freedom manual and 3 Audio CD pack that my company has compiled for the new author/self-publisher. As booksellers of over 19 years experience, who are passionate about books, we have gathered advice from other experts in the book industry and packaged it along with some resources on good English and other helpful information on writing and then selling a book. By doing this we are hoping to encourage authors to bring to the marketplace new books of all genre.

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by: Phoenix

source: http://bookmarketing.phoenix-blogs.com/how-to-market-a-book-through-flyers-

A flyer is an excellent, inexpensive way to promote your book and should definitely go on your book selling list for print marketing. Flyers are better than a business card because they have more detailed information on them to help the potential buyer make a more educated decision.

What makes one flyer so much better than another? Use these top10 tips to make your flyer stand out from the crowd for best book sales.

1. Include a colored picture of your front cover.

People want to see what your book looks like. Four-color graphics are great, but not always necessary. If you do it yourself on your own printer, make your book cover background white with colored lettering, so you don’t go through a $35 ink cartridge too fast.

For professional copies, it costs from 39 to 69 cents per copy.

2. Hook your prospective buyers with the headline in the top line of your flyer just as you do for your back cover.

Here’s a few gems: Why Not Publish Yourself? Read About SEX as it Really Is! Imagine Thousands of Readers Buying your Book Next Month! Quadruple your Income in Four Months! Give your audience a reason to buy–Show those benefits in the headline and in bullet form..

3. Include some juicy excerpts from your book.

Prospective buyers want to see a sample of your writing, especially if it’s fiction. Use an analogy or short story to illustrate your book’s main point if non-fiction. Include a few paragraphs, always keeping them short and easy to read.

4. Include your picture with a brief biography near it.

People want to see what the author looks like. Place it on the right side of the flyer if possible. Don’t put all those initials after your name. They don’t sell. Personalize it in one or two sentences. Such as xxxxx helps you manifest your book dream fast.

5. Add good words from others.

Testimonials and reviews are the most significant way to market your book. The praise doesn’t have to be from famous people. Use a man/woman on the street opinion. One client/author added a testimonial from a convict! These can go on the back of the flyer.

6. Put ordering information on a coupon at the flyer’s bottom.

Include your book’s ISBN number, Web site URL, your email, toll-free number and other information you want your reader to know.

7. Make it easy for your reader to buy.

Offer easy ways to buy: credit cards, checks, downloading directly from your website, or money orders. Include your toll-free 800 number. Many prefer a coupon they can fill out and mail or fax.

8. Give your prospective buyers all the ways to stay in touch with you.

Some people will not buy online. While most small business people are web savvy, it’s a good idea to include your street address, e-mail, local phone and fax number, and 800 number.

9. Carry at least 25 flyers with you in a folder at all times.

Keep them in your car, so that when you pass a place that will post them for you, they are handy. Give one to every person you meet. Remember the “law of seven.” After seven exposures, you have a buyer! Flyers are better than a business card because they have more detailed information on them to help the potential buyer make a more educated decision.

10. Use the backside of the flyer.

You really waste this space if you don’t put it to use. Multiply buying results with more testimonials on the back. Include a longer excerpt from your book there. If you offer programs include a few on the back side–with benefits of course.

11. Bonus tip: Send your no cost flyer out by email.

Keep your flyer created in word in a folder called “flyers.” Then you can send by email as an attachment to any email audience.

Your flyer is a detailed extension of you and your book, and one of the least expensive ways to market your book through print. For person to person or business to business, print enough so your book buying public or distributor can easily purchase your book.

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source: http://www.opentips.com/book-marketing/seven-ways-to-select-a-book-topic-that-sells

Since a book title is the number one “Essential Hot-Selling Point” for your book, it’s a good idea to choose one that sells well.

1.Write what you are passionate about. Write about a topic that will still interest you in two years. Your book is an extension of you, your talks, and your profession. If you don’t love your topic, you won’t be successful. One common mistake authors make is to put attention on writing another book before there first one has been promoted.

2. Write down five topics that stir your passion. Ask your inner author which one should you pay attention to first. After choosing, gather and organize everything you already know and want to know about that topic. If you need more knowledge on a topic, research it. Read other authors’ books in your field, check out related Web sites, and subscribe to newsletters. You become the expert as you write.

3. Write a book your audience needs or wants. People want their problems solved. Among fourteen other books, three on memory and a speed-reading manual I wrote 15 years ago have sold over 155,000 copies, and still sell today. Business books sell well. People need writing, reading, speaking, computing, communication, math, sales, marketing and Internet skills. Nonfiction self-help or how to titles sell best. When your nonfiction books sells well, you can finance your novel.

4. Research your target market. Who is your preferred audience? Who will read and buy your book? Who will pay the $15-$35 price tag? How many possible buyers are there? How does your book stack up to your competition? What is your unique selling proposition? What benefits does your book bring its readers? How many in your audience? The targeted book Chicken Soup for the Teenage Soul sold three million copies more in one year than the original Chicken Soup sold in three years. That tells you that a book with an angle is a good idea.

5. Compare your book with other reputable, good sellers in your field. What way is your book like theirs? What makes your book unique from others? How is your book better? If your book is the only one of its kind, it could be more difficult to sell because mainstream buyers don’t know about it. Check out what category your book fits in by visiting your local bookstore. Ask the bookseller to help you. Turn to the back covers–look at the upper left side to see the two or three categories usually listed there. Which ones does your book fit under? Let your book develop a new angle on the problem to be solved. A book on breast-feeding sold far more copies when the author aimed it at working mothers.

6. Survey your market. While some of us get our title instantly and know that it is the right one, many of us need help. Brainstorm with, and ask for feedback from, friends and associates. Let them vote on the best of ten titles and subtitles, chapter titles, back cover information. While some get their title instantly and know it’s the right one, many of us need help. Knowing that your book title is the top “Essential Hot Selling Point” makes time spent on it worth it. When you use the synergy of more brain power, you receive so many more ideas. Don’t be attached to your choices. Feedback helps build a better book.

7. Create a winning vision for your book. Know that your book will be published. You can self-publish if you are not famous. Before you finish the book, specifically name the outcomes you will see, hear and feel. Place this winning vision in color on a card. Put it near your workstation. (Use today’s date including the year) Now that my book (title and subtitle) is finished and is a huge seller. For example:

I see (smiling people at my talks buying it) or (hundreds of orders from my Web site)

I hear (applause from multiple audiences affirming it)

I feel (exhilarated, confident and pleased that it’s such a hit)

Give attention to your book title. When it’s good, it can sell thousands more copies than a mediocre one.

Source: Seven Ways to Select a Book Topic That Sells.

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By: Earma Brown

source: http://www.writeandpublishyourbook.com/marketing/book-promotion/7-simple-ways-to-promote-your-book-with-your-passion-of-writing-/

Have you been looking for ways to promote your book with what you love? If you love writing, there are great ways to use your gift. I have listed a few for you. Start with a couple and incorporate into your marketing system using your passion. Here are some quick tips to get you started promoting using your gift. Let the world know about your book with writing.

1. Publish an ezine.

Many think ezines are an old hat because the market is so saturated them. If you use your original unique content, you’ll find there are still lot’s of people still interested in signing up for your newsletter. There are many ways to develop your unique ezine.

2. Each year, combine the year’s worth of ezines into an e-book.

Give the ebook away as a free incentive for your book or services. Additionally, each quarter take the best of your articles and place them in print newsletter to use as part of your marketing materials. Send them to your list of friends, family, colleagues and of course potential client list.

3. Put ezine articles on your website.

Be sure to include on each page permission paragraph allowing your articles to use by others. Then include a link to your auto responder email address.

4. Submit articles to article banks on the web.

Click here for starter list of links to article banks that I use or have used. http://www.articlespeedway.com This is a quick way to use viral marketing and create more exposure for your website and business.

5. Develop a power packed signature box.

Doing this will make sure you have a compelling ad traveling with each article or tips sheet you write and submit. If you need help adding power to your signature box visit resource web site http://www.writetowin.org for free article “How to Make Your Signature Box Sing & Sell!”

6. Put your articles on auto responder.

Make it easy for your prospects to request and get more information from you. You could even gather several of your similar-themed (5-7) articles and easily create an e-course. Power Marketing Tip: Setting up this feature in your marketing machine will make sure you don’t lose any opportunities to build your list.

7. Send best articles to your local newspaper.

Include your copyright and bio or signature box. If you are feeling a bit intimidated by big city newspaper, start local. Your suburban paper or regional papers for rural areas may be most open to new writers

Are you ready to get started yet? Implement these tips and use your passion of writing to promote your book. Go ahead. You’ll see your passion is contagious. You will gain more exposure, more subscribers and more business sales than you ever dreamed, all while doing what you love.

About The Author

From Earma Brown 14 yr author and the Book Writing Coach at http://www.writetowin.org

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By: Steven E

source: http://www.avidarticles.com/Article/Improve-the-Editing-of-Your-Own-Writing/4427

Steven E enables authors to gain instant credibility with his marketing appeal. Steven E gives authors the ability to market to an audience they may not be able to reach on their own. Steven E is looking for all different types of authors right now.

Becoming a best seller is now in reach with Steven E. Authors need not look any further than here to begin the process of becoming a best seller. Steven E wants to help propel your name as an author and to make your name known.

This article is based on the assumption that you are using a word processing program of some kind in a Windows environment. If you are not using a word processor, the principles will still apply, but they must be implemented manually.

Writing and editing are two totally different tasks. Writing is a creative process, whether the work is fiction or non-fiction. Editing is a critical process. If writers attempt to edit as they write, their creative ability is inhibited. Because each task demands a very specific focus each must be handled separately. Editing should not start until the writing task is completed.

When editing your own work, your eye and mind tend to either fill in, or correct, many errors and, as a result, they are left uncorrected in the manuscript. In order to avoid this, it helps to break any patterns used in creating the original work. If at all possible, the work to be edited should be allowed to “cool off” in a file or desk drawer for a while. The purpose of this is to break the connection between the work and the writers’ remembrance of the exact words and phrasing used. An additional technique used for breaking this connection is to reformat the work. This can be done by changing the margins, font face and font size, line spacing, etc. This should be an easy task for any word processor.

When saving your work as you edit, the product of each editing session should be saved with a different name. If your original work was called “manuscript.doc,” your first save should be called “manuscript1.doc.” This means you will always be able to go back and check your original page setup.

If the task of editing is broken down into four (4) steps it becomes less of an onerous task and the result is a much more thorough job.

Step 1:

Run your spell checker without the grammar checker. This seems like the most obvious step however the spell checker can only do part of the job. It will check every word against an internal dictionary and highlight or underline in red, those words that it doesn’t find in its dictionary. That means that if you spelled the word “too” and meant to use the world “to” your spell checker will accept either because they are both correct as far as it is concerned.

Spell checkers are normally set to NOT CHECK capitalized words or names, or words with numbers. Ignore these names on your first pass and just correct any misspelled words brought up by the spell checker.

On a second pass with the spell checker, not only verify the spelling of the proper nouns, but also make a note of the correct spelling on a separate piece of paper or in another program. The easiest way to do this is to boot up a text program and multi-task – switching between your manuscript and the text program. This will enable you to quickly verify the spelling of a proper noun throughout your work.

Step 2:

Run the grammar checker. Almost every word processing program has the ability to check grammar and will allow the user to establish both the type of work to be checked along with the specific grammar rules that are to be used during the check. You can set these parameters to fit your need, but remember that your writing style is most important. Don’t let the grammar-check program dictate what your style should be. As you go through your manuscript, make those changes, which are obvious problems, such as punctuation, run-on sentences, subject and verb agreement, etc. Don’t change your writing style to fit the grammar-checker.

Step 3:

If your manuscript includes dialog, it should be checked for problems with syntax and general usage. The best way to do this is to have someone else read the dialog, out loud, with no voice inflection. Your ear will uncover problems with dialog better than your eye. If you don’t have someone else to work with, you will do almost as well by reading the dialog out loud and recording it on some kind of recording device. When you play the dialog back, you will discover problems that your eyes overlooked.

In reviewing writing where there is no dialog, check each paragraph for focus. Is it lean and direct, or are there words that can be removed that will provide a clearer structure? Since this type of problem involves a broader discourse on writing techniques, we can only refer you to the vast number of books on writing that are available for almost every writing project.

Step 4:

Check the overall appearance of your work for uniformity. Have you used the same font face and point size throughout? Is the first line of each paragraph indented the same number of spaces? Is your line spacing consistent? Are your margins consistent? On of the beauties of a good word processor is that once you establish the rules for “page setup” and a “normal” paragraph, and use them throughout your work, you can change the appearance of your entire manuscript by simply changing the settings of either or both rules. This can be extremely helpful if you are submitting the manuscript to several organizations, each of which has different formatting requirements.

Conclusion.

If you follow the 4 steps listed above, editing your own writing will be much less difficult and the result will be greatly improved.

Around the world Steven E is known as a highly successful publisher, entrepreneur, speaker, coach, mentor, and best-selling author. The Team Publishers program, that he helped to develop, is the publisher of the Wake UpLive the Life You Love best-selling book series with over 12 million stories in print. Steven E is also featured in the movie Pass it On!

Article Source: http://www.avidarticles.com

Around the world Steven E is known as a highly successful publisher, entrepreneur, speaker, coach, mentor, and best-selling author. The Team Publishers program, that he helped to develop, is the publisher of the Wake UpLive the Life You Love best-selling book series with over 12 million stories in print. Steven E is also featured in the movie Pass it On! Steven E

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By: Michael Bresciani
source: http://www.10000articles.com/article/2626–8-Ways-to-Find-Good-Reviewers-for-Your-New-Book–writing-and-speaking-book-marketing.html

Getting reviews online is far easier than you may think. But beware; there are a few serious pitfalls that you should be aware of.

Review Your Reviewer: You will be sorry if you do not take the time to get a pretty good picture of your reviewer. Use e-mail, snail mail or anything else you’ve got to pop a few questions to your reviewer. If the review is on radio or TV place a few phone calls in advance. Why? You must get a fix on your reviewer’s position and general inclination. If your writing is in religion, check the doctrinal position of the reviewer. A Pentecostal book is bound to come up short in a conservative catholic review. If your book is written with a conservative political bent, it will not do well under the scrutiny of a liberal democrat. You must check out every aspect of the reviewer’s mindset that you can by any means you can. If you disregard this advice you will suffer for it.

Review the Reviewers Reviews: Read carefully everything you can find that your reviewer has previously written. They can be aggressive without being hyper critical or belligerent. Some reviewers have a pompous attitude. Usually they are not writers themselves. If you find some that are writers they will be far easier to work with because they know all the problems and pitfalls in this profession. A reviewer has opportunity to rub elbows with some people that the rest of us will only know in name only. This does tend to give them an exploded sense of their own importance. How will you know if this is the case with your reviewer? Simple, read their stuff. An attitude is an easy thing to spot. Don’t get the idea that your book is so good that no one could possibly find anything bad to say about it. Cranky people are usually very consistent, don’t take a chance.

Avoid the Reviewer who is Too Personal: When reading a reviewers work see if they are comparing what they are critiquing with other writing that contrasts the book under review. Also do they find similarities to the book under discussion and other books perhaps in the same genre? If every reflection they make comes from their own position, emotion or mindset you should be very careful about submitting your work to them. Remember you spent weeks, months or years putting together your book; they may spend only a few hours at the most perusing your labors. Don’t let someone who is having a bad hair day remove your first chance to get a little press for the great American novel.

Grammar and Spelling Snafus: It goes without saying that all grammar and spelling issues should be covered before the publication of your book. It also goes without saying that no matter how hard you try, they are not. If you self publish or use a (POD) print on demand publisher there is a greater chance of these errors breaking through un-noticed. The galley proofs offered by these publishers may be very hard to negotiate and it is usually the author doing every bit of the work. Most authors getting published for the first time are duly excited and such mistakes are prone to make it across the bar. Remember that the best authors in the world will have spelling and grammar problems at times. Even in the major publishing houses where a mile long group of proof readers have taken up to a year to finish a book, mistakes are made. Here is the bottom line when it comes to a reviewer noticing and dancing with your mistakes in a review. It stinks. First it is the sign of a very unskillful reviewer, especially when it comes to first time authors with POD books. It is almost understood that first tries will have a few more mistakes than the veterans do and for a reviewer to make a big deal of those problems is hitting below the belt by any standards. Don’t even approach such reviewers if you see they make a practice of this. If they feel a need to say that a book is a self published work they are miserably out of touch. This is the day of the POD and thousands of books are coming through this conduit that can stand beside any of the big boys from the major houses.

Don’t Forget Online Newspapers: Online newspapers usually follow the same editorial guidelines of the printed paper. They are far more forgiving than online reviewers. These are the people who make corrections daily of things misquoted, misspelled and missed completely. They deal with writing and John Q Public everyday and that daunting task makes them more understanding of fellow journalists. Follow all the same rules for approaching web review sites and above all get to know all you can about your critic before you bundle up a dozen review copies and slide them off the runway to the papers.

Look for the Honest but Skillful Reviewer: An honest reviewer won’t hide the negatives and failings of your book but they will skillfully blend them into a larger picture without burning down the city. Such people are artist experienced in balancing of literary achievement and fledgling endeavor. How do you find such people? Once again review the reviewer’s reviews!

Let The Public Be Your Reviewer: Amazon has a program that allows some of the pages of your book to be seen as a means of drawing the reader into your material. You will receive responses from this, that can be perused, archived and used on your website, your publicity efforts, and your letters and anywhere you choose. Google also has a wonderful program called, Google Print. They put up the cover of your book, a bit of an author bio and not more than twenty percent of the content of your book to be seen by anyone worldwide. Links can point directly back to your site or any other place where the book may be purchased. You will receive various responses that can be archived for press releases, short web reviews, blogs or whatever.

Beware Of Blogs: For a new author to submit the contents of their new release to a blog in whole or in part is like running the gauntlet. Blogs are all too much of a free for all. Every Tom, Dick and Harry has got an opinion. They are certainly entitled to their opinion but be sure of one thing, an opinion does not a review make. The chance of getting a fair review on a blog is in general about zero. What you will have is a lot of people passing around a lot of second hand information. You may have someone praising your stuff and in the next minute calling you something that is several notches hotter than PG-13. Till you have a better rep as an author, do not expose you’re writing to the free for all.

Rev Bresciani has written many articles over the past thirty years in such periodicals as Guideposts and Catholic Digest. He is the author of two books available on Amazon.com, Alibris, Barnes and Noble and many other places. Rev Bresciani wrote Hook Line and Sinker or what has Your Church Been Teaching You, publisher, PublishAmerica of Baltimore MD. He also wrote a book published by Xulon Press entitled An American Prophet and His Message, Questions and Answers on the Second Coming of Christ. Rev Bresciani’s website is http://americanprophet.org

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By Sue Collier

source: http://www.selfpublishingresources.com/marketing-your-book-before-it%E2%80%99s-published%E2%80%949-tips-for-success/

One of the biggest mistakes I see authors make is waiting until after they have books in hand to start promoting them. Initial sales are often disappointing, and authors end up discouraged. A book marketing plan should be in hand well before the book’s publication date, and there are many steps authors can take to help ensure their books success.

1. Have a website. This might seem like a no-brainer. It’s worth mentioning, though, since I still do get approached by potential authors who seek help self-publishing their book, only to find they have no website. Or authors might have a website but no information on their book—even after it’s been published.

2. Make your website “sticky.” Not only do you want to have a reason for visitors to stick around—and come back—but you want to have a way to capture their email address so you can stay in touch. Offer a free report in return for their email address; then stay in front of them with a regular ezine that provides valuable content and shares your expertise.

3. Start a blog—and update it regularly. I know, I know. Blogging takes time, which is at a premium for most people, and it’s tough to commit to two or three entries per week. But it gives you the opportunity to share your expertise with potential book buyers. Plus search engines love the fresh content, and it will help in your web rankings. You can also share the links on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, or other social media sites (more on that later).

Incidentally, make sure your blog is parked at your website and doesn’t have “WordPress” or “Blogspot” in the address. You’ll miss out on valuable search engine optimization if you don’t have your own unique URL.

4. Comment on other relevant, high-traffic blogs. Not only does this give you another opportunity to showcase your expertise, but it’s a great way to get to know people. When you leave good, informative comments in other blogs (not simply “Great post”), you can increase traffic to your own blog. People who read your comments may want to read more of what you have to say and find themselves clicking over to your own blog.

5. Write articles. Informational and how-to articles should be submitted to high-traffic article sites. They will attract visitors back to your website, where you can offer a signup for a free ebook or ezine to share more information.

6. Sign up for Facebook. With more than 300 million users—and growing daily—can you afford not to be there? Because your profile page is all about you—people don’t want to “friend” a book or a business; they want to connect with a person—it’s a nice way to bond with people on a bit more of a personal level and build relationships. Avoid hard selling here.

Join relevant Facebook groups. You can find like-minded people by searching for groups in particular subject areas. This is another great way for you to communicate with others, provide valuable information, and exhibit your expertise.

7. Create a Facebook fan page for your book. Because your profile page is all about you, you’ll want to create a Facebook fan page for your book. Here you can promote your book by adding useful tips and linking to your site.

8. Complete your LinkedIn profile page. If you are a professional, you probably are already on LinkedIn. (If you’re not there, it’s easy to sign up.) Make sure your profile is 100 percent complete. And make sure your profile is public because it allows search engines to find you.

Join relevant LinkedIn groups. These groups are similar to those on Facebook; they also have the added benefit of letting you communicate directly with other members, even if they are not part of your network.

9. Join Twitter. This is the fastest-growing social networking site. A microblog that limits “tweets” to 140 characters, this busy community allows you to connect directly with people better than Facebook or LinkedIn. It offers another opportunity for you to share valuable content and your expertise. When you post a new blog entry, for instance, you can tweet it here—driving traffic to your website or blog. You can “follow” industry experts to keep abreast of the latest news.
You are probably thinking this all sounds like a lot of work. Well, it is. But you can publish the best book in the world—but if people don’t know about it, no one will buy it. These online techniques are simple, free (unless you hire a consultant), and effective. And necessary if you intend to successfully sell books.

About The Author

Sue Collier

As a writing coach and publishing consultant, I have worked with hundreds of authors, helping them write, edit, and publish hundreds of books. My book The Complete Guide to Self-Publishing is slated for publication by Writer’s Digest in March 2010. I currently own Self-Publishing Resources; we provide book writing, book packaging, and book marketing services for self-publishers and small presses.

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by: Phyllis Zimbler Miller
source: http://www.millermosaicllc.com/persuasive-selling/

If we’re book authors and we want to sell more books – and who doesn’t – we need to use all the savvy of traditional marketers and Internet marketers to help sell our books.

In my opinion one of the most overlooked book promotion strategies is what I call “persuasive selling.” It’s putting yourself in the potential buyer’s mind.

In other words, instead of saying what you want to say about your book, you say what the potential buyer needs to hear to be motivated to buy your book.

Let’s imagine this scenario:

I’ve written a fantasy novel complete with fairies and elves. And I meet you in the grocery store and tell you I’ve just had a fantasy novel published. You say: “What’s it about?”

And I say: “It’s about a whole invisible village of fairies and elves. They have an over-population problem so the town elder calls them to a meeting and they …”

And you suddenly remember you forgot the sugar four aisles back and you’re out of there.

Now let’s rewind and try this conversation again.

You say: “What’s it about?”

And I say: “A 12-year-old boy suddenly learns he has 48 hours to save his village of fairies and elves, and he must do this even though the evil overlord is gunning for him.”

And you say: “Do you have a card with the book’s website?”

In reviewing these two scenarios, what’s the difference?

In the first one I the author want to tell you all about my story even if you could care less about the town’s problems, etc. In the second one I the author tell you what will most likely interest you – a David-and-Goliath story of good against evil.

If you want to motivate people in person or on your website to buy your book, practice drawing them into your book’s story with a very short and pointed hook – something that will interest them.

Of course, the same recommendation goes for a nonfiction book. You don’t want to start with describing how many people you interviewed to find the secret to living longer. You want to simply state that the book offers seven secrets to living longer – secrets that are easy to do if you only know how. And your book reveals how.

With a little practice you should be able to use persuasive selling to help sell more of your books. – P.Z.M.
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Yes! You can use this article in your ezine, blog or website as long as you use the article in full and include the following resource box:

Phyllis Zimbler Miller is a National Internet Business Examiner at http://budurl.com/internetbusiness as well as a book author, and her company http://www.MillerMosaicLLC.com provides internet marketing information with easy-to-implement solutions to promote your brand, book or business.

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