Every part of your book can be a sales tool. When you include the below tips, you will have a roadmap to follow to keep your writing organized and compelling, and you'll sell more books than you ever dreamed of!
1. Write for your one preferred audience. Not everyone wants your book. Find out what audience wants/needs your book? What problems does your book solve for them? Create an audience profile and keep your audience's picture in front of you as you write. Ask yourself, is my topic narrow enough? The Chicken Soup For The Teenager, For The Prisoner, and other specific groups sold far more copies than the original Chicken
Soup.
2. Write a sizzling book title and front cover. You have 4-10 seconds to hook your potential buyer. The cover itself sells more books than any other part. Bookstore buyers buy mainly by cover designs. Your title must compel your audience to buy. If you want an agent or publisher your title and subtitle are vital.
3. Write a thirty-second "tell and sell." You only have a few seconds to impress the media, the agent, the bookseller, and the individual buyer. Include your title, a few benefits, and the audience. Include a few sound bites that grab attention. You may also want to compare your book to a successful one. "Passion at Any Age" is the "Artist's Way" for seniors.
4. Write your back cover before you write your book. This is the second most important sales tool your book has to offer. Here you put compelling ad copy, benefits, testimonials, and a small blurb about you, the author. If your potential buyer likes it, they will buy on the spot. If they want more information, they will look inside at the introduction and table of contents.
If you write an electronic book (eBook) you can apply this information to your Web site sales letter.
5. Write your book introduction. Include the problem your audience has, why you wrote the book, and its purpose. In a few paragraphs include more specific benefits, and how you will present it (format). Keep it under a page.
6. Create a table of contents. Each chapter should have a name, preferably a catchy one. If your reader can't understand the chapter title, then annotate it. Add some benefits or a sub title. In Passion at Any Age, the author put the word "passion" in each title. Which attracts you more? "Open Your Mind?" or "Attracting Passion?"
7. Reach out to opinion molders. After an initial contact of asking for feedback, resend them the same chapter and the table of contents of your book. Ask for a testimonial then. These influential contacts' testimonials will make your back cover an important sales tool.
Designing every part of your book to be a sales tool and a beacon to writing a focused, compelling, understandable, and enjoyable book is a must, before you write a single word.
Judy Cullins, 20-year book and Internet Marketing Coach, Author of 10 eBooks including "Write your eBook Fast," and "How to Market your Business on the Internet," she offers free help through her 2 monthly ezines, The Book Coach Says...and Business Tip of the Month at http://www.bookcoaching.com/opt-in.shtml and over 140 free articles. Email her at http://www.bookcoaching.com/opt-in.shtml
There is no doubt that a staff writer enjoys advantages... Read More
11 Secrets from an Experienced InterviewerOne of the unwritten rules... Read More
Creating incredible characters can be easy if you know of... Read More
If you haven't realized the success you wanted last year,... Read More
Sometime one must coax the words out.Each day is a... Read More
My article this issue is an excerpt from a book... Read More
What do people expect when they join a writing group?The... Read More
How to Come Up with Fresh Story Ideas When Your... Read More
Short Story Writing Tips:Your title is your selling tool. It's... Read More
Weather posting a page to your Website, writing a letter... Read More
Today Norm Goldman, Editor of sketchandtravel and bookpleasures is honored... Read More
IntroductionSince our early days of elementary education we have been... Read More
Style manuals are all well and good, and in fact,... Read More
All sales begin with some form of advertising whether it's... Read More
No user manual? Surely you jest!It may seem comical, but... Read More
The following rules are essential if you want people to... Read More
As one of those fabulous Baby Boomers, you now own... Read More
Riding on the fumes of potential, you take pen to... Read More
Every writer expends a great deal of creative energy developing... Read More
What is a prologue? When should you use one? Should... Read More
Proofreading worksheets are a great tool to help individuals open... Read More
Creative Writing Tips ?Whichever theme you choose, all the elements,... Read More
The works you've written are numerous, ranging from short stories... Read More
In the business of freelance writing, it's not enough to... Read More
Reading through a writer's notebook or journal is like discovering... Read More
Mixing and mingling with industry professionals is an opportunity that... Read More
Here's everything I know about improving your writing, publishing it... Read More
Beyond three and four act story structure, lies the Hero's... Read More
When I first started tracking the information preferences of people... Read More
Virgil, the great Roman poet, wrote "Practice and thought might... Read More
Have you ever written a letter to a friend? Ever... Read More
So, you want to freelance as an editor, writer, copy... Read More
It's a good idea to use TextPad because all opt-in... Read More
~TYPES~You Want Us to Write What? Understanding the Task AssignedWhich... Read More
Writer's Block can strike like a King Cobra, paralyzing every... Read More
A UK based freelance proofreader should be able to provide... Read More
Compiling a list of the history's ten best writers is... Read More
The principle for writing good screenplays begins with good idea... Read More
You know you've got writing talent. Others enjoy your work... Read More
1. No one else will do it for you.2. No... Read More
Creative Writing Tips ?I have said above that if a... Read More
Everybody knows writing a story is not easy. Like the... Read More
If you want to be a writer, then you must... Read More
There is no specific formula for children's fiction. There are,... Read More
[When I was a nineteen-year-old high school student and budding... Read More
1. Remember publication is a business; writing is an art.... Read More
What Makes a Great Headline?Headlines are far more important than... Read More
The dash--that curious mark of punctuation people use in their... Read More
An island in the Mediterranean. A beach in Africa. The... Read More
For those looking at the jobs listings for writers, they... Read More
Writing |