What is the best way to market a book that is not selling as expected?
I wish to market a book that is not selling as expected in the market upon all the promises by the publishers. The book is one that should be okay for most business readers who wish to avoid scams .I am also about publishing my second book which is a novel and do not wish to make mistakes
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May 17, 2014
Oh, the ultimate question and challenge for writers - unless you are with a major publisher.
Kelechi, I not only published my own a couple of years ago, I am working on an author's book launch as we speak for later this year....
1) Before you spend money on a Best Seller Book program.... book yourself radio spots on shows that discuss your book topic, i.e. go to Blog Talk Radio, or look through RadioGuestList.com and send an email to them requesting a spot on their show... EMAIL me if you want a sample pitch email you can send them.
2) Do the same for having a Blogger Author Interview done - which basically means having an interview done via email (you or they provide the questions) of which the blogger than posts the interview it on their website. Google - 'bloggers who post author interviews' and you will find a bunch.
3) Do the same for Blogger Reviews of your book.... Google "blogger book reviews'
4) Put your book on Amazon Author Central
5) Put your book on Goodreads
6) Give away free chapters (on website, facebook, twitter, etc.)
Google - How to Promote My Book Cheap or Free
You can do a best sellers program, but unfortunately many of those programs have diluted 'bestseller' status, as most now know that people are manipulating Amazon and other things to do so....
Being that your first book is a business one - you could approach corporations, associations, Chambers, schools, etc.. to buy your book in bulk, should it be about a topic for many.....
Lastly - be realistic.... google the 'average number of books an author sells' and I think you will be surprised how low it is. That does NOT mean I am advising you not to do something.... but understand what the purpose of the book is - 1) gain credibility 2) gain fame (NY Best Seller) or to 3) gain revenue.
If your goal is #1 - then be cautious of the amount of money you spend
If it is #2 - then be prepared to spend a GREAT deal of money
If it is #3 - you can find a balance between self-marketing and hiring resources to help you... but realistically, your book should be a pull through to other products and services....
Let me know if you need anything more. And know, fiction and nonfiction require different marketing methods....
May 17, 2014
Hey Kelechi,
With respect, if you could provide us with an idea of what you are currently doing to promote, market and sell the book, it would help to give us a context in which we could provide feedback.
Here's 3 things I go trough with every one of my clients:
1. Where do your customers hang out?
Hang out where your target market hangs out and become an expert (get involved) in that place i.e. Spam forums maybe?
2. How are you standing out from your competition? Are you a credible expert?
3. Do you have a Brand? i.e. the Expert on business scams
I hope this helps!
May 17, 2014
There are SEVERAL things that you can do to sell more books, and mostly without even having to deal with advertisement. I have a new strategy that I literally spend a year studying and obsessing over. It has to do with category, keywords, and where exactly you implement the two. You can get the details here:
http://www.listmyebook.com/calling-all-authors.html
Good luck!
May 19, 2014
Self-publishing platforms like AuthorHouse essentially don't offer marketing or sales support after publication, so it's a shame if they didn't manage those expectations up front.
Even when you get published by an established publishing house with distribution access to all market channels (retail and online), the promotion, marketing and publicizing of the book always remains a collaborative enterprise. If you are comfortable doing so, you should tirelessly and shamelessly self-promote and actively sell your book(s) as an author in every waking moment by all means available to you, especially through online channels and social media. If you are not comfortable doing this, get comfortable or pretend you're are, lest you consign yourself to obscurity through misplaced modesty.
In the case of a book on scams you could purchase ad words that would link to a buy button on Amazon, so that people will see your book when they search about scams - and I would imagine there are a lot of searches about that! Online forums for business leaders, CFOs, financial advisors, Information Technology advisors would also be good areas to target. Offer to run free seminars and speak at conferences and panel discussions.
Make sure that all editions are available through all channels, especially the eBook edition (i.e. not just the Kindle edition on Amazon, even though they have the biggest market share of the eBook market). Consider doing a price promotion with Amazon where your book is available for free worldwide for a limited timeframe (24-48 hours). Although it is counter-intuitive, this won't harm your sales. Every free copy `given away' will generate sales of another 5+ copies. If you are in possession of printed stock, give that away as well, especially if you've paid for the printing yourself. Books, unlike wine and wisdom, do not age well and it's probably already out of date. Put bookmarks in them with the URL of your website (or, if you don't have one, get one fast) with a voucher code for a free eBook.
And don't discount good old-fashioned media as well, like radio and television (and their new incarnations like YouTube). Radio interviews remain one of the most effective ways to spread word-of-mouth and raise consumer awareness, and I can see lots of producers wanting to get you on air as scams are a hot-button issue. If you have a good sense of humour, you can play up the irony of a Nigerian author writing a book about how to avoid being scammed, unless the book itself is a scam. Just kidding.
The important thing, however, with any publicity, is that it must be easy for consumers to find and buy the book if they've been touched by any marketing. Amazon has made this easier in terms of discoverability but don't forget about local booksellers who need to have the stock in stores before the coverage in order to exploit it properly.
Congratulations on having the discipline to start and finish this book (and the next) and best of luck.
May 22, 2014
The real thing is that I am slightly confused on what authorhouse have done so far. Maybe you can give me a better direction of where to start.. - You should know better - Advise please;
http://bookstore.authorhouse.com/Products/SKU-000666344/UNKNOWN-TRANSACTIONS.aspx
http://www.amazon.com/Unknown-Transactions-Avoiding-through-Understanding/dp/1481767712/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1376080502&sr=8-1&keywords=unknown+transactions+avoiding+scams
May 21, 2014
No book is "selling as expected" Selling books is incredibly difficult
It’s easier than ever to publish a book, and more difficult than ever to grab attention. Attention is very scarce. What competes for attention? News articles, new books with film deals and with bigger budgets, a variety of other readings on the go, YouTube videos, video streaming of all kinds, online articles and summaries, some of them now suggested directly by Facebook, and LinkedIn, the new publishing platforms with large audiences.
The first thing to remember is that you are a CONTENT producer. This book is only one form in which your content was produced and delivered. There are other ways to deliver your content for money, and if you want to reach audiences, and want to be paid for your effort, you should consider these other ways to use and repackage your content.
I have worked with clients who have published their book and then learned how to sell their content, not only their book, successfully. If your book is self-published (as an e-book, Kindle, or hard copy on Amazon) I can quickly suggest a few things you can do to sell your content.
Since you do not have a publisher behind you, since you don’t have a marketing machine, you have to make the effort to create these opportunities to build your own tribe and to engage your audience so that you sell.
The ideas I offer below fall into two categories:
A) Market the Book--- These are means to engage and drive customers to your book. For instance, using social media you build buzz and create interest, so that you can sell at your site or the publisher’s site. Don’t expect to use social media to sell, and don’t ask people to buy your book. Persuade them to do so. Organizing in-person and online events to promote and sell your book may result in immediate sales
.
B) Monetize Your Content-- These are ways to make money by repackaging content that you already have, and which you now call a “book.” Once you have created these extra forms of revenue, they can work for you while you sleep. For instance, you can re-package content in the form of a video, or an online course, and in the form of online video events streamed directly from your desktop. Sometimes, these means to derive extra revenue from your book will also drive book sales up.
Good luck with your second book!.
May 16, 2014
I am finishing my book soon and hope not to have the same. I have friends that do well on Amazon with their books. I will be watching this for sure.
May 16, 2014
I purchased a program to make books best sellers. I have not had a chance to look at it. If you want to look at it, let me know.
May 17, 2014
Robert Kyosaki, Napoleon Hill and many other good success coaches say about this issue:
If your book is not selling, often changing the title helps attract more readers. The title must be juicy enough to get people at least pick the book up in the store and browse through it.
'Think and Grow Rich' is a title Napoleon Hill came up with just hours before his publisher were to make his own title to the book because they needed to print it and send it to stores
May 17, 2014
Publishers today basically take an attitude of "We'll attach our name to the book and distribute it through our channels, but you need to guarantee X sales." Which means if YOU don't sell them (speaking, websites, strategic alliances, etc.), you're going to end up with a garage full of unsold books.
I suggest you reach out to radio and television stations, sending them a copy of your book and suggesting they interview you.
May 17, 2014
Your response: Regardless of what the publisher promises, the author will be the marketer. Without knowing who your specific market is--demographic, psychographic, geographic--you will not sell books(http://www.tomblubaugh.net/blog-2/market-segmentation.html). Building a strong solid brand is crucial. It may take publishing three or four books before you will become known. Tom Blubaugh, Literary Strategist LLC |
May 19, 2014
In this internet era i suggest you to publish it online and make it available for free to read it online. Do a little bit of promotion and you could easily get thousands of visitors visiting your website to read the content and then make money from advertisers who will pay you to place advertisements
May 21, 2014
I'm sure your publisher won't let you release the book for free, but if you have audio rights, you could release an episodic audiobook for free, using each episode as a commercial for the book. Or you could make a podcast to discuss the topics covered in the book and use every episode to promote the book itself. Or you could give away a couple chapters and sell the rest.
Don't give away the meat. If it's worth serving, it's worth selling. But there's a lot you can give away at little cost to yourself that will sell the meat. ;)
May 21, 2014
One of the most effective methods of promoting a product is by producing media buzz around the product. One place to start is to make a video promoting the product, in this case a book. The video would need to entice someone to buy it by providing some insight into the logic of the book or by showing a business scenario in which a scam is perpetrated and how to possibly avoid it. Next, post that video to a Facebook Product Page as well as create a small website central to that book. Both sites need to encourage people to purchase the book outright. The website requires a storefront from which the book can be purchased in hard or e-book form. If the book and its concepts are truly revolutionary, the next step is to write PR around the book and get yourself onto the talk-radio/ mid-day news circuit. A little self-generated gossip about the book can go a long way.
May 21, 2014
Pat yourself on the back for your accomplishment. Create a facebook page. Get business cards for each book with motivational notes so people can find it easy on amazon. Great job!
May 21, 2014
As a self-published author that has sold more than 220,000 personal finance books, I can say media exposure is the way to go! Contact me for more. DebtSmart.com
May 22, 2014
Scott, as others have noted they have or will be having books out..... any tips you can provide here would be great!
May 22, 2014
Thanks. I will really appreciate your assistance on moving forward
http://bookstore.authorhouse.com/Products/SKU-000666344/UNKNOWN-TRANSACTIONS.aspx
http://www.amazon.com/Unknown-Transactions-Avoiding-through-Understanding/dp/1481767712/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1376080502&sr=8-1&keywords=unknown+transactions+avoiding+scams
May 21, 2014
Never expect the publisher to be in marketing industry. As a bestselling author what I have done is written press releases (10 a month); asked people to review my book; written 10 articles a month; blogged daily with tips from my book; and done google hangouts about my book; as well as uploaded a ton of google videos and youtube videos about my book all with valuable tips leading to my book.
May 21, 2014
Lot's of good comments. In addition...
Use PR. Write releases using the accepted industry template. Post online, on your site and circulate to appropriate industry channels. Posit yourself as an expert in your field. Write releases on every activity that supports your efforts to market yourself and the book. PR is FREE!
Geoff Ficke
May 21, 2014
First, seek out Evo Terra, listen to everything he says and do 98% of it as if it were the word of the Lord given to you on a mountain top.
After that, be creative and be cheap, and I offer this info I posted where someone was asking how to sell 500,000 copies of his app (just switch 'app' for 'book')…
"3 step process:
1) Make an app that doesn't suck
2) Celebrity endorsement, the bigger the better
3) Do all the normal marketing
Seriously, there is no magic bullet beyond getting the biggest name you can to love you and include your name in every conversation (s)he has.
Beyond that, get on your hustle. Press releases: everywhere. Request interviews on every blog, eZine, podcast, message board, radio show, television show, newspaper, magazine, super market bulletin board and coffee shop poetry reading your target audience gives their time to. Nudge your way into a presentation at every trade show or conference you can find. Streak a soccer match.
If you're eating three meals a day, ever using an app to do something other than schedule an interview, or sitting for more than a minute without making a phone call: stop that crap. Now.
If you care, if you really want to make this work, and you're not backed by millions in ad revenue, you've got a lot of work to do. Where and how you do it depends on what you're selling.
I'm assuming 500k is a target you promised to investors without considering at all how many downloads the average app in your market does. Great job. I'm sure you're a VP somewhere with that kind of blind ego. But now if you're going to save face you need to hit the ground running every day and if you ever find your pace to the next promo idea slowing, hit me @mat_weller and I'll give you the next big idea to save your bacon."
May 22, 2014
Many people go the self-publishing route. Part of that is because the books become available without time limits, as they are in any or all of the various e-book/e-reader formats and can be downloaded, plus the publishing fees are a lot less. And one of the biggest benefits to self-publishing is that the publisher will never change any parts of your book and possibly change the message that you are writing in them, because YOU are the publisher.
But beware; you must be sure that the book is formatted with the correct format and fonts to pass through the vetting process in order to convert to all of the various e-reader types out there. There are a few self-publishing sites out there and a quick google search will find them for you.
May 22, 2014
I work with authors whose publishers don't give them the time of day. We package press kits and drive reviewers and consumers to read your books. We also set up book tours, speaking engagements and any other marketing tools that help boost sales.
May 22, 2014
The idea is to strike while the iron's hot--when you already have people looking at your book for a free promotion, you might be able to turn those into paid sales when the book's price goes up.
Thanks. The book is a nonfiction. - http://bookstore.authorhouse.com/Products/SKU-000666344/UNKNOWN-TRANSACTIONS.aspx - advise i will appreciate