Publishingathome

Using "Tipping Point" Concepts To Market Your Book

Sophfronia Scott

Ever wonder how trends get started? As much as we'd like to think that all trends are Madison Avenue creations propagated by the media, many times a movement is sparked by the action of a few. Then word of mouth makes it spread. Author Malcolm Gladwell examines this phenomenon in his 2000 book "The Tipping Point". There's a chapter where he describes how this kind of movement by a few groups powered Rebecca Wells's 1996 novel, "Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood", to surprising success. When I read that I sat up and took notice. I realized I could use the same concepts to market my first novel, "All I Need to Get By". You can too! Here's how.

1.) Write Your Book So It's "Sticky"

Don't compromise your artistic integrity, but do ask yourself the hard question: how much will your story appeal to others? When a book is "sticky", it's easy to remember. The story stays with people and they want to talk about it and tell others to read it. "Bridget Jones's Diary" is definitely sticky. So is practically everything that Stephen King ever wrote and all of the Harry Potter books. The topic doesn't have to be upbeat either. Truman Capote's "In Cold Blood" was a sensation when it was published despite its grim subject matter. Since I was writing about a family with a powerful father figure I knew a lot of people would connect and see themselves in the characters. What aspect of your book will draw people in?

2.) Be a Salesman

Yes, be a salesman, but not in the way you might think. I'm not talking about being "in your face" like the stereotype of a used car salesman. As Mr. Gladwell points out in his book, it's the little things that can persuade others. For a writer, that "little thing" is confidence and a strong belief in one's work. I recently spoke to a writer having a hard time feeling confident about her work. She's trying to get up the courage to submit a manuscript to agents and publishers but, as I said to her, "How can someone get behind publishing your book if you can't get behind it yourself?"

People are attracted to a person who stands for something, who believes in what they're doing. If you can be that person, people will want to buy your book. They'll know you have something to say. If you're dealing with low confidence, know that working on improving it is just as important as improving your craft as a writer. After all, no one is going to champion your book the way that you can.

3.) Use Small Groups To Spark Your Big "Epidemic"

In the fertile soil of small groups, word of mouth grows. That's what happened with "Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood". It became a favorite for book groups, especially mother-daughter book groups. Those groups sparked a word of mouth wave that spread like wildfire. As Mr. Gladwell points out, "small, close-knit groups have the power to magnify the epidemic potential of a message or idea". I explored this concept with some success by contacting book groups across the country and offering to visit them if they read my novel. What groups can you reach out to in order to harness the power of those circles? And how can you fan the flame of your message so it will spread?

One Last Note: Why is all this important? Well, if you've gone through all the trouble to write and publish a book, your efforts won't stand up if you don't tell people the book is out there. And the concepts offered by Mr. Gladwell are so simple and organic that you may find the whole marketing pill easier to swallow. So take it--it's good medicine.

© 2005 Sophfronia Scott

About The Author

Sophfronia Scott, "The Book Sistah," is author of the bestselling novel, All I Need to Get By. If you liked today's issue, stay tuned for more because The Book Sistah also offers FREE audio classes, FREE articles, workshops, and other resources to help aspiring authors get published and market their books successfully. http://www.TheBookSistah.com.

How To Get Your Book Reviewed In Magazines

Sophfronia Scott

In one of my past magazine jobs my office was next to that of the book editor. He would get boxes and boxes of books daily. There was a separate room devoted to storing these books, but that still didn't keep them from piling up in his office. Whenever he returned from vacation he practically had to use a bulldozer to get his door open!

You see the problem, right? How do you get your book noticed, let alone reviewed, when it is just one among stacks of books in an editor's office? Here are a few tips to help you map out a winning strategy.

1. Determine which magazines are the best for reaching your target market.

As you plan to market your book, decide first who your ideal reader is. Is it a 35-year-old urban professional man? Is it a stay-at-home mom who lives in the Midwest? Is it female college graduates who also happen to be sports fanatics? Once you decide who you're targeting, ask yourself: What magazines does my ideal reader read? Those will be the magazines you'll focus on. That way, you won't waste time and money pursuing dozens of magazines which, even if they did review your book, wouldn't give you much in terms of gaining readership. With my novel we focused on magazines with large female audiences. Ideally you should be doing this a few months before your book comes out because the goal here is to either write a story for the magazine or get interviewed in the magazine, and have the article appear before or just as your book is published.

2. Find out what the editors need.

When you have chosen the magazines, buy them and read them. Do they have a certain writing style? What kinds of articles appear in the magazine again and again? If you can, write, email or call the features editor and find out what kinds of stories the magazine is looking for. You'll have more success if you can fill the editorial holes the magazine is already working on.

3. Let an editor know what you have to offer.

Start sending query letters to get article assignments. If you have a particular expertise, you can let an editor know that you're available for interviews if they ever need an expert on a particular subject. Often an editor will assign a story to a writer and give them a few possible interviewees to help them get started. I contacted editors at Essence a full year before my book came out to let them know that I was working as a personal and career coach. Within a few weeks I began getting calls from reporters to interview me for working mom stories for Essence.

4. Mention your book or get it mentioned.

When your article gets published, make sure you get the little italicized blurb at the end that says that you are "a writer whose next book, The Best Book in the World, will be published this month by Big Press, Inc." You get the idea. If you are being interviewed for an article, chances are they won't have room to mention your book but you should still tell the reporter about it anyway. You can even ask them to put it in their notes. As the story gets discussed in meetings, someone might say "Did you know she also wrote a book?" This builds awareness.

5. Check in with your contacts, but don't pester them.

Once your book is sent out for review, you can call or email to make sure that the editor got the book, but leave it at that. You've done all you can. I've never met the book editor at Essence, but when I heard that he was aware of my novel I was totally psyched. I kept my fingers crossed after that. You can see the review here. One last note: Some magazines and newspapers don't review self published books. Find out beforehand so you can make your efforts elsewhere if that's necessary.

© 2005 Sophfronia Scott

About The Author

Author and Writing Coach Sophfronia Scott is "The Book Sistah" TM. Get her FREE REPORT, "The 5 Big Mistakes Most Writers Make When Trying to Get Published" and her FREE online writing and publishing tips at http://www.TheBookSistah.com.

10 Ways to Synch Your Book and Website

Earma Brown

Are you an author that wants to sell more books? Sure you are. We all are. I can say that with such confidence because if your message was important enough to be written; it is important enough to be read. Read by as many people as possible I might add.

In the new millennium the web must play an important role in your book's marketing plan. Your website address should be included in as many places online and offline in your marketing materials as possible.

To develop your brand and increase your profits include your website address on all your printed media. Here are ten top ways to make sure your book and website are synched as precisely as your palm pilot and computer are:

1. Create a separate website address for your book.

Follow the lead of the best-selling authors in non-fiction publishing. Jack Canfield and Victor Hansen are not household names but their book series Chicken Soup is easily remembered.

Make your book site a direct response website. The more focused your book's site is the better. It will be easier for your web visitors to locate and since there's nothing to distract them they will buy faster. You can always link your book's site to your concept site, if you have one with all your services, forum and general web community.

Additionally, make it easy to connect your website to your book. When you want to go to the Chicken Soup book series website, guess what you type into your browser's web address box. You guessed it; simply type in Chicken Soup.

This principle is most effective with a concept title but it will work with any. Just make sure the web address is short and easy. Don't try to use your whole title. Keep it simple and use the concept. Another good example is the Rich Dad Poor Dad series used www.richdad.com for their web address.

2. Give Away Sample Chapters.

One of the best ways to promote your book using your website is to give away 1-3 sample chapters or a mini e-course based on your book.

Fear of the unknown is one of the biggest impediments to sales. Even though the internet is growing leaps and bounds, there are still tons of people that are afraid to trust someone online. One of the best ways to get rid of that fear for the visitor is to offer them a free download of your sample chapters.

You can offer the free sample chapters in several formats. The most popular is Adobe PDF. Readers can download a free Acrobat Reader. Don't forget your privacy statement promising not to share or sell your visitor's email. Post your free sample offer in a prominent place and the privacy statement underneath.

3. Emphasize Testimonials.

Immediately below your free sample chapter, put lots of reader and authority testimonials. Hopefully you solicited pre-publication quotes from your readers as you were writing your book. If not, begin to gather testimonials from your readers. Showcase your best testimonials. Prospects want to know someone else has read and liked your book.

4. Focus on Relationship Marketing.

No one likes being sold. People want to know who they are buying from, especially since you are missing the face to face factor. Strive for a relationship with your readers instead of just a sale. Don't be shy allow your personality to show. A client of mine was stressing over whether she should allow her picture to be posted on her website. Finally, she bit the bullet and her visitors rewarded her with increased traffic and sales.

The truth is people like to know there's a person behind the website. Another client post a page of his favorite things on his site similar to what Oprah Winfrey does on her show - all with the purpose of connecting with his audience. While another post her family trips to personalize her site. Be real, be yourself and you'll get more life long readers, customers and friends.

5. Offer Useful Content.

Have you begun writing articles in your field? If not, you should consider it. Writing articles (article marketing) is an easy way of getting free publicity. Publish a useful easy to read article in your field and you gain almost instant credibility. You may be saying I don't have time to write articles in my field.

But wait, before you throw away this method of marketing. Have you considered transforming some of your book excerpts into short articles? It's a simple way of making your book go the extra mile to help promote itself.

Leveraging your profits by synching your book and website can be rewarding and profitable journey. Implement the tips above, synch your book to website and prosper!

About The Author

© Earma Brown, 11 year author, business owner, web developer helps service business owners, professionals and writers who want to write their best book now! Earma mentors other writers and business professionals through her monthly ezine "iScribe" Send any email to iscribe@writetowin.org for free ezine and 7 lesson mini-course "Jumpstart Writing Your Best Book Now!" Or visit her at Write to Win http://www.writetowin.org. P.O. Box 612, Wylie, Texas 75098, 877-846-9908