Top Ten Author Questions

Dear Authors,

Throughout the year we get lots of questions from our authors. I thought it might be interesting and helpful to share the top 10 questions we receive and the answers—as I see them.

TOP 10 AUTHOR QUESTIONS FOR 2004

NUMBER 10 Where do you learn about book marketing strategies?

Several sources: Our reps in the field, marketing books, articles and e-zines, tapes and teleseminars, and our authors share their marketing discoveries with us. Some of the best books I have read include: YOU CAN MARKET YOUR BOOK by Carmen Leal, 1001 WAYS TO MARKET YOUR BOOK by John Kremmer, GUERRILLA MARKETING FOR WRITERS by Jay Conrad Levinson, THE SAVVY AUTHOR'S GUIDE TO BOOK PUBLICITY by Lissa Warren, and THE PUBLISHING GAME: BESTSELLER IN 30 DAYS! by Fern Reiss.

In the e-zine category, the ones I read all the time include: Joan Stewart's Publicity Hound (jstewart@publicityhound.com), John Kremmer's Tip of the Week (JohnKremer@BookMarket.com), and Joe Sabah's 3 Money Making Secrets (JSabah@aol.com).

I also receive the PMA (Publisher's Marketing Association) monthly newsletter.

NUMBER 9 How can I get a better response from the media?

The key to having the media respond to you is to build relationships with them. Don't just send your press release. Before you ever call them, do a little research to find out what they are about. That way, when you call them, you will demonstrate that you are serious about publicity. Media people are busy; sometimes you need to be persistent in order to get through
to them. When you do get through, be sure to have your 30 second pitch honed to a fine edge. Don't waste their time. And remember, they are not there to help you promote your book. You are there to help them write an article or produce a show. TIP: Don't try to send gifts to print journalists; they can't accept them (a thank you card is fine). But broadcast people usually love gifts!

NUMBER 8 What are the various places where I can sell my books?

Literally anywhere! I've heard about authors selling their books on street corners or going door-to-door. The short answer is: anywhere someone will listen to your pitch. Book selling venues include the traditional outlets: bookstores, gift shops, catalogs, distributors, rack jobbers, during interviews and booksignings, from your own website or Amazon.com, in meetings where you speak (at the back of the room), and offering it to friends and family.

Why stop there? There are lots of other places where you can sell your book. One of our authors placed books in a restaurant. Another sells books to corporations (they use them as gifts). One of our small distributors sells books at Amway meetings; another has racks in car washes! One of our authors sells books at ladies' retreats. Another sells lots of his books at secular, sales and marketing managers workshops. Yet another author sets up shop just outside a local grocery store with a folding table and chair.

The sky is the limit, literally. What about carrying a copy with you when you fly. You'll never have a more captive audience! Carry your books with you wherever you go. You never know when an opportunity to make a presentation will occur. Want a few far-out ideas? How about putting up a business card or postcard with your book cover and info on a public bulletin board, such as in laundromats and grocery stores? Speaking of bulletin boards, what about online BB's or Chats? (Overt selling is not permitted in most chat rooms. But, there is nothing wrong with mentioning that you are the author of a certain book.)

NUMBER 7 What kind of discounts should I offer?

When you are selling to individuals, you should get full retail, unless they buy in quantity. You might give a 10-20% discount when a person buys 2 or more copies. If it's mail order, you could offer free shipping on multiple copies. There's also 2-fers: buy one at $10.99 or get two for $20.00. If they buy large quantities, by the case or 100's at a time, consider giving a 30-50% discount.

It's different with stores and other retailers. They need a discount to make a profit and stay in business. Retailers (those who sell directly to individual customers) expect 40-50% regardless of the quantity, unless it's on consignment. In that case it's usually 25-30%. Distributors will expect an even bigger discount, usually 55-65%. Rack jobbers get a 70% discount
because they buy books on a non-returnable basis. All other book sales to stores and distributors could be subject to returns of unsold copies.

NUMBER 6 What is the best way to market online?

There are lots of good ways to sell books online: through Amazon and other booksellers, affiliate (referral) programs, and with email. The best way to sell online is when you sell to individuals at full retail. That means having your own website. You can sell from your website with or without a shopping cart, with or without a merchant credit card processing account, with or without an 800#. All you need is a cover image and description of your book, a few good testimonials, and a way for people to get in touch with you: by phone, email, or automatically via an e-commerce site (shopping cart).

If you don't have a website, you can get one at http://www.citymax.com for $20 per month. If you like, they will even set it up for you (a basic site) for only $100. GoDaddy.com also has inexpensive hosting starting at $4.00 per month. You can promote your site through all of the traditional means of advertising and also through "pay-per-click" search engine ads.

These can be as cheap as 5¢ per click for Google Adwords:
https://adwords.google.com/select

...or 10¢ per click for Overture:
http://www.content.overture.com

I've tried these and they do work!

NUMBER 5 How do I get my book into the bookstores?

It's not easy to get shelf space for your book. There are tens of thousands of new book titles published annually, not to mention the Bibles, music, gifts, and apparel that these stores carry. Books comprise about 25% of a Christian bookstore's inventory. Still, it is possible to place your book. The easiest way is to visit your local stores personally and bring your books with you. Talk to the manager or buyer. Explain that you are a local author. Let them know what you will be doing to get people into their store (interviews, articles, etc.). Offer to do a booksigning or reading. This approach can work for secular stores as well as Christian.

Once you get outside your local area, it's a lot harder to place your book. You'll still need to get people into the stores through interviews and booksignings—one store at a time usually. You can help your publisher to get your book into stores by driving traffic to the stores. If someone comes into a store and special orders a book, the store may consider stocking the
book. If you have meetings in a certain area, tell the audience to get additional copies from their local bookstore (after they have bought their initial copies at the meeting from you). If you encourage them to buy your book at a particular store, that will concentrate the effect of people coming into the store, making it more likely that the store will order extra copies for their shelves.

A lot of authors focus on getting their books into stores, when the real opportunity is via speaking engagements. In the grand scheme of things, you'll sell perhaps 10 times as many books through speaking as you will through stores, and at the highest profit margin!

NUMBER 4 How do I stay focused on the most important marketing and promotion activities?

First, let me say that some activity—any activity—is better than no activity. Having said that, your efforts will best be directed by reading and following the advice in the BOOK BUZZ BLOGs that I post. This top 10 list itself will give you an idea of what's important. Remember the big four: 1) speaking, 2) interviews, 3) the internet, and 4) print publicity—in that order.

NUMBER 3 How do I get more speaking engagements?

Since speaking engagements are the number one way for authors to sell their books, it makes sense to learn how to book more of them. But first, you have to really want more of them! It's one thing to know that speaking is a great way to sell your books; it's another thing to take the steps needed to get out there.

Start by making a list of at least 100 different types of events and groups where you might speak. No idea is off limits or too silly—you're just brainstorming. If you don't come up with a list of at least 100 possible speaking venues, either add other people to your brainstorming session or do some research. After you have compiled your list, review it for the top 10 best possibilities. Which 10 are the most doable and useful—in your opinion?

Then, take a notepad and write each of your top 10 venues at the top of its own page. Now, brainstorm until you have at least 10 strategies to make that particular venue happen. List the pros and cons of each of these 10 strategies. When the process is complete, you will have 100 strategies for getting speaking engagements (10 venues times 10 strategies). If you fall short of the 100, don't lose the victory. Start with what you have; more ideas will come later. Be sure to write them down when they do!

Finally, start making your contacts. If you can visit them in person, by all means do so. At least try to make voice contact with each potential venue. Use snail mail or email for follow up. Make your press release, media kit, copy of your book, and/or demo tape available.

NUMBER 2 How can I find more time to promote my book?

It seems that most of our authors have ministry, job, or business responsibilities other than writing and promoting their book(s). Someone once said, "If you want something done, give it to a busy person." If that's true, it is probably because busy people are motivated and know how to use their time effectively. Time management is one of the biggest issues for authors.

Time management begins with setting your priorities. Promoting your book should be one of your priorities. Next, comes planning. This usually includes a to-do list for each day, week, month, and/or year. Finally comes execution. Start each day with the hardest task, or the easiest task—whatever works best for you—just start somewhere. The "tyranny of the urgent" is the greatest enemy to reaching your goals.

Of course you need balance when it comes to how you spend your time. You can't neglect your family, devotional life, work, and other responsibilities to market your book. The best way to find more time to market your book is to have a plan, work your plan, and eliminate time wasters and non-priority activities.

Well, there you have it! Wait. I'm sorry, you're right...

And the number one question we are asked by our authors

How many copies of my book have you sold this month?

Warmest Regards,
Brian Banashak, Publisher
© 2004, Brian Banashak