Can You Be Persuasive When Promoting Your Book

How do you persuade someone of your point of view when communicating with another person?

Your persuasiveness depends on a number of factors, including:

-          Who are you trying to persuade?

-          What do you want that person to do?

-          What tools or methods are you using?

It may be harder to persuade someone to spend $25 on your book than to have them do a small favor, but it comes down to you winning that person over and to have them see that you make a good point. If someone disagrees with you, they won’t do anything that you ask—big or small.

To persuade one to buy something may require more effort than to convince someone to take some other action or to believe in your viewpoint.

What will you use to persuade someone?

-          Present facts

-          Share stories

-          Raise fears and threats

-          Offer solutions

-          Create awareness of a problem that you can solve

-          Showcase a successful track record

Those who are open to being persuaded likely are:

-          Already interested in what you have to say

-          Likely to find what you offer to be useful

-          Not committed to a particular point of view

-          Probably aware that alternate options are available

No doubt, by identifying your reader’s needs, interests, goals, and concerns, you’ll be able to convince them of something, but when you don’t have a sense of what others want, have, or need, you are left in the dark.

Be sure to speak with optimism, conviction, and confidence. People are lured to those who sound like they are passionate. Speak concisely and accurately, using plain English and an active voice.

To persuade others you need to have something that appeals to them. What will you use to sell your product, viewpoint, or idea? Will you seek to convince someone based on the lure of making money or having fun? Will you win them over because you found a way to uncover what they want or like? Are you in a position to offer them something they perceive is of value?

To persuade others you need to sound passionate and convincing. You need energy and enthusiasm to be heard in your voice. You need to smile and present a strong case. But you also need to clearly state the benefits of what you offer, identify the risks of them not taking the action step you want them to take, and you need to be competitive in your price.

Think of your book as art, and show them why they would love it and want it.

Think of your book as a product or service, and show them why they need it and should get it.

See your book as something amazing and others will come to see it that way too.

Brian Feinblum’s views, opinions, and ideas expressed in this blog are his alone and not that of his employer, Media Connect, the nation’s largest book promoter. You can follow him on Twitter @theprexpert and email him at brianfeinblum@gmail.com. He feels more important when discussed in the third-person. This is copyrighted by BookMarketingBuzzBlog © 2014