Do You Know Your Readers?

In order to get customers for any product or service, you need a few things:

·         A large enough pool of people who need or desire what you have to offer.

·         People with the means to pay a certain price for it.

·         Your ability to reach your marketplace with a cogent offer that appeals to them.

·         A way to convince others you are better than the competition.

So, if you hope to sell books – and lots of them – start by drawing up a list of features that your ideal customer comprises of.  Build a demographic profile of their core basics:

·         Age range

·         Gender

·         Relationship status

·         Parental status

·         Location

·         Education level

·         Wealth status

·         Employment

·         Occupation

·         Politics

·         Race

·         Religion

Think of it as you wanting to see customers just like how the nation conducts a census. The more you know about who makes for your ideal customer, you can track them down and sell to them in a way that would appeal to who they are.

Maybe you need to delve further. What do they like to watch, read, and consume – in theaters, on television or at the arena? Do they like pets? Do they prefer wine over beer, or marijuana over alcohol?  Do they like to travel or cook or visit museums? All of this data shapes us and who we sell to.

Now, you may say, “Who knows who will buy my book – it’s for everyone.”  Or you may be book-centric and determine people will buy it if they need or want it, regardless of their habits, pasts, or demographic allegiances:  No one has a crystal ball to determine the right approach, but all things being equal, you should be able to narrow down who is more likely to be your book’s readers and then heavily pursue them.

There’s also a psychological profile to your book readers.  Are they likely to be people who are more loving and good-natured or people who are hardened, jaded, and not so trustful? Will it be people driven by fear – or anger – or laughter? Are you looking for people who feel like victims and underdogs – or do you appeal to winners?

Your reader could be anyone, so don’t turn anyone away, but if you have limited time, resources, and funds to market to only certain people, cut to the chase and pursue whomever is most likely to be interested in your book.

Please Read This:

See 2020 With Best Book Marketing Blog Posts of the Year

https://bookmarketingbuzzblog.blogspot.com/2019/12/the-2020-book-marketing-pr-toolkit.html

Brian Feinblum’s insightful views, provocative opinions, and interesting ideas expressed in this terrific blog are his alone and not that of his employer or anyone else. You can – and should -- follow him on Twitter @theprexpert and email him at brianfeinblum@gmail.com. He feels much more important when discussed in the third-person. This is copyrighted by BookMarketingBuzzBlog ©2019. Born and raised in Brooklyn, he now resides in Westchester. His writings are often featured in The Writer and IBPA’s Independent.  This was named one of the best book marketing blogs by Book Baby http://blog.bookbaby.com/2013/09/the-best-book-marketing-blogs and recognized by Feedspot in 2018 as one of the top book marketing blogs. Also named by WinningWriters.com as a "best resource.” He recently hosted a panel on book publicity for Book Expo America.