What can
authors say that will draw people in — and get them to read their book?
Authors tend to want to cast a wide net, to
say anything that could draw in someone. This ppeal to be everything to
everyone could end up getting you nowhere with everybody.
Instead, target whomever you believe is your
likely reader. Identify who that is and think about what their needs, desires,
thoughts, and experiences are — and then formulate what to say to them that can
appeal to their specific demographics.
Think like the reader. What does one need or
want to hear or know to help them be convinced to buy a book? Feed to them what
you assume will work.
Authors can say things that have no proof — just
a claim of opinion:
* It is a great book.
* You will really enjoy it.
* It is a page-turner.
None of these statements were validated by an
authoritative figure. It is just you planting hopeful impressions upon a
potential reader. That is fine to do.
Authors can make claims — even if only
technically true:
* Award-winning author (which award?)
* Best-selling book (which list?)
* Critically-acclaimed book (what constitutes
that?)
That is fine to do.
Authors can quote third-party statements:
* It could be a specific quote from a known
entity, such as Kirkus Reviews
* It can be an excerpted from a story about you
in a publication or website
* It can be a general claim that dozens or
scores of reviews on amazon or Goodreads give it five stars
* Authors can share testimonials of you or your
book from other authors, experts, professors, etc.
That is fine to do.
Authors can state how one benefits from reading
their book:
* Readers will enjoy the…
* Readers will gain insight into….
* Readers will learn how to….
Authors can say their writing reads like specific
authors (name popular or successful ones):
* This book will remind readers of (name a book
or author)….
* Her writings compare favorably to…
* His work is inspired by and modeled after…
Authors can share stories, cite stats, or use
hypotheticals to demonstrate their selling points and show why their book fills
a want or need:
* 39 percent in a recent poll say they have not
had sex in the last six months. A new book shows how to put a relationship on
course for romance.
* What if cancer could be cured? A new novel by
an oncologist reveals the ugly secrets behind the medical world’s pursuit to
kill studies that show potentials for cures.
* The Mets just won the World Series in a gritty
seven games. A new book by a pediatrician examines how parents can raise
successful kids through competitive sports, showing why participation trophies
need to be replaced by a scoreboard.
Authors can reference the news or a tie-in to a
holiday or honorary day or trend to get some media coverage:
* As the New Year approaches with the promise of
a fresh start, this book shows readers how to break old habits and commit to
managing money more effectively.
* June is historically a big wedding month but
one author’s new novel about divorce and domestic abuse reveals the warning
signs a woman should see in a man before marrying him.
* National Grandparents Day is in two weeks and
the author would be a perfect guest on your show to discuss how her children’s
books are perfect for grandparents to read to their youngest family members.
* As millions celebrate National Donut Day, one
fitness guru offers a cookbook of healthy alternative snacks.
When seeking to hook your reader in, determine:
* Who your reader is going to likely be
* Why they should care
* What they are looking for
* What is most unique about your book
* How your book or life compares to competitors
The world holds many story angles and selling
points — what we call the marketing hooks. You can utilize history, news,
trends, predictions, or your imagination to come up with something that should
get people’s attention. If you can’t think of anything, toss your book into the
recycle bin.
Should
Authors Blame Anyone For Book Marketing Failures?
If
you tried to market your book, you likely ran across some moments of failure,
loss, and setbacks. You may have wasted time and money — and felt defeated.
Perhaps you looked to blame others for your circumstances. Perhaps you are even
tough on yourself, burdened with feelings of incompetence, guilt, or shame. But
there is no point to living with a righteous sense of blame and anger. That
won’t get you what you want.
When you
run up against a problem, do you want to focus on blame or a solution? True,
sometimes you need to identify the causes of or the contributing factors to a
problem in order to solve it, but if you put too much emphasis on blame, you
put your energies in the wrong place.
Blame leads to anger, hate, and mistrust. It
absolves you of seeking to salvage things or of taking on the challenge of
resolving, changing, or improving things. Most situations are not all or
nothing, where only one is at fault and not the other. Whether or not you are
to be blamed for having a role in a failed activity or a problem, you can be a
part of the solution.
When marketing your book, take ownership of it.
Nothing happens unless you initiate, seize, follow-up, and respond to
opportunities.
Whining about your circumstances, blaming others
for failure, or wishing for better results won’t bring you positive results.
Save that for a therapy session. Focus your thoughts, resources, and energy on
what will deliver to you that which you seek: useful outcomes — and not to be
just feel right about what others did wrong.
Stop being a victim of others or a bystander of
circumstance. Go out and create the conditions conducive for a victory.
It is easy to blame those you hate, fear, or
know little of. It is harder, as a strategy, to lay blame when it is someone
closer to you or it is yourself that is at fault. You need and want to live
with yourself and your family and friends, so you have to temper the
prosecutorial blame and instead, seek to collaborate to focus on the good, the
positive, and the common ground.
Seek solutions, not blame, especially when it
comes to marketing your book.
Need
Book Marketing Help?
Brian Feinblum, the founder of this
award-winning blog, can be reached at brianfeinblum@gmail.com He is available
to help authors promote their story, sell their book, and grow their brand. He
has over 30 years of experience in successfully helping thousands of authors in
all genres. Let him be your advocate, teacher, and motivator!
Read
This!
Do You Really Know Why You Wrote Your Book?
https://bookmarketingbuzzblog.blogspot.com/2023/06/do-you-really-know-why-you-wrote-your.html
How Do Authors Fix Their Social Media?
https://bookmarketingbuzzblog.blogspot.com/2023/06/how-do-authors-fix-their-social-media.html
How & Why Should Authors Guest-Blog?
https://bookmarketingbuzzblog.blogspot.com/2023/06/how-why-authors-should-guest-blog.html
A Book Award Authors Should Avoid!
https://bookmarketingbuzzblog.blogspot.com/2023/06/a-book-award-authors-should-avoid.html
Raising Books To Be Successful
https://bookmarketingbuzzblog.blogspot.com/2023/06/raising-books-to-besuccessful.html
Book Marketer Brian Feinblum Interviewed
By Book Shepherd Cathy Fyock
https://bookmarketingbuzzblog.blogspot.com/2023/05/book-marketer-brian-feinblum.html
8 Ways to Market Your Book
https://bookmarketingbuzzblog.blogspot.com/2023/06/8-ways-to-market-your-book.html
Can You Sell Books Through Laughter?
https://bookmarketingbuzzblog.blogspot.com/2023/05/sell-books-through-laughter.html
12 Habits of Highly Successful Authors
https://bookmarketingbuzzblog.blogspot.com/2023/05/12-habits-of-highly-successful-authors.html
Author Website Do’s & Don’ts
https://bookmarketingbuzzblog.blogspot.com/2023/05/author-website-dos-donts.html
Should You Write Another 10 Books?
https://bookmarketingbuzzblog.blogspot.com/2023/05/should-you-write-another-10-books.html
About Brian Feinblum
Brian Feinblum should be followed on Twitter
@theprexpert. This is copyrighted by BookMarketingBuzzBlog ©2023. Born and
raised in Brooklyn, he now resides in Westchester with his wife, two kids, and
Ferris, a black lab rescue dog. His writings are often featured in The Writer
and IBPA’s The Independent. This
award-winning blog has generated over 3.3 million pageviews. With 4,400+ posts
over the past dozen years, it was named one of the best book marketing blogs by
BookBaby http://blog.bookbaby.com/2013/09/the-best-book-marketing-blogs and recognized by Feedspot in 2021 and 2018
as one of the top book marketing blogs. It was also named by
www.WinningWriters.com as a "best resource.” For the past three decades,
including 21 years as the head of marketing for the nation’s largest book
publicity firm, and two jobs at two independent presses, Brian has worked with
many first-time, self-published, authors of all genres, right along with
best-selling authors and celebrities such as: Dr. Ruth, Mark Victor Hansen,
Joseph Finder, Katherine Spurway, Neil Rackham, Harvey Mackay, Ken Blanchard,
Stephen Covey, Warren Adler, Cindy Adams, Todd Duncan, Susan RoAne, John C.
Maxwell, Jeff Foxworthy, Seth Godin, and Henry Winkler. He recently hosted a
panel on book publicity for Book Expo America, and has spoken at ASJA,
Independent Book Publishers Association Sarah Lawrence College, Nonfiction
Writers Association, Cape Cod Writers Association, Willamette (Portland)
Writers Association, APEX, and Connecticut Authors and Publishers Association.
His letters-to-the-editor have been published in The Wall Street Journal,
USA Today, New York Post, NY Daily News, Newsday, The Journal News
(Westchester) and The Washington Post. He has been featured in The
Sun Sentinel and Miami Herald. For more information, please consult:
www.linkedin.com/in/brianfeinblum.
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