Book-Marketing Tip of the Day – October 1, 2015

The special-sales (non-bookstore) market is actually larger in size -- more than twice as large -- than the bookstore market. If you do not seek book sales outside of bookstores than you may be missing half of your potential. Or, to look at it from a different perspective, you could double your sales with additional marketing effort directed to non-bookstore markets.

Book-Marketing Tip of the Day – September 30, 2015

Vilfredo Pareto said, "A minority of input produces a majority of results." Invest your promotion dollars where they get the highest return.

Book-Marketing Tip of the Day – September 29, 2015

"Commit to making a genuine connection with your audience, and you better your chances of evoking an emotional response." –Entrepreneur magazine, August 2015

Book-Marketing Tip of the Day – September 28, 2015

Market with MBS (Mind, Body, Spirit): Focus your mind, summon all your bodily energy and do it with a spirit of integrity, professionalism and fun

Book-Marketing Tip of the Day – September 27, 2015

"You don't become great by trying to be great. You become great by wanting to do something and then doing it so hard that you become great in the process." Randall Munroe

Book-Marketing Tip of the Day – September 25, 2015

If people have made the decision to buy, price is irrelevant (details don't get in the way). If they don't want to buy your book, the details won't make it happen.

Book-Marketing Tip of the Day – September 24, 2015

"When networking, look for people facing outward, or bored-looking people talking sporadically. If you can join and enliven them you will be a hero." See more in the article, "The Best Ways to Network at a Party," Wall Street Journal, September 15, page D1

Join us for an evening of networking fun on Oct 16 in Toronto (Book Selling University follows on Oct 17). Details at http://bookapss-canada.org/launch2015/event2.html

Book-Marketing Tip of the Day – September 23, 2015

Have the write stuff. Don't stop writing when your book is finished. Write for blogs (yours and others), updates to your material and website, articles, essays, Top Ten Lists on your topic, sales literature, booklets and social media, as examples. Write on!

Book-Marketing Tip of the Day – September 22, 2015

A Lesson From Jeff Bezos: Opportunity Before Product

Many publishers first create a book and then look for ways and places to sell it. Instead, research the conditions that are best for growth and then define the product. Jeff Bezos provides an example as he evaluated the opportunities for creating an Internet business. He believed that E-commerce was the natural solution for a fragmented market with an enormous number of SKUs, a small shippable product and a stable supply chain characterized by many sellers served by a few, dominant middlemen. He was not an experienced publisher but opted for books as the product for Amazon.com because they were the rational choice under those conditions.

 

Apply this concept to your business. Do not simply choose a manuscript first, and then debate the form in which you will publish it: printed book or ebook and where it will be sold. Instead, evaluate the opportunity in five categories: market conditions, competitive activity, marketing actions, consumer needs and potential outcomes. Then make the choice of product form (pbook, ebook, audiobook, vbook, app) and where, when and how you will sell it.

Book-Marketing Tip of the Day – September 21, 2015

You don't have to be the most knowledgeable person on your subject to get on the air. You will get on if you are knowledgeable and a good interview

Book-Marketing Tip of the Day – September 20, 2015

A tip from Gary Kasporov, the world's top chess player for 20 years: "Human intuition is an integral part of successful decision making. Young players need to hear the greats of the past explain the nature of the game, the rationale of openings, the ideas behind the moves. They can't learn by just looking at a screen." (Harvard Business Review, April, 2015)

Book-Marketing Tip of the Day – September 19, 2015

Do you want to sell books to non-bookstore retailers? See Brian Jud's article for Color House Graphics at http://tinyurl.com/o86ylgt

Book-Marketing Tip of the Day – September 18, 2015

A low-key closing technique is the Negative Yes. Here you simply ask a question, the answer to which is most likely to be no. But every time the person says no it eliminates it as a reason not to buy: Buyer: "I'll think about what we discussed today and call you later." You reply, "OK. But just to clarify something, what is it that you want to think over? Is it the topic of my book? ("No")  Does it have anything to do with the cover design?" ("No") Is the price out of line? The buyer says, "Now that you mention it, the price is a little high." You respond, "I'm glad you brought that up. If we go with a softcover and a larger quantity, I can get the price down significantly." Once you uncover the real reason for not buying your book, provide additional information and ask for the order again.

Book-Marketing Tip of the Day – September 17, 2015

There is a unique way to trap monkeys in the islands of the South Seas. The natives drill a small hole in a coconut, hollow it out and fill it with rice. Once a monkey puts its hand in the coconut to get the food, it cannot remove its clenched fist. Refusing to let go of their prize, the monkeys are unable to escape.

 

Publishers can get caught in a similar trap if they become conditioned to avoid risks and persist in using strategies that were successful in the past, without evaluating whether they are still relevant today. Their grasp on a comfortable feeling of security yields the same sense of contentment the passengers on the Titanic experienced moments before it struck the iceberg. Success in a rapidly changing industry demands that you evaluate past triumphs to determine if you should introduce new titles using a different game plan.

Book-Marketing Tip of the Day – September 16, 2015

When networking, look for people facing outward, or bored-looking people talking sporadically. If you can join and enliven them you will be a hero. "The Best Ways to Network at a Party," Wall Street Journal, September 15, page D1

Book-Marketing Tip of the Day – September 15, 2015

Do you shy away from taking a risk, or do you consider it an adventure? It depends on your definition. The word "risk" has roots in the Italian word rischiare, meaning, "to dare." Strike the right balance between risk and reward. Dare to sell to non-bookstore buyers.

Book-Marketing Tip of the Day – September 14, 2015

Have a new book by tomorrow! You don't have to write a new book, just describe it differently. Tell retailers your content will help them be more profitable, Tell librarians it will help their patrons. Tell associations it can help them increase their membership. Tell corporate buyers it can help them solve a business problem. Your content will seem pertinent to them, and that can help you sell many more books. Your book is not what it is, but what it does for the buyer.

Book-Marketing Tip of the Day – September 13, 2015

Do not confuse the terms "book" and "content." People do not buy books per se, they purchase what the information in the book will do for them. With non-fiction they purchase wealth gain (success), weight loss (beauty) or health (longevity). Fiction readers want relaxation, distraction, a sense of romance or adventure.

Book-Marketing Tip of the Day – September 12, 2015

Just do something. When one author was asked how to be creative, he replied, "It's simple, you just take something and do something to it. Then you do something else to it. Pretty soon you've got something."

Book-Marketing Tip of the Day – September 11, 2015

Have a new book by tomorrow! You don't have to write a new book, just describe it differently. Tell retailers your content will help them be more profitable, Tell librarians it will help their patrons. Tell associations it can help them increase their membership. Tell corporate buyers it can help them solve a business problem. Your content will seem pertinent to them, and that can help you sell many more books. Your book is not what it is, but what it does for the buyer.

 

Discover how to sell more books in large, non-returnable quantities at Brian Jud's one-day Southern California Book Selling University tomorrow -- Sep 12. You can become more profitable selling your books in ways that you never imagined and to people you never knew existed — in large, non-returnable quantities. It is sponsored by the Association of Publishers for Special Sales (APSS), Bowker, IBPA, SPAWN and BookWorks, and will be held from 8:30 am to 4:00 pm at the Skirball Cultural Center, 2701 N. Sepulveda Blvd. Los Angeles, CA. Find details and registration at http://tinyurl.com/ppjtxbk

Book-Marketing Tip of the Day – September 9, 2015

Gary Kasporov was the world's top chess player for 20 years. Here is his take on making decisions: "The way to improve decisions is to look back and analyze them. Many people think that if something worked yesterday, and is working today, it will work tomorrow. That's wrong." (Harvard Business Review, April, 2015)

 

Discover how to look to the future and sell more books in large, non-returnable quantities at Brian Jud's one-day Southern California Book Selling University on September 12. You can become more profitable selling your books in ways that you never imagined and to people you never knew existed — in large, non-returnable quantities. It is sponsored by the Association of Publishers for Special Sales (APSS), Bowker, IBPA, SPAWN and BookWorks, and will be held from 8:30 am to 4:00 pm at the Skirball Cultural Center, 2701 N. Sepulveda Blvd. Los Angeles, CA. Find details and registration at http://tinyurl.com/ppjtxbk

Book-Marketing Tip of the Day – September 7, 2015

In a recent discussion online, I was asked, "How many authors are up to the task of selling 1000 books?" My immediate (unpublished) response was, "If you can't sell 1000 books, why bother publishing?" But upon more thought, that flip response would have been a great disservice to those who really want to sell 1000 books, but do not know how. The word "TASK" struck me as a perfect acronym representing four areas that I believe need attention in order to be successful as an author: Time, Attitude, Skills and Knowledge

 

Be up to the TASK and attend Brian Jud's one-day Southern California Book Selling University on September 12. You can become more profitable selling your books in ways that you never imagined and to people you never knew existed — in large, non-returnable quantities. It is sponsored by the Association of Publishers for Special Sales (APSS), Bowker, IBPA, SPAWN and BookWorks, and will be held from 8:30 am to 4:00 pm at the Skirball Cultural Center, 2701 N. Sepulveda Blvd. Los Angeles, CA. Find details and registration at http://tinyurl.com/ppjtxbk

Book-Marketing Tip of the Day – September 6, 2015

Find the positive spin to every disaster. If you went on vacation and came back to find that your house had burned down, what is the first thing you would do if you knew you had left expensive diamonds there? You would start digging in the ashes of defeat to find the one thing from which you could benefit. Do the same thing when you face defeat in book sales. Dig for the one thing from which you could benefit –your belief in your ability to find a different way to sell your books.

 

Discover how to spin things in your favor as you sell more books in large, non-returnable quantities at Brian Jud's one-day Southern California Book Selling University on September 12. You can become more profitable selling your books in ways that you never imagined and to people you never knew existed — in large, non-returnable quantities. It is sponsored by the Association of Publishers for Special Sales (APSS), Bowker, IBPA, SPAWN and BookWorks, and will be held from 8:30 am to 4:00 pm at the Skirball Cultural Center, 2701 N. Sepulveda Blvd. Los Angeles, CA. Find details and registration at http://tinyurl.com/ppjtxbk

Book-Marketing Tip of the Day – September 5, 2015

The agency pricing model used by major book publishers prevented Amazon from selling at discounted prices. However, it appears to be hurting ebook sales which contributed to a 7.8% drop in revenue during the first half of 2015. Apparently, consumers aren't happy with the higher prices, according to the Wall Street Journal, Sept 4, p B1

 

Discover how to sell more ebooks and printed books in large, non-returnable quantities at Brian Jud's one-day Southern California Book Selling University on September 12. You can become more profitable selling your books in ways that you never imagined and to people you never knew existed — in large, non-returnable quantities. It is sponsored by the Association of Publishers for Special Sales (APSS), Bowker, IBPA, SPAWN and BookWorks, and will be held from 8:30 am to 4:00 pm at the Skirball Cultural Center, 2701 N. Sepulveda Blvd. Los Angeles, CA. Find details and registration at http://tinyurl.com/ppjtxbk

Book-Marketing Tip of the Day – September 5, 2015

Let loose. One day a satellite design team got into a really whacky mood and made fun of their product. They were zany, crazy and off the wall. The meeting was a great success and many new ideas were generated. The next week, everybody was in a serious mood and no new ideas were generated. The moral: having a little fun stimulates your creative juices. 

 

Stimulate your creative juices at Brian Jud's one-day Southern California Book Selling University on September 12. You can become more profitable selling your books in ways that you never imagined and to people you never knew existed — in large, non-returnable quantities. It is sponsored by the Association of Publishers for Special Sales (APSS), Bowker, IBPA, SPAWN and BookWorks, and will be held from 8:30 am to 4:00 pm at the Skirball Cultural Center, 2701 N. Sepulveda Blvd. Los Angeles, CA. Find details and registration at http://tinyurl.com/ppjtxbk

Book-Marketing Tip of the Day – September 4, 2015

"When they invented papyrus, someone probably said, 'Storytelling was so good. Why did we have to go and put it on papyrus?' But one thing doesn't change: it's the story that counts. The medium doesn't matter."  Eric Cable

 

Discover how to sell your content in different formats and in large, non-returnable quantities at Brian Jud's one-day Southern California Book Selling University on September 12. You can become more profitable selling your books in ways that you never imagined and to people you never knew existed — in large, non-returnable quantities. It is sponsored by the Association of Publishers for Special Sales (APSS), Bowker, IBPA, SPAWN and BookWorks, and will be held from 8:30 am to 4:00 pm at the Skirball Cultural Center, 2701 N. Sepulveda Blvd. Los Angeles, CA. Find details and registration at http://tinyurl.com/ppjtxbk

Book-Marketing Tip of the Day – September 1, 2015

The Wall Street Journal (September 1, page D1) lists five steps to help you stop procrastinating:

1.      Break a long-term project down into specific, concrete sub goals. State the exact start time and how long that you plan to work on the task

2.      Just get started. A long list of tasks, or each immediate step that needs to be completed, can be overwhelming.

3.      Remind yourself that completing a task now helps you in the future. Putting off the task won't make it more enjoyable.

4.      Set up mini-delays, or "microcosts," that make the stalling behavior harder. A separate log-in for computer games makes them less tempting.

5.      Reward yourself not only for completing the entire project but also the sub-goals

 

Don't procrastinate! Register today for Brian Jud's one-day Los Angeles Book Selling University on September 12. You can become more profitable selling your books in ways that you never imagined and to people you never knew existed — in large, non-returnable quantities. It is sponsored by the Association of Publishers for Special Sales (APSS), Bowker, IBPA, SPAWN and BookWorks, and will be held from 8:30 am to 4:00 pm at the Skirball Cultural Center, 2701 N. Sepulveda Blvd. Los Angeles, CA. Find details and registration at http://tinyurl.com/ppjtxbk

Book-Marketing Tip of the Day – September 2, 2015

In order to reach more potential customers with information pertinent to them, Comcast divided its total market opportunity into seven core segments: Affluent Family, Suburban Family, Ethnic Urban; Blue Collar; Hispanic; Baby Boomers and Young and Mobile. How can you divide your buyers into segments?

 

Discover how to segment your markets and sell more books in large, non-returnable quantities at Brian Jud's one-day Southern California Book Selling University on September 12. You can become more profitable selling your books in ways that you never imagined and to people you never knew existed — in large, non-returnable quantities. It is sponsored by the Association of Publishers for Special Sales (APSS), Bowker, IBPA, SPAWN and BookWorks, and will be held from 8:30 am to 4:00 pm at the Skirball Cultural Center, 2701 N. Sepulveda Blvd. Los Angeles, CA. Find details and registration at http://tinyurl.com/ppjtxbk

Book-Marketing Tip of the Day – September 1, 2015

"It's not a product unless it sells," says the old adage. You can have the greatest product in the world, but if you can't sell it you won't get very far. What are three reasons that someone would want your idea or product? What benefits does it provide? What does it promise? How can you make your idea more attractive to other people?

 

Discover how to sell more books in large, non-returnable quantities at Brian Jud's one-day Southern California Book Selling University on September 12. You can become more profitable selling your books in ways that you never imagined and to people you never knew existed — in large, non-returnable quantities. It is sponsored by the Association of Publishers for Special Sales (APSS), Bowker, IBPA, SPAWN and BookWorks, and will be held from 8:30 am to 4:00 pm at the Skirball Cultural Center, 2701 N. Sepulveda Blvd. Los Angeles, CA. Find details and registration at http://tinyurl.com/ppjtxbk