Part 4: Authors produce
compelling publishing projects —
Entrepreneurs market, successfully distribute publishing projects — at a profit
If you don’t actively promote and sell your work, you have a hobby, not a business enterprise.
Author Entrepreneurs, like Joe Vitale and Jack Canfield, certainly write about those topics for which they have a passion. They write about what inspires them and what they think will be helpful to their readers. Joe Vitale, Jack Canfield, Wayne Dyer, and T. Harv Eker KNOW their readership, and understand what will motivate that readership to buy their books.
After I realized I had the research and writing skills to produce viable publishing projects, I also recognized that I needed more information as to how to successfully market myself, and my publishing projects, if I wanted to develop residual income streams. In Secrets of the Millionaire Mind, T. Harv Eker tells his readers to find someone who is successful in the field you wish to master and model their behavior.
I signed up for Vitale and Canfield newsletters and marketing lists. I studied how they built interest for their latest projects. I also bought Vitale’s marketing books — I wanted to study an acknowledged “Master of Marketing and Self-Promotion”.
It was time well spent. I want to share a few of those ideas here.
The potential market for a book is a key factor in the decision process for all traditional publishers. If you have ever submitted a manuscript or book proposal to a mainstream publishing house, you are keenly aware of how target market considerations affect the probability of publication.
The issue of “who will by this book” is even more important to self-publishers.
Why? Well, for one thing, it’s your money and investment of time at risk.
From the inception of your publishing project, marketing must be a prime consideration. Before you commit to any print production expenses, you must have a firm marketing budget and implementation plan in place. In fact, your marketing program should start before your project has reached press. Publication promotion should start with the launch of the project.
For some self-published, Author Entrepreneurs the reality of working a marketing plan, hits when they hear the reverse beeper of the delivery truck as it is pulls up to the loading dock — the area formally known as their garage.
Author Entrepreneurs, who do not want to see several thousand unsold books every time they walk through garage, learn to instigate multiple guerrilla promotion techniques.
Having identified your target market…
Brainstorm the various ways you can reach them
As self-confessed folder-freak, I like to organize all my ideas by category. I also index the ideas on my computer. I also know that anal-retentive has a hyphen when used as a modifier, but I digress. Sample categories might consist of: magazines or catalogs your target market might read; press kits that include demographics and pricing; professional or membership organizations to reach your customers; on-line discussion groups; or newsletters. Consider how to effectively use social networking and viral marketing media to promote your publishing projects.
Consider co-ventures; look seriously at premium and cross-promotional ideas. An old friend, Roger Parker, produced a Graphic Design Basics book. He worked a deal with a newly formed trade association to include his book as a membership premium. His book was great incentive to join an, as yet, untried organization; and the positive word of mouth about his book helped push it to best-seller status. It was an all round win/win situation.
Potential clients are also potential partners. Several years ago I self published a technical manual — The Fundamentals of Desktop Publishing. The book had been developed to support training seminars my company taught through out the United States and Canada. A Fortune 500 executive saw the publication and negotiated a license to publish the manual as an internal training tool. Additionally, a training firm based in Sweden paid for publishing rights, in the UK, Norway and Sweden.
The enthusiastic endorsement of these two nationally recognized organizations, made it easier to sell the next manual.
If you feel that developing information products is a viable path to developing streams of residual income, you have to learn all you can about marketing your product and master the art of self promotion. Treat your publishing projects as you would any other business venture. Residual Income is the path to financial freedom.
Leave a Reply