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Successful Self-Publishing
Issue 2: February, 2007

Inside this issue:
How to get your book into stores.
Pitching your book to retail bookstores and chains can be a time consuming and frustrating process. In this issue, we help prepare you for increased chances of success. Read more.

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How to get your Book into Stores

Getting your book successfully onto the shelves of a bookstore is easier said than done. Major bookstore chains are notoriously difficult to win over. Even smaller bookstores, where your chances of reaching the person with the purchase authority are more likely — are still very choosy and cautious. Especially when presented with new books from unknown authors.

Without the representation and backing of a major publishing house, you will be entirely responsible for every aspect of this process. Promoting your book to stores is not complicated. But it can be a long and disheartening process that requires persistence, staying power, determination, conviction and total
belief in the ‘great read’ quality of your work.

Identify your targets
The key to successfully selling into a bookstore is to start small. Identify and target smaller local bookstores and boutique stores specific to the topic of your book. Aim to saturate your entire local market place. Having a measure of regional success will also help in convincing larger chain stores that your book is a worthwhile commercial product, suitable for a national and even an international marketplace.

Develop and prepare your pitch
Initiating contact and approaching bookstore buyers in the right way is essential. Sending an initial ‘sales package’ followed up by a polite phone call, is probably the most effective platform for getting your foot in the proverbial door. The package should be based on a carefully developed sales letter, accompanied by a complimentary copy of your book.

By sending a package through the post, you are allowing the bookstore buyer time to absorb and consider your book and proposal. When you call a week later, you are then ‘warm calling’ rather than cold calling — as they have already had initial contact from you. They are a lot more likely to be receptive and interested. Getting your sales letter right is vital. Keep it at two pages maximum, and ensure it contains all the following core points:

* Introduction: introduce yourself and your book, and state that your reason for contact is to enquire as to their potential interest in purchasing your book
for stock.
* Book summary: a short (one paragraph) summary of the core plot of the book
* Book commercial impact: state who would want to read your book (target audience) and why (USP)
* Your credibility: clarify any background and experience you have in writing, or your specific experience and authority in the subject matter.
* Pricing proposal: put forward your proposal for the retail price of the book, and bookstore commission or preference for outright purchase.
* Business development: state that you are engaging in a comprehensive marketing programme for promotion of the book, and that the marketing plan is available for them to review.
* Guarantee: state that you will offer a full refund for books purchased outright, that do not sell within a specified timeframe (8-10 weeks)

Know what the bookstores want
Referencing to your marketing plan within the sales letter is important. It indicates your proactive and professional business approach to the sale of your book. Bookstores will want to know what you are actively doing to promote your book. They do not like to sit on dead inventory. If they feel confident that any books they buy from you can be promoted and sold through marketing and promotional activity directly driven by you — they are more likely to purchase.

Create strong relationships
The founding principle behind successfully selling anything is by establishing genuine and positive human connections. Taking the time to initiate and
cultivate lasting relationships with bookstore owners and buyers will dramatically increase your chances of getting your book on their shelves.

Even if initially, they feel your work is not right, by presenting yourself as a professional and credible author and self publisher — they are significantly more likely to be open to being pitched on any subsequent projects you may develop. Even if they do say no the first time, keep the relationship open and positive. Send a short follow-up email or letter thanking them for their time regardless. It could pay dividends in the future.

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This article has been written by Terence Tam, CEO of Book Pal, a self publishing and book printing company based in Brisbane, Australia. Terence is a self publisher himself and is a keen supporter of experienced and budding self publishers. He also specialises in print on demand books. Terence can be contacted at terence@bookpal.com.au . Also, please visit http://www.bookpal.com.au

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Even if your best friend owns a top publishing company, giving you an immediate “in,” this does not guarantee publishing success.

First, you have to write a quality book that has a clear target audience. And your book must answer a
common problem or need that audience shares. Then you have to develop a marketing plan, and stick to it for at least two years.

Let’s begin with the process that should commence before you write your first word. Begin by reading A
LOT. Read both books you passionately love and books you can’t seem to make it past page five. Then figure out what the author did in the book you loved, and what was wrong with in the book you couldn’t finish. Write down these points so they are crystal clear to you. Read other people’s books for inspiration and to discover what you should avoid as a writer.

The next step is to plan out your book. Narrow down your subject, and then divide it into chapters. Each
chapter should address a specific aspect of the problem your book is going to solve. In each chapter,
break the specific aspect down into several parts. This will help your readers take in your information a
bit at a time instead of overwhelming them with every bit of information clogging up the pages until they
feel like they’re about to go blind. It’s not quite spoon-feeding the information to your readers, but
it’s close.

The next two steps are obvious. Write your book and then revise it. And then revise it again. And perhaps
again. Of course, writing is extremely hard, and writing a book can seem like an impossible task. There
are many books out there that give you guidelines to help you become familiar - and even love - the process of writing and revision. Find a number of books about writing. Better yet, find a number of books about writing the specific type of book you aspire to write. These can serve as roadmaps on your writing journey.

Once you’ve written your ebook and revised it at least twice, show it to someone else whose opinion you
respect. If you’re lucky enough to know a good editor, see if you have something to barter for him or her to
go through your manuscript. Or join a writing group and let the other members critique your work.

Then take all these ideas from other people, and revise your manuscript one last time. And then stop!
Put down that pen! Get your hands off the keyboard!

One of the most important steps to actually producing a book is to know when to stop writing and tinkering
with it.

You’ve finally written your ebook! Pop open the bubbly! Give yourself a night out on the town!

Okay, now that this necessary celebration is out of your system, what do you do next?

How to turn your ebook into Profits

Ebooks are a revolutionary way to publish your book without incurring the costs of print production. All
you need is a relevant and targeted subject and some inexpensive software, and you can transform your
manuscript into a book.

The problem, in terms of actually seeing any profits from your ebook, is that the market is overwhelmed
with ebooks, and many of them are not worth the time it takes to download them. Just because the ability
exists to easily produce an ebook, doesn’t make it good writing.

Make sure your book does not simply rehash old material. You will injure your credibility as an author by claiming to offer valuable new insights and disappointing your audience with material they’ve read a zillion times before. So spend enough time writing and revising your book to make sure it’s of the highest quality and presents the most current information. A good book will eventually sell itself; false claims about your book will make it extremely difficult to sell any future books you may write.

Assuming you have determined that you do indeed have a quality product that answers some question or need of your target audience with NEW information, how do you know how much to charge for it?

Rule number 1: Set a price for your book equal to its value. An under-priced book will only give the impression that your book isn’t worth very much.

To figure out a fair price, estimate how much time you put into creating it and how difficult it was to
transform the necessary information into understandable and engaging writing. Figure out how much your time and effort is worth, and then price it accordingly. The goal is for you to be adequately compensated for your talent, your time, and your effort.

Once you’ve figured out a price that is high enough to convey the value of the book, but not so high as to be out of the reach of your target audience’s mean budget, then it’s time to offer it for sale on your website. To attract sales, you will need to develop a promotional campaign, particularly if you are an unknown author.

There are multitudes of books about self-promotion that will guide you in your efforts. Choose a plan
that is both creative and professional. Learn how to write a catchy yet informative press release, and send
copies of your ebook to sites that specialize in ebook reviews.

Learn how to write powerful sales copy, or hire someone to write it for you. This is an essential. You
absolutely need excellent sales copy to sell your book. Make sure the copy includes all the reasons your
target audience needs your book, and the benefits they will derive from buying it.

Use graphics in your promotional materials. Beautiful graphics have the power to instantly convey the
quality and value of your ebook. Graphics can also convey the amount of valuable information the book
contains, and your careful attention to detail. Professional graphics sell professional books. They
reassure the customer that the product is what it claims to be.

Consider excerpting chapters for articles. You can offer these tidbits for free on your website as a sort
of demo of your book. Include an order form for your ebook at the end of the excerpted articles.

Finally, when you set-up your download link, make sure to simplify the process. It’s a good idea to offer a
few bonuses that make your book even more enticing to purchase, but make sure the bonuses are valuable and high quality. Too many bonuses that are basically a load of useless stuff will compromise the impression your audience has of your ebook. The goal is to convey to your audience that they are getting a quality product for a good deal. That means applying restraint, especially when it comes to adding bonus
items. Too much free stuff offered diminishes your credibility.

Make sure your book is a quality product. Make sure it is relevant and current. Develop an effective
marketing plan that includes excellent sales copy and excerpted articles. Then offer your book for sale, and
wait for your audience to discover you!

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