What's Your Biggest Challenge with Your Book?

[Bill Frank]

I'd be interested to learn what authors/publishers on this network think their biggest challenges are with their book. I wonder if there's any common, pervasive challenge we all face.

[Bill Frank]

Thanks for the clarification, Shel. Yes, I am speaking of advance/royalty-based publishing or, what most people think of as, traditional publishing.

My colleague used the $25,000 figure to publish fiction books that will sell through bookstores; competing with books from large publishing houses. For $25,000, these books look great and are very professional and competitive.

I believe strongly in publishing through companies such as Infinity. For many authors, it's the best way to publish. The Book Industry Study Group published a factoid that over 70% of books publishedd in 2004 sold 99 copies or fewer. For those authors, publishing with Infinity (or a comparable subsidy publisher) is the most economical thing to do.

[Bill Frank]

To find a list of agents to represent your manuscript and publishers who publish books of your nature, go to your local, public library and use the Literary Market Place, LMP for short. The reference librarian will know where the LMP is shelved.

[John Kremer]

I sell a report on 1400 Literary, Subsidiary Rights, and Foreign Rights Agents that I sell for $30 as a download in Word format. You can order it at http://www.bookmarket.com/orderform.htm.

The report includes their addresses, phone, website, email, etc. Plus, in most cases, info on some of the books they've sold recently.

[Meghan Wier]

My biggest challenge is in keeping marketing on my brain. I tend to go in spurts--updating my website, scheduling signings, sending out mailers. Then I sit. Months sometimes go by and I think--"gee, sales have slowed down..." but of course they have! From an online perspective - (which is where I sell most of my books), I am always looking for ways to increase my site rankings through search engine optimization (SEO). It is another one of those things though that doesn't last forever. You have to continuously do more. My goal right now is to get more people to link to my site - especally sites with a similar set of key-phrases (introvert, relationship marketing, business networking, career) this will help my Google page rank assuming they are well ranked sites themselves. But this is a long process with payouts so far in the future it is hard to keep focused and diligent. I am hoping that this network and the work I am doing to promote online will keep those sales up and my head in the game. I just need a kick...once in a while to take my own advice and do it.

Meghan Wier
Confessions of an Introvert
www.meghanwier.com

[Bill Frank]

You write on a great topic, Meghan. Your book may be helpful to people in this social network. Writing is suited to introverts. Selling books and promoting is suited to extroverts. This is the self-publisher's dilemma.

Is your book available on Amazon? Are you spending time optimizing your Amazon book page to sell? There are many things you can do to optimize your Amazon page—17 things, in fact. If your book is available for sale on Amazon, it may be beneficial to you to optimize your standing where the book is sold.

Consider other distribution channels for your book as one possible way to increase sales. If you sell your book primarily online, what reviewers have you contacted to review the book and direct readers to your web site? Have you tried a "virtual book tour" to promote your book to interested bloggers and social networks? These are among the lowest-cost, highest-impact ways to reach a wider audience for your book.

With whom are you connecting in the "real world?" I see Carolyn Howard-Johnson offered to introduce you to C. Hope Clark, author of the "Shy Writer." What other contacts are available to you in the literary world?

SEO is of great interest to me. Has it been successful for you? I admit I have an author who's site has been Search Engine Optimized and it's made little impact on product sales, site visits or free newsletter subscriptions.

[Meghan Wier]

Bill - Thank you. It is constant struggle for me to balance the obvious need to promote the book -- and my introvert impulse NOT to talk to people about it!

Yes, my book is available on Amazon. I did work for a while on making sure that the page had basic SEO - however it is a project that has not taken priority (although it should!) -- I will bite--17? I look forward to reading your tips.

I have not contacted any reviewers. I will though now that you said that. The book has been out since Dec 2005 so I kindof figured that it may be considered "old" at this point. Originally the process of writing the book and getting it published was such a personal thing and I was almost afraid to have anyone review it for fear they would say something negative. Even some of my closest friends did not know I had writen the book until I invited them to the first book signing! At this point enough books have sold and I have had enough feedback that I am a lot more secure about the book, and a lot more removed from those feelings that I had when I started out.
--That said there are a few online reviews that were done when people found me -- and the WSJ did a story a year ago about networking where they included information on Confessions of an Introvert. (Thank you SEO...)

Do you have a place I would start for finding/contacting reviewers? And how would I start a virtual book tour?

My real-world contacting has definetly got to ramp up too. Originally, I contacted other local authors and bookstore managers as well as business people and owners. Once college even sold Confessions as a business 101 textbook. I have also just moved to Charlotte - so my "real" people network is now smaller and I do need to make an effort in my new home. This forum is "dipping my feet" back into full time writing and book promotion. But I need to get myself out of the kidde pool again!

SEO has been a huge help for me. I would say that the author that you have that is not having success with SEO isn't optimized correctly - perhaps for the wrong keyphrases, or phrase that don't get a lot of traffic? I use GoodKeyWords to find phrases that people are actually searching on that will bring the highest volume of qualified traffic to my site. That and doing the basics (keyphrase-rich content, good alt-text, headers, titles and good links into the site) are generally easy if you have access to the site or can have your web person change these - I would be happy to review the site - or any others for some basic SEO advice.... I was VP of a website design development and SEO company for a while in a previous life and my skills are not entirely out of date yet!

Thank you for the advice and the kick in the butt...I look forward to your response.

Best Regards.

Meghan Wier
Confessions of an Introvert: The Shy Girls Guide to Career, Networking and Getting the Most out of Life

[Bill Frank]

You seem to be doing a good job of balancing between the need to promote and your introverted tendancies.

I saw the book on Amazon. It ranked 168,465 when I looked. Not bad. You're selling about 4-5 books per month, at that clip. (It's hard to estimate book sales from Amazon's system. They purposely keep it mysterious and difficult)

If Amazon is your primary sales channel, outside your own web site, it may help book sales to focus on optimizing your Amazon page. I won't go into all 17 different strategies here. If you want to know all 17, read "Sell Your Book on Amazon" by my colleague Brent Sampson.

I do notice a few things you can do to help sales. First, you have six reviews, all 5-star reviews. That's good. Did you know, however, that if you get seven or more reviews, Amazon will automatically promote one of the reviews (the review that other readers find most helpful) to Most Helpful Customer Reviews. Which one? Joanne Green-Blose's review, most likely. How do I know? It's based on the helpful feedback from other customers to her review. She has 8 out of 10 helpful comments.

Overall, you have 31 out of 45 helpful comments from customers to the reviews you have posted. That means 68.8% of potential buyers think your reviews are helpful. Another thing you can do to boost the value of your book (in Amazon's eyes) is to start a campaign to have all your friends and family go to your Amazon page and vote that the reviews there are helpful. Move your percentage from 68% to something higher.

Amazon is a great seller of books. They do things to help themselves sell books; sometimes at the expense of selling your book. In your case, that's what's happening. Buyers are buying your book 47% of the time they land on your page. Ouch! That should be higher. 21% of the buyers leave your page and purchase the Introvert's Advantage. Why is this? It's because Amazon has paired your book with Introvert's Advantage in their Better Together section. Introvert's Advantage ranks 3,263 on Amazon, therefore it is selling more copies. Customers are drawn away from your book because of this pairing.

Is it time to despair? Hardly. Find ways to move your book up in the Amazon rankings. Write reviews for other books in your category. Include your book's title in your author block whenever you write a review. Create a ListMania for your book's category. Include your book, of course, but also the books of others. Then e-mail the others to let them know you included them in your ListMania. Perhaps they'll write a good review for your book to return the favor. Many other good ideas are included in Brent's book.

[Bill Frank]

After only two years, a book isn't old. It simply moves from your "front list" to your "back list." (With only one book, your front list is the same as your back list, isn't it?)

Congratulations on your mention in the WSJ! What a coup! Have you blogged about this? Did you write to thank the writer for including your book in the article? Have you returned to the writer of that article to see tell him/her you're available for follow-up stories and interviews? Are you including this on the back cover of your book in future printings?

Mail out as many review copies of your book as possible. Review copies are the least expensive form of advertising you can do. Since you're digitally inclined, start with bloggers and web groups of interest. Don't know where to start? Contact Penny Sansevieri, president of A Marketing Expert in San Diego. She is one of the country's leaders in virtual book tours.

For "traditional" media reviewers, therer are several lists available to buy or rent. Dan Poynter sells several on Parapub.com. John Kremer also sells several on Bookmarket.com. These lists are categorized by genre: business, art, women's, men's, etc. Contact all reviewers on the lists you purchase. You never know who'll review your book.

Amazon also has reviewers. Some of the top Amazon reviewers are celebrities in their own right. Go to your Amazon Advantage page and look up the top reviewers. Each reviewer states what she/he reviews. Find the reviewers in your genre and solicit them to write a review of your book on Amazon. Positive reviews from these reviewers on Amazon translate into book sales.

I have one client who has two Top 10, one Top 50 and one Top 1000 reviewer commenting on his book. He now ranks #2 in his category on Amazon.

As regards SEO for my one author, he pays $500 per month to be optimized. How does one measure success for the price? Clearly, he's not getting his money's worth. How can one quantify that? I want to point out to this author.

[Meghan Wier]

Bill - that is some of the best advice I have gotten since I started this process -- thank you so much for taking the time to do that.

Unfortunately the WSJ reporter is since retired - although she did get a note (One good thing I am good at!) and she recently sent me an email about someone who contacted her looking for info on me - so in that way things still are paying off there. Although perhaps I need to reach out to the new writer of that career column. Thank you again for making me say "duh!" -- so much seems like common sense and yet somehow isn't!

I need a bit of time to process all the good info as well as read the book you suggested. Thank you!

On SEO - $500/mo w/ no ROI is rediculous. Plain and simple -- if there is no return then it is a waste of money. That said -- SEO takes time - sometimes the results take 6-8 months to be realized so that needs to be taken into account. As an example - my company charged $1,000 for research (just determining the correct keyphrases based on real searches from the engines on related words) This was THE most valuable part in my opinion...and the another $500 - $1,000 for "basic" - one-time optimization. That was using those phrases to re-write content, update headers to include the keyphrases, The titles, alt text..all with the chosen (25 is a good number) phrases that are THE most qualified - meaning they will bring in the people most likely to convert into customers. As an example -- the phrase "book" is way too general. Even if you were able to get 1st place (unlikely) the visitors (which would be millions...) would leave probably immediately. They are more likely looking for a more specific phrase - i.e "self help book". Now that narrows the search and likelihood that someone will find a self help book. Now... of course someone searching for something more specific will be even a more qualified customer. The term "self help book social anxiety" will garner many less visitors -- but they will be people looking for specific info. So optimize for "self help" "social anxiety" "social anxiety book" "social anxiety self help" Throw in the variations on "self help" -- (selfhelp, selp-help) making sure to research the most common searches on this term to use them the most.
- And then there is Google's Page Rank system. Similar to Amazon, they do not make it easy to understand, but they give those site with the best and most links the best ranking. More info on this is on one of my blogs - note the email address is changed (see below)

Again - thank you. I will be happy to talk to you more about SEO online or off. It is a favorite subject --

Meghan Wier
[e-mail]

[Bill Frank]

Here's another thought. Have the retired WSJ reporter write a review for your book on Amazon, if you're still in contact. Have her put that she's a former WSJ reporter in her by-line. That will help sales plus give you the seventh review.

P.S. For other good books on self-publishing and book marketing, see my ListMania at http://www.amazon.com/Best-Books-on-Book-Publishing/lm/R2UM0DC9JU1W....

Please select that you found my ListMania helpful (vote in the upper right-hand corner), if you visit the site.

[Steve Miller]

Bill, I just looked over your Listmania and ordered the book about the stories of best-sellers. (I've already read Kramer, Poynter and several others.) Thanks for putting that list out there. I don't regret any of the time that I've studied book publicity/marketing/sales.

[Shel Horowitz]

For me, the biggest challenge is turning recognition--of which I've got plenty--into sales. How to turn all the awards, endorsements, media coverage, rights sales, and more into individual customers who are willing to open their wallets and buy the books.

I've worked on this challenge in several ways: incorporating all the good stuff into my sites, reaching audiences through public speaking and Internet discussion lists, etc. And two of my books have now sold out. But it seems to me thee ought to be ways of reaching more buyers.

If the research I did while writing Grassroots Marketing for Authors and Publishers is any indication, this is a challenge that others face as well.