Tuesday, February 10, 2009

Book Marketing - 3 Ways to Drive Sales Using an Effective Book Cover Design

The cover of your book is a critical component of your book marketing strategy.It is the first impression people will have of your book and it may be the last.So it's essential that your book cover does more than convey your book's title.

Your book cover is your silent spokesperson and your mini-billboard.

So here are 3 ways in which you can maximize the impact of your book to help boost sales:


1.

Add Your Image


Naturally, this is not appropriate in all cases but it can work effectively whether you are well-known or not.

If you are well-known and your image is part of your overall branding then incorporating your image on the cover of your book will give your book brand recognition.Take Donald Trump for example.He incorporates his image onto the cover of all his books for to quote one of his book titles - "There's no such thing as over-exposure".

If you are well-known then your book represents a great opportunity to increase your recognition.People are generally curious to learn more about an author and to see what they look like.Authors are seen as very special people - celebrities even.Allow potential buyers and or readers to connect with you.So even if you don't want to include your image on the front cover of your book make sure that your image can be readily found.For example, consider including it on the back cover or on the inside flap if your book is a hardcover version.

2.List relevant awards or distinctions


If you have received a significant award for your writing or your work in the subject matter of your book then you can include this information on the cover of your book.

By distinctions I mean something that is worthy of note.For example, if your book has a TV connection your book cover is a great place to mention it.People have a tendency to believe what they see on television which is one reason why this is such a power medium and any TV links will massively boost the saleability of your book.

For instance, Dean Graziosi on his New York Times best selling book "Be a Real Estate Millionaire" mentions "As seen weekly on national TV since 1999".This instantly gives him a ton of credibility even if you've never actually seen Dean Graziosi on television yourself.

Another example is the book "Think Yourself Rich" written by the award-winning author Sharon Maxwell Magnus."Think Yourself Rich" was a major BBC television series and this was mentioned on the front book cover not one but twice.

3.Direct people to a free recorded message


Think of your book as a lead generator.

Your book should be just the first stage of a journey a reader shares with you.Offer your readers different ways to interact with you.

So you can use your book cover to invite potential buyers and or readers of your book to phone you using a free phone number where they can listen to a pre-recorded message.Your pre-recorded message can outline a special product or service you might have and a special offer that is only available to individuals who purchase your book.

You might even want to run a special competition in association with the launch of your book and use your pre-recorded message to give details about this.People love competitions and structured astutely a competition that is run as part of your book launch can generate massive publicity for you, your company and of course, your book.


About the Author

For a great opportunity to learn first-hand about expert book marketing visit Book Marketing University.

And to listen to a FREE teleclass on how you can turn your book into an Amazon Bestseller visit Becoming An Amazon Bestseller.

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Tuesday, January 20, 2009

Book Marketing - 3 Ways to Drive Sales Using an Effective Book Cover Design

The cover of your book is a critical component of your book marketing strategy.It is the first impression people will have of your book and it may be the last.So it's essential that your book cover does more than convey your book's title.

Your book cover is your silent spokesperson and your mini-billboard.

So here are 3 ways in which you can maximize the impact of your book to help boost sales:


1.

Add Your Image


Naturally, this is not appropriate in all cases but it can work effectively whether you are well-known or not.

If you are well-known and your image is part of your overall branding then incorporating your image on the cover of your book will give your book brand recognition.Take Donald Trump for example.He incorporates his image onto the cover of all his books for to quote one of his book titles - "There's no such thing as over-exposure".

If you are well-known then your book represents a great opportunity to increase your recognition.People are generally curious to learn more about an author and to see what they look like.Authors are seen as very special people - celebrities even.Allow potential buyers and or readers to connect with you.So even if you don't want to include your image on the front cover of your book make sure that your image can be readily found.For example, consider including it on the back cover or on the inside flap if your book is a hardcover version.

2.List relevant awards or distinctions


If you have received a significant award for your writing or your work in the subject matter of your book then you can include this information on the cover of your book.

By distinctions I mean something that is worthy of note.For example, if your book has a TV connection your book cover is a great place to mention it.People have a tendency to believe what they see on television which is one reason why this is such a power medium and any TV links will massively boost the saleability of your book.

For instance, Dean Graziosi on his New York Times best selling book "Be a Real Estate Millionaire" mentions "As seen weekly on national TV since 1999".This instantly gives him a ton of credibility even if you've never actually seen Dean Graziosi on television yourself.

Another example is the book "Think Yourself Rich" written by the award-winning author Sharon Maxwell Magnus."Think Yourself Rich" was a major BBC television series and this was mentioned on the front book cover not one but twice.

3.Direct people to a free recorded message


Think of your book as a lead generator.

Your book should be just the first stage of a journey a reader shares with you.Offer your readers different ways to interact with you.

So you can use your book cover to invite potential buyers and or readers of your book to phone you using a free phone number where they can listen to a pre-recorded message.Your pre-recorded message can outline a special product or service you might have and a special offer that is only available to individuals who purchase your book.

You might even want to run a special competition in association with the launch of your book and use your pre-recorded message to give details about this.People love competitions and structured astutely a competition that is run as part of your book launch can generate massive publicity for you, your company and of course, your book.


About the Author

For a great opportunity to learn first-hand about expert book marketing visit Book Marketing University.

And to listen to a FREE teleclass on how you can turn your book into an Amazon Bestseller visit Becoming An Amazon Bestseller.

Relaited Links:

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Monday, December 22, 2008

Top 15 Tactics to Explode Your Web Presence and Link Popularity

Link building is one of the most important factors in developing a strong web presence and building a solid flow of traffic.Most readers should understand that that effective link building adds value to your site and boosts your rankings in the search engines for target keywords.

However most people over look the other benefits of link building and tend to focus far too much on just gaining search engine rankings.

Personally I use link building as an overall means of web promotion and not just to boost search engine rankings.By putting all your eggs in the search engines basket if they decide to alter their algorithm which has a negative impact on your rankings then your sales and profit will be decrease significantly.

The answer is to build a solid web presence and to spread your traffic streams across as many locations as possible, a sort of spread betting.When looking at your web stats (site side analytics) you should see a good distribution of traffic between, search engines, direct and referral traffic.

To achieve this you need to promote your brand and develop a significant web presence.Link building is the most effective way to achieve this.I will outline the most effective ways to build a solid web presence below:


1.

Directory submissions
Submitting your website to directories should be your first port of cal in your link building quest.
Nowadays they dont provide much in the way of traffic but can still put your name out there and build your web presence.Directories are also probably the easiest and cheapest link you can acquire online.

2.Press release syndication
Press releases are great means of promoting your site online, they building links and traffic.
PR releases have the added effect of showing at the top of the search engine for a while, which further develops your online presence.

3.Social network profile creation
Social networks are a great way to engage your potential customers in their own backyard.
By creating quality social network profiles your can create a home away from home, attract potential new customers and then divert them to the main conversion site.
4.Article syndication


Article syndication is a very effective method to build links and web presence.

Good quality articles can drive targeted traffic to the main conversion site, building important valuable links, establish you as an authority and show up in the search results helping your dominate the search engine results pages (SERPS).
5.RSS syndication


RSS syndication is a newer highly effective means of building links and developing web presence.

Having and publishing a good quality RSS will further establish your authority status in your niche, drive traffic and building links.

7.Leverage partnerships
Google does look down at link exchanges but this is still a good means to build a web presence, by building link between related sites.
You should aim for contextual link place inside blocks of copy and not links pages.

8.Create free tools and widgets
Widgets and apps are highly effective link building tactics but you have to make sure your content is good quality and most of all provides an answer to a problem, i.
e.make sure people need it, sound simple but so many people miss this vital step.Remember as the widget/app spreads so does your web presence.

9.Classified ads
Classified ads are another effective means of web promotion, some of the bigger sites can drive quite a bit of traffic and have good visibility among the search engine.
But remember to stay within the rules of these sites and do not spam them.

10.Knowledge sharing
Know your niche, by this I mean you should know all the forums and blogs that hold influence in your niche and be active in these areas.
Help people with their problems by sharing information.This will develop your web presence, build links, drive traffic and again further establish you authority status.

11.Create Wiki Pages
Wikipedia is massive and has huge visibility in the engines, so make sure you leverage this resource.
Create a wiki page for your business.But make sure you do it correctly; it has to be informative and not promotional.

12.Distribute templates
Creating templates relating to your niche, for various programs is a great means of web promotion.
Create themes or templates based on your niche for very widely used software such as Wordpress or Joomla.Every site that decides to use this fee template will provide you with a relevant link and ha the potential to drive some good quality traffic.

13.Social Bookmarking
All sites should have social bookmarking integrate into their page layout, so users can bookmark their favourite content or product.
Many social bookmarking sites have a very high traffic and strong link popularity.

14.Blog links
As previously mentioned you need to build a good understanding of who the influencers are in your niche, then approach the top forums and blogs and see if they will endorse or review your site.

15.Blog Commenting
I advise caution with this next method as it has been heavily abused, so the search engines are looking to put a stop to this.
First do not spam blogs, you will need to identify the top blog in your niche and read them regularly adding good quality useful comments to their posts.You can add target keywords in the "name" field and add your URL, but make sure you are adding
value to the blog.

Building an effective web presence and conducting a holistic link building campaign is a lot of work and has to be done correctly.I would recommend getting a specialists partner to set this up for your business.Once you have solid foundations laid you can learn the ropes yourself and develop this.


About the Author

Article by Marx Marx from Topmarx Solutions Explode your web presence and dominate your niche space with our Search Engine Optimisation Link Building Service


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