We have a love/hate relationship with acronyms. Doesn’t everyone? Common advice for writers is to avoid acronyms but you can use them if you have written out the full name first and put the acronym in parenthesis next to it. What if you don’t know the full name for the acronym? Look it up at Acronym Finder. They have over 1 million human edited definitions. This is a great resource every writer should bookmark.
Let’s face it. You need a Facebook Fan Page for your book and perhaps one for your company too. Some authors are promoting their books and keeping in touch with readers using their Fan Page and other authors let their page languish into oblivion. But you must have a Fan Page for your book. Your readers expect and your publisher may require it.
No matter how you use the page you must make a conscious effort not to break the rules created and put in place by Facebook for Fan Page administrators. There are many rules and you swore to uphold them when you signed on the dotted line before creating your Fan Page. Break even one of these rules and you can wave bye bye to your Fan Page and all of the fans you worked so hard to get.
Facebook is offering you a free service so they get to call the shots so it’s important to know the rules. Facebook reserves the right to reject or remove Pages for any reason and they can do so without warning. Marketing Gum has a great article about these rules and the consequences of breaking them. Did you know, for example, that your Fan Page cover photo cannot include your contact information or pimp your most recent coupon or sale? If you didn’t know that and if you haven’t read the rules you must read the article by Marketing Gum. To read the story of one company that broke the rules read “Social Media : To Facebook Hell & Back” and start taking these rules seriously.
There are so many grammatical rules to remember when writing your book but one that is often overlooked is when to use capitals. Thanks to the Grammar Book site we have 17 important capitalization rules. Read it for yourself at Grammar Book.
Get reviews. It’s that simple. The incredible success of Amazon.com has largely been driven by user generated reviews. Books with no or few reviews don’t sell. Even books with negative reviews sell better than books with no reviews because potential buyers know a book won’t please everyone. If you have a book you need to give away copies to reviewers and ask them to post their reviews on Amazon.com and every other book review site they can find. It’s that simple.
Thanks to Melissa Donovan of Writing Forward we have a list of tips to help writers improve their craft. This list covers many of the issues we discuss with our authors in the 42Rules writing program so we thought it would be helpful to share with you! You can read it at Writing Forward.
We are always looking for new ways to promote our books at 42Rules. One way we’ve discovered to get more traffic to our site and sell more books is to participate in book contests. For example, Good Reads runs contests for authors and publishers to give books away to readers. Once you list a book you get to decide the duration of the contest and how many books you want to give away. In return you get to feature your book title, picture, description and a link back to your site. Good Reads runs the contest, picks the winners and all you have to do is ship the books! This is a great way to get almost free publicity for your books.
One of the best ways to promote your book is to get it reviewed by readers. It’s important to get feedback not only from experts in your field but also general readers who like the topic of the book. If part of your marketing plan is getting reviews then you should read “5 Mistakes To Avoid When Requesting A Book Review” at Publishing A Book Is An Adventure. The article offers some great advice to guide you to getting the most reviews possible.
“My consulting revenue has grown by 6 figures after my book was published. I was able to get more leads, close more business and increase my fees because I am an author.”
—Michael Griego author of “42 Rules to Increase Sales Effectiveness”
If you are an entrepreneur, consultant, professional speaker or coach you spend a great deal of time marketing your products and services. Your goal is to get your message to as many potential customers as possible. But each year it becomes more difficult to differentiate yourself when so many of your competitors are trying to do the same thing.
You can become the recognized expert in your field and build a thriving business by writing a non-fiction book. A book isn’t just a book… it’s probably the most effective marketing tool out there for independent professionals. Your book is the platform from which you build your brand and your business. Here is a list of just a few of the ways our authors use their books to build their business:
Build a brand. Use your book as a branding tool. Create paid products and services on the same topic as the book. For example, your book could become an e-course, an audio book, a series of podcasts or radio shows, special reports, part of a book series, a teleclass, webinar or DVD.
Get more clients. There’s nothing like giving a book you wrote to a prospective client. In the “old days” we created expensive printed proposals with all sorts of graphics but a printed book is far more impressive and shows your potential client that you are an expert in your field. Close more deals by including a free book for every team member you will work with on the project.
Get free media coverage. Media outlets like newspapers, magazines, television, radio shows and blogs need a constant stream of new stories to keep readers engaged. Pitch your book to journalists for review and offer yourself as an interview subject. Chances are you, as an author, will receive much more coverage than someone without a book.
Make money. Sell your books on your website, bookstores and online book retailers. Take them to speaking engagements and sell them at the back of the room. Package your book with other products. Build an affiliate program and have your affiliates sell your book for you.
Increase your search engine rankings. The number one way to increase your search engine rankings is to have incoming links from a variety of reputable websites. Get these links by offering your book for free to online book reviewers and ask them to include a link to your website in the review.
The possibilities are endless when it comes to using a book to build your business. A good book can be used as a marketing tool for many years as long as it is relevant. Now that you know a book is the best marketing tool you can have what’s stopping you from writing one?
©2012, 42Rules, a Division of Impact Marketing Group. Reprints welcomed so long as the article is reprinted intact and all links are made live.
Author Laura Lowell is the creator and Executive Editor of the 42Rules™ book series. The 42Rules™ book series is founded on the belief that most subjects can be summarized into 42 distinct areas that capture a topic’s essence. Learn more about how you can become a 42Rules™ author by visiting http://42Rules.com/write and follow our publishing blog for writers at http://42rules.com/blog/.
Jon Gingerich of Lit Reactor has edited a monthly magazine for more than six years so he has much to say about grammar mistakes. He shares the twenty common grammar mistakes he sees over and over again in both print and online. To avoid these errors yourself read the article by Jon. What grammar mistakes do you find yourself making?
Color Your Life Published wants to know if writers are using Pinterest to market their work. We’re all familiar with and a bit burned out by all the information about LinkedIn, Facebook and other older social networks but what do we really know about Pinterest. If you’re asking yourself the same question read the article Writers, Is Pinterest in Your Marketing Bag? At Color Your Life Published.
