by Penny C. Sansevieri
Bowker | Tue Mar 27, 2018
It’s a fact of life. As you read this sentence, I have already begun to lose you and your attention. Maybe you’re thinking about dinner. Or your dog. Or what your kids are doing way too quietly in the other room. Now, let me try and get you back. On average, we have an 8-second attention span. And since goldfish have an average attention span of 9 seconds, they’ve surpassed us.
Do I have your attention now?
Attention is now the hottest commodity that you need to be after. If you can’t get and keep someone’s attention, you’ve lost the opportunity to close the sale. So what does that have to do with you? Well, if you look at most people’s pitches these days, you’ll see something repeatedly. They follow a stale format. By leading with a long, overly detailed backstory, they meander along for a paragraph or two, before coming to a point.
by Penny C. Sansevieri
Bowker | Tue Mar 20, 2018
The world of book marketing is moving and shaking, and as with all things, change is inevitable. Part of my job is to embrace change and ensure that we are on the front edge of book marketing trends so that we can be the most effective marketing team for our clients. And although changes don’t mean the “old ideas” no longer work, it does mean that there are some exciting new ways to do things. So with that said, I’d like to share these 7 changes you can expect to see this year.
by Brian Jud
Bowker | Tue Mar 6, 2018
Direct mail has been given a bad reputation because of overuse and poorly designed mailing pieces. People tend to perceive direct mail as junk mail, and its Internet equivalent as spam.
However, when you have a finite, identifiable group of people who are potential customers for your books, direct mail may be the most effective and efficient marketing tool you can use to reach them. It gives you control of the timing, delivery and content of your promotion, a pre-determined fixed cost and the means to forecast and measure the return on your marketing investment.
Unfortunately, direct marketing is too often implemented simply by purchasing a mailing list and then sending an existing brochure. Unless you first prepare a plan, including a way to evaluate your relative success, you may end up wasting money and becoming disillusioned in the potential effectiveness of a strategic direct mail campaign.
by Richard Smith
Bowker | Tue Feb 27, 2018
If you’re an author and want to stay on top of the important issues in the world of publishing — issues that affect you — you need The Hot Sheet.
With all the chatter out there, it will help you sort through the noise with stories that focus on relevant topics from across the publishing spectrum. From author success stories to key industry statistics, you’ll find what you need to know in The Hot Sheet.
In the new edition of The Hot Sheet, just out:
by Brian Jud
Bowker | Tue Feb 20, 2018
Many independent publishers use the Christopher Columbus method of planning. They do not know where they are going. When they arrive, they do not know where they are. And when they return, they do not know where they have been. This is not a good way to run a business.
Avoid this situation by writing a strategic, functional plan to market your books. Your plan should identify the most promising business opportunities. It should clarify your goals and the activities you will employ to move toward your objectives efficiently. For a view of a new planning formula, look through these "ize."
Recognize. A basic premise for successful marketing is to find a need and fill it. You do this by researching three major areas. First, discover what product opportunities exist. Second, learn the demographics and psychographics of your prospective customers. Finally, calculate your potential market's size, growth and competitive status.
by Brian Jud
Bowker | Tue Feb 13, 2018
Goals are the foundation of a solid marketing plan. They provide a target at which to aim, the standard against which you can gauge your company’s progress. They divide your vision statement into manageable steps and provide a path to its realization. And written goals provide a means for looking back to see how far you have come.
If all these benefits of setting goals are true, how can goals be of no value? Goal-setting is a tool, and like any other tool it is useless if used incorrectly. Goals are worthless…
by Brian Jud
Bowker | Tue Feb 6, 2018
Nothing happens until something is sold. That has been the call to action for generations of salespeople. Every day independent publishers make marketing decisions that are designed to facilitate the sales process. We publish books, distribute, price and promote them to entice people to buy them so that we make a profit.
However, the book-buying public looks at the process differently. According to our potential customers, nothing is sold until someone buys something. From their perspective, books are not sold, they are bought -- and publishers could make more money if they made it easier for people to buy. Consumers are looking for worthwhile information that is easily accessible, priced properly, and that they understand will help them.
by AC de Fombelle
Bowker | Thu Feb 1, 2018
Life is all about balance. The balance between your personal and professional commitments; between heart and mind; between activity and rest. A perfect life is one in perfect equilibrium. In self publishing, the tricky balance is between writing, editing and marketing. Three necessary activities for a successful publishing project.
Photo by Thought Catalog on Unsplash
by Brian Jud
Bowker | Tue Jan 23, 2018
What do you need to succeed in book publishing? Your first thought may be money, particularly OPM -- Other People's Money. However, that is not as critical as you may think. Money will come when you do everything else right. The most important attributes that lead to success cannot be purchased. Here are the Top 10 “Must Haves” for success in book publishing:
| Information |
Skills |
| Contacts |
Plans |
| Ideas |
Accountability |
| Feedback |
Camaraderie |
| Support |
Resources |
by Richard Smith
Bowker | Tue Jan 16, 2018
If you’re an author and want to stay on top of the important issues in the world of publishing — issues that affect you — you need The Hot Sheet.
With all the chatter out there, it will help you sort through the noise with stories that focus on relevant topics from across the publishing spectrum. From author success stories to key industry statistics, you’ll find what you need to know in The Hot Sheet.
In the latest edition of The Hot Sheet:
