|
|
|||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||
|
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
    |
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
by Alex Perez-Prat
E-books have certain abilities and qualities that other mediums don´t possess. For example, e-books are fairly easy to produce and their production cost in terms of money is zero. Just think about it: you don't need a publisher, a printing press, offset film, ink, paper, or even a distributor. You just need a great concept, the ability to write it or to hire a writer, and the right software to make it.
Also, e-books have the possibility of an easy and rapid online distribution. They are also easily updated; they don´t require a reprint. All you need is to go into your first creation and make the opportune modifications. Because of this flexibility, e-books can change and increase the size as fast as you can type.
E-books are also immediately obtainable. You don't have to go to a bookstore. All you have to do is download it from a website, and save in your computer.
E-books can be interactive. This is one of the most unique and specific qualities that e-books offer. You can add surveys, order forms for customers to purchase your products, sound and video, even direct links to relevant sites that will expand your e-book outward. The potential is virtually limitless.
There are a lot of ways to use e-books to promote your business and drive qualified visitors to your website. You can use them as a free gift for making a purchase or for filling out a subscription to your newsletter. You can put your e-book on a CD, and you will have an innovative brochure. Blow your competition away by inserting the CD into your sales packages.
The most effective marketing products are those that are unique. Copyright your e-book, and immediately, you have a powerful tool that you can offer to the public. People will have to visit your site to get your e-book, which increases the flow of quality traffic (and the potential of sales and affiliate contacts).
You can extend the value of one e-book by breaking the book down into chapters for a serial e-course, into special reports available only on your website, or into audio or visual tapes. E-books can be broken down into several different promotional materials by excepting some of the articles and using them to promote your product. You can include a catalog in your e-book to promote all the products or services you sell. You can include a “thank you note” for reading your book and an invitation to download a trial version of your product. Or you can include a form for your audience to contact you for further information or with questions, thereby building your business relationships and your mailing list.
No other medium has this kind of flexibility and ability for expansion. Think of your e-book like a spider spinning a beautiful and intricate web.Now go and create that web, and see how many customers and prospects you can catch!
Alex Pérez-Prat edits The Work-without-boss blog. To
find out more e-marketing tips, resources and tools go to http//workwithoutboss.blogspot.comAlex
Perez-Prat may be contacted at http://workwithoutboss.blogspot.com or app_owner@workwithoutboss.com
by Aaron Krall
"Can an E-book become a #1 Amazon bestseller?" If you have, or are interested in making your ebook a bestseller, you must learn from someone that has done it. The following is a 7 step formula that is proven to work if you want your ebook to show up on the bestseller list Here's the secret: You have to create what I fondly call an "ethical bribe." In other words, say you have an e-book on child rearing. What? Does that sound too easy to sell? Okay, let's pretend the e-book is a work of fiction. Better yet, let's make it an e-book with nothing but poetry in it. Now THAT would be tough to sell, let alone drive up the Amazon ladder to best-seller status, right? Wrong. Again, the key to making this proven formula work for any e-book you may write is to offer enough incentive for people to go buy it *when* you want them to buy it. In short, you have to give people added value. You offer them freebies---usually other ebooks--- which they can have if they buy your main e-book at Amazon on a certain day. Are you with me here? Oh. Well, okay. Let me explain this formula in more detail. Step One: You need an e-book. If you haven't written one yet, go to www.7dayebook.com right now. Get that book and you'll write your own book in less than a week. Guaranteed. Step Two: Get your e-book listed at Amazon. That's easy. Amazon prides itself on listing everything. They'll list your e-book, too. Just ask by clicking on their Help button and sending them e-mail. Step Three: Now create a series of bonuses that you can give to people who buy your ebook. Don't throw up your hands and say you don't have anything. Just as you wrote an e-book, you can write smaller Special Reports. Just think of what your key audience might want to read about. If you truly are selling a book of poems, maybe you can write something on how to write poetry. Ask yourself this question, “If they are interested in or going to buy ______, what else would they be intersted in/ buy? Get the idea? Step Four: Here's a tip: You can also find public domain e-books which you can offer to people who buy your e-book. Search online for them. There are thousands of e-books available, for free. You can find something relevant to your own e-book, and add it as part of the package of freebies that you'll give people who buy your e-book at Amazon. Step Five: Now find people who have email lists. This is a step where less imaginative people give up, saying, "I don't know anyone with any lists!" Wake up, people! There are nearly a million email lists online. Search for them. Again, if you're selling poetry, look for the email lists that cater to poets or maybe to writers. There are a staggering amount of those. Step Six: After you find the email lists, write the list owners and ask for their help in promoting your event. Believe me, all you have to do is ask. They are usually glad to help because you are making a great offer to the people on their list and they will look like a hero when they help you sell your e-book. Again, just write and say something like, "I plan to make my e-book a #1 best-seller at Amazon. Will you help? Just tell your email list that if they buy one copy of my book at Amazon on (pick the day), I'll give them all of the following for free." Step Seven: Finally, set up all your freebies so they are downloadable e-products. In other words, when someone buys your e-book, you want them to send their Amazon ereceipt to you by e-mail. When you receive it, you want to send them the download page for your bonuses. You could also just send the bonuses by email to each person who writes to you, but that would be time-consuming. Still, it's an option if, say, you don't have a website. That's right. You really don't even need a website to make this process work for you. There you have it. Write your e-book in seven days and then drive it to best- seller status at Amazon using the above 7-step formula. What are you waiting for?
Aaron Krall is an information marketer based out of Provo,
Utah. He is currently working on numerous information products
that he plans will be very profitable. To find out more, go to
www.truforyou.com Aaron Krall may be contacted at http://newbiesguide.truforyou.com or evenforever@gmail.com
by Brent Sampson
First, the disclaimers: Since the algorithm Amazon uses to generate its sales ranking is proprietary, the details contained herein are extrapolated from research and field tests. The resulting consensus finds Amazon’s system to provide marginal sales data at best.
To whit, read Amazon’s own definition of its system, slightly paraphrased from their FAQ: “The Sales Ranking system exhibits how books are selling. The lower the number, the higher the sales. The calculation is based on sales and is updated each hour to reflect recent and historical sales of every item sold. We hope you find the Amazon.com Sales Rank interesting!” This last sentence seems to indicate Amazon’s own perspective on the importance with which the sales rankings should be viewed.
You’re not supposed to find the sales rankings informative or helpful. You’re supposed to find them interesting.
In actuality, the process is somewhat more convoluted than they let on. Only the top 10,000 books are updated every hour and the ranking does not depend upon the actual number of books sold, but rather, on a comparison against the sales figures of the other 9,999 books within that same hour. Simultaneously, a trending calculation is applied to arrive at a computerized sales trajectory. So, hypothetically, a book that held a ranking of 2,000 at 2pm and 3,000 at 3pm, might hold a 4,000 ranking at 4pm, even if it actually sold MORE books between 3-4 than it did between 2-3.
Books with rankings between 10,000 and 100,000 are recalculated once a day, rather than once an hour. Current projections, as well as historic sales information play a key role in these calculations. In fact, the predictive nature of the Amazon ranking system is what makes it possible for a newly-released book to outrank an older established title, even though the actual sales figures for the latter far exceed the former.
Books with rankings over 100,000 are also recalculated every day and applied with historic sales information and projections, although in the case of these books, history takes a back seat. Sales projections and trending take an active role here, which is why a book’s ranking can leap from 900,000 to 200,000 in the span of 24 hours or less. Does this mean the book has sold 700,000 copies in 24 hours? Absolutely not! What it does mean is that recent activity (i.e. purchases) for that book is trending higher than those 700,000 books it just surpassed. But, don’t get excited just yet; since the activity of those 700,000 other books range from slow to stagnant, one or two orders are sufficient to catapult a ranking.
If a book’s ranking breaks into the top 100,000, the sales history calculation starts to rear its head, which is why a “phenomenon” book has a hard time maintaining a high, legitimate ranking. A phenomenon is defined by a book that leaps from the high hundred-thousands into the lower thousands (or better) in the span of 24 hours or less, usually due to some concentrated marketing initiatives. Since Amazon’s sales history for that title doesn’t support the leap, the spike occurs and then quickly drops again.
HOW DOES ALL THIS TRANSLATE TO ACTUAL SALES FIGURES?
Since the data is recalculated every hour and/or every day (depending upon a book’s current ranking), it’s impossible to get cumulative sales figures, although those figures are applied to the algorithm during the calculation. No, to get a very rough idea of the actual number of books being sold, the sales ranking has to be dissected dynamically, with the same immediacy as the ranking being calculated, (hourly for top 10,000 books or daily for top 100,000 books). Chart the ranking of a top 10,000 book every hour for 24 hours and divide by 24 to arrive at its average daily ranking. In the case of a top 100,000 book, take its ranking every day for 7 days and divide by 7 to arrive at its average weekly ranking.
Bear in mind that this next piece of information is extremely arbitrary, based upon sales ranking/sales figure comparisons and data received from third party sources. In other words, it's probably completely wrong. But rather than disclaiming this chart until the cows come home, I'll just say this: It is difficult to make sense of something that doesn’t make sense. But it sure is interesting, and now, perhaps, even slightly helpful.
If the book's average rating is... 2,000,000+ Perhaps a single inventory/consignment copy has been ordered 1,000,000+ Current trends indicate total sales will most likely be under 40 100,000+ Current trends indicate total sales will most likely be under 200 10,000+ Estimate between 1 – 10 copies being sold per week. 1,000+ Estimate between 10 – 100 copies being sold per week. 100+ Estimate between 100 – 200 copies being sold per week. 10+ Estimate between 200 – 1000 copies being sold per week. Under 10 Estimate over 1,000 copies per week
Brent Sampson is the President & CEO of Outskirts Press Publishing at http://www.outskirtspress.com. He is the author of Publishing Gems: Insider Information for the Self-Publishing Writer (http://outskirtspress.com/publishinggems) and Self-Publishing Simplified (a free ebook version is available at OutskirtsPress.com).Brent Sampson may be contacted at http://www.outskirtspress.com
by Steven Chabotte
Knowing which books to offer on Amazon can mean the difference between a good income stream and total failure. Here is what you need to know.
First, how do I sell books on Amazon
Amazon.com has a feature called Amazon Marketplace. This service lets you sell your used books, CDs, DVDs, etc. just by listing their code number (ISBN number for books, etc.) Listings can literally be completed in a minute or less for each item you sell. It does take a few minutes to set up a selling account but there is no charge for doing so. In fact the only time you incur a charge is when something actually sells.
There is one small negative to this approach. It only works with products that have a code number. So if you have antique books or other items without a code number, you will need to set up an amazon shop. There is a monthly fee for setting up a shop but the fees that amazon charges are much less in this method of selling than the direct selling method in the prior paragraph. So if you become a volume seller it is probably worth the investment in getting an amazon shop as the investment will quickly be paid for by the savings in fees.
Second, decide your interest level (i.e. just list books or get a store)
The next step is to decide your interest level. It is going to be a casual thing or will you be treating it as a serious business.
Lets say you were just cleaning house and wanted to make a bit of money on some books or CDs you have. In this instance, it doesn't make sense to set up an amazon shop as you won't earn enough to justify the monthly investment in keeping your shop running. But lets say your passion was yard sales and bargain hunting and you knew that every week you could find and list hundreds of books, CDs, DVDs, etc. In this case getting an amazon shop would be a wise investment.
Basically amazon is structured to satisfy anyone's selling needs and they have a variety of simple tools that will help you achieve your selling goals in a quick, cost effective and efficient manner.
Third, these are the types of books you should not be selling
Selling used books is not an obvious thing to do. Common sense would say that bestsellers are the best kind of book to offer because they have sold millions of copies. But it is their very popularity that makes them poor books to sell. If you do a search on amazon for a bestseller, you will find that many people are selling their used copies, many times for under $1.00. With millions of copies out there, the market is glutted. This is true for any type of bestseller - fiction or nonfiction. Other books types you want to avoid are biographies, cookbooks and political books. And of course books like encyclopedias, readers digest condensed books, dictionaries, etc. are also terrible for resale. Oh, and also avoid old library books. There is nothing wrong with them per se but they will be slow sellers because of the markings the library puts on the books.
The only exception to this rule would be signed first editions. If you find a signed first edition, it will retain value and possibly be worth more than the published price depending on who the author is.
Books you should be looking for are books about specific nonfiction. subjects. (In other words, avoid all fiction books.) For instance, books about cars, boats, playing tennis, collecting coins, herbal medicine, business (as long as they are not best sellers), real estate, gardening, etc. are all excellent books and have a very high prospect of selling for a very high price when compared to a bestseller. I will typically get 50-75% of the cover price selling these types of books on amazon.com.
One other thing to note when choosing books to sell. Try to find books that are in perfect or near perfect condition. These books will have their dust jacket if hard cover. The spine will not be broken. They will not be filled with writing. People know they are buying used books when buying from you but they want a book that is nice and presentable, not one that is falling apart.
Where can you find used books for sale?
Used books are everywhere but your goal is to get them as cheaply as possible - preferably for $1 or less. Places I regularly check include yard sales, flea markets, thrift shops and libraries. Libraries often have used books donated to them that they just put right on the sales table. I think the people who donate them think they will end up on the shelves of the library but they never do. Estate sales and auctions can also provide opportunities to buy books. And keep your eyes open. You never know when you might run into a buying opportunity.
Will all the books sell?
No matter how carefully you pick your books, you will end up with some that just don't sell or are just very slow in selling. This is normal. Chances are good that the book will eventually sell but it could take several months. And if you purchase your used books cheaply enough, the carrying cost of the books that sell will be small. I find that if I list a random selection of 100 books, about 25% of them will sell each month. That means that after 4-5 months, I can pretty much assume that all the books that will sell have actually sold and I may be left with 5-10 books that for whatever reason had no buyers.
At that point, I make one of two choices. I either lower the offering price on amazon to try to attract a buyer or "trade" the book for something more desirable.
The only time to buy bestsellers
There is one time and one specific reason I will buy bestsellers. If I have the opportunity to buy a large number of hardcover (and sometimes paperback) bestsellers in perfect condition for under $1 each (under $0.25 each if softcover), I will usually buy them. However, I will not sell them on amazon.
There are a large number of used bookstores that will buy or trade books with you. They typically give you 20-25% of the books list price if you want cash and up to 50% of the books list price if you want a credit. That means I have a ready outlet for liquidating these books. If it is worthwhile, I can just swap them for immediate cash. Or I can trade them for other books I can sell at amazon. In general, I make out better in a trading situation than in a cash situation but sometimes if I have way too many books, I will just go for the cash option to reduce my inventory. It is a really effective form of inventory management.
Before you jump out and buy 100's of bestsellers, do check with the used bookstores in your area to see what they are offering for these books. Different shops may offer different rates depending on their current inventory. A little shopping around by phone can result in a lot more cash ending up in your pocket.
How much can I realistically make?
The amount you can make in any given month depends entirely on how many books you acquire that month, how well you did at negotiating the cost and how well your books choices were. This is a business where you can easily make several hundred to several thousand dollars a month depending on the above items. Also it is a business that can give you higher returns the longer you do it. The more you sell, the more you get to know what will sell quickly and what will sell slowly. That will let you be a bit more particular about the books you choose in your book hunting. Instead of ending up with lots of unsold books at the end of the month, you will have an inventory that turns over very rapidly.
Bookselling is a really fun and stress free way to earn anywhere from a supplemental part time income to a full time income. And with the tools offered at amazon.com, it is really easy to get started and keep the profits flowing. There aren't many businesses where you can make money by shopping but this is one of them!
Steven Chabotte is the webmaster of http://www.thehistoricalarchive.com and http://www.mycitytravelguide.com and a student of the traits of success. Visit http://www.chabotte.com for a complimentary copy of Think and Grow Rich and learn from the masters.
Steven Chabotte is webmaster of http://www.TheHistoricalArchive.com and http://www.MyCityTravelGuide.com and a student fo the traits of success.Steven Chabotte may be contacted at
by Jim Green
When my first book was published way back ten years ago, I thought that was it.
I reckoned I’d never write another one.
But I was wrong.
It has enjoyed many reprints, multiple editions, and proceeded over the years to generate another seven disparate titles from the same topic.
And now to mark a decade in print the 4th edition of ‘Starting Your Own Business’ - How To Books ISBN 1845280709 – is set for publication on April 29th 2005.
But here’s an amazing thing…
This yet to be released book is already standing at No.2 on Amazon.co.uk solely on advance orders! Check it out for yourself using keyword phrase ‘starting your own business’.
Does the ability to churn out niche non-fiction bestsellers revolve exclusively around any of these factors?
- Brilliant writing - Super-intelligence - Inside information
Nope.
They are all useful attributes but none of them will cut the mustard on their own.
Nor is there an exclusive focus on…
- The intrinsic nature of the topic - Expertise in pre-publishing techniques - Who you know or what you know
So what does it require?
It requires a mindset based on a series of unique all-encompassing strategies which you can read about if you take time out to visit the website listed in the resource box below.
Oh, and one other thing...
You must always incorporate into your writing a mystery ingredient that guarantees success for every project you undertake.
Can you guess what?
Jim Green is a bestselling author with an ever-growing string of niche non-fiction titles to his credit. View his output at http://1st-creative-writing-course.com
Jim Green is an online enthusiast and bestselling author with
an ever-growing string of traditionally published niche non-fiction
hard copy titles to his credit. View his test marketing experiment
at this website: http://howtobecomefamousonline.howtoproducts-xl.com
Jim Green may be contacted at http://secretaffiliateweapon.howtoproducts-xl.com
or jimgreen@writing-for-profit.com
Subscribe to American Cowboy magazine, The Best Of The West!
Best Ebony Personals - A dedicated club to meet black singles and friends! Join tens of thousands members!
Send flowers direct from the grower and save money!
|
E-mail:magazine@dvercity.com Questions /Comments: Webmaster |
|
