Selling books is the end game for an author. Here are some thoughts from author Kathleen Gage.

Most authors want to sell books, but many never will. At least not more than a handful.

The #1 way to sell books is to get yours to stand out from the millions of others that are out there.

Below are 10 very easy to implement “stand out” ideas.

1. Article marketing

One of the oldest online marketing strategies is still one of the most effective. Writing articles that tie into the theme of your book should be very easy. After all, you are a writer.

Even if you don’t have a lot of time on your hands you can take portions of a chapter and create several articles.

At the end of the article add in something that drives readers back to your blog, website or landing page to opt in for something of value. Yes, ethical bribes still work.

2. Tell people

You need to let your friends, family, colleagues, clients, peers and just about anybody you know that your book was published. After all, if you’re not willing to talk about your book others may not be either.

3. Reviews from happy readers

Third party endorsements (verbal or written) are a great way to have your book stand out. Just today I began reading a book my nutritionist recommended.

Recently Sandi hosted a workshop on food cravings. During her presentation she recommended the audience read two books. I wrote both down and upon returning home immediately ordered the Kindle version of the one that most caught my attention.

Once I’m done with the book I will write an Amazon review. It’s likely I will even blog about the book. Viral marketing at its best.

4. Facebook

Start a page for your book. I have done that for the last two books I was the marketing director for. The strategy worked well in that we created interest in the book before it was published.

Once you start the page you need to let everyone know about it. Be actively involved with those who “liked” the page. Otherwise the page is a stagnant piece and does you no good.

5. LinkedIn groups

A fantastic way to build a loyal following of potential buyers of your book(s) is to start a LinkedIn group that is specific to the theme or genre of your book.

Does a group take work? Yes. But so do all the other methods outlined in this article.

The fact is, anything you do is going to take effort.

6. Blogging

By far one of the best things you can do to build visibility, credibility, market reach and SEO is blogging.

Here are only a handful of ideas for what you can blog about regarding your book.

7. FAQ’s

Frequently asked questions as they pertain to the theme of your book. If you’re not sure what the main questions your potential readers have, ask. Even if you have a pretty good idea, ask.

One way to do this is with Survey Monkey. When someone completes your survey give them a gift for doing so without requiring any opt in. This creates a win/win.

Try the survey method. Not only can you post results on your blog, you can write articles and develop products based on the answers.

8. Tips

Based on the theme of your book you can write tips that are specific to the interests of your market.

Just like I did with this posting, you can do so with your book.

9. Interviews with other authors in the same genre

Why not find other authors who have a following and interview them? Not only will you have great information for your blog, you will build credibility by association.

10. Case studies

If your book is a how to, you can profile those who got specific results based on the information your book outlines. This not only increases potential reader interest, it substantiates the value of your book’s information.

11. Guest Blogging

One of the fastest and most effective ways to increase market reach and visibility for you and your book is to be a featured blogger on other high traffic blogs.

12. Videos

Without a doubt video is one of the most powerful marketing tools you can use to promote your book. You can do book trailers, short readings, or simply share stories as they relate to your book. Be sure to be animated during your shooting and use keywords both in the spoken part of the video and the title and description.

So there you have it… 12 simple ways to gain visibility for your book(s).

3 Simple Steps to Begin Making Money Online Right Now! FREE online course from Kathleen Gage. Kathleen works with spiritually aware speakers, authors, coaches and consultants who are ready to turn their knowledge into money making products and services. http://www.streetsmartsmarketing.com/3simple.htm

Article Source: Ezine Articles: Author Kathleen Gage

Seth Godin is an American entrepreneur, author, and public speaker. Godin popularized the topic of permission marketing. Known for his innovative concepts, he is the author of almost a dozen and a half books, his latest being: Poke the Box. But, he is also a reader and the following list includes 11 additional books he thinks you should read.

• Syrup
• Don’t Bite the Hook: Finding Freedom from Anger, Resentment, and Other Destructive Emotions
• Little Brother
• The Blue Sweater: Bridging the Gap Between Rich and Poor in an Interconnected World
• Six Pixels of Separation: Everyone Is Connected. Connect Your Business to Everyone.
• How We Decide
• The Gift: Creativity and the Artist in the Modern World (Vintage)
• The Tom Peters Seminar: Crazy Times Call For Crazy Organizations
• The War of Art: Break Through the Blocks and Win Your Inner Creative Battles
• The Red Queen: Sex and the Evolution of Human Nature
• The Magic of Thinking Big
• The Magic of Thinking Big
• Here Comes Everybody: The Power of Organizing Without Organizations

Happy Reading!

Lots of professionals have not yet considered publishing a book to “to Burnish Credentials and Attract New Customers.” They are experts in their fields but often think of writing a books as something one does an occupation or hopefully an occupation. But, that’s not necessarily true. May professionals are writing to bring new business in their doors. In some reported cases, having a published book as a professional has opened other opportunities like public speaking. Here is the brief story of two such cases, one dentist and one chiropractor. Why not think about using the fast growing medium to promote yourself and produce buzz and invisible income for you?

A First Draft is a FIRST Draft is a FIRST Draft!
Authors are usually so happy when they have written the last line of their book. Pressing “save” that last time is a bit exhilarating, but that version of your book is only a first draft. Most likely it has some difficulties that need to be worked out before it is ready for a publisher. Give yourself a few days off and then read your book again from front to end, You’ll be surprised at the things you will want to rewrite, replace, etc. It happens to all authors.

Get Your Book Edited
While Microsoft is a wonderful program to create in and its spelling and grammar checker are helpful, it will still leave a lot of problems that only eyeballs on the page can find and fix. And even then, no book is perfect. There is always some small flaw somewhere when it goes to print. To greatly reduce that percentage of mistakes, you need to consider an editorial service for your book. Harmon Press can provide such a service for you, but there are others around, also. The bottom line here is “Don’t Edit Your Own Book.” Authors usually make the worst editors and proofreaders. It’s your creation after all.

Send It To A Publisher
One of the most difficult things for an author to do is to finally stop “tinkering” with her/his manuscript. At some point you need to stop “fiddling with it” and give it to a publisher. It can’t get published just hanging out on your computer. Cut the umbilical cord and let your creation become available for others to read and enjoy. Recently, I had the opportunity to sit with an author as he saw his book and held it in his hands for the first time. The look on his face was priceless. You don’t get a second chance to see and hold your book for the first time. You will never get a first chance to see it at all, if you don’t send it to a publisher. So when you are ready, upload your manuscript to Harmon Press.

You will want to get as much exposure off line as well. We have already talked about groups that you can join and getting your books in bookstores to do book signings.

Book signings are the best way for your to get exposure with your book. You can do them in any local bookstore. They will be glad to have you. You can bring your books to the bookstore to sell them.

Most larger bookstores, such as Barnes & Noble and Borders will want you to go through the main office in order to have your book stocked on their shelves. These stores will want to see a copy of your book before they place an order. This can be time consuming for you, but is well worth a try.

You are better off, however, to approach the manager of the bookstore and offer them the books on a consignment basis. They will let you do a book signing and you can bring your own books, but will have to give a commission to the store.

You can use a book distributor to distribute your book to local bookstores to get them on the shelves. This may be easier than going through the corporate route. You will have to buy the books from the publishing company in order to get them to the distributor.

The distributor will then work to get the books to the major bookstores. Again, this is a tough sell. Best sellers from major presses have more shelf space in bookstores as well as prominent shelf spaces. Just like in the supermarket, the biggest distributors have the most attractive shelf space. If you think that you will see your book on the center shelf at the major bookstore, think again. If they take your book, it will be in the shelves. This is why you need to promote the book with book signings. You should still do what you need to do to get the book at the bookstore.

There are still plenty of local, independent bookstores available. They are much more receptive to local authors and will eagerly take your book on a consignment basis. They will be glad to have you go in there and do a book signing. Take a look at independent bookstores in your area.

Make sure that you join an off line group of self publishers and take advantage of book fairs that are made for self publishing authors. You can also make up bookmarks for your book so that they can be handed out at these fair. The bookmarks should have information about the book as well as where readers can find it.

You have to do some legwork to get your book out there to the public. You need to be sure to do as much as you can to get the book information out there. The more you continue to promote your book, the more interest it will generate.

When you go though the time and work of putting all of your creative talent into a book, you want to do what you can to make sure that the book is read. Most writers who are good writers are not as much interested in the money for the book than they are in the book being read by others.

Having your book read and enjoyed by other people is the most gratifying thing a writer can experience. Working hard to complete and print your book and then having others enjoy your writing is one of the best things a writer can experience.

If you have been considering writing a book but are not sure if you can get a publisher, you should consider self publishing your book. Instead of trying to get an agent and a publisher to look at your book and then only give you a small percentage of the profit, you can easily self publish your own book and have others read it.

Take a look at Harmon Press our frequently asked questions and rates to see which is right for you. Then get started writing and making your dream come true!

One of the best ways to sell your book is online. Your first venue will usually be the self publishing company that prints your book. They not only print books but also sell books that are written by their authors. You can depend on many sales from a self published book from the website.

Be sure to tell family and friends that you have published a book and encourage them to buy it online rather than from you. Most websites rate books on the sales, so you want to make sure that any sales go through the website.

Most of the online print on order sites will list the books on Amazon. Amazon is the biggest seller of books in the world. Getting your book listed on Amazon is the same as having it on a shelf in a bookstore. But remember that if no one knows that you have a book out, they will not find it unless they stumble upon it.

Use social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter to get the word out about your book. You can also place links to the book page on various forums. You do want to get a website so that you can spread the word about the book. Developing your own website and getting a host is neither difficult or expensive. You can have a website and host for your book very inexpensively.

You cannot afford to ignore the power of online marketing when it comes to selling your book. The fact is that today that many books are sold online, in fact the vast majority of people sell their books online. You want to be sure that you do your best to market the book as much as possible on the internet.

Digg is another site where you can put comments and information about your book. Digg usually takes articles that can be “dugg” by others. You should have all of your family and friends digg the article up so that others can see it. The more exposure you get online, the better off you are.

Another site that you can use is Propeller. This is the Yahoo site that is similar to Digg. Anyone with a Yahoo account can buzz an article up. If you get enough buzzes to your article, it may appear on the Yahoo home page. You can write an article using a pen name about a local writer who has written a book and place it on these sites so that others will boost it up in the engine. This is one way to get recognition for your book online.

You need to have as much exposure for your book as possible for your online book. Make sure that your book features on Amazon as well as the site where it is printed. Also be sure that you have a website that tells a little bit about the book and gives readers an incentive to buy the book. You cannot get overexposed when you are online and trying to promote your book.

You will find that you get more sales from online sales than you will from book store sales. While it is important to get as much exposure as possible for your book, you need to concentrate heavily on online sales. Get as much online exposure as you can for your book so that you can make sales.

After you have your book published and ready for sale, what do you do? You do the same thing that you would do if your book was published by a traditional publishing company – promote it!

There are many ways that you can promote your book both online and off. One thing that you will want to do is to promote your book by getting some positive reviews on Amazon. If you have your book listed on Amazon, and you will if you publish with Harmon Press, you can get reviews for the book from a book reviewing service. You can send them a disk with the book on it in PDF format and have people read it and give it a good review. The more reviews it gets, the more it will rise in Amazon.

You should have a website as a teaser for your book. When you have a website, you can sell books directly from the site or you can send the buyers to Amazon. You can become an affiliate of Amazon and get paid a commission on all of your sales. You can also have a post office box where people can order you book by mail. In addition, you can also direct them to the self publishing company where they can find the book. You can then market your website using strategies that are used to market any website.

You can place book reviews on the book to various book review websites online. There are many sites where you can place book reviews of your book. You can also put a link to the book website on these sites.

If you book is non-fiction, you want to write articles and place them in article hubs on the Internet. Article hubs will allow you to place free articles online. Do a Google keyword analytic to see which are the right keywords for your book. You can write articles with these keywords and place them on the different sites with a backlink to your site.

In addition to promoting your book online, through the use of the website and book reviews, you can also join writing groups that are for self published writers. There are many sites that are made for self published writers that you can take advantage of and promote your book. You should also look into local libraries that often have groups for self published authors. There are often book fairs for self published authors as well.

You can send your book to different newspapers and local magazines that review books. Bear in mind that papers like the New York Times and magazines like the New Yorker have many books that people want them to review. You have a better chance of getting your book reviewed by magazines that are genre related to the book that you have written.

Small, independent bookstores will feature your book, especially if they are local bookstores. You should take your book in there, buying up several copies of the book for selling and then have a book signing. Most bookstores are more than happy to have local authors visit and sign books. This can be advertised through flyers and in the bookstore itself. As the bookstore gets a commission for each book that you sell, they are more than happy to have local authors come in and sign books. This brings business to the store as well as gets you recognition.

If you have a small local newspaper, you can use them for publicity for your book. Small, hometown newspapers are an ideal way to spread the word about your book.

Take a look at your local parks department to see if they have anything for self published authors. Many parks departments are having book signings for those who self publish.

You can also take your book to gift shops that will sell it on consignment. This is an ideal way to sell cookbooks that are self published. Be sure to match the type of marketing that you do to get the word about your book out there to the venue. Leave no stone unturned when you are marketing your book.

If you run out of ideas, purchase a copy of John Kremer’s book 1001 Ways to Market Your Book. It just jammed with ideas of how to market your book.

Editing your book is different than proofreading. You need to pay attention to style as well as grammar when you are copy editing. It pays to have good grammatical skills and have a certain style that you use for your book when you are considering your own editing.

Most of the self publishing sites offer copy editing services for an extra charge. This can help you over awkward phrases that you may not notice in your book as well as other grammhttp://harmonpress.com/wp-admin/post-new.phpatical problems. You may say something in a way that you do not mean when you are writing a book. It may make sense to you, but not to others. A copy editor will read your book with a fresh pair of eyes and pick out errors. They will also pay attention to style and pick out any spelling errors that they may see.

Copy editing for a book will also help you tighten up your book. In some cases, they will eliminate repetitive sentences or words that bog down your book. Copy editing is not like regular editing, which will take a good look at your book to see if it makes sense. An editor will usually make suggestions for broader changes than a copy editor.

It is a good idea to pay someone to edit your book. You should at least hire someone to copy edit the book. You can go to Elance for an editor or you can pay for the editing from a self publishing company. Copy editing costs more that proofreading, but can be the best money that you spend when you are self publishing a book. An editor can make sure that everything in the book makes sense and is written in the same style.

Writers often have a habit of switching styles when they are writing. Most writers have a creative streak that causes them to write. It can be difficult for them to edit their own work just as it can be difficult for them to proofread their own work. Spending the money for editing is one of the best investments that a writer can make.

In fairness, you can also print your book yourself. You can do this at a number of different places, although you have to typeset your book as well as prepare it for the printing press. This can be laborious and frustrating if you don’t have the skill set available to do an excellent job.

Online printers will print your book. You can get an ISBN number yourself by going to the site at isbn.org. You need one number per book. You can get them in a barcode to put on your book that you print yourself.

It is less costly to print your own book. You can use an off line printer as well as an online printer. You just have to get everything ready for printing. This includes the cover. The cover will be made of a thicker paper and can be glossy or matte. The cover is an important part of the book, so it is a good idea to hire a graphic artist to design the cover if you are planning on printing the book yourself.

In order to get an ISBN, you have to set up a publishing company of your own. You can do this easily enough and then apply for the ISBN. It can be costly to pay for these numbers on a single basis, which is why it often pays to have the self publishing company print the book for you and get the ISBN. Because they order more of them, they get them at a lower price. If you are planning on printing up more than one book, you can order a series of 10 ISBN numbers and get a discounted price. Self publishing companies order these by the hundreds, which is why they can provide a number for customers included in their printing price.

The disadvantage to printing your own book is that you cannot get it listed on online sites such as Amazon. You can distribute it to bookstores and gift stores, however, as long as you have the ISBN. In some cases, such as a gift shop, they may take books that are just printed crudely without an ISBN on a consignment basis.

Printing your own book is a lot of work but works for some who are on a limited budget and cannot afford a few hundred dollars to use a self publishing company, then this may be the way to go. It takes some knowledge in how to format the book as well as design the cover. You may end up spending money on a graphic artist if you want to get your cover to look professional.

You also have to also figure that you will have to do your own editing and proofreading when you are printing up your own book. This can be very time consuming, which is why many writers prefer to pay the money to a self publishing company.

Printing your own book may work if you have a small literary magazine that you put out. It can work if you just want to distribute books personally and sell them. It can work if you are planning just to sell your book on your own. You have to remember that even with an ISBN a book store may be reluctant to put a book on their shelves that does not look as if it has been professionally printed. Decide how you want to sell your book and where and then decide how you wish to have it printed.

If this sound like way too much time and energy, let Harmon Press publish for you.

It is fair to say that you are reading this information on a print-on-demand (POD) publishing site that helps authors get self published.

Years ago, if someone wanted to get a book self published, they had to pay thousands of dollars. A press would publish the book for the individual and give them a certain amount of copies. All of the copies, plus the fees that were involved in setting the press and printing, were paid for by the author of the self published book. Those who did seek to have their books self published were not thought to be good authors. The name used for self publishing in those days was vanity press. It was thought that those who got their books published this way just had the money, not the talent, that was needed to be a writer.

This is not true today. Because so many people purchase books online, more so than at the bookstore, self publishing is seen as much more respectable. And because a traditional press takes very few authors and is so competitive, it is also seen as a way for a writer to have their voice heard.

There have been stories of those who submitted, just for fun, a first chapter and query letter of a great novel to publishers to see if they actually read them. They were returned with standard rejection letters. Many publishing houses will not take writers who are not represented by agents. This makes it very difficult for someone to get their book published as most agents who deal with these publishers only deal with established authors.

Some decide to publish their books using small press publishers. These publishers will not charge a writer for printing their book, but will also not have the clout to get the book reviewed in the New York Times. The writer has to do all of the marketing for the book and only receives a small portion of the royalties. Needless to say, it makes more sense for a new writer to self publish their book and market it themselves. They can use modern self publishers that print to order and do not charge an enormous fee for publishing a book. The books are given ISBN numbers and are listed on places like Amazon, where most people today are buying books. The author can have their book in a bookstore as long as it has an ISBN. There are many ways for a self published author to market their book.

Since you will most likely do the marketing anyway when you get your book published, you might as well self publish your book with a publisher that does print to order publishing. This way, you get a higher percentage of the profits and the book can be listed online for those who are interested in buying it. Self publishing is the way that many writers today, even those who have been published by small press, are deciding to publish their book.

Harmon Press is a Print-On-Demand printer. We use the same technology that the big boys do. We take you manuscript and give you back a book. You pay for proofreading and a purchase of fifty books at fifty percent off the Suggested Retail Price (SRP). It’s just that simple. You can read here what all Harmon Press authors receive when they publish with us.

Harmon Press prints to order, which means that you do not have to order a bunch of books. We will print a book when a customer orders it and ship it out for you. You get paid a percentage for the books that you sell, which is often higher percentage than what you would get with a traditional publisher and much more than you can get with small press publishing. If you take the time to market your book, which you can do, you can end up making a lot more money and getting your book out to readers.

Take a look online and find a website that will offer you print to order books. After you look around, come on back to Harmon Press and let us publish your book for you.

There are many more options open than ever before for those who want to self publish their books. Because of internet technology and computer technology, it is easy for any writer to get their book published through self publishing. An increasing number of writers are seeking out self publishing to make money and get their books out to the public who are eager to read them.