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Wednesday, October 30, 2013

How to Use add-on Statements to Increase Your Email Marketing Efforts!

If you are not using every email that you send out as a Free Marketing platform, then you are missing out on thousands of people who could potentially benefit from your books or services.  To include marketing in an email, you do not have to write a few paragraphs that would be too long, and besides people don’t have that much time to read, only to glance.

I would suggest that you create a short phrase, five to ten words that completely describe what you are offering, how it can benefit them, and what it does.  Of course, you can create paragraphs if you want, but you may be wasting your time.  Now I know that this may sound difficult, but who better push your product than you, its inventor, creator, and spokes person.

Examples of simple add-on advertising:

·         Amazing book teaches anyone to make money from thin air!
(10 words)

·         Never pay rent/mortgage again, extraordinary book teaches you how!
(10 words)

 
Any statement should, create a buzz, make you more inserted, and make the reader want to act on what is being said.

Twitter is the perfect platform to learn how to write simple and effective add-on ads.  Because you are confined to creating a short, short statement, you are forced to include everything in one neat package.

Examples of paragraph add-on advertising:

Also known as a sales letter, advertising paragraphs allow you to go into further details, but you run the risk of losing the reader if you ramble and go off point.

·         (Give Name if Possible otherwise Hi!):

How would you learn how to get free airplane tickets to anywhere in the world.  This is not a trick or a gimmick.  My name is John Doe, and my company is offering free seminars in your area!  So if you have ever wanted walk on a Tahitian Beach, witness a Hawaii sunset, visit where the sun never sleeps, or just go on the vacation of your dreams, then attend the free seminar today!

(list event details)
++
 
The paragraph statement has the same effect as the add-on statement it just goes further to create an image in your mind.

Using add-on statements with any email is a great way to get your name out there and to be seen.  I hope that you can use some of these suggestions during your next advertising campaign, it’s free and is another way you can use to build your brand and increase your face time.

 

Friday, October 25, 2013

The Biggest Marketing Secrets for Selling Your Books

Today, anyone can write and publish their very own books, but not everyone can sell a book and make a profit.  No matter what you sell, if you don’t market it, you won’t have any customers.  Constantly giving away your books for free is good for your customers and bad for you.  If you think that there is more to marketing than meets the eye, then you are right.  In this post, I will feed you little known but powerful marketing secrets that can turn one customer into hundreds.

What is Hot Sells!
No matter who wrote it, if it is in the same genre as a best seller, your book is guaranteed to sell.  Currently Killing Jesus by Bill O’Reilly is on the best seller list, so if your book is any way connected to the killing of Jesus, you will receive customers.

Just comb the best seller’s list to see what titles are the closest to yours.  You can even mention the best seller title in your summary as a key word to ensure that your title will be seen with or close to the best selling title.

Don’t Put All Your Eggs in One Basket!
Don’t trust in one marketing campaign to get the point across that you have books to sell.  You constantly see ads from Amazon, Wal-Mart, at&t, and Apple because they know that anybody is a potential customer, and they do not want you to forget that they have the products you want.

The same is true if you are marketing a book.  You can develop a multi-level platform-marketing program.  You can hand out business cards; pass out flyers; post pay per click ads on your own website, Twitter, Google Ad Sense, and Facebook; place advertising banners on the vehicle you drive; even flyers in the local convenient store.

The point is that one marketing source in today’s information filled world won’t do.  You have to act like the big boys and bombard the public twenty-four/seven with the fact that you have something to sell and that you want to public to purchase what you offer.

Make Your Customers Hungry for More!
You can post short summaries of the book you have or are planning to write, but the problem with people is as soon as they’ve read something, it’s gone from their minds.  Well may be it can possibly last an hour, it all depends on how good it is. 

But that is the problem, you have to literally post something interesting every single day to keep the hype up, and sometimes that is just impossible.  So how you do you get around this problem?

You write a short, ten to fifteen page teaser that will force their hands to purchase your book when it becomes available.  The teaser should be free so many people will download your work and in the back of the teaser, you can use this space as a marketing platform to list other works and projects that you have published.  The teaser should be given away free on as many websites as possible to help you get the word out that this great book is coming soon.

Write More than Three Summaries!
The more ways that you can describe the same exact thing, the more customers will fall into your trap.  Think of colors, ten words may be used to describe a similar color: (blue, sky blue, ocean blue, blue lake, cerulean, light blue, royal blue, dusk blue, dark blue, midnight blue).

Because people’s understandings of things are different, it is important that you write at least three different summaries and ads for your book.  Usually, as basic summary, a detailed summary, and a chapter excerpt is enough to get the point across to your customers that you mean business.

A basic summary briefly describes the premise of the book in a few paragraphs.

A detailed summary goes into further details and brings the characters to life, or an idea to reality, and it gives a sense to the reader that you are an authority on the subject and makes you more believable as a writer.

A chapter excerpt is the crowning touch on any summary or ad that you could ever create.  This gives the reader and potential customer a small glimpse into your work and what you can potentially offer to them.

Closing
These are the actual ideas that I have developed and use everyday to generate a buzz and to create and build customer awareness across several brands from books, computer software, and other products.

Only you know what you have written and you are the best town crier for your work.  Don’t let others market your work when you can do the job just as good as anyone else can.  Also don’t get discouraged when sales aren’t as good as you think they should be. 

You are one fish in a sea of millions.  The more you can do to get your work out there, the more money and recognition you will receive.  One final word: never stop writing and never stop marketing your books to the masses.



Wednesday, October 23, 2013

How To Get Thousands of Dollars In FREE Advertising

If you are like me, you are trying to sell or advertise books or other products and come up with creative ways where it will not cost you much, because you have a small advertising budget. 

National newspapers and magazines or trade publications can offer you millions of potential customers, but may people don’t realize that they offer free advertising too.  An exchange ad ‘old school’ is where they exchange a free ad for advertising by you in your book or product, on your vehicle, house, et. cetera.

While an advertisement placed in only one newspapers or magazines may bring astronomical results, it is important to use different pitches to various magazines and newspaper editors.  With so many hundreds and thousands trade publications from which to choose, the logical question is, where will an ad get the best results? There is no 100% accurate answer? It is a matter of testing various markets and to see which trade publications will go along with your request.

It is obvious that you will have a hard time getting your foot in the door with major trade publications such as Hearst, or New York Times, but many smaller or regional publications may have room for you.  Purchase a few of the magazines and or newspapers that you would like to see your ads in to see how much filler copy they use.

Filler copy is ads used to make the trade publication fuller.  Ads touting the trade publication are filler ads, so are multiple ads of the same business or organization.  If a trade publication has no ads, then it has no advertisers.

 
Developing Your Plan of Action

1.    Create the advertising pitch you want to use over the telephone and by email.  Any pitch you make should include sales figures (if possible), or potential sales figures, target market data so that they can insure that you are a good fit, and where you want your advertising to reach.

2.    In your pitch, include the following statement: ‘I will exchange advertising for my new (book, product) with an ad placed inside my (book, product) on the front cover, inside pages, cover box, etc. your choice.  I will also drive around with an ad on my vehicle if you wish to sweeten the deal.’

3.    Write letters and send emails to the editors of the trade publications you want your advertising in.  If you bombard them, you may get seen.

4.    Never, never take NO for an answer, keep fighting till you get a yes!

5.    Once you get in the door, stay inside and do not do things that will cause them to drop you.

6.    Enhance the deal by offer a percentage of your sales to the editor or charitable organization.
 
7.  Go online and find trade publication contacts in your area today.
 

Thursday, October 17, 2013

Tuesday, October 15, 2013

Free Old Fashion Grassroots Marketing

The Premise
Whether you have a print book or a digital book, you won’t have any sales if you don’t have any customers.  Sure, selling tools do work and so does social media, but a grassroots campaigning is what is missing from today’s marketing strategies.

Using grassroots techniques ensures that you only need a ‘small or not advertising budget, according to Startup Nation.  Grassroots campaigns also allow you to be flexible and offer rewards to your customers.  The best grassroots campaign is Word of Mouth.

Word of Mouth
Word of mouth is always free and it is very, very easy to slip your books into a conversation.  Since word of mouth is just like basically standing on a street corner and selling your goods, only classier, everyone can succeed using this technique, even if you are not a big talker.

Pass Out Flyers
If you stood outside, all day long and handed out flyers to passerby’s, this would be another form of grassroots marketing that is still very popular today.  For just the cost of paper and ink, you can create sales, get your name out there, and possibly meet people who can further your marketing techniques.

Public Relations
Neil Sission states that public relations is one of the oldest marketing tricks in the book.  He suggests that you spin your ‘product’ into a human-interest story.

It is the human connection that drives us or in some cases compels us to purchase this product over someone else’s.    If you can tie your product into a local event such as a fundraiser (the human interest angle).  You will not only get community support for your product, you will also get free media coverage and maybe you can get featured on a national news program, that is if you can create a large enough spin.

The Free Angle
Doesn’t the word free just make you want to run out of your home just to see what is being given away?  For it to be such a simple word free evokes visions of things from a free piece of gum to free money.  Offering your product for free will not only get you attention, and lots of it, it allows you to ‘stuff’ the free item with information about other books you may offer and thereby further to increase your bottom line.

Other Marketing Ideas
If I thought about it, I probably could list hundreds of Grassroots Marketing ideas, but I don’t have that much time to write and I am sure that you don’t have that much time to read.  Other ideas can include door to door conversations with the people in your town, but be aware that most cities now charge a small door to door fee.  Be interviewed on a talk radio station.  Talk radio is a great way to interact with the general public on a much larger scale.  Though talk radio segments work best with social media; it is still another great way to be seen.  Again, its about getting your books out there for the world to see and buy.


 
In Closing
If all you do is wake up with an idea, it may be the most successful free marketing campaigning that you’ve ever created.  When you have a marketing budget of zero, anything that you can do to create sales will help you get up to the curve and eventually pass it by.  If you wrote a cookbook on how to prepare eggs one hundred different ways, you could stand on the street corner dressed as an egg to promote your new book.  Not all-marketing ideas are flawless and some may be down right messy, but any idea is better than no idea at all.

“Grassroots Marketing is at the personal and local level which is where we market ourselves.” Lisa Bishop.


Books
PDF Grassroots Marketing for Leaders: Lisa Bishop
PDF Sustaining Grassroots Community-Based Programs:

Resources
www.pram-aam.org
www.startupnation.com






Monday, October 14, 2013

Live Rent Free At Any Age Has Taken Off!

Yes You Can!
There are hundreds of people all around the world learning how to Live Rent Free At Any Age, and you can too!  Most people will never know that there something better wait for them without a little push in the right direction.  Live Rent Free At Any Age not only gives you that nudge, it puts you and your family on the rail road tracks of independence and self reliance.

You, your friends and your family can get a piece of this independence with Live Rent Free At Any Age, which has continued to sell well after last months special promotion.  There will be another promotion in November, but if you can't wait, purchase a copy today!

Updated summary of Live Rent Free At Any Age!

For nothing more than your time, you can live in a Castle in Germany, a Chateau in the South of France, a Penthouse in New York City, in a Beach House on the California coast, a Mansion in England, or a Ranch in Montana?

Millions of people all around the world live in luxurious homes such as these and you can too!

Live Rent Free At Any Age is not a dream, but it is your passport to a better life anywhere around the world that you want to live.  It gives you the freedom to put your children in the best schools, to live in the finest neighborhoods, cities, and towns, and it allows you to create the life you’ve always wanted for you and your family.

Live Rent Free At Any Age gives you the freedom to spend your paychecks how you want, whether you decide to save for the future, purchase the finest sports car, gold and diamond jewelry, the best clothing or more; you will finally be able to spend your money on something other than the bills.

Never, pay a rent or mortgage, utility bills, satellite television, or the Internet where you live again and be treated to the best of everything someone else’s money can afford. In some cases, you will also never have to pay for the vehicle you drive, or the food you eat.

You may be asking what all of this is going to cost me?  Time.  That’s is it.  In exchange for your time, you can get all of the things that millionaires have and posses.  You and your family get to live in the lap of luxury.

You can’t afford to pass up on this valuable information, because it just may change you and your family’s lives, for the better.

ON SALE NOW
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Live Rent Free At Any Age!

Only $0.99
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ASIN: B00F499JYA

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Vivir de Alquiler Gratis A Cualquier Edad!
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ASIN: B00F4CY456

Thursday, October 10, 2013

The Art of Creating Stunning Book Covers – Part Two - Building Your Stunning Book Cover

The Art of Creating Stunning Book Covers – Part Two
Building Your Stunning Book Cover

Designing a book cover may seem like a challenging task, it truly is at first, as I have developed over 30 book covers.  But as time goes on, and you continue to build book covers, your skills improve and your covers, depending on the style, start to look like a professional designed them.

The purpose of this article is to help you design your perfect book cover.  With any design, it all starts on a sheet of paper and a pen.  Let’s review: did you complete your assignment from part one? 
  • Did you come up with three words that can be used to describe what your entire book is about?  If you don’t already have a title, you can use these three words in place of an actual title that you may think up later.
  • Did you find a digital image that can be used to visualize what your book is about?  Since some people create images from seeing (visual) and others create an image from reading, the three words you picked above must also correlate with the image you have chosen.
  • Since type fonts vary greatly, you will want to select one that has the capabilities of being in bold.  You will find that a bold face font attracts more attention from a potential customer that a thin font types

Building Your 3-D Stunning Book Cover with Gimp

Below are step by step instructions for creating your 3-Dimensional Stunning Book Cover.  You may want to print out this article, so you can follow along in the Gimp program.  I used Gimp 2.6 to create the cover below.

Depending on the dimensions, your 3-D book cover can also be a Cover Box, DVD/CD Case, Notebook, et cetera.

* Denotes A New Step
>Denotes to click on a button

Creating a Book Cover, Spline and Top portion:

The Book Cover Screen
*Open Program
>File
>New (window)
Image Size Width 1600 px. by Height 2400 px.
>Ok

Digital Photographic Image Screen
*Using Selected Image
>File
>Open
Select where Image is
>Open Image

*Resize image to fit the width of the book (1600 px.)
>Image
>Scale image Width 1600 px. by Height 1200 px. / quality – Cubic
>Scale

*Insert Image into Book Cover Screen
>Select (opens menu)
>All (makes dashed border move)
>Edit
>Copy Visible

Book Cover Screen
*Open Blank Book Cover Screen
>Edit
>Past Into
Note: the photo will appear in the center of the book cover, but you may wish to move it up or down by clicking on the move took button in the tool box menu.  To move, just hover over the image and click and hold down the left mouse button to move.)

Close the Digital Photographic Image Screen

Save the Book Cover Screen
*Save As
>File
>Save As
>Select A Name (example: Book cover screen.jpeg)
Select Location
>Save
>Export File
>Export
>Save As
>Save
Note: you always want to save the files you are working on a (Jpeg).  It makes it easier to work on the file.

Open Saved Book Cover (.Jpeg)
*Open Saved File
>File
>Open Recent
>Book Cover Screen
Note: new screen will open smaller than the original screen.  Close the first screen (larger), and increase or maximize the smaller screen.)

Note: you should have a saved image in your Book Cover Screen, if you do not, please repeat the steps above.

Filling the  New Book Cover Screen with Color
*Filling the Space Above and Below the Photograph
In the Tool Box Bar, select the (square)/ click left

Draw a Rectangle in the White Space above the photo by holding the left mouse button as you move the cursor across the image.  Release the mouse button when the rectangle is where you want it.

>Bucket Fill (in the tool box bar)
>Top Black Color Square (Foreground)
-Select a color that matches with the dominate color in your photograph.  If the color is white, choose your next dominant color.  Book covers with white around the edges wash out when placed against white backgrounds.
>Move the cursor across the possible colors, when you have found one, left click on it.
>Ok (to choose a color)
>Left in the space above the photo to fill the color.

*Repeat the same task above for the bottom square.  You may wish to use the same color, a contrasting color, or the next dominant color.

>File
>Save As (if you wish to save it as something different)
>Save
>Replace (if you wish to save it under the same name)
>Save

Open Saved Book Cover (.Jpeg)
*Open Saved File
>File
>Open Recent
>Book Cover Screen
Note: new screen will open smaller than the original screen.  Close the first screen (larger), and increase or maximize the smaller screen.)

Creating the Side Spline
*How to Create the Spline for Your Book
>File
>New
Image Size: Width 250 px. by Height 2400 px.
>Ok
>Maximize side Spline screen
>Edit
>Paste Into (inserts photograph from earlier in the middle of the Spline)
>File
>Save As (example: side Spline.jpeg)
>Save
>Export
>Save

Open Saved Book Spline (.Jpeg)
*Open Saved File
>File
>Open Recent
>Book Spline Screen
Note: new screen will open smaller than the original screen.  Close the first screen (larger), and increase or maximize the smaller screen.)
- Draw

Adding Color to The Spline
*Filling the Space Above and Below the Photograph
In the Tool Box Bar, select the (square)/ click left

Draw a Rectangle in the White Space above the photo by holding the left mouse button as you move the cursor across the image.  Release the mouse button when the rectangle is where you want it.

>Bucket Fill (in the tool box bar)
>Top Black Color Square (Foreground)
-Select a color that matches with the dominate color in your photograph.  If the color is white, choose your next dominant color.  Book Splines with white around the edges wash out when placed against white backgrounds.
>Move the cursor across the possible colors, when you have found one, left click on it.
>Ok (to choose a color)
>Left in the space above the photo to fill the color.

*Repeat the same task above for the bottom square.  You may wish to use the same color, a contrasting color, or the next dominant color.

>File
>Save As (if you wish to save it as something different)
>Save
>Replace (if you wish to save it under the same name)
>Save

Creating A New Larger Blank Page
*Marrying the Images Together
>File
>New Width 2000 px by Height 2800 px.
>Open

Click on the Book Cover Screen ‘Tab’
>Select
>All
>Edit
>Copy Visible

Then Switch back to the Blank Screen Page
>Edit
>Paste Into
>Maximize Screen

Move Cursor to the Toolbox Bar
>Select – Move Tool Button
(Move Image to the Far Right, but not up or down in the white space.
>File
>Save as ‘the new’ BookCoverScreen.jpeg
>Save
>Export
>Save

Close Book Cover Screens One and Two
>Save Book Cover Screen One Changes
>Save

Next, Save the Open Spline Page by Clicking on the Tab
>File
>Save

Creating the 3-D Look
Open the New Book Cover Screen
(Note: During This Process, Do Not Save until you have completed each 45% Transformation. You cannot do these steps if you save the pages first, then reopen them.)
>File
>Save
>Open Recent (select Book Cover Screen from the top of the menu)

Draw a Small Rectangle on the Top of the Solid Blue Field, approximately two measure lines thick.

>Tool Bar (Bucket Fill Tool Button)
>Fill Type
>Pattern Fill
>Select Stripes

Select the Perspective Tool from the Tool Box Bar, hover over the newly created box and left click.  Hover cursor to the Top Left, and angle to the LEFT approximately 45 degrees.

Repeat the same on the on the Top Right of the box.

Then open the Spline Page
>File
>Open Recent (select Spline Screen from the menu)

Then Paste the Spline Screen into the Book Cover Screen Page
>Select
>All
>Edit
>Copy Visible

Close the Open Spline Screen Page

Select the Perspective Tool from the Tool Box Bar, hover over the Spline and left click.  Hover cursor to the Top Right, and angle to the RIGHT approximately 45 degrees.

Repeat the same on the Lower End of the Spline of the box.

Save 3-D Cover
>Save As (example: 3-DbookCover.jpeg)
>Save
>Export
>Save

Open 3-D Book Cover (.Jpeg)
*Open Saved File
>File
>Open Recent
>Book 3-D Book Cover

Open 3-D Book Cover Add words and other finishing touches.  To Get Rid of the Excess White Space Created in changing the dimension of the Book Cover:
>Image
>Auto Crop

Then Resave your completed Book Cover:
>Save As (example: 3-DbookCover.jpeg)
>Save
>Export
>Save

(Note: Finished Image Soon)










Sunday, October 6, 2013

The Art of Creating Stunning Book Covers – Part One

The Art of Creating Stunning Book Covers – Part One
Defining What Makes A Great Book Cover


Wherever there are books, there are covers, some ugly, and some brilliant.  What makes a good cover is not in the eye of the beholder, it is in the eye of the artist and the writer who wrote the book.   Great book covers bring sales while poor book covers bring despair.

A book cover is what sells the book, it is its soul, especially when the books are boxed or wrapped up and the potential buyer is unable to peak inside.  If you have spent a year developing and writing a great cover, you do not want your sales to fall flat because you didn’t put thought into your cover.

Today, we will discover what makes other people’s covers great by examining what their cover’s looks like.  Then we will help you find the perfect cover for the book you are currently writing or developing.  In part two, we will teach you how to create that stunning cover from concept to an actual cover that you can print out and show to others for an opinion.

The Covers of Others

A great book cover is a short reflection on what the book is about.  I took five books, off my shelf to, at random to compare their covers, you can view these book covers on the right, and tell me if you agree or not with my statements below. Would you purchase this book because of the cover?

The Lock Artist by Steve Hamilton – (old cover) His cover is basic black, but the potential reader is drawn in by the x-ray of a pad lock that makes up the front cover.  You can intricately see the tumbler pins and the springs, and you visualize in your mind what the book may be about.  The red typeface is also different with small round holes in many of the letters.  Cover was redesigned, not as unique as the original cover.

Beyond The 120 Year Diet – How to Double Your Vital Years by Roy Walford, M.D.  – The cover of this book is basic, very basic, a drab olive and cream with typeface in three different fonts and four colors and may different points.  The only way a person would be drawn to this book is because of the title and not the cover.

Fast Cash With Quick-Turn Real Estate by Ron LeGrand – What makes this cover interesting is that there is a photo of real US paper money on the cover, a great attractant.  You can also see a photo of the man that wrote the book.  The first two words ‘Fast Cash’ are in foiled red-raised lettering.  There are many different themes that make up this cover, but all of them work.

Guide To Proposal Writing by The Foundation Center – This covers is basic, a simple large dark blue boarder surrounded by a thin burgundy boarder encloses a main cream field.  The title of the book is written in three fonts.  If you were not specifically looking for this exact title, you would pass up this book on the shelf.  (note: the author's name is not on the cover but on the reverse.  Jane C. Geever)

Tunnels by R. Gordon and B. Williams – This is a unique artist rendering of what this book is about.  You are drawn into an old mining tunnel that is supported by massive wooden beams, and at the end of the tunnel, you see the shadows of a man with knives, a dog who’s looking at you, and the image of a great city underground.  This book makes you ask the questions where are they, who are they and what are they doing?

Defining What Your Cover Will Be

So, if the covers is an extension of the book, then what is your book about?  What do you want your cover to convey to the potential reader?  If you had three words to describe your entire book, what would they be?  It is these three words that you should use to design your cover with.

If you wrote a romance novel, you would not put two people who are fighting on the cover.  If you wrote a book on how to collect herbs, you would not put pictures of animals on the cover.  The simple fact is that many independent writers forget this important step and end up with a title that does not sell.  If you only sell ebooks, your potential customer is ___% more likely to make a purchase just based on the cover art.

Apart from the cover art, the font text and size are also important.  It is too small, people can’t read it, and if it is too large it becomes overpowering.  A title should simply frame the image not over take it.

On stunningly created book covers, the name of the writer and the title share the same font type and it can be at the same size or the authors name may be a bit smaller, but not so small where it appears hidden.

Covers that are too busy and have too many elements are often overlooked by something that is more simplified (think of your three words); but over simplified books, solid color covers, or two color covers are also passed up because they do not convey enough of what the story is.

Closing

You have been given a few tasks before the next part of this blog.  I want to think up your three words that describes the entire work of your book?  Then, I want you to find a simple, not busy photographic image online that you can use to create the cover.  Next, think about what type of font type you what to use and the size of the font. 

When you have all of these elements, put them aside and wait for part two of this blog, How To Create Your Stunning Book Cover where I will teach you step by step on how to use your elements to create an actual book cover from start to finish.