It seems like every marketing guru on the planet these days is urging every entrepreneur and expert to write a book to build credibility and increase cashflow.
Writing a book can be a great way to accomplish those goals, and smart marketing strategies are certainly crucial to ensure a book’s success.
It’s true that “It’s not just a book; it’s a business.”
The problem, however, is that the focus has shifted so much toward “getting a book out there” and building a business around it that hardly anyone acknowledges the importance of writing a really good book anymore.
Courses on how to make your book a bestseller are all over the Internet, but they usually devote only about 1 out of 7 lessons to actually writing the book.
Jack Canfield expressed the problem well at Mega Book Marketing University 2007: “One of the problems with a lot of people that are into the sales mentality is that they’re better salespeople than they are writers, and so you get a lot of people with great marketing skills pushing out books that should have taken another three months to finish.”
Will readers buy a poorly written book?
Sure they will, if it’s marketed well.
But they’re not likely to buy the next book from the same author.
And do you really want word on the street to be that your book—even your best-selling book—isn’t very good?
Just make sure that you start with a great book that reflects the quality you represent.
A great book will generate devoted fans who will recommend your book to their friends, eagerly await your next book, and be interested in other products you offer.
Hi Mary Jo,
After reviewing thousands upon thousands of books the last twenty-five years, I can promise you most of them weren’t even worthy of keeping on my own shelf, much less selling to someone else.
My high standards of the written word make me question folks who say that anybody can write a book! Well, perhaps they can–with a person like you helping them!
If people just want their book to sell, perhaps it will. It takes a well-written book to keep a reader’s attention and to help him remember what he read.
Words don’t do the job. Well-written words do. Add marketing on top of that (including excellent book design) and you might have a winner!
Thanks for your help on my various projects. I love working with you!
Tina Farewell
http://www.BobandTinaFarewell.com
Very true, Mary Jo! On behalf of the consumer, they will value and speak well of a book with meat and rich information to it, than they will a book that is shallow or overrated, yet due to good marketing, “hooked them” into buying it. And we know how important word-of-mouth is! Releasing books might be the bricks that build a person’s empire, but reputation and integrity are the mortar that holds it together!
A problem that some authors face is wanting to make money (foremost) instead of truly having a passion for the content of their book. Writing a book should not be a get-rich-quick scheme in itself. Writers should care first about the message they are sending and the “product” they are creating and then focus on marketing and other improvements.
Mary Jo,
This is so true. While studying internet marketing I have purchased several eBooks that were a huge disappointment.
The outstanding marketing convinced me to make a purchase, however, the poor writing will prevent me from purchasing any other books by those particular authors.
On the flip side, there are certain authors that I love so much that I will purchase everything they write.