The Clean and Green Club

Guest Post By Scott Lorenz

[Editor’s Note: This article has three important lessons I wanted to highlight: 1) follow news events and tie your book and/or your author in–legitimately, don’t force it–to breaking news; 2) if there’s a news event you know will happen eventually that has such a tie-in, do the advance prep; 3) old books can get good play under the right circumstances. This article was published previously in Fran Silverman’s Book Marketing Newsletter and is used with the gracious permission of the author.

–Shel Horowitz, author of Grassroots Marketing for Authors and Publishers]

Can you pounce on a breaking news event? Not everybody can, but if your subject has breaking news potential then you’d better be ready to take advantage of it.

One such opportunity presented itself to Westwind Communications on February 19, 2008 when Fidel Castro announced his resignation. One of my author clients has a gorgeous coffee table photo book on Cuba and has made 40 plus quasi illegal trips to the island nation. He’s an American citizen and expert on Cuba. https://www.corazonpress.com.

Having pitched this book and his story to all major media from Good Morning America and Nightline to Syndicated Radio, all of the big media outlets said–I’m not exaggerating–“Sure we’ll cover it–when Fidel dies.”

So, like vultures circling above, we’ve been waiting for every slip, fall, missed parade, bad medical report about Fidel so that we could jump on the opportunity. It finally came at 5:30am on the morning of February 19, 2008 with the announcement of Fidel’s resignation. That was almost as good as the dictator passing on! Less drama but still worth covering since it announced a change in power of the United States’ long time nemesis of 50 years.

So, I dusted off the release about Fidel’s death that had been sitting in wait for two years, changed the headline to reflect his resignation, and a few other items and out it went to my carefully maintained and targeted list of media contacts and put it on the wire by 6AM while everyone else was still sleeping.

The result was outstanding. CBS Radio immediately saw the release, set up an interview that ran in Detroit all day and night. Then National Public Radio set up an in-studio interview as did WJR and WCSX radio. Print media got into the act with interviews in The Ann Arbor News https://www.mlive.com/news/annarbornews/index.ssf?/base/news-26/120352203518630.xml&coll=2, Detroit News, Observer & Eccentric https://www.hometownlife.com/apps/pbcs.dll/gallery?Avis=C5&Dato=20080225&Kategori=NEWS&Lopenr=225001&Ref=PH and Oakland Press https://www.theoaklandpress.com/stories/022008/loc_20080220268.shtml. We even got interest, but unfortunately no story since the book was not newly released, from the Wall Street Journal.

Then, one of Amazon’s Top Ten reviewers asked for a review copy, which, by itself could create a ground swell of book sales. (thousands have already read his review https://www.amazon.com/Cuba-Photographs-Jack-Kenny/dp/0976834901). A travel writer from MSNBC https://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/23278430 wanted to get Kenny’s expert advice on traveling to CUBA and the media inquires are still coming in. Interestingly enough, three producers and reporters called me after they got to their office and found out that Fidel had resigned, needed a Cuba expert, did a Google search and found my press release on top of the Google News section.  I love technology!

This whole operation was a success because I constantly monitor the news and set Google Alerts https://www.google.com/alerts?hl=en to watch for key news items. And, of course, I had the release ready to go. Everything was thought out, my client was ready–for 2 years. The gun was loaded, cocked, and ready to fire.

And you know another upside of this? I can still use a version of my original “Fidel’s Death” release later! Don’t think bad things about me, somebody somewhere might have your obituary already written too!

When should you send out a press release? My acid test is that if it’s newsworthy and if it’s timely and useful to the reader, send it. It’s that simple.

There are many factors to weigh when considering the need to send out a press release. As a publicist I have sent thousands of releases over the years and while there are no hard and fast rules, the most important factor is that you’ve got to make sure it’s newsworthy and useful to the reader. Anything else and it’s just a waste of time for the members of the media.

So what press release do you have in your hip pocket? Are you ready when breaking news hits?

————-

Scott is President of Westwind Communications, a public relations and marketing firm. He has handled public relations and marketing for numerous authors, doctors, lawyers, inventors and entrepreneurs. As a book marketing expert Scott is called upon by top execs and bestselling authors to promote their books. Learn more about Westwind Communications’ book marketing approach at https://www.book-marketing-expert.com or contact Scott at scottlorenz@westwindcos.com or by phone at 734-667-2090

When you craft your pitch to the organization you want to partner with, keep these things in mind:

• Focus your inquiry/pitch not on why you want to do this for yourself, but on how it will benefit the organization (please see Part 3 of this series if you need to remind yourself of those reasons)–and on what you can bring to the table to help them, over and above the donation (for example, how you can get them media exposure, how you can open up a new volunteer pool and/or fundraising channel among your workers, how you can get other businesses to donate time, money, or goods and services)
• Come across as thoroughly professional, as some one whose association with the organization adds value to that organization–this should be reflected not only in the quality of your book, but also the quality of your presentation
• Even if you will be donating money to the organization, remember that dealing with your needs could add stress and hassles to the lives of the busy staff and volunteers–so do everything you can to smooth out any rough places for them, and to be as pleasant as possible to deal with. After all, you want them to sing your praises, to want to work with you again, and to recommend you to their colleagues
• Be flexible if you get requests for custom covers or other things you might not expect. Accommodate when possible, but if there are costs to you, it’s not unreasonable to ask the organization to pick up the extra cost

You might have heard that the rights to my award-winning sixth book, Principled Profit: Marketing That Puts People First, got picked up by John Wiley & Sons, and it forms the basis for my eighth book, Guerrilla Marketing Goes Green (co-authored with Jay Conrad Levinson). The new book will include all but, I think, two chapters of Principled Profit, plus some 20-25,000 words of new material. Wiley will publish it in 2010. I’m especially proud of this  because, following an e-mail introduction by one of Wiley’s business authors,  I landed the deal and negotiated the contract myself.

This is the latest honor for a self-published book that also was republished in India and Mexico, won an Apex Award for best book in the PR/Marketing world, has been endorsed by 80 entrepreneurs and marketers, and sold 1000 copies to Southwest Airlines. It’s certainly not unheard of for a self-published book to be resold to a major publisher, but it doesn’t happen every day, either.

I know I’m the author so I shouldn’t brag. But the amount of wisdom and great advice packed into 160 clear and readable pages is astounding.

What sort of ideas are we talking about?

You’ll learn a great deal of very specific material that you can put into practice in your own business. A few of the highlights…

• Why your competitors’ success not only isn’t an obstacle, it can actually help you succeed (Chapter 8 )
• How “biological marketing” enables you to reap hundreds of times more than you sow (Chapter 4)
• Why smart, customer-centered marketing succeeds when ordinary sales techniques fail (Chapter 2)
• How to turn your marketing from an expense to an income stream—not just from its results, but for the very act of marketing (Chapter 14)
• How to convert your customers, complementary businesses, and even competitors into your Sales Ambassadors (Chapter 8 again)
• Why the customer experience is a more powerful testament to your brand (whether positive or negative) than all the slogans and logos and advertising and marketing materials in the world—and how you can harness this to benefit your business (Chapter 11)
• How to stay honest and true in your copywriting while boosting your response: 4 trigger points, 10 keys to include in your copy, and 12 “helper” elements to construct successful marketing materials (Chapter 13)
• Six specific ways to highlight your ethical commitment in your media publicity and other traditional marketing (Chapter 12)—and 12 specific marketing tools that work well for ethical marketers (Chapter 14)
• How to leverage your marketing skills to make a huge difference in the wider world—to help create the type of world you want to live in (Chapters 15, 16, and 18)
• 56 specific resources for further exploration, plus 20 copywriters who can make it happen for you (Chapter 19)

But my problem is…my contract with Wiley forces me to stop selling Principled Profit by the end of this year. And I still have quite a few left. This was a groundbreaking book when it came out—one of the only voices showing that ethical business not only made good moral sense, but good business sense as well. While there are more resources in this area than there used to be, it’s still really hard to find this sort of solid, practical advice on both the theory and the implementation, in a nice, easy-to-read format that anyone can put into practice.

To put it another way, Principled Profit shows you how to find the *value* in your *values.*

So I’ve got a deal for you!

Want a copy for yourself? Take $5 off the original $17.50 price. Visit https://snipurl.com/kdq1j to order this remarkable book. Just visit and enter the code, GET5OFF.

Copies for your list and network are an even better deal. Full cases of 68-72 books at just $6 a copy (rounded to 70 per box), plus shipping at cost. Note that only eleven cases are available, though–you’ll want to act fast. This is absolutely the lowest price I’ve ever offered on this book.

To make it even sweeter, I have bonuses for you.  Use that discount code (GET5OFF) to also get my two newest e-books:

Again: https://snipurl.com/kdq1j

Just to peek at the tip of the iceberg; many others are possible

• Local history (great for a bank, Chamber of Commerce, etc.)
• How-to (very helpful to manufacturers and distributors/dealers who need to train people in their product)
• Health and wellness (drug companies, hospitals, practitioners)
• Business theory (Southwest Airlines bought 1000 copies of my sixth book, Principled Profit: Marketing That Puts People First–what I heard back was that the company president wanted to give them to people he wanted to impress)
• Travel/destination (Chambers of Commerce, attractions, airlines, travel agencies…)
• Coffee-table art book (whatever company, industry, or institution is being profiled)
• Cookbook/food book (food manufacturers, restaurants, gourmet or specialty grocery stores; Dian Pfeifer, author of “Gone With the Grits,” sold 15,000 to cereal maker Quaker, which manufactures grits)
• Fiction (tie-ins with locations, genres, equipment, cars…)
• Parenting and child-rearing (schools, play equipment and toy manufacturers, early-childhood education industry, counselors, even law enforcement–in my seventh book, Grassroots Marketing for Authors and Publishers, I cite the author of a book on bullying that had been picked up by several police departments)

Keep in mind that you can not only sell entire books (especially if you can offer a custom cover so the sponsor’s name is on the front), but also pieces (as booklets, special reports, audios, etc.).

This series will continue with part 5, how to approach the organizations. And as a bonus, part 6 will apply what you’ve learned to bulk purchases in the corporate sector.

Before we get to this month’s tip: Two Important Announcements From Shel

1. In these tough times, I want to do my part. I’ve just released some things to save you money: A brand new e-book called Painless Green: 111 Tips to Help the Environment, Lower Your Carbon Footprint, Cut Your Budget, and Improve Your Quality of Life—With No Negative Impact on Your Lifestyle,  https://www.painlessgreenbook.com — and a website where you can get that e-book and all my books at a discount: https://www.RecessionBusterBooks.com

2. If you haven’t gotten your book done yet, or you know someone looking to become a published author, my new coaching program can help: Shel Horowitz’s Exclusive Ethical Expert Book Publishing Program. I’ll be announcing this in my speech Saturday at Willie Crawford’s Birthday Bash in front of several hundred people, but I wanted to let you have first crack. Especially since I’m offering it at a reduced price this first time out, and because the number of available seats is sharply limited: I’ve told the conference planners to stop taking offers when we reach 30 seats at the Gold level, and only FIVE at the Platinum level, which includes private coaching from me.

And now, on to this month’s tip:

How Organizations Benefit by Partnering With You

It’s absolutely vital to understand how an organization will benefit from your book <i>before</> you make the initial contact–because you must answer that question in your proposal letter. This brief adaptation from Grassroots Marketing for Authors and Publishers provides some possible answers:

The key question to ask yourself is this:
How does this organization genuinely benefit from using my book?
There are many possible answers; finding the correct answer may be the key that will turn your prospect into a buyer. Usually, the correct answer will involve drilling down with “so what” questions, until you find ways to either increase sales of the organization‘s products and services and/or increase the organization’s status in the minds of its customers, prospects, employees, vendors—and in some cases (especially to counterbalance negative publicity) the general public. Among many possibilities, the organization might want to:

• Show people how to use the organization’s product or services in creative or expanded ways.
• Establish its own expertise and/or disseminate its ideas to a wider audience.
• Demonstrate a commitment to the community (as when a local bank sponsors a history of the town).
• Overcome bad press.
• Show off the organization in time for an important anniversary or milestone.
• Woo lucrative clients, investors/donors, or business-venture partners with interesting and useful gifts.
• Use the book for internal training.
• Convey a point of view about a hot-button issue of the day (for instance, a organization might give out copies of a book to legislators, regulators, or policy makers).
• Demonstrate that it is a caring and concerned organization willing to help.

One I don’t mention in the book is more important these days than ever before: create (or supplement) a revenue stream through product sales.

Rather not wait until the end of June to get started? Grab copies of my award-winning books, Principled Profit: Marketing That Puts People First, and Grassroots Marketing for Authors and Publishers. Use this link to get the paperback editions at the discounted price of $41.95, combined (plus shipping), or this link for the e-book editions at just $34.95 (no shipping charge). Between those two books, you’ll get lots of ideas on how to form win-win partnerships that move quantities of your book. ). Of course, you can also buy just one book, at the usual price.

What kinds of organizations are we talking about? The possibilities are limitless; here are a few ideas:

• Nonprofit or not-for-profit charities (the difference is in their tax structure and doesn’t affect you, except that registered nonprofits have more clout) involved with medical or social issues
• Social service agencies
• Government agencies (federal, state, county, local)
• Public or private schools
• Other educational organizations
• Museums
• Trade and professional organizations within one profession
• Trade and professional organizations spanning many professions (e.g., Chambers of Commerce, BNI groups, organizers of business trade fairs
• Meeting planners and conference/convention organizers

Find them through your own networks, their websites and newsletters, trade or professional associations and directories, Chambers of Commerce, tourist information kiosks, Yellow Pages, and a thousand other ways.

Part 3 of this series will look at ways organizations might use your books, part 4 on the types of books that can work (you may be pleasantly surprised), and part 5, how to approach the organizations. And as a bonus, part 6 will apply what you’ve learned to bulk purchases in the corporate sector.

If you don’t want to wait 5 months for all this information, you can buy copies of my award-winning books, Principled Profit: Marketing That Puts People First, and Grassroots Marketing for Authors and Publishers. Use this link to get the paperback editions at the discounted price of $41.95, combined (plus shipping), or this link for the e-book editions at just $34.95 (no shipping charge). Between those two books, you’ll get lots of ideas on how to form win-win partnerships that move quantities of your book.

When an organization buys your book, in quantity, there are many advantages to you beyond the dollars in your pocket. Not that those dollars aren’t a good thing; they most certainly are. But the cash in your pocket may not be worth as much as the massive marketing benefit you can get from it:

• Third-party validation. When an organization buys your book, it’s the highest kind of endorsement. The movers and shakers of that organization are telling their members that your work contributes valuable knowledge in the field where they’re the recognized experts. Is that cool or what?
• Access to the organization’s members. Depending on how the group plans to use your book (we’ll talk about some of the possibilities next month), it may tell its members about you through newsletters, web sites, member events that feature you as a speaker, presenter, consultant, or visiting celebrity. The group could even bring you in as a paid spokesperson!
• Ability to mention this relationship in your other marketing. If, for example, you’re approaching a journalist to pitch your heart-disease recovery book, or talking to a medical book club about carrying your title, don’t you think you’ll get more attention if you can say honestly that you’re partnering with the American Heart Association?
• Potentially, you could even get access to the organization’s other partners, including for-profit businesses that might also buy your book in quantity, sponsor appearances, etc.
• If the arrangement is made before you go to print, you can lower your print costs by increasing volume to supply the organization’s purchase.

For all these reasons, it’s worth coming to a deal. Unless it’s a very small purchase, don’t be afraid to discount. If you can do better than break even, that’s terrific. But if you at least cover your costs, the deal still works in your favor, long-term.
Part 2 of this series suggests several types of organizations that might work for you. Part 3 will look at ways organizations might use your books, part 4 on the types of books that can work (you may be pleasantly surprised), and part 5, how to approach the organizations. And as a bonus, part 6 will apply what you’ve learned to bulk purchases in the corporate sector.

If you don’t want to wait 6 months for all this information, you can buy copies of my award-winning books, Principled Profit: Marketing That Puts People First, and Grassroots Marketing for Authors and Publishers. Use this link to get the paperback editions at the discounted price of $41.95, combined (plus shipping), or this link for the e-book editions at just $34.95 (no shipping charge). Between those two books, you’ll get lots of ideas on how to form win-win partnerships that move quantities of your book.

Today’s Book Marketing Tip is a guest article form Susan Kendrick, of Book Cover Quick Start, discussing (among other things) the important distinction between readers and buyers, and how that affects your book. And by the way, if you order a copy of my seventh book, Grassroots Marketing for Authors and Publishers, directly from me, one of the two free e-books you get is “How to Write and Publish a Marketable Book”-which includes a full chapter on covers.

Take it away, Susan!

-Shel

Does Your Book Cover Have a Hidden Target Market?

One Book–Multiple Target Markets?
Discover the Hidden Buyers for Your Book
(That Can More Than Double Your Sales!)

By Susan Kendrick

By now you must have heard or read at least once that you should narrow
your niche, know your target audience and market exclusively to them on
your book cover. I’m going to tell you to forget all that for a few
minutes, because I want to help you see the hidden sales opportunities you
could be missing.

For the next few minutes, I want you to think about your book in terms of
readers and buyers, two often separate target markets you need to make an
impact on with your book cover.

But aren’t readers and buyers the same person?

Not always. Keep reading. Read the rest of this entry »

Last week, I signed a contract with John Wiley & Sons to do a book based largely on my 2003 self-published book, Principled Profit: Marketing That Puts People First.

Some people think this is every self-publisher’s dream. Well, having been a big-publisher author (Simon & Schuster, 1993) and being married to one (D. Dina Friedman: Simon & Schuster AND Farrar, Strauss, Giroux, both in 2006), I can tell you that both methods have their advantages.

For me, every book is different, and for each book, there are reasons to do it one way or another. I chose to self-publish Principled Profit: Marketing That Puts People First because I wanted absolute control; the ideas were pretty revolutionary at the time, and I didn’t want anyone watering it down. I also wanted to seize a moment that I wasn’t sure would still hold in the two years before my work would see the light of day with a big publisher. But I always hoped the day would come when I could resell that book to someone else.

Another book I’m circulating a proposal for needs a big publisher and a large advance. It will take far too much research time to do on my own, and the people I need to interview hide behind a lot of gatekeepers. Those gates swing open a lot more easily if a big publisher has backed the project. If I don’t sell that book, I simply won’t write it.

A project I just managed for a client went to the printer last week. Speed was essential, because the story is very relevant to a major movie being released in January. We only started working together in June, and most of the work took place after September. A big publisher simply wouldn’t do that for anyone other than a superstar celebrity. I found a copy editor, cover and interior designers, and a printer, and the book will be out in a couple of weeks. Meanwhile, I wrote a letter that the client used to build a relationship with people at Paramount Pictures, and wonderful things might happen.

Also, that book hadn’t been in shape to be taken seriously by the publishing world. It needed cleanup and rethinking, and most big-house editors these days aren’t willing to put that kind of effort into a book unless they know they’re going to sell many thousands of copies.

Which leads me to the key point: the big houses no longer buy many manuscripts on the basis of their merits, but on the author’s strengths as a marketer. They will take a mediocre or adequate book with a superstar marketing platform any day over a fabulous book with no platform.

The reason I got to sign this contract with Wiley is because out of 32 pages (not counting sample chapters) in the proposal, 27 of them deal specifically with marketing and the market for the book, including changes to make the book more user-friendly and marketable, involvement of a celebrity co-author, a market analysis, recognition the book has already received (awards, endorsements, foreign republications, etc.)—and six entire pages about my platform: my speaking, writing, e-zines, media interviews, social networking communities, and perhaps most important, a credible and substantiated argument that I can reasonably expect to use pre-existing relationships with various newsletter publishers (relationships I’ve carefully cultivated over the years) to reach about five million people with news about its publication, when the time comes.

Is this the only way to get a big-publisher contract? Certainly not. But it did propel a self-published book with relatively modest sales into a book that the New York publishing world is taking seriously.

Given that, here’s a homework assignment: Over the next month, write down every useful connection you’ve established, every credential you’ve earned–and then, if you ever want to pursue a big publisher, you’ll have something to work into a marketable proposal.

For years, the house-party concept has been used to sell products, especially in the network marketing industry. Think about Amway/Quixstar, Avon, and other household names. and think about Tupperware, which probably did the most to popularize the model–so much so that the phrase “Tupperware party” came into the language.

In a recent newsletter, Steve Harrison of Radio TV Interview Report/Free Publicity offered a few examples of authors who have done very well with house parties. One of them, Kelly Corrigan, a big-publisher author (Hyperion), actually did a traveling house-party book tour covering over 30 events up and down the Northeast, using her wide network of personal connections to get people in a living room to hear her read and buy books.

The result? #15 on the New York Times Best Seller List. Is that cool, or what?

Personally, I’ve done a house party as a book launch (and got over 50 people to my friend’s loft in Brooklyn for the New York launch event), but never tried to do a house-party tour. Maybe when book #8 comes out, I’ll try it, in addition to bookstore events.

Book parties can provide a big advantage for lesser-known authors who may not easily attract a crowd in public venue such as a bookstore or library. By getting your friends to invite their friends, and providing them with the chance to meet a real author at close range, you can have a very successful event.

Anybody out there try this? Tell us what happened.