Kindle books can make you quite a bit of money, just from the royalties. But that's barely scratching the surface. If you play your cards right, you can make a whole lot more from your Kindle books.
How do you do that? By using your Kindle books strategically.
1) Get the contact information of your buyers
That's easier said than done. If you sell books online yourself, your shopping cart system usually captures the contact information for you and adds it right into your autoresponder, such as Aweber or Constant Contact.
Amazon is pretty stingy with giving out customer contact information, so it can be tough to get your buyers’ info.
But all is not lost. In fact, your Kindle book gives you a perfect opportunity for capturing your customers' information. Here’s how:
2) Add lots of links to your Kindle
At the bare minimum, there should be a link back to your website prominently displayed in your book. It could be in the footer or in the resource section, or you could create a short chapter that will offer an enticing gift or upsell that will get the reader to your website.
You could even include an full-page ad or advertorial on one of the first pages. And speaking of the resource section of your book... that section could contain a
number of links, some of them to your website or sales pages, some of them to your blog, and some of them potentially to affiliate products.
However, be sure to make one of your most enticing offers one that lets you capture your readers' information. That's the most important part of the game. Once they're on your list, you can always sell them more of your products.
3) What should you offer?
You should create an offer that is complementary to what you wrote about in the book. In fact, while the book should offer real information, it should also leave the reader wanting... more. And you promise your readers that "more" in a follow-up offer.
For example, if you have written a short book on stress management, you could offer a downloadable hypnosis audio as a free gift. Such an audio offers real value, is an extension of the original offer, and chances are that most people who discover it in the book will sign up to get it. And that's exactly what you want.
4) Create an enticing upsell on your Thank You Page
After they go to your free offer and sign up, make sure there's an enticing upsell or affiliate offer on your Thank You Page. While not everyone will click, you might get a pleasant surprise.
5) Send follow-up emails
Last but not least, once you have captured your prospects' email addresses, use them, and do so wisely.
You should focus on three things: build a relationship with your readers, provide more value, and finally... nudge them to purchase something else.
And if you do the things in this article, you'll soon have a growing list - and many of the members of that list can easily be turned into happy repeat buyers.
How to Grow Your Kindle Book Profits by Creating Sequels and Spin-Offs
To increase your profits from your Kindle book with minimal extra work, follow the lead of TV programs and movie franchises that create spin-off products.
In fact, there are two major ways in which you could create spin-off profits: one is to create sequels, for which your earlier book will help you create a pre-sold audience, and the other one is to write books on related subjects within the same market. The best thing is that they work very well together as you will see in a moment.
Let's look at them in turn:
1) Create a series
Creating a series is an easy way to build an audience that will buy over and over again. This system lends itself especially to how-to type topics, which are a popular genre in the Kindle bookstore.
Examples for potential series are recipe books. You could start with a niche recipe book that caters to a specific niche, such as low-carb dieters, diabetics, people who need to avoid certain foods because of food allergies, and so on. As an alternative, you could focus on certain cuisines or ingredients.
Either way, once you have written and created the first book, you can simply add
MORE recipes, and write a second, third, fourth, and fifth book. There are no limits.
The nice thing about Kindle books is that they do not have to be full-length, as long as the content is great and the price is right.
2) Create books on related themes
As an alternative to creating a series of books on the same theme, you can also add books on related themes. So if you've been writing books for people who need to avoid gluten, you can start a line of books for people who need to avoid sugar, salt, or dairy, or even a combination of these.
At the same time, if you're writing books with recipes around certain foods, you can focus on different foods in turn. The same can be done with ethnic cuisines.
The advantage of the second approach is that you will be able to capture the attention of an ever growing market since you'll be showing up in the search engines for different keywords.
3) The benefit of doing both
If you’re wondering which approach is better, why not combine them and do both! That way you can capture new audiences and sell more books to the people who've been buying from you before. It's a win-win all around.
The best part is that this doesn't just work with recipes. You can also use both of these strategies with a lot of other types of topics, for example with books on hobbies or pets.
You can write books on crocheting patterns, for example, or quilting, or scrapbooking, and add more books on the subject with ever more patterns and details. And then you can branch out and go to related topics.
The same would apply to books on pet care, where you can write about pets in ever greater detail, and you can also branch out to other pets.
Creating additional books with this system won't take nearly as much time and effort as creating new books from scratch since you already have done most of your research, and you're very familiar with the subject. Yet all those extra books will greatly help increase your sales, your profits, and your following.
Niche Profit Maximizer - A Highly Efficient Approach to Creating Niche Versions of Your Kindle Books
How would you like to create a Kindle book once, and with minimal work, create new books, one after the other. That's what you can do when you pick a market with lots of niches.
Let's say you create a book on increasing your sales. You can write a general book, and then you can spin the content to make it the perfect book for real estate agents, insurance brokers, car sellers, coaches, multi-level marketers, financial advisors, and many more.
All you have to do is take the content you have already created, make small adjustments in the wording, add examples specific to your new target market, and Presto! You've got a new book that will attract an entirely new audience.
And you don't have to stop there.
Remember that Kindle books don't have to be big tomes. You can keep them fairly focused on one problem at a time that people want to solve.
So you could create a book for a range of different professions on how to get new clients, or how to network effectively (and with special venues that might be appropriate for them) and so on.
And before you know it, you'll have a series of books such as these:
• Networking for Sales Professionals
• Networking for Insurance Brokers
• Networking for Real Estate Brokers
• Networking for Multi-Level Marketers
• Networking for Solo Professionals
• And so on.
Another possible category might be books about pets, which come in a range of different varieties.
So if you've written a book on dogs, you could take the same content, with appropriate modifications of course, and write books for various breeds of dogs:
• How to bond with your new Poodle
• How to bond with your new Dachshund
• How to bond with your new Yorkshire Terrier
• How to bond with your new Pug
• How to bond with your new Chihuahua
You get the idea... Yes, you will need to do some additional research. Many breeds differ in what works for them, but you do not have to start from scratch. So you'll get multiple books for not nearly the same multiple in effort.
The cool thing is that you can wash, rinse, and repeat this principle, and write books on other problems people might have with their canine companions -- or with marketing their services, as the case may be.
If you write for dogs, you can write additional books on special dietary needs to keep your poodle, dachshund, Yorkshire terrier, pug, or Chihuahua healthy and happy, and sell them to the respective buyers of your previous books on those breeds.
And here's one of the best parts about a system like that: No more writer's block.
You'll have your subjects mapped out for you for as long as you want. There's always another aspect of dog care you can write about, and there are dozens of different
breeds, all with passionate fans.
All those books should keep your Kindle book commissions growing nicely month after month. There's really no limit to how far you can take this system.
Conclusion
As you can see, becoming a published author on Amazon is easier than you probably thought.
If you need help on how to get started, there are a number of great products available that can show you the ropes. And once you've published your first few books, you may well be able to get them set up in less than an hour.
The writing might be a different story, but as you've seen, there are lots of legitimate shortcuts. And the money will make it worth your while. After all, where else can you work once, and get paid over and over and over again, possibly for years to come!
Take action today!
Sunday, October 5, 2014
Sunday, September 28, 2014
How to Decide on Topics for Your Kindle Books
You're ready and willing to write a Kindle book, but you're wondering what you should write about. Here are a few ideas for how to decide on good topics.
1) Start your research on Amazon.com
The first step should be to do some research. Take a look at the bestseller lists within your broad category, and then take a look at the sub-categories that interest you the most.
Check what is selling well. Chances are that these are hot topics, and so if you write a
Kindle book with an intriguing title, it will likely attract an audience.
Obviously, you also want to explore the Kindle store. Again, check out the hot sellers, and see if any of those give you ideas about what you could contribute that's not quite covered yet but should be.
Even if it is covered, you may still have a viable book, just as long you emphasize an angle that's not overcrowded.
2) Visit your local bookstore
Sure, browsing online is fast and easy, but sometimes a leisurely afternoon in a local store while browsing the aisles might give you potentially profitable ideas.
One of the biggest advantages of a physical bookstore is that you can look inside the books all you want, and the inspiration might come from a subheading towards the back of the book, something you'd never find when browsing books online. Don’t overlook the magazine rack, either. Magazines are chock-full of book ideas, many of which might be too thin for a traditional book of 200-plus pages, but would be perfect for a Kindle book priced at $2.99. And because they’re published more frequently than print books, the topics are more current. Magazines also do a fantastic job of writing compelling article titles to pull the reader in.
3) Consider your own experience and interests
In addition, you should make an inventory of the things you know about and enjoy. It's much easier to write about what you know than doing research from scratch. You also might have books lying around the house about topics you're passionate about, and you can use those as a resource to provide you with ideas.
4) Use Google
There are a number of ways to use Google and other search engines to help you find topics for your Kindle book. You want to make sure you write about something people are interested in, so you may want to start by going to the keyword tool. Just type "Google keyword tool" into Google and you'll find it right at the top.
Then type in potential keywords, for example "scrapbooking" or "guinea pigs," and you'll discover how many people have been looking for those words as well as related words.
5) Narrow down your topic in forums
Once you have the broad overall theme, go visit forums to find out about the topics that people care about most. After all, you need to keep your focus narrow, so you can keep your book short and to the point.
Do the members of the forum ask questions about problems they're trying to solve? If you write about the solution, you'll have a readymade topic for a Kindle book that could sell very well. You can even come back later and add the link to your Kindle book to your forum signature and to your profile.
As you can see, it's not rocket science to find something to write about. Ideally, you should choose a topic that interests you... and that you can sell to lots of people who are passionate about it too.
Four Ways to "Write" a Book Without Having to Write it Yourself
If you have a manuscript in your desk drawer or on your hard drive, you won't have a problem creating content. But what if you are starting from scratch?
Consider the following four alternative ways to get content for your project -- without having to write it yourself, or at least while keeping the need for writing it yourself at a bare minimum.
1) Hire a ghostwriter
The first method would be to get someone else to write your book. Ghostwriters are in the business to write for others. They provide the original content, which is then published under your name.
The drawback is that ghostwriters will typically expect to be paid upfront. Their fees can range from a few dollars per page to tens of thousands of dollars, depending on their experience, the topic, and the research they’ll have to undertake on your behalf.
You can find ghostwriters in places like the Warrior Forum or in various sites where people offer freelance services, from elance.com, odesk.com, and shelancers.com. Make sure to ask for samples, as often people billing themselves as writers have never written anything more extensive than an email to their mother.
2) Use PLR products
Another option is to use PLR products to create your own book. PLR stands for Private Label Rights, and it means that you get the right to use the product as your own.
While you technically have the rights to use the PLR products as is, that's not a good idea. Sooner or later, someone will discover a duplicate product, and while you're within your rights, it does make you look bad. At the very least, you'd have to fess up about having used a PLR product.
So rewrite it, add more content, move things around, and make the resulting product your own. This will also help you compete with others who have bought the same product.
3) Use public domain products
The third option is to use public domain products, i.e., books and other materials that are in the public domain. This means that either there is no copyright, such as in the event of certain government publications, or that the copyright has expired.
You do have to be careful with public domain works. While you have the right to republish, you do not have the right to present yourself as the author. For example, one edition of Napoleon Hill's book "Think and Grow Rich" is in the public domain. It has been republished numerous times, in various edited formats, but Hill is always credited as the original author. You can absolutely not republish "Think and Grow Rich" and claim authorship.
The same is true of literary works. A lot of classic poetry is in the public domain. You can edit a volume of poetry, but you must give credit to the original authors. You're just the editor and publisher, and, of course, you get to sell the resulting book and keep the profits.
4) Dictate it.
Many people who consider themselves lousy writers would be the first to tell you they’ve been blessed with the gift of gab. Remember that communication is communication, and in this day and age there are many tools to help you translate your speaking skill into excellent written communication. For example, you can use
speech recognition software such as Dragon and have your words transcribed directly. You could record an audio of yourself and send it to a transcriptionist (check shelancers.com or odesk.com), or you could transcribe it yourself. Many popular writers such as Scott Stratten (“Unmarketing”) use this method for writing their traditionally published books. If it’s good enough for them, it’s good enough for you!
As you can see, you have several options to get the content of a book you want to publish on Kindle, or anywhere else. Just be sure you are clear about the rules for each option, and follow them carefully.
1) Start your research on Amazon.com
The first step should be to do some research. Take a look at the bestseller lists within your broad category, and then take a look at the sub-categories that interest you the most.
Check what is selling well. Chances are that these are hot topics, and so if you write a
Kindle book with an intriguing title, it will likely attract an audience.
Obviously, you also want to explore the Kindle store. Again, check out the hot sellers, and see if any of those give you ideas about what you could contribute that's not quite covered yet but should be.
Even if it is covered, you may still have a viable book, just as long you emphasize an angle that's not overcrowded.
2) Visit your local bookstore
Sure, browsing online is fast and easy, but sometimes a leisurely afternoon in a local store while browsing the aisles might give you potentially profitable ideas.
One of the biggest advantages of a physical bookstore is that you can look inside the books all you want, and the inspiration might come from a subheading towards the back of the book, something you'd never find when browsing books online. Don’t overlook the magazine rack, either. Magazines are chock-full of book ideas, many of which might be too thin for a traditional book of 200-plus pages, but would be perfect for a Kindle book priced at $2.99. And because they’re published more frequently than print books, the topics are more current. Magazines also do a fantastic job of writing compelling article titles to pull the reader in.
3) Consider your own experience and interests
In addition, you should make an inventory of the things you know about and enjoy. It's much easier to write about what you know than doing research from scratch. You also might have books lying around the house about topics you're passionate about, and you can use those as a resource to provide you with ideas.
4) Use Google
There are a number of ways to use Google and other search engines to help you find topics for your Kindle book. You want to make sure you write about something people are interested in, so you may want to start by going to the keyword tool. Just type "Google keyword tool" into Google and you'll find it right at the top.
Then type in potential keywords, for example "scrapbooking" or "guinea pigs," and you'll discover how many people have been looking for those words as well as related words.
5) Narrow down your topic in forums
Once you have the broad overall theme, go visit forums to find out about the topics that people care about most. After all, you need to keep your focus narrow, so you can keep your book short and to the point.
Do the members of the forum ask questions about problems they're trying to solve? If you write about the solution, you'll have a readymade topic for a Kindle book that could sell very well. You can even come back later and add the link to your Kindle book to your forum signature and to your profile.
As you can see, it's not rocket science to find something to write about. Ideally, you should choose a topic that interests you... and that you can sell to lots of people who are passionate about it too.
Four Ways to "Write" a Book Without Having to Write it Yourself
If you have a manuscript in your desk drawer or on your hard drive, you won't have a problem creating content. But what if you are starting from scratch?
Consider the following four alternative ways to get content for your project -- without having to write it yourself, or at least while keeping the need for writing it yourself at a bare minimum.
1) Hire a ghostwriter
The first method would be to get someone else to write your book. Ghostwriters are in the business to write for others. They provide the original content, which is then published under your name.
The drawback is that ghostwriters will typically expect to be paid upfront. Their fees can range from a few dollars per page to tens of thousands of dollars, depending on their experience, the topic, and the research they’ll have to undertake on your behalf.
You can find ghostwriters in places like the Warrior Forum or in various sites where people offer freelance services, from elance.com, odesk.com, and shelancers.com. Make sure to ask for samples, as often people billing themselves as writers have never written anything more extensive than an email to their mother.
2) Use PLR products
Another option is to use PLR products to create your own book. PLR stands for Private Label Rights, and it means that you get the right to use the product as your own.
While you technically have the rights to use the PLR products as is, that's not a good idea. Sooner or later, someone will discover a duplicate product, and while you're within your rights, it does make you look bad. At the very least, you'd have to fess up about having used a PLR product.
So rewrite it, add more content, move things around, and make the resulting product your own. This will also help you compete with others who have bought the same product.
3) Use public domain products
The third option is to use public domain products, i.e., books and other materials that are in the public domain. This means that either there is no copyright, such as in the event of certain government publications, or that the copyright has expired.
You do have to be careful with public domain works. While you have the right to republish, you do not have the right to present yourself as the author. For example, one edition of Napoleon Hill's book "Think and Grow Rich" is in the public domain. It has been republished numerous times, in various edited formats, but Hill is always credited as the original author. You can absolutely not republish "Think and Grow Rich" and claim authorship.
The same is true of literary works. A lot of classic poetry is in the public domain. You can edit a volume of poetry, but you must give credit to the original authors. You're just the editor and publisher, and, of course, you get to sell the resulting book and keep the profits.
4) Dictate it.
Many people who consider themselves lousy writers would be the first to tell you they’ve been blessed with the gift of gab. Remember that communication is communication, and in this day and age there are many tools to help you translate your speaking skill into excellent written communication. For example, you can use
speech recognition software such as Dragon and have your words transcribed directly. You could record an audio of yourself and send it to a transcriptionist (check shelancers.com or odesk.com), or you could transcribe it yourself. Many popular writers such as Scott Stratten (“Unmarketing”) use this method for writing their traditionally published books. If it’s good enough for them, it’s good enough for you!
As you can see, you have several options to get the content of a book you want to publish on Kindle, or anywhere else. Just be sure you are clear about the rules for each option, and follow them carefully.
Sunday, September 21, 2014
Five Reasons It's Easy to Create a Kindle Book
Maybe you've had a book inside you all along and now you have the opportunity to get it out there and share it with the world. But chances are that you're like most people and are intimidated by the idea of writing a book. Here are a few ideas that should make the task a lot less daunting than it might seem at first sight.
1) It doesn't have to be "book-length"
Here's the first and probably most encouraging part: your Kindle book does not have to be what you would consider "book-length." Not even close.
In fact, your Kindle book can have just a few pages. Just find the sweet spot between delivering on the promise you made in the title and description, length, and price. If the book is very short, you may opt for charging just 99 cents, the lowest permissible price currently on Kindle. You probably won't get rich from the royalties, but at 99 cents, your book could be a terrific impulse buy and get you lots of leads.
2) Kindle pages are smaller than regular pages
Not only does your Kindle book not have to contain very many pages, but the pages themselves don't hold as much text as your regular page.
Simply reformat your pages to Kindle's A5 format, and you'll discover that your 2000- word essay has become a lot longer!
3) You may well have ready-made content
Have you been writing articles for article directories? If so, you've got ready made content sitting on your hard drive. Simply gather up a few of your articles, arrange them into a logical sequence, fill in any gaps, write an introduction and a conclusion, add a table of contents, a resource section, and a brief bio. And bingo: Instant Kindle book.
You can also do the same thing with blog posts. And once you have published your first Kindle book, you can grab a few more posts, and assemble your second book in short order.
4) Rewrite PLR content
If you have purchased PLR content, which is "Private Label Content," you also received permission to republish that content under your own name.
You have to be a bit careful though. It's best to rewrite it, reassemble it, and add some of your own information before you package it as a Kindle book. You don't want
people to buy your book only to discover that they already have that book, published by another author.
5) Start writing content from scratch
If you don’t have pre-written articles, blog posts, or appropriate PLR content, here’s a way to start writing new content yourself.
Just write articles, one at a time, and publish them on your blog or in article directories, or maybe both. Once you have a few, proceed as in option 3.
Still intimidated? I hope not. Creating the content for your Kindle book doesn't have to be a huge undertaking. Keep the books themselves manageable in size and sell them for a low price.
1) It doesn't have to be "book-length"
Here's the first and probably most encouraging part: your Kindle book does not have to be what you would consider "book-length." Not even close.
In fact, your Kindle book can have just a few pages. Just find the sweet spot between delivering on the promise you made in the title and description, length, and price. If the book is very short, you may opt for charging just 99 cents, the lowest permissible price currently on Kindle. You probably won't get rich from the royalties, but at 99 cents, your book could be a terrific impulse buy and get you lots of leads.
2) Kindle pages are smaller than regular pages
Not only does your Kindle book not have to contain very many pages, but the pages themselves don't hold as much text as your regular page.
Simply reformat your pages to Kindle's A5 format, and you'll discover that your 2000- word essay has become a lot longer!
3) You may well have ready-made content
Have you been writing articles for article directories? If so, you've got ready made content sitting on your hard drive. Simply gather up a few of your articles, arrange them into a logical sequence, fill in any gaps, write an introduction and a conclusion, add a table of contents, a resource section, and a brief bio. And bingo: Instant Kindle book.
You can also do the same thing with blog posts. And once you have published your first Kindle book, you can grab a few more posts, and assemble your second book in short order.
4) Rewrite PLR content
If you have purchased PLR content, which is "Private Label Content," you also received permission to republish that content under your own name.
You have to be a bit careful though. It's best to rewrite it, reassemble it, and add some of your own information before you package it as a Kindle book. You don't want
people to buy your book only to discover that they already have that book, published by another author.
5) Start writing content from scratch
If you don’t have pre-written articles, blog posts, or appropriate PLR content, here’s a way to start writing new content yourself.
Just write articles, one at a time, and publish them on your blog or in article directories, or maybe both. Once you have a few, proceed as in option 3.
Still intimidated? I hope not. Creating the content for your Kindle book doesn't have to be a huge undertaking. Keep the books themselves manageable in size and sell them for a low price.
Sunday, September 7, 2014
What You Need to Submit Your Book
We’ve talked why you should write a Kindle book, but we haven’t touched on just how easy it is to submit your manuscript for publication. Unlike traditional publishing, there’s no need for an agent, you don’t have to submit your manuscript for consideration, and you don’t have to wait the months or even years it takes to have your book press-printed. Instead, you just follow these simple steps:
1. Go to https://kdp.amazon.com/self-publishing/signin and sign in using your Amazon account.
2. Read and accept the terms of service.
3. Click “Add a New Title” and enter your book details including:
-Book title
-Description
-Language, publication date, publisher, and ISBN (all optional)
-Verify your rights (whether the book is public domain, or you own the rights)
-Add categories and keywords to target your book
-Upload your book cover
-Upload your book file
4. Determine Rights and Pricing, including:
-Publishing territories
-Royalties (35% or 70%)
-List price
-Kindle book lending
It’s really that easy! If your manuscript and cover are finished, the whole process can be completed in just a few minutes. Then you’ll wait for approval, which can occur as quickly as 24 hours. Compare that to the year-plus that print authors must wait to see their books in the bookstore, and you’ll know why authors love the Kindle!
A note on formats: To publish to the Kindle, you must have your content in the right format. Here are the supported formats for the Kindle:
-.zip
-.doc
-.pdf
-.epub
-.txt
-.mobi and .prc
A note on covers: Would you purchase a book from Barnes and Noble that had no cover, or had just a plain brown wrapper? Possibly, but probably not. We’re visual creatures, and in the online world when you can’t pick up a book to leaf through it, the cover sells the book. Spend some time and money on getting your cover right.
When a customer is browsing the Kindle store in Amazon, you want your book cover
to be professional and eye-catching. Look at other book covers to see what appeals to you, and find a graphic designer who can assist you in creating the look you want.
Graphics don’t have to be expensive; try sources like fiverr.com, shelancer.com, and
odesk.com for graphics help.
1. Go to https://kdp.amazon.com/self-publishing/signin and sign in using your Amazon account.
2. Read and accept the terms of service.
3. Click “Add a New Title” and enter your book details including:
-Book title
-Description
-Language, publication date, publisher, and ISBN (all optional)
-Verify your rights (whether the book is public domain, or you own the rights)
-Add categories and keywords to target your book
-Upload your book cover
-Upload your book file
4. Determine Rights and Pricing, including:
-Publishing territories
-Royalties (35% or 70%)
-List price
-Kindle book lending
It’s really that easy! If your manuscript and cover are finished, the whole process can be completed in just a few minutes. Then you’ll wait for approval, which can occur as quickly as 24 hours. Compare that to the year-plus that print authors must wait to see their books in the bookstore, and you’ll know why authors love the Kindle!
A note on formats: To publish to the Kindle, you must have your content in the right format. Here are the supported formats for the Kindle:
-.zip
-.doc
-.epub
-.txt
-.mobi and .prc
A note on covers: Would you purchase a book from Barnes and Noble that had no cover, or had just a plain brown wrapper? Possibly, but probably not. We’re visual creatures, and in the online world when you can’t pick up a book to leaf through it, the cover sells the book. Spend some time and money on getting your cover right.
When a customer is browsing the Kindle store in Amazon, you want your book cover
to be professional and eye-catching. Look at other book covers to see what appeals to you, and find a graphic designer who can assist you in creating the look you want.
Graphics don’t have to be expensive; try sources like fiverr.com, shelancer.com, and
odesk.com for graphics help.
Sunday, August 31, 2014
Five Ways in Which Publishing a Kindle Book Can Help Your Business
Being a Kindle author can be a huge help with promoting your business. Check out the following ways in which it can get you more visibility and clients.
1) The Instant Expert Effect
Most of us are impressed with published authors. And if you've already done article marketing, you've benefited from the expert author status you can get through having your articles published all over the web.
But imagine how this effect can get magnified by actually publishing a book! You can add "Author of..." after your name, and people will be mighty impressed. They don’t need to know it took you only a few hours and was less painful than a visit to the dentist.
2) Getting leads and new clients
With a book in the Kindle store, you have the opportunity to get "found" by people who would never find you otherwise. They might find you through a “related title: suggestion, or by a keyword search on your topic. If you have a compelling title and if you price your book to sell as an "impulse buy," they're likely to buy.
And that's when it gets interesting, provided you did your job well to turn your book into a lead generation device. This means that in addition to your book content, you offer the reader reasons to go to your website for more information. You can offer a free assessment, an audio download, a video series, a short report – the options are only as limited as your brainstorming power. You can even offer add-on events to go with your Kindle book, i.e., a webinar, a teleseminar, or even a whole series of webinars or teleseminars. All of those make great fodder for press releases.
Once they visit your site, you can capture their name and email address, follow up with them, and turn them into your customers.
3) PR/Press release fodder.
If you’re trying to gain attention in the press or push yourself up in the Google search engine results, you probably already know that press releases can be very helpful. The drawback is that you can have trouble coming up with newsworthy items to write about yourself. Enter the Kindle.
Whether you publish a new Kindle book, or the topic of your book is in the news, you’ve got a ready-made news hook at your fingertips. And that means... a legitimate excuse for issuing a press release.
4) Be found on Google
If you’re trying to bring traffic to your website through Search Engine Optimization (SEO), you may have noticed that Amazon is almost always on the first page. The strength of its reach coupled with its incoming links make it a natural SEO powerhouse. Now, through Kindle, you can harness some of that power for yourself! If you publish a Kindle book with a good title and a good description, chances are that people will find it on Google. And getting found on Google is the key to getting leads.
In this case, the leads may arrive in a roundabout way, via your Kindle book. But those leads are likely to be very targeted and will make excellent prospects.
5) There's no limit
One of the coolest thing about getting published on Kindle is that there's no maximum number of books you are allowed to publish. Instead, you can write and publish books on any number of keywords (and subjects), which will increase your chances of being found by your target market for even more terms. And as your sales increase, so will your royalty checks!
1) The Instant Expert Effect
Most of us are impressed with published authors. And if you've already done article marketing, you've benefited from the expert author status you can get through having your articles published all over the web.
But imagine how this effect can get magnified by actually publishing a book! You can add "Author of..." after your name, and people will be mighty impressed. They don’t need to know it took you only a few hours and was less painful than a visit to the dentist.
2) Getting leads and new clients
With a book in the Kindle store, you have the opportunity to get "found" by people who would never find you otherwise. They might find you through a “related title: suggestion, or by a keyword search on your topic. If you have a compelling title and if you price your book to sell as an "impulse buy," they're likely to buy.
And that's when it gets interesting, provided you did your job well to turn your book into a lead generation device. This means that in addition to your book content, you offer the reader reasons to go to your website for more information. You can offer a free assessment, an audio download, a video series, a short report – the options are only as limited as your brainstorming power. You can even offer add-on events to go with your Kindle book, i.e., a webinar, a teleseminar, or even a whole series of webinars or teleseminars. All of those make great fodder for press releases.
Once they visit your site, you can capture their name and email address, follow up with them, and turn them into your customers.
3) PR/Press release fodder.
If you’re trying to gain attention in the press or push yourself up in the Google search engine results, you probably already know that press releases can be very helpful. The drawback is that you can have trouble coming up with newsworthy items to write about yourself. Enter the Kindle.
Whether you publish a new Kindle book, or the topic of your book is in the news, you’ve got a ready-made news hook at your fingertips. And that means... a legitimate excuse for issuing a press release.
4) Be found on Google
If you’re trying to bring traffic to your website through Search Engine Optimization (SEO), you may have noticed that Amazon is almost always on the first page. The strength of its reach coupled with its incoming links make it a natural SEO powerhouse. Now, through Kindle, you can harness some of that power for yourself! If you publish a Kindle book with a good title and a good description, chances are that people will find it on Google. And getting found on Google is the key to getting leads.
In this case, the leads may arrive in a roundabout way, via your Kindle book. But those leads are likely to be very targeted and will make excellent prospects.
5) There's no limit
One of the coolest thing about getting published on Kindle is that there's no maximum number of books you are allowed to publish. Instead, you can write and publish books on any number of keywords (and subjects), which will increase your chances of being found by your target market for even more terms. And as your sales increase, so will your royalty checks!
Sunday, August 24, 2014
Five Reasons Why You Should Consider Publishing on Kindle
You might be wondering how you could publish on the Kindle if you’ve never written anything longer than a grocery list. Never fear! Read on and find out why you should make the effort and why publishing on Kindle is not as daunting as you may think.
First of all, you may wonder, why you would want to get published in a format that can only be accessed with a device that you may not even own... yet.
1) A voracious market
With more and more Kindle owners looking for information to add to their new reading devices, you’ve got a ready-made market. And if you have a book in the Kindle store on a topic they're interested in, they may well find it -- and buy it. With many Kindle books priced at impulse-purchase levels, people end up clicking "buy" a lot more often than they used to, especially since they can get the information immediately.
2) Find your audience
Whether you’ve got valuable info you want to get into the public’s hands, or whether you are simply looking for more clients and customers, getting published on Kindle gives you an easy way to be found. Say you're a marriage counselor. Publish a book on Kindle and include information about your services, and maybe a free gift in the form of a special report or download. Then people will race to find you, buy your Kindle book, and then visit your website to collect their free gift -- and join your ever- growing mailing list.
3) Be an instant expert
Let's face it: People are impressed by authors. And Kindle makes it very easy to become an author. Once you have assembled your book, you can upload it to the Kindle store in less than an hour. Even better, English language books are generally approved within 24 hours.
Once you're published, just add the link to your email signature and start adding "Author of [Your book's name here]" after your name. You'll gain instant status, which will help you get more press coverage, more attention, and more customers.
4) It's easy and fast
As I just demonstrated, getting published on Kindle is not the sort of ordeal most people associate with getting published in the traditional manner. You upload your book and your cover, answer a few questions, create a description, and you're done.
5) You can earn royalties
Even better, getting published on Kindle is not only free, but you can earn royalties too. And a whole lot more royalties than you'd ever get from a traditional publisher. If you're publishing a print book with a traditional publisher, your share of the profits may be less than $1 a book. With Kindle, you can get up to 70% of the purchase price!
Of course, you need to sell books in order to earn royalties. The good news is that Amazon is giving you a hand there, too. Amazon actually helps you market your book in the Kindle store - and beyond, by providing a sales page, and by putting your book in front of browsers looking at related books.
Getting published on Kindle can be very rewarding. And considering how easy it is, there's little reason not to make the effort and add that "Author of..." tagline after your name.
First of all, you may wonder, why you would want to get published in a format that can only be accessed with a device that you may not even own... yet.
1) A voracious market
With more and more Kindle owners looking for information to add to their new reading devices, you’ve got a ready-made market. And if you have a book in the Kindle store on a topic they're interested in, they may well find it -- and buy it. With many Kindle books priced at impulse-purchase levels, people end up clicking "buy" a lot more often than they used to, especially since they can get the information immediately.
2) Find your audience
Whether you’ve got valuable info you want to get into the public’s hands, or whether you are simply looking for more clients and customers, getting published on Kindle gives you an easy way to be found. Say you're a marriage counselor. Publish a book on Kindle and include information about your services, and maybe a free gift in the form of a special report or download. Then people will race to find you, buy your Kindle book, and then visit your website to collect their free gift -- and join your ever- growing mailing list.
3) Be an instant expert
Let's face it: People are impressed by authors. And Kindle makes it very easy to become an author. Once you have assembled your book, you can upload it to the Kindle store in less than an hour. Even better, English language books are generally approved within 24 hours.
Once you're published, just add the link to your email signature and start adding "Author of [Your book's name here]" after your name. You'll gain instant status, which will help you get more press coverage, more attention, and more customers.
4) It's easy and fast
As I just demonstrated, getting published on Kindle is not the sort of ordeal most people associate with getting published in the traditional manner. You upload your book and your cover, answer a few questions, create a description, and you're done.
5) You can earn royalties
Even better, getting published on Kindle is not only free, but you can earn royalties too. And a whole lot more royalties than you'd ever get from a traditional publisher. If you're publishing a print book with a traditional publisher, your share of the profits may be less than $1 a book. With Kindle, you can get up to 70% of the purchase price!
Of course, you need to sell books in order to earn royalties. The good news is that Amazon is giving you a hand there, too. Amazon actually helps you market your book in the Kindle store - and beyond, by providing a sales page, and by putting your book in front of browsers looking at related books.
Getting published on Kindle can be very rewarding. And considering how easy it is, there's little reason not to make the effort and add that "Author of..." tagline after your name.
Sunday, August 17, 2014
Why Being a Kindle Author is a Growth Industry
The Kindle is hot. In fact, Amazon is selling more electronic books than print books these days. And getting published on Kindle is hotter still.
Here are seven of the biggest reasons why people have bought or will soon buy a Kindle, and why they'll be looking for a variety of books to read on their Kindles. Just put yourself in their shoes and you'll immediately see the growth potential:
1) It makes your library portable
Remember when the iPod first came out and you no longer had to lug around CDs
and cassette tapes when you wanted to be entertained on the road? In addition to the convenience, there was the sheer capacity of the iPod. You could store thousands of
songs in a device that fit in the palm of your hand, and you could access any of them
at a moment's notice.
Enter the Kindle. It has the same capacity for storage and instant access. You'll get weeks of entertainment in a device small enough to fit almost any purse, all accessible at -- you guessed it -- a moment's notice.
And unlike CDs and cassette tapes, books are heavy, so if you're a voracious reader, you no longer have to lug around pounds of books to ensure you won't get bored on even the longest flights -- or beach vacation.
2) It lets you add to your library from anywhere
This is where the Kindle does the iPod one better. Thanks to Amazon's Whispernet, you can add books and other documents at the click of a button. You can also subscribe to blogs, newspapers, and periodicals, and have them added automatically. Kindle makes it easy to keep up with what's happening, without having to squint at the screen of your smartphone or iPhone.
3) Kindle screens can be read in broad daylight
Unlike computer screens, Kindle screens are designed to imitate paper, and they are doing a terrific job. You can read them clearly in any kind of lighting, even in broad daylight while you're out lounging by the pool. Try that with your laptop!
4) Kindles are getting more and more affordable
When the Kindle first came out, it was kind of pricey. Of course that didn't stop a lot of technophiles from investing in one anyway. But it did keep more budget-conscious readers out of the loop.
That's no longer the case. Now, Kindles are just a fraction of the price they were when they first appeared, and at just over $100 for the least expensive model, they're flying off the shelves.
In part, that was to be expected since new technology tends to be more expensive for early adopters, but in the case of Kindle, sheer economics was probably driving the drastic cut in price. First, there was the growing competition from the Nook and other e-readers, and then...
Amazon realized that it was making far more money from selling books for Kindle than from selling the Kindle devices themselves, so it became a smart move to get those Kindles into the hands of as many people as possible so they could buy...Kindle
books!
And the more people have Kindles, the bigger the market for your own Kindle book.
5) The Kindle Store is Growing
Amazon's Kindle store is getting bigger by the minute. Sales of Kindle books are growing by leaps and bounds, and one way in which Amazon is trying to keep up with demand is by making it incredibly easy to publish books, blogs, and more to its Kindle store.
And that's where you come in as a potential Kindle author!
An ever-growing number of people are rushing to create content for Amazon's Kindle store. In fact, there is a lot of intriguing information available for Kindle that's not available in any other form. As a result, even more people are likely to break down and invest in a Kindle, which will lead to ever more readers who are shopping in the Kindle store for new information. And you could be right there to provide it!
Here are seven of the biggest reasons why people have bought or will soon buy a Kindle, and why they'll be looking for a variety of books to read on their Kindles. Just put yourself in their shoes and you'll immediately see the growth potential:
1) It makes your library portable
Remember when the iPod first came out and you no longer had to lug around CDs
and cassette tapes when you wanted to be entertained on the road? In addition to the convenience, there was the sheer capacity of the iPod. You could store thousands of
songs in a device that fit in the palm of your hand, and you could access any of them
at a moment's notice.
Enter the Kindle. It has the same capacity for storage and instant access. You'll get weeks of entertainment in a device small enough to fit almost any purse, all accessible at -- you guessed it -- a moment's notice.
And unlike CDs and cassette tapes, books are heavy, so if you're a voracious reader, you no longer have to lug around pounds of books to ensure you won't get bored on even the longest flights -- or beach vacation.
2) It lets you add to your library from anywhere
This is where the Kindle does the iPod one better. Thanks to Amazon's Whispernet, you can add books and other documents at the click of a button. You can also subscribe to blogs, newspapers, and periodicals, and have them added automatically. Kindle makes it easy to keep up with what's happening, without having to squint at the screen of your smartphone or iPhone.
3) Kindle screens can be read in broad daylight
Unlike computer screens, Kindle screens are designed to imitate paper, and they are doing a terrific job. You can read them clearly in any kind of lighting, even in broad daylight while you're out lounging by the pool. Try that with your laptop!
4) Kindles are getting more and more affordable
When the Kindle first came out, it was kind of pricey. Of course that didn't stop a lot of technophiles from investing in one anyway. But it did keep more budget-conscious readers out of the loop.
That's no longer the case. Now, Kindles are just a fraction of the price they were when they first appeared, and at just over $100 for the least expensive model, they're flying off the shelves.
In part, that was to be expected since new technology tends to be more expensive for early adopters, but in the case of Kindle, sheer economics was probably driving the drastic cut in price. First, there was the growing competition from the Nook and other e-readers, and then...
Amazon realized that it was making far more money from selling books for Kindle than from selling the Kindle devices themselves, so it became a smart move to get those Kindles into the hands of as many people as possible so they could buy...Kindle
books!
And the more people have Kindles, the bigger the market for your own Kindle book.
5) The Kindle Store is Growing
Amazon's Kindle store is getting bigger by the minute. Sales of Kindle books are growing by leaps and bounds, and one way in which Amazon is trying to keep up with demand is by making it incredibly easy to publish books, blogs, and more to its Kindle store.
And that's where you come in as a potential Kindle author!
An ever-growing number of people are rushing to create content for Amazon's Kindle store. In fact, there is a lot of intriguing information available for Kindle that's not available in any other form. As a result, even more people are likely to break down and invest in a Kindle, which will lead to ever more readers who are shopping in the Kindle store for new information. And you could be right there to provide it!
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