Is one of your goals to publish a book? Many successful entrepreneurs are struggling to sell more books because they're missing a solid online foundation. Learn what you need to have in place to ensure better book sales.

1. Denise
Wakeman
5 Easy Steps to Help You Boost Your Book Sales
denisewakeman.com/online-visibility/build-a-foundation-sell-more-books/
Is one of your business goals to publish a book this year? If so, I’m going
to assume (dangerous, I know) you want to sell your book. And not just one
or two to your family and friends, but sell more books to get your message
spread far and wide. Am I right?
Seems like a lot of my clients and colleagues are writing and publishing
books.
I’ve had quite a few conversations in the last several weeks with
entrepreneurs in various stages of writing a book, and I found most of them
have one frustrating thing in common.
These smart, successful entrepreneurs are struggling to sell more books.
After doing a couple of brief audits of their online presence, I discovered
why...
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2. Most author entrepreneurs do not take the time or know how to, create
a solid online foundation before they write, publish, and sell their
books.
Without a foundation (also known as your “platform”) on which to build a
visible presence on the Web, it’s going to be difficult to attract attention and
get connected with enough potential readers to make a significant number of
book sales. Period.
A traditional publisher is not even going to look at you unless you have
your own platform, which means a Twitter following, Facebook following
and/or a significant blog following. ~ John Altucher
Before you can initiate an active visibility campaign, there are five
foundational elements you must have in place.
5 Easy Steps to Sell More Books Immediately
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3. Building your online foundation is essential if you intend to sell more than a
few books. Here’s what you need to have in place:
1. Blog – this is a no-brainer. You absolutely must have a piece of digital
real estate you own and control. This is where all traffic is directed as
you build your audience. This where you post the search-engine
friendly content that helps you get found by those searching for the
solution you and you book offer. (See the slideshow below for tips on
how to use a blog to dominate your niche.)
2. Email management service – this is also non-negotiable. Without an
email list of qualified prospects and customers, you will always struggle
to sell your book. The people who give you their email address are
telling you they value what you offer and want to hear from you. Do
your research and find the best email service that meets your needs
and your budget. The most widely used are Aweber, Mailchimp,
Constant Contact, and InfusionSoft.
3. Optin/Landing page – you need a blog site (#1) and an email service
(#2) to set this up. Create a simple page inviting people to get free
updates about your book. Offer a gift like a free chapter in exchange for
their email address. This is list building 101. (Sample optin page)
4. Know your audience. Maybe this should be #1 since it dictates
everything you do, from the topic of your book to the content you
publish on your blog site. Where does your ideal reader hangout? Use
Quantcast to check out demographics on the sites your audience
frequents. Use your Facebook Page Insights to learn more about the
demographics of your followers. Use Google Analytics to find out how
your blog readers are finding you.
5. Set up and complete your social profiles. Make sure you are using
the social networks your ideal readers’ are using (#4). If they are on
Twitter, you better be using Twitter as well. It should go without saying,
but I see this mistake all the time… make sure your social profiles are
COMPLETE. Include your headshot, cover image, bio, and links to your
site and other social networks. Your social networks are where you will
be posting microcontent to entice your readers back to your blog.
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4. Use Facebook Page Insights to learn about your audience.
What’s next?
Start by optimizing your blog. The slideshow below was created for
several presentations I gave to authors a few years ago. I recently reviewed
it and the content still stands up with a couple of tweaks to update it.
The Secret to Author Blog Success from Denise Wakeman, The Blog
Squad
Ok, now your blog is optimized.
You’re ready to start boosting visibility for your book project. If your goal
is to sell more books, then this step must happen at the same time you’re
writing your book.
It drives me nuts when I see a great book flop because no one knows about
it. It makes me sad knowing how hard the author worked to birth their book
and then get dismal sales results. I’m on a mission to help author
entrepreneurs get their messages out to the world…
My VIP mentoring program includes working with author entrepreneurs who
are looking for guidance and support with building and implementing a
visibility-boosting book promotion plan (that’s a mouthful!). Click here to
get the details and schedule a complimentary strategy session to see how we
can work together to generate more sales for your book!
Recommended Reading
How Do I Start Building My Platform?
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5. Lisa Douthit
Integrative Health Consultant, Wellness Warrior
Denise is amazing at helping solopreneurs like me go
from zero to 100 in online visibility. Her creativity is
never ending when coming up with fresh marketing
ideas. She helped me launch my book and take it to
#1. She also showed me how to get it in front of readers that really needed
my book in a non-salesy way. If you are new to online marketing or have a
product to launch, I would highly recommend her to help navigate through
the process.
Feature image: Janko Ferlič
Denise Wakeman is a Digital Marketing Strategist.
Since 1996, she has worked with hundreds of creative
professionals and online entrepreneurs around the
world to help them build their business and
strategically use social marketing to get more visibility,
traffic, leads, customers, and opportunities. Denise is
passionate about travel and how it can inspire you to
think bigger and go for what’s possible in your business and life. As an early
adopter and active experimenter, Denise loves helping authors and online
entrepreneurs navigate the adventure of growing their business on the Web.
Learn more at DeniseWakeman.com
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