Book Cover Coaching: When Should You Start Your Book Cover

When Should You Start Your Book Cover?
Or, Why Your Book is Like an iPhone


By Susan Kendrick

Which comes first, the book or the book cover? This seems like a simple chronological question. You write a book and then you cover it, right?

But to really answer this question, first think about your book cover as the packaging for this great, new product. Just like you saw and heard about the iPhone, for example, long before you could get one, you can use your book cover to create a demand for your book before it ever hits the streets. The good news is, your job is even easier--you don't have to appeal to the world, just your target market.

Your book cover is where you describe and show your book to your target market in such mouth-watering detail that they can't wait to get their hands on it. It is the beginning of all your branding and marketing efforts. Start your book cover as soon as possible, today, to give your book "the iPhone advantage."


Start your book cover while you're writing your book ...
or as soon as you get an idea for a book!

We end up working with a lot more authors and experts these days who are ready to start their book covers during the book writing process. They already know the advantages; they come to us to help make it happen. Credit for so many educated authors should be given, in part, to Dan Poynter, creator of the bestselling book The Self Publishing Manual for being an advocate of this get-started-early approach to book covers.

An Important Note:
Please be aware that you can create your book cover while you are writing your manuscript, but you don't have to finalize your cover until your manuscript is complete and it is time to go to print. This lets you use your cover to market and accept pre-orders for your book and to get support and endorsements. But, it also gives you the flexibility to make final adjustments to the cover--like adding a great endorsement--before your book goes to print.

What To Do in What Order

1.) Book Title and Subtitle
As soon as you confirm your title and subtitle, you can mention and promote your "forthcoming" book on your website, blog, in speaking engagements, articles, interviews, newsletters, ads, and more. This is also the time to establish your book series name and brand if you will be writing more than one book.

2.) Book Cover Design
Enlist the help of a good book cover designer to create your cover design as soon as you have confirmed your title and subtitle. With your front cover design in place, you can not only mention the title and subtitle, you can show people your new book. Post your fully designed front cover on your website, your blog, speaker One Sheet, even on amazon and other online booksellers. On amazon, look around at the books that say, "Pre-order this item today." Those are books that typically exist only as a front covers and are not yet completed and/or printed. On your own website, offer incentive for pre-ordering your "forthcoming" book.

What's so important about having the completed front cover--writing and design? It makes your book real and therefore credible, especially in the eyes of those you would like to align with as potential partners and affiliates, as well as those you want to approach for endorsements.

3.) Book Back Cover Copy
Your back cover is that all-important "elevator speech" for your book--the pitch to your readers and marketing partners. Note: Have your book cover designer start working on the front cover design as soon as you finalize your title and subtitle. It's a great feeling to be working on your back cover copy, knowing that your cover designer is busy developing book cover design concepts for you.

The sooner you create your book's back cover positioning and sales copy, the sooner you can start marketing and pre-selling your book. Having that back cover copy in front you also makes it easier to write your book. It gives focus to your manuscript writing process. You told readers what the book will do for them on the back cover. Now you can build your book to deliver on that promise.

It's Just Good Marketing

Starting your brand development and packaging while you're still writing your book, or even as soon as you get an idea for a book--or any product--is simply good marketing. What better way to release your new book than to have people waiting for it!

To get your book cover off to the right start--Title, Subtitle, Series Name, Cover Design--purchase a copy of Cover That Book: Insider Secrets to Writing and Designing a Bestselling Book Cover, with an Introduction by Dan Poynter. Go to Book Cover Quick Start to order this double-CD set and free 20-minute coaching session with either me or Graham.

NEXT: In my next post, you'll get five reasons to create your book's back cover copy while you're writing your book. For now, get a copy of our free report, "From Back Cover to Best Seller" to see what to put on your back cover and why.

Happy Publishing!
Susan

© Copyright 2008, Susan Kendrick, Write to Your Market, Inc.All Rights Reserved. http://www.writetoyourmarket.com/ 715-634-4120

Book Cover Coaching: 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.

NOTE: The two book covers posted with this article are from independent publisher Victor Loos, Founder and President of Bayou Publishing , in Houston, Texas. I worked with Victor to develop the titles, subtitles, and back cover positioning and sales copy for both of these books.

Interestingly, all or most of Bayou Publishing's books fall into this category of having to appeal to the reader and those that work with the reader. The Guys-Only Guide to: Getting Over Divorce and on with Live, Sex, and Relationships will be released soon. Start Talking: A Girls Guide for You and Your Mom about Health, Sex, or Whatever was just released. Great job as always, Victor!

Back to your cover:

First we'll look at readers. Readers are your traditional target market, the people you think about when writing and designing your book cover. You ask yourself all the right questions to come up with a compelling title, subtitle, and back cover sales copy that will create an irresistible pull on them, make them know that your book was written with them in mind, that it's the solution they are looking for.

OK, done. No problem.

Now, let's look at your hidden target market--your buyers. Buyers? Yes, because buyers and readers aren't always the same person. Consider, for example, a book written for teens about health and sex, like Start Talking. Given that teens have some interest in this topic, they still are not typically the ones who are going to see the need for this kind of book, search it out, and pay money for it. Their funds are destined for iTunes, movies, and shopping. It's their parents, and most likely their mothers, who will see that they need a reliable resource on health and sexuality.

So, the parent buys the book for the teen, who will then hopefully read the book. Now stop and think about the dilemma this causes for the cover. A book cover that appeals to a parent may not necessarily appeal to a teen, and a cover that really speaks to a teen may not feel like a trusted resource to the parent. The biggest challenge in writing your book cover to both the reader and the buyer is that you have to do so without alienating or patronizing the reader.

Give your readers and buyers good reasons to trust you

It's the same with the Guys-Only Guide book posted here. This book reaches out to guys who are or have gone through divorce and are pulling the personal parts of their lives back together. The book cover has to appeal to them so that they see its relevance to them and will read it. It also has to appeal to the co-authors' peers and associates, other counselors and therapists the authors want to partner with to buy and recommend the book to their male clients going through divorce. In both of the book examples in this article--the credibility factor for the buyer is huge.

For the book reader, there has to be a clear message of solidarity--that this book is for them and not just something someone else wants them to read. In the cases of the two books here, both straight-talking, tell-it-all Q&A formats, the reader gets everything the cover promises them.

The Thirsty-Horse Syndrome

You know the saying, you can lead a horse to water, but you can't make it drink? It's the same with a book. It can be pure, thirst-quenching information and advice, but unless readers see that for themselves on the cover, they won't read it. You want your cover to create an irresistible thirst for what's inside while you're getting the buyer on board, too.

Book Cover Quick-Start

Get expert advice from four leading experts on how to confidently navigate the book cover process--writing and design. Save 15% instantly, plus get a free 20-minute coaching session. Click here for details.

Common Reader / Buyer Combos

Here are a few, common examples where the reader and the buyer are not always the same person. We've worked with books that represent these combos and more. Feel free to post your comments about the reader / buyer combos you've encountered.

Teen ... Parent
Husband ... Wife
Employee ... Business Owner
Health-Conscious Consumer ... Health and Wellness Practitioner
People in Change or Crisis ... Therapists and Counselors

THE BIG PAY-OFF

Always explore your buyer opportunities before you start your cover. In discovering hidden buyers for your book early on, and appealing to them in even small ways on your cover, you open the door to approaching them as referring partners who can help you publicize and sell your book.

Ask yourself these two questions

"Who else works with this reading audience?" and "Who else would like to reach this reading audience?" The answers to those questions will help you create a cover you can use to make it easy for those people to partner with you in ways that are highly beneficial and lucrative to you both.

NEXT: How to effectively use your cover to speak to multiple audiences!

© Copyright 2008, Susan Kendrick, Write to Your Market, Inc. All Rights Reserved. http://www.writetoyourmarket.com/ 715-634-4120

Book Cover Coaching: The "Squeaky Green" Book Title

The "Squeaky Green" Book Title

How a Twist on a Familiar Phrase
Created the Perfect Book Title for Method

(And how you can clean up on your book title, too!)


By Susan Kendrick

Great book titles deserve to be talked about. And, they are! A few short words in just the right combination quickly create their own kind of buzz that gets people excited and talking about "that new book." That "Ahh" and "Wow!" factor is exactly what we're after when we develop book titles and subtitles for authors and publishers. It's also what we look for and celebrate in the books we post in these articles. That's because every fresh, innovative book title you hear about puts you that much closer to developing your own bestselling titles, for your own books, ebooks, and information products.

Why Squeaky Green Works

Squeaky Green is written by co-authors Adam Lowry and Eric Ryan, founders of Method, the San Francisco-based company that makes ecologically sound cleaning products. Method is featured in this month's Fast Company magazine as one of The World's 50 Most Innovative Companies. You can also learn more about Method at http://www.methodhome.com.

Lowry and Ryan's Squeaky Green is a perfect example of a powerful book cover strategy: Use a twist on a familiar phrase. This strategy works so well because it combines something already familiar to people--a well known phrase, in this case "squeaky clean"--with a fresh twist that makes it unique, memorable, and best of all, something that people now associate with you and your message. Given Method's eco-friendly "green" product line, Squeaky Green is a no-brainer. It is one of those book titles that strikes you as completely right in every way.

Here's something else you can learn from this book and these authors. Take a look at the subtitle: "The Method Guide to Detoxing Your Home" comes in to clarify the content of the book and the benefit to the reader. And, unlike some books that might save the name of the company for mention on the back cover, Squeaky Green promotes the Method company right up front in this subtitle.

This does two things: 1.) It gives Method instant visibility as the company and product line behind this book. 2.) And, perhaps more importantly for market positioning, it shows that the company is as committed to consumer education and support as it is to quality products. This is just one more way this truly innovative company rises, yet again, heads and shoulders above the competition to creat a whole new playing field and then dominate it right from the start. See how you can learn from their example.

"Pre-Order This Item Today"

Or, why wait to start profiting from your book? Squeaky Green is also a good example of how to use your book cover to sell your book before the book itself is even released. You can see on Amazon that the official release date of this book is April 1, 2008. Yet the book is already available for sale, based on presence of the book cover alone. Look carefully around Amazon and you will see a lot of books in this situation.

This is why we strongly advocate developing your title, subtitle, and book cover design as soon as possible, so that your book cover can be out there marketing and selling your book, and enhancing your credibility as an author and business, while you take care of final manuscript and production details. For 13 ways your book cover can help market your book and your business, go to http://www.BookCoverMarketing.com.

How to put this Squeaky Green strategy to work for you

Any time you see or hear about a book title that really catches your attention, simply break it down and analyze why it works. Squeaky Green starts with a familiar phrase, "squeaky clean," then adds in the eco-friendly element by changing "clean" to "green." Try this with your message:

1. List as many phrases, sayings, and even cliches as you can related to your general topic. For you that may be health, nutrition, personal finance, relationships, parenting, law, property management, travel, etc. You can google famous quotations about your topic for ideas.

2. Create a list of words that describe your unique approach to the topic, including words that rhyme with the words in the first list.

3. Now start substituting words from list two into the phrases in list one.

Your brain is now likely to start making connections. For example, if you are an expert on nutrition during pregnancy, you might have the familiar phrase, "Eating for Two" in your first list. If your particular approach to the topic is nutrition during pregnancy when you are expecting twins ... you might create this new book title twist: "Eating for Three!"

It should be said right up front what anyone who has ever tried to come up with a great book title already knows: Creating book titles is both a science and an art, so serendipity and the those "ah-ha" moments are definitely part of the equation. Work hard and have fun to increase your chance of coming up with a winner. If you have questions about how to come up with the best title and subtitle for your book, please give us a call at 715-634-4120, or email us at info@WriteToYourMarket.com.

What are some of your favorite book titles?

Post your comments here to inspire your fellow authors, publishers, book marketers, and other readers of this blog!

© Copyright 2008, Susan Kendrick, Write to Your Market, Inc.
All Rights Reserved.http://www.writetoyourmarket.com/715-634-4120

Book Cover Coaching: Back Cover Copy for Online Sales

Living Proof! More Ways to Use
Your Back Cover Sales Copy
to Boost Online Sales

By Susan Kendrick

It's been awhile, I know. But, I'm back, and with another great example of how smart authors get the most selling power from their book back covers online. Take a look at this book purchase page for Leveraging Diversity by Kim Olver and Sylvester Baugh. My partner, Graham Van Dixhorn, worked with Kim and Sylvester to develop the subtitle and back cover copy for this book. On this purchase page, you see the front cover of the book . . . and this:

"Click here to read back cover of book."

This is a perfect example of how to quickly convert browsers into buyers. You are no doubt already familiar with the statistic that book buyers spend no more than 15 seconds looking at the back cover of your book. What you say back their has to make them "get it!" and want what's inside.

It's the same online
You have just seconds to make an impression before your potential buyer clicks away to another page--or someone else's website. The condensed, powerful positioning copy you painstakingly develop for your back cover already says it all and is designed to sell. Make sure you put that all-in-one elevator speech to work on your website--or anywhere you want your book to be seen AND sold.

With the added boost of your book's cover design to make your back cover "sales package" really shine, your back cover headline, positioning message, testimonials, high profile bio, call to action, and more, become an irresistible sales pitch for your reader. Use it everywhere you can.

For more ideas about how to use your book cover online, check out our article posted on November 12, 9 Ways to Create Instant Website Content with Your Book Cover.

"From Back Cover to Bestseller"
For our complete guide to writing buy-me-now back cover copy for your book, download our free special report--17 pages of proven information, advice, and how-to's. See the GREEN cover on this page or go to www.BackCoverToBestseller.com.

© Copyright 2008, Susan Kendrick, Write to Your Market, Inc.All Rights Reserved.http://www.writetoyourmarket.com/715-634-4120

Book Cover Coaching: The Book-Marketing Holiday Quiz

The Book-Marketing Holiday Quiz:

Test your book-marketing know-how.
Can you answer these 10 questions?

By Susan Kendrick

It's officially the holiday! I hope all your stockings are hung and you are relaxing either by a cozy fire or on a lawn chair, depending on where you live.

Now for some fun. Here's a way to keep your book marketing savvy sharp, even as you take much-needed time to reflect and recharge.

It's our First Annual Book-Marketing Holiday Quiz!

First, go to www.Amazon. Search "Books" then click on the "Bestsellers" link at the top of the page. Each of the questions below is from the first 25 books on that list:

1.) About which book and author did Oprah say, "I've been counting down the days to this show!"?
HINT: This show aired in September 2007.

2.) Which two books have the shortest back cover copy, but speak right to the heart and identify their target audience in the process?
HINT: Would you dare to go to this extreme of less-is-more on your back cover?

3.) Which books are part of a series of FIVE or more books?
HINT: There are three of them.

4.) Which book title is an example of a "neologism"?
HINT: "Neologism" means a new word or expression and is the book marketing secret behind such bestselling phenomenons as Freakonomics.

5.) Which non-fiction books use their subtitles to describe specific benefits or solutions to the reader?
HINT: I count four.

6.) Which books use their subtitles to make memoir or personal experience more relevant to the reader, which by the way is one of the most challenging aspects of creating covers for these kinds of books. Do you think the ones here succeed?
HINT: I count four of these books as well.

7.) Which book uses the front cover to promote the author's TV and nationally syndicated radio shows?
HINT: This much copy could be a real mouthful on a front cover, but this book still has a clean, lean, billboard appeal.

8.) Which two book covers use quotes by other bestselling authors to help market them?
HINT: One is fiction and one is non-fiction.

9.) How many book title strategies do you see represented by the books there?
HINT: There are at least 10 -- some are included as articles on this blog.

10.) Which book title is part of a poem that is found in the book itself?
HINT: This book has just been made into a movie.

Bonus Round!

11.) Now look at the top 50 Amazon Bestsellers. Which book made it to this list . . . and hasn't even been released yet?
HINT: This book is available right now as a "pre-order" only. But this author is already making money on this book. Not bad! How will you use your cover to pre-sell your book?

How did you do?

If you absolutely can't find the answers, hang in there. I'll post them next time. But, right now it's time to enjoy the snow and my family. Best wishes to all of you for a relaxed and inspired holiday with those you love.

Susan

© Copyright 2007, Susan Kendrick, Write to Your Market, Inc.
All Rights Reserved.http://www.writetoyourmarket.com
715-634-4120

Book Cover Coaching: Price Your Book to Sell

How to Price Your Book:
Use These 3 Factors to Help You Decide

By Susan Kendrick

Pricing is one of the most important decisions you will make for your book, and one of the final decisions in the book cover process. You can determine the price based on three factors: competition, page count, and printing cost. Think of these as the three C's. Ideally, all three of these factors work together to help you arrive at a price that's best for your book.

Pricing is just one component of your book's back cover. For a complete 10-Step guide to creating your entire back cover "elevator speech" for your book, please download a complimentary copy of our easy-to-use 17-page report, "From Back Cover to Bestseller."

Competition
If your book will be shoulder to shoulder with other books on Amazon, in bookstores, catalogues, book clubs, etc., one way to decide on price is to do some comparison shopping. What is the price range for other books on your topic, for a similar audience, and of similar length? Determine the low and high end of that range, and then either price your book comfortably in the middle or slightly higher.

Price and perception of quality are closely linked, so if you charge too little, you risk undermining your book's credibility. In other words, if your book is one of the cheapest on your topic, it may be assumed that your book doesn't have as much to offer as other, competing titles. On the other hand, if you price your book at the highest end of the price range, depending on your target audience, you risk losing buyers who may not be ready to spend that much. Of course, some authors and publishers will intentionally price their books high to enhance the perception of value and exclusivity of certain titles. Knowing your competition and the buying habits of your target audience will help you find your best price fit for your market.

Page Count
The following calculations come from the website of Morgan James Publishing, whose author-friendly Entrepreneurial Publishing™ model is a great resource for self-publishing authors looking for the book marketing perks of working with a publisher. Here is the MJ breakdown of how to calculate the price of your book based on both manuscript word count and page count. They note that the price is determined in part by competing titles, and that you can increase or decrease the price of your book for competitive reasons.

Manuscript . . . . Page Count . . . . Recommended
Word Count . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Price Range
20,000 (or less) . . . . . 75 (or less) . . . . . . $ 8.95 - $10.95
40,000 . . . . . . . . . . . 120 . . . . . . . . . . . . $10.95 - $13.95
60,000 . . . . . . . . . . . 180 . . . . . . . . . . . . $13.95 - $16.95
80,000 . . . . . . . . . . . 240 . . . . . . . . . . . . $15.95 - $19.95
100,000 . . . . . . . . . . 300 . . . . . . . . . . . . $17.95 - $21.95
120,000 . . . . . . . . . . 360 . . . . . . . . . . . . $20.95 - $23.95
140,000 . . . . . . . . . . 420 . . . . . . . . . . . . $22.95 - $26.95
160,000 . . . . . . . . . . 580 . . . . . . . . . . . . $25.95 - $29.95
180,000 . . . . . . . . . . 540 . . . . . . . . . . . . $27.95 - $31.95
200,000 . . . . . . . . . . 600 . . . . . . . . . . . . $29.95

Printing Cost
The following section on estimated printing costs is from Dan Poynter's website:

But what does it cost to publish? Let's compare prices for traditional ink-press printing, PQN (Print Quantity Needed) and POD (Print-On-Demand, one book at a time such as DocuTech). We will compare a softcover (perfect bound) 144 page 5.5 x 8.5 book with black text and a four-color cover. Press (ink on paper): $1.55 each but you have to print at least 3,000 to get a price this low. So, your print bill will be $4,650. See below. Digital printer (short run): 500 copies for $2.80 each or a print bill of $1,400, or 100 copies for $5.17 each and a print bill of $517. POD (single copies): May run $6 to $10 and are often bundled with other services. Print-On-Demand is a good option when a book has run its course, your inventory is exhausted and you still receive orders for a couple of copies a month. Rather than invest in inventory, you can have books made one-at-a-time as needed.

Dan notes that for hardcover books, printing traditional hard or "case" binding runs about $1.00 extra per book.

Like so much else about your book cover, pricing is also about positioning and perception of quality. And, as you can see above, book pricing also needs to take into account production costs and other profit-loss calculations. Use the three pricing factors above to confidently decide what's right for you and your book.

Do you have questions about the book cover for your book?
Please give us a call at 715-634-4120 or email info@WriteToYourMarket.com

© Copyright 2007, Susan Kendrick, Write to Your Market, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Book Cover Coaching: 5 Places to Send Online Press Releases Right Now

Get the Word Out!
5 Places to Send Online Press Releases Right Now

By Susan Kendrick

(See the 5 websites and link to Entrepreneur Magazine how-to's, below.)

Sending out press releases online is just one more way to rev up your book marketing efforts, even if your book hasn't been released yet. This is because press releases are not just announcements about your book or product. Ideally they show how your message, approach, technique, process, etc. relates to currently newsworthy topics and trends.

The real goal of your press releases

The real goal of your press releases is to position yourself as an expert resource, someone with vast experience and knowledge of a particular issue or topic. You want to be someone that journalists, TV producers, and radio show hosts confidently turn to for background info, a comment, or full interview. When you describe yourself as the author of a "forthcoming book" (another good reason to finalize your book title as early as possible), you further enhance your expert status.

The thing to remember is that your press releases are not about you--they are a way to make your expertise available in a way that helps media professionals do their jobs better. This is just one more way that helping others is the best way to help yourself.

Entering the daily flow of online press release distribution should become a consistent part of your book marketing efforts, whether your book has already been released, or is still in the development stage. And, like everything you do to promote your book, view your press releases as another good way to reach out and create relationships, this time with the large number of media professionals who are always looking for reliable sources of great information.

Here are 5 ways to get out there and be seen by decision-makers online!

See a recent article in Entrepreneur magazine for tips on using each of these services. Go to http://www.entrepreneur.com/magazine/entrepreneur/2007/december/186532.html

(Scroll halfway down the page to the "Spread the Word" article.)

http://www.marketwire.com

http://www.pr.com

http://www.prnewswire.com

http://www.prweb.com/

http://www.sbwire.com/

Questions? Please give us a call at 715-634-4120 or email info@WriteToYourMarket.com

© Copyright 2007, Susan Kendrick, Write to Your Market, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
www.WriteToYourMarket.com
715-634-4120