Now Hear Me

Begin with the Trades

If you are a beginning writer and don’t know how to start your illustrious career, here is some advice from an old sage (me). I have spent the bulk of my professional life between being an editor and a writer for publications that concentrate on specific occupations, professions, industries or hobbies — the “trades.”  I like writing for trade publications because the editors are more accessible, there is always opportunity to earn a steadier income than with consumer publications, and there is always something exciting to write about. In my career, I’ve written about everything from growing potatoes to racing motorcycles to raising cattle to building basements. Nowadays with staff writers generating most of the copy, editors still need original writing for both their magazine and Web pages. Even in a recession, they can’t keep up with all the demands. If you want to start writing for fun and profit, begin with the trades.

The Personal Touch of Personal Notes

Handwritten notes are inexpensive sales techniques that are invaluable to authors in promoting book sales.  Notes cost you a stamp and a few minutes of your time—in other words, very little, but provide long term payoff.  Best of all, personal notes don’t require a formal approach. No matter how beautiful or sloppy your handwriting your notes create a direct link to your bookseller better than any other medium.  

            A hand-written note on the back of a postcard containing the cover of your book on its front is a good way of personalizing an introduction of you and your latest book. Mail your postcard to a dozen bookstores closest to you with the following, “I am a local author. Please consider my book.” Include a mention that you are available for book signings.
            A personal note at any time is generally well received, although it may be especially useful to send it with a future sales call in mind. A note might say something like, “I’m planning a trip your way and I’ll give you a call in a few days to see if we can set up an appointment.”
             If you write for kids, prepare a handwritten note and send it to twelve local schools with the following: “I am a local author. I make in-class presentations. Please call me for a date.”
            All personal notes build good will and keep your relationships strong. You can’t converse with your booksellers every day but personal notes show that you care.

Market Positioning: An ongoing process

“Positioning is everything,” a published author exclaimed during a panel discussion on book marketing at a writing seminar I attended last weekend.  He has a point. Over the years as I’ve moved from one interest to another, I did my best work when I confronted the question,  “What is my project’s position in the marketplace?” 

I see positioning as a dynamic, on-going process—not just something you do when you launch a book or when the market changes.  Using language that is positive and sales oriented, a positioning statement or product profile, as it is sometimes called—should be part of every marketing meeting and business plan. If, for example, you relate reader’s objections to your basic positioning you will, I believe, address them more effectively. Moreover, if you understand the positioning of your book, you are much more likely to discover potential new revenue streams, spin-offs and new books.  

Unlike well-known authors, unknown authors especially can’t afford to spend substantial promotion dollars to reinforce their position in the marketplace. Instead, they must make sure that every thing they do reinforces their position.

One way to approach positioning is to ask, “ What is the unique benefit my book delivers to readers?” 

Slogans, or one-liners, can express an author’s position and convey the image and benefit you want the reader to understand. But not always.  It’s generally very difficult to describe your unique selling proposition in a single phrase. 

It is all right to glamorize your positioning statement. Everyone who sells a product makes it look more glamorous than the real thing. When you say your audience is 20 plus, there may be people under 18 or over 30. But always be faithful to the basic statement.

Continuous evaluation of your positioning is difficult work. It usually gets short shrift when you are dealing with day-to-day problems. But as hard as it seems to put pencil to paper, the task does get easier with time.