Thinking about Book Titles

Over the years at Wheatmark, we've had a few titles come through that were either a mouthful that no one would be able to hold in mind long enough to order the book, confusing (careful about serial commas ... sometimes they don't read as a series), or just plain excellent.

I imagine titling a book is about as difficult as naming a child. You go through different iterations, bounce the names off of friends and family, and maybe even see how they look in print.

There are several things to think about when deciding on your book's title:

1. Does it make sense
2. Can buyers find it when browsing
3. Can it be read more than one way? Will it be OK if they read it the wrong way?
4. Can it be designed easily for a cover

Does it make sense?
This one seems fairly obvious, but let's talk about it anyway. Your title should be evocative of the content inside. If your book is about parent-child relationships and your book is entitled, "From a Great Height," that's great, but you might want to use a subtitle to help clarify what you will be talking about in the book.

Can buyers find it when browsing?
This is important. More important for independent authors because you'll be doing the bulk of your business online. OK. Here's the skinny: Unless someone knows your book title or author name and looks it up directly, you need a book title that can be found by keyword search.

If a potential reader is looking for a book, but they don't have one in particular in mind, they'll enter a search word on a site like Amazon. For example, if a reader is looking for a book on self-help, they will have a particular theme of self-help in mind. They aren't likely to enter in the term self-help. Maybe "get rich," "make money," or even "wealthy." If your book is about personal finance and has a title that includes those main words - rich, money, and wealth - you are more likely to have your book show up as an option for that search!

When titling your book, make sure the title, the subtitle, or a combination of both includes some easy to navigate key words to help potential readers find you!

Can it be read more than one way? Will it be OK if they read it the wrong way?
We have a Wheatmark title that can be read with two different inflections and results in two different meanings. Either way, it makes sense and pertains to the book.

However, that isn't always true. There are also times when a title may mean something but taken out of context is just plain wrong. This problem shows up a lot on Headlines with Jay Leno ... the unintended meanings can be a sticky problem. So have a few people read over it and make sure you aren't making an obscene joke by accident! (A memorable one from my newspaper days was "Military Gives YPG a Hummer." If you don't see the unfortunate joke, you definitely want to get someone else to check your title!

Can it be designed easily for a cover
I have been known to suggest changing a title simply because it would look better on the cover design. The look of your book cover is your most important marketing tool. The old saying goes, "You can't judge a book by it's cover." However, most people do, even if it is unintentional.

Too many words, too long of words or long words that sandwich little tiny ones are all difficult to design around. Your cover needs to be easily readable on the "thumbnail" that is displayed on web pages. Either the image or the title needs to grab a potential reader's attention. If your title is too long, it will limit the size of your font and of your image.

If you are a Wheatmark author and are unsure of your title, check with your account manager and they'll help you brainstorm some ideas to help you have the strongest title from day one!

Not a Wheatmark author but want to be? Fill out our Project Assessment Form to get started! You can also enroll in our free minicourse: 7 Steps to Self-Publishing Success on our home page!

How to Manage Book Sales

One of the questions we try to help authors answer is whether they should direct their book buying traffic to the Wheatmark bookstore or to an online retailer such as Amazon.

My short, possibly not that helpful, answer to this is: Both.

The long answer to this is still both, but with some added explanation!

The Wheatmark bookstore, for Wheatmark authors, is where the book is available for the full retail price and offers a higher royalty to the author.

On the surface, this seems like a great way to earn back the publishing investment. Which it is, particularly if you are selling your book to only a few people or to a one buyer who is buying a LOT of copies, like a textbook being purchased by a school.

Many authors find that they sell more books on Amazon and are concerned that the traffic driven there is buying the book at a discount and thus the author isn't seeing as much royalty cash from each sale. Although that is true, there are are advantages to selling on Amazon.

I argue that if you are going to try to sell your book to a greater population, you should focus a lot of your effort on your Amazon sales. The reason is pretty simple: People (and I mean just about everyone at some point) buy books on Amazon. As consumers, they are familiar with the format, probably have a gift card from the CoinStar machine at the grocery store or an aunt that they have a few pennies left on, and it is part of their buying pattern. Not to mention the fact that the price on Amazon is lower.

The reduced price may cut into royalties, but, if you can sell more books on Amazon at the discounted price, then you'll be making more money in the end than if you only sold books on Wheatmark's store for full price and sold a third of what you did on Amazon. Right?

There is another element that makes Amazon a great place to sell your book: Functionality.

You can have a Kindle version for sale there, you can have multiple titles that pull together to boost your sales rank, people can leave reviews, and the tagging function also assists with visibility. These are things that are great for marketing.

What the Amazon site can't do is offer bulk discounts, which Wheatmark can. Our bulk author discounts are a great advantage. For example, if you are going to market to book clubs, you could drive the sales to yourself, buy bulk copies through us with your author discount and then sell them directly to the book club and make profit!

You could, of course, only sell through yourself all the time to make the highest profit per copy of book, but then you'd also have to handle the shipping. Trust me, as someone who has to do a lot of shipping, you want to try to skirt that responsibility whenever possible!

Also, we offer discounts on large book orders, like when a university buys a textbook or a book store buys a lot of them, so buying through Wheatmark is a better deal over Amazon or BarnesandNoble.com.

There are many ways to begin making money on your book. The bottom line is to know your goals as an author and to work towards those goals with your marketing. In the end, when you are selling copies of books, it won't make much of a difference where people buy them.

Just sell more copies this month than you did last month and you'll be on the track to success!

Amazon Rankings Explained

For many authors, checking their Amazon ranking is an addictive daily activity.

For others, it's a confusing statistic they don't understand (which is probably why they have time to do things like shower. When you understand it, it can become an obsessive hobby that causes you to forsake all other daily activities).

So here it is, the meaning of your Amazon rank, plain and simple:

Your rank is how many books on Amazon are selling more copies than yours.

Let's break what this means down a bit.

Your book is ranked 14,000.
This means that there are 14,000 other titles on Amazon that have sold more copies than you.

But is that a good number?
Absolutely. There are a bajillion titles on Amazon and there are more and more listings added every day. If there are only 14,000 titles selling more copies than you, that's a gold star for you!

How can other books have the same rank as my book?
Because there are ALSO 14,000 more titles selling more copies than it. It isn't like class rank where there are 300 students and you are ranked 20th in your class because 19 other students have better grades than you. This is where many authors get confused. Amazon calling your position in the "how many titles are selling more than yours" platform a RANK is misleading a bit. I'm guessing they just couldn't think of a better term (or Jeff Bezos, founder of Amazon, is just trying to confuse us all and make us write blogs about it).

Why does my rank fluctuate?
To drive you crazy of course! OK, not really. The rank is generated by a system that is constantly calculating it. However, your rank is reported to you by a system that is not constantly updating you with information that is usable. One minute your book rank is 1,000,000 the next 500,000. So it will change and it won't make much sense.

How do I know what my rank is then?
Try not to be too fanatical about checking your rank. Think of it like you would a diet where you track weight loss: you want to take an average of a few days because the constant fluctuations can give you a misread of the reality.

If my rank jumps by 100,000, does this mean I've sold a bunch of books in a spurt?
No. Sorry. What it means is that you maybe sold 2 books and the 50,000 titles you were behind sold none. There are really a supermillion amount of titles on Amazon. Many of those titles don't sell. Not a copy. So when you just get started, your one book sale can skyrocket your ranking far and away from those duds. Try not to get too excited about the rank. Focus on the amazingness that you sold a book despite all the competition on Amazon!

So, if I can't really use rank as an indicator, how can I determine success?
Rank is a good thing to watch because it gives you something you can see to help you determine if your marketing efforts are working ... over time. What should you really look at? Book sales. You should be selling more books this month than you did last month. And so on and so on so that you are always making progress ... even if it just one book at a time!

Kindle It's On Fire: Make Your Book Available to Kindle Users

What is a Kindle?

Kindle is Amazon’s version of an electronic document reader. In other words, it’s a little gadget that allows you to read books on it without having to buy a physical copy of the book.

Amazon allows you to buy e-versions of the book specifically formatted for the Kindle reader device.

The Kindle allows direct downloads from the Amazon site of books, newspapers, and other text documents. The downloads are done wirelessly, so you can add editions to your reader easily.

Readers like the Kindle for several reasons. First off, the Kindle is very portable. You can load several books, magazines, and newspapers on a Kindle and avoid having to take bulky texts with them. Secondly, the Kindle allows for speedy downloads. Why not quickly download what you want to read instead of having to make a trip to the store or wait for shipping? You can have it NOW. It’s the ultimate in instant gratification.

Why should your book be made into a Kindle version?

More and more, readers are turning to electronic readers for their book purchases. For example, Wheatmark author James Best has sold more Kindle versions of his most recent book, “Leadville” than actual copies. It is smart to offer up formats to books that people are using!

Another reason to have your book formatted for Kindle is that it gives your book credibility. If you look at the bestsellers, they all have Kindle versions. Make your book look like a bestseller by simply offering a Kindle version!

Authors do receive royalties on Kindle sales and your Kindle-version book sales do count toward your Great Expectations tally.

Jump into the technological mainstream with a Kindle version of your book today!

Best Series: The Rest of the Story

There were a few things that Jim Best wanted to highlight at the end of his presentation.

The first thing was that Amazon keeps adding features to help you sell more of your product on their site. An example is the new Author Stores. So make sure you keep your eyes peeled for new strategies. Along side their new features, he noted that Amazon was bit slow to propagate a few areas and that patience was needed:

• Discounts
  
• Look Inside
  
• Pairing
  
• Exploring Similar Items
  
• Also Bought/Also Viewed
  
• Key Phrases
  
• Amazon Staff Reviews
  

One of the most interesting things that Best presented, aside from his Top 10 Tips, was his lists of what did and did not work for him as an author trying to push his book in a very busy industry.

What Didn't Work on Amazon

• Amazon Associates
  
• Amazon Communities
  
• Amazon Contests
  

What Didn't Work Anywhere

• Adwords
  
• Traditional Media Review Requests
  
• Western-themed Organizations (Best's books are western fiction)
  
• Contests
  
• Unsolicited article queries
  
• Webring
  

What May Have Worked

• Advertised for 3 months in True West
  
• Distributed over 2,500 cards and bookmarks
  
• Published 2 websites: jamesdbest.com and stevedancy.com
  
• Published author's blog
  
• Email campaigns
  
• Shopkeeper Book Trailer (230 views)
  
• Independent bookstores
  
• Internet communities
  
• Mailed over 120 promos to True West respondents
  
• Sent 6 packages of books to soldiers in Iraq
  
• Left copies at OAT ship library
  

I'll leave you with the final Jim Best quote of the presentation:

"When you do nothing--nothing happens."

Well, that about hits the nail on the head.

For those of you who are ready to get busy, check out our FREE book marketing workbook that is a great way to map out your book selling campaign!

Best SeriesTip No. 10: Keep At It!

The Best Series is based on a presentation by Wheatmark author James D. Best, author of The Shopkeeper, The Shut Mouth Society, and the upcoming release Leadville. Best has offered 10 tips on how to use Amazon to sell your book and we'll look at each tip in depth in a series of blog posts.

Tip No. 10: Keep at it

"Until you become the next Nelson DeMille, it's a long, hard slog."

Book marketing isn't a turn-key business. You can't just wave your flag and declare, "I wrote a book, read it!"

Self-publishing gives authors so much flexibility and control over their final product. Many, however, aren't ready for the continued job driving demand to their book.

The most important thing, after getting your book published, is to really work hard on your marketing campaign. It can be frustrating, feel futile, and it is a lot of work.

But, your goal is to sell more copies each month than the month before. Even if it's 1 or 2 more, you are succeeding.

Keep at it! If you've followed the steps in The Best Series, you have an excellent book that looks professional, you've got your platform started, and you are managing your Amazon life in a professional and useful way.

Like they say, never give up.

Up next The Best Series Conclusion: what worked, what didn't work, and other bits that didn't fall into a tip.

Best Series Tip No. 9: Be a Good Amazon Citizen

The Best Series is based on a presentation by Wheatmark author James D. Best, author of The Shopkeeper, The Shut Mouth Society, and the upcoming release Leadville. Best has offered 10 tips on how to use Amazon to sell your book and we'll look at each tip in depth in a series of blog posts.

Tip No. 9: Be a Good Amazon Citizen

• Always polite
  
• Your writing is being judged
  
• Don't fake it
  
• Be a little edgy
  
• Professional in communications with Amazon
  

Some would say this is obvious, but if you've ever watched someone have a meltdown at a cashier counter over, say, a price reduction, you know that we aren't all on our best behavior when dealing with the public.

I once heard it said that you should always act as if you are being filmed for television. (Now considering the state of most network reality show programs, this is no longer the helpful governor of etiquette it once was, but just forget about the Seacrest juggernaut "Mama's Boys" and the painful-albeit-entertaining sluttiness that commenced and think "Hey, I shouldn't pick my nose on TV.")

This is good advice for the virtual world as well. It is very easy to feel as if you are in a safe bubble and that your interactions online are with your monitor and not an actual human on the other end. It is simple to fire off an angry email laced with offensive language to some faceless drone.

The reality is that you MUST be polite. You must be calm. You MUST BE A GOOD CITIZEN.

Every review, blog, forum query, etc., that you compose is being judged and reflects you as an individual.

This doesn't mean that you can't have a personality. Even Miss Manners was a bit snarky. In fact, it was her sarcasm that made her readable. You can have some edge in your writing. Just remember that you never know who is reading what you are putting out there. You don't want to alienate potential book buyers.

The other set you don't want to alienate are the "faceless drones" at Amazon. They can be really helpful when you have problems, need something, or would like your book to continue to be for sale on their site. 

Remember, despite sometimes cantankerous problems you may face with the giant megastore (glitches happen, ya'll), Amazon can be your greatest ally.

So don't poke the bear. 

Be smart, be prepared, be polite and your Amazon book empire will continue to grow!

Next tip: Tip No. 10! Keep At It!

Best Series Tip No. 8: Drive Demand--to Amazon

The Best Series is based on a presentation by Wheatmark author James D. Best, author of The Shopkeeper, The Shut Mouth Society, and the upcoming release Leadville. Best has offered 10 tips on how to use Amazon to sell your book and we'll look at each tip in depth in a series of blog posts.

Tip No. 8: Drive Demand--To Amazon

• Author websites and external blogs
• Join organizations focused on your genre or specialty
• Give books away to opinion leaders
• Book fairs and signings
• Book cards
• Email campaigns
• Selective advertising
• Google Adwords

One of the great things about Amazon is that you can get your book listed there. You don't need an agent, a publicist, or anyone else trying to schmooze your book's way onto a brick-and-mortar store's shelf space. All you have to do is get it distributed on Amazon and you're in business.

But in order to get your book to begin to sell, you have to make your buyers aware that it exists. You need to drive the demand. There are lots of ways to do this, most of which are fairly inexpensive to free: they just require some (OK, a lot) of elbow grease and access to the Internet.

Like a mighty river starts with a trickle, so must you begin your Amazon book campaign. One of the best ways to drive demand for your book (which is for sale on Amazon!) is a website or blog--an external one, not the one on Amazon (since, you know, if they are reading your Amazon blog they know your book is there). Your blog should be about you the writer and about your book. It should also mention somewhere, with a link, that you can purchase the book on Amazon.

But how do they find your blog? You find groups and organizations online (or in real life) that relate to your book's genre. You comment on their blogs and mention your own links. You become a fount of information and goodwill and they check out your blog. Even if they don't read every word you write, they'll hopefully notice your link to your book and will click on it. If all the spheres are aligned, they'll buy your book.

Other ways to drive demand are to give copies of books to opinion leaders: newspapers, bloggers, radio personalities, speakers, etc. If they like your book, they'll be a great mouthpiece for it, which (fingers crossed) they'll mention is for sale on Amazon.

Other ways to drive demand to Amazon is through book fairs and signings. You'll find you are asked a lot, "Is your book on Amazon?" Why, yes. It is! Then hand them a business card, book mark or other type of media that has your book's information on it so that when they get around to ordering, they won't have to try to remember who that nice lady with the book was at the signing.

After you've built up some contacts, a nice way to keep everyone in the loop (and drive demand to your Amazon page) is an email campaign. Even if, again, they don't read every word of your email talking about your upcoming signings, interviews you've done, or any of that other hard-won publicity you are likely to write about...they'll still be reminded that you have a book. Where can they find that book? AMAZON!

The last two points we'll mention are actual paid advertisements. These can be helpful, if you have the budget, in selling books, but in the end may not be worth the price. Buying a print ad in a magazine that deals with your genre can be helpful. Also, using Google Adwords isn't a bad way to go. But if your budget is very small, don't worry that you're missing your audience. Simply using the online venues available to you will be enough to begin the stream of interest to your Amazon page.

One question that comes up frequently about selling on Amazon is royalties. Many authors have done the math and have figured out that by purchasing inventory and selling the books themselves, they make more money per book. Should they drive demand to Amazon where the book is discounted? Won't they make less money? Jim Best's answer: By all means, drive the demand to Amazon.

Not only will Amazon take care of the ordering, shipping, and over all customer interface with the product, but more people will have access and will feel more secure ordering from tried-and-true Amazon. It makes good sense that if more people are will to purchase your book on Amazon (even at a discount), then say, the few who order from you (where you have to package and ship the book as well as deal with sales tax and keeping inventory on hand) you'll end up making more or the same money in the end!

Next tip on the horizon: Be a Good Amazon Citizen

Best Series Tip No. 7: Review Amazon Products

The Best Series is based on a presentation by Wheatmark author James D. Best, author of The Shopkeeper, The Shut Mouth Society, and the upcoming release Leadville. Best has offered 10 tips on how to use Amazon to sell your book and we'll look at each tip in depth in a series of blog posts.

Tip No. 7: Review Amazon Products

• Product reviews


• Listmania


• Customers who bought this item also bought
  

Selling books on Amazon is a popularity contest. Fortunately in the virtual world, you don't have to worry about being the fastest or best-looking. Well, a little bit, but since kickball isn't in the mix, it's a lot less athletic. It is important, though, to be well-liked and to be EVERYWHERE.

What does that mean on Amazon? It means to be actively involved in the sale of your book and other quality items for sale there. Find a great toaster on Amazon? Tell people about it. Slowly you'll have a bit of a following as a good guy on Amazon.

Besides reviewing other products (particularly books), using Listmania, and also use the "also bought" function.

Best offers a few rules to abide by while becoming a prolific Amazon user:

1. Never review something you haven't read, used, or watched.
   
2. Never knock a competitor
   

It can be time consuming being Amazon Popular, but in the end you'll reap the rewards of being out and about ... and thought to be a nice, informative community member!

Next up: Tip No. 8 is Drive Demand ... to Amazon

Best Series Tip No. 6: Publish a Blog on Amazon

The Best Series is based on a presentation by Wheatmark author James D. Best, author of The Shopkeeper, The Shut Mouth Society, and the upcoming release Leadville. Best has offered 10 tips on how to use Amazon to sell your book and we'll look at each tip in depth in a series of blog posts.

Tip No. 6: Publish a Blog on Amazon

• Amazon has few restrictions on author blogs
  
• Keep it professional and well written
  
• Make it interesting
  
• Add relevant links
  

Amazon isn't just a place to put a picture of your book and then have people buy it. The savvy author will also realize that it is a place to interact with your readers. One of the things that Amazon offers (and doesn't put a lot of restrictions on) is a free blog on the book page.

Part of your job as an author marketing a book is to be creating a concrete author platform. Your author platform is like a club that talks about you, your books, and also buys your books. It would stand up to reason then that the bigger your club, the bigger a success you will be as an author.

A blog on your Amazon page is an entry point into the club. It keeps people on the page longer, giving them more time to decide to buy, and also it allows you a way to get your message onto the sell page. Bad review? Address it in your blog post! Working on a new book? Start your marketing early by talking about it in a blog post on your already published book!

A few tips on writing an Amazon blog:

Keep it professional and well written.

This is your chance to show people what you and your work are all about. This is not the place to start introducing poor grammar, typos, and it is for sure not the place to rant on using obscene language about how no one is buying your book.

Your blog posts should reflect your skill as a writer (you know, 'cause, like, you're trying to sell your book which is, like, totally your culmination of skill as a writer, duh). If your entries are well written and include delightful wit and insight, you are more likely to persuade someone to put your book in their cart because they'll want to read more of it!

Make it interesting

Your Amazon page blog is not the place to discuss what you had for breakfast (unless you've written a cook book) or where to discuss how your dog just destroyed your couch (particularly bad if your book is about dog training).

So what should you write about? You should write about you the writer and also about your book.

Here are some suggestions of topics:

How you came up with the idea for you book.


The most trouble you had writing your book was blank


Your favorite thing you've heard from a reader


Ideas you're working on for your next book

Relevant links

Amazon is not too restrictive about blog content like they are about other pieces of your page. In your blog you can (and should) include external links to your website, other websites that talk about positively review your book, your external blogs, and even to your book trailer on YouTube.

Blogging on Amazon is a great way to keep your potential buyer on the page and to help reinforce their decision to buy your book. By blogging, you have an active way to talk to your buyers and help bring them into your author platform. As more and more options become available to buyers, it is the personal connection that will put your ahead of the rest. Your blog is a great way to establish that feeling of familiarity and to help sell those books!

Next in the Best series: Tip No. 7: Review Amazon Products

Best Series Tip No. 5: Get Lots of Tags

The Best Series is based on a presentation by Wheatmark author James D. Best, author of The Shopkeeper, The Shut Mouth Society, and the upcoming release Leadville. Best has offered 10 tips on how to use Amazon to sell your book and we'll look at each tip in depth in a series of blog posts.

Tip No. 5: Get Lots of Tags

• Customer Tags--Determines Hierarchy in Searches
• Add every relevant tag, but only relevant tags
• Get friends and relatives to vote for all your tags
• Amazon Tags--Submit Relevant Tag Requests
• Write a top-notch description

A tag is a way for Amazon to categorize your book. Adding tags that will help--and then getting several votes for those tags--will add weight to your book for Amazon searches.

When a book browser goes on Amazon and searches for "Western fiction," they're tapping into the power of tags. When your book, if it is a Western fiction book, is tagged with those same words and multiple people have agreed those were adequate descriptions, your book will begin to come up when customers search those keywords.


The tag list is viewable if you scroll down the page. You can add tags, vote for tags, and search for tags here.

When you add tags, make sure they are relevant to your book. If your book is about pirates, you may not want to have a tag for gardening. For example, on the Amazon page for The Shopkeeper the tags include adventure, cowboys, historical fiction, Western fiction, Nevada, etc. These are all searchable terms a book buyer can use to find it on Amazon.

Ask friends and family members to go on your book pages and vote for your tags to help validate them. The more votes, the better!

You can also submit relevant tag requests to Amazon Tags to help you have even more street credibility.

One of the things that you should also keep in mind is your book description. By having a top-notch description that includes many of the words you've used for tags, you'll make it easier for the virtual Amazon path to lead to your book's door.

Your goal is to help people find your excellent book, tags are the breadcrumbs you leave for them to find you!

Next in the Best series: Tip No. 6: Publish a Blog on Amazon

Best Series Tip No. 4: Get Customer Reviews

The Best Series is based on a presentation by Wheatmark author James D. Best, author of The Shopkeeper, The Shut Mouth Society, and the upcoming release Leadville. Best has offered 10 tips on how to use Amazon to sell your book and we'll look at each tip in depth in a series of blog posts.

Tip No. 4: Get Customer Reviews

• Get Real Reviews--People Spot Phonies


• Ask Early & Follow Up--People are Busy


• Make Sure They Like It--Otherwise, Mum's the Word


• Manage Helpful Votes--Keep Selling Reviews on Top

When getting ready to purchase something, how do you determine whether the product is one of quality? Most people do research, they read up on the item and weigh the pros and cons from the reviews the item has received online.

If you were to go on Amazon.com and look up, say, weed whackers, you are not likely to purchase the model that received zero stars and horrible reviews. Books are the same way. You need reviews and you really, really want good ones.

Reviews help to entice people to make a buy decision. Having reviews that talk positively and intelligently about your book will help persuade your buyer to put your book in their shopping cart.

How do you get reviews? You ask for them.

The majority of your first book sales will most likely be to people you know. Ask them to review your book on Amazon. That is, if they liked it. If they didn't, ask them to stay mum about it. You don't want them to pretend they liked it either. You also don't really want to go on there and write your own glowing review. Readers can spot phony reviews fairly easily.

Although you don't really want a negative review on your page, a well-written lukewarm review won't necessarily hurt you. Often a not-quite a rave will realistically portray your work and often will have nice things to say about it despite a low-star rating.

It is often easy to get people to agree to review your book. It is even more of a battle to get them to follow through. People are busy. You need to ask early and follow up. You'll probably have to follow up with them several times. Despite your discomfort in "nagging" them, in the end, their excellent review could make the difference in a sale. So keep pushing. Don't threaten their kneecaps or anything, but gentle pushes reminding them to log on and review your book won't likely break a friendly relationship.

If you do receive a negative review, well, that's life. Find someone who likes you and likes your book to put up their positive review soon. As the favorable reviews stack up, you'll be able to push that negative review lower on the page and it will have less weight to the buyer.

What if no one likes your book? The truth is difficult sometimes. If no one likes your book and the reviews are going badly, it is time to look at your product. Take the feedback into consideration and get ready to go back to the drawing board. You may need to consider some revisions and more professional editing.

Remember, having an excellent book is tip No. 1.

Another thing you might want to consider is who you are giving the book to. It might not be fruitful to give your sci-fi erotica novel to your Aunt Mona, whose views make the mother in Carrie seem lenient. Get reviews from readers who are familiar with your book's genre and can accurately review it.

Upcoming in the Best Series is Tip No. 5: Get Lots of Tags.

The Best Series Tip No. 3: Publish a Second Book

The Best Series is based on a presentation by Wheatmark author James D. Best, author of The Shopkeeper, The Shut Mouth Society, and the upcoming release Leadville. Best has offered 10 tips on how to use Amazon to sell your book and we'll look at each tip in depth in a series of blog posts.

James D. Best's Tip No. 3: Publish a Second Book

• Established readers buy second book, first-time buyers go back for first book
• Amazon pairing helps sell both books and it looks professional
• Build credibility
  Nonfiction: image of expertise
  Fiction: image of success

In order to leverage your marketing efforts, one of the best things you can do is publish another book! (Stop sighing and making skeptical faces. It isn't a gimmick. It really works.)

Think about it. As readers, most of us are likely to seek out another title by an author of a book we enjoy or find informative. When you think of your favorite authors, don't most of them have multiple titles in their pocket? Why shouldn't you?

By publishing a second book, you reap several benefits.

One benefit is simply that Amazon, for many readers the go-to place to buy books online, will automatically pair your first and second books on the same page so that readers will see your marketing efforts on both books' pages.

A second benefit is that readers will often go back and buy the second book or first book depending on their enjoyment of the one they've already read. Sometimes they'll buy both in one wallop just based on your reviews and product description. Wouldn't it be better to bring them in and offer them options?

Another benefit is that, as an author, having multiple titles gives you the appearance of credibility. For example, if you've written a book on sales techniques and it is up for sale on Amazon as a lone wolf, you'll sell some copies, but you are competing with many, many titles. Now you write a second book on management techniques as a follow up to your first book. Not only will you have paired books on your page, but you'll look successful and like an expert. Buyers will feel more confident in your ability to instruct them because your expertise is obvious: you've written TWO books!

Finally, it is time-consuming to build your author platform. You write blogs, read other people's blogs, you update your Facebook account and are constantly tweaking your Amazon page. With a second book, you aren't just working to market one title. With two or more titles, you'll be working just as hard as you would with only one title. It would be to your advantage to do the same amount of marketing, but potentially reap more sales from multiple products!

Having a second excellent book helps you look like a bestseller!

Up next, Tip. No. 4: Get Customer Reviews.

The Best Series Tip No. 2: Look Like a Bestseller

The Best Series is based on a presentation by Wheatmark author James D. Best, author of The Shopkeeper, The Shut Mouth Society, and the upcoming release Leadville. Best has offered 10 tips on how to use Amazon to sell your book and we'll look at each tip in depth in a series of blog posts.

• Look Inside (or Search Inside)
  
• Kindle
• Editorial Reviews Section
• Profile Page
• Customer Images
• "Also Bought" and "Also Viewed

Now that you've followed Tip No. 1 and have an Excellent Book to distribute through Amazon, you need to make sure that your book looks like a bestseller.

Check out the best-selling books in Amazon. Look at their Amazon pages and check out all the bells and whistles they have going for them. Then get those bells and whistles for yourself.
Best is a firm believer in the Look Inside option for books on Amazon. It allows potential buyers to peek at the book and see if they like it. The Da Vinci Code has it, why shouldn't yours?

Another thing that Best did to make his book look like a bestseller was to have a Kindle version made. The reason? Plain and simple. The bestsellers had Kindle flags on their pages. In order to get a Kindle flag, you need a Kindle version. The great part is that he now sells Kindle versions of his books as well!

Another point he made was to keep the writing as professional as possible. In the Editorial Reviews section, the content should represent the quality of the book it is selling. Remember to edit it well. Sneak over to other book pages and find ones you think are really well done and mimic their content. Most authors won't have reviews by Publisher's Weekly, so in many cases the Editorial Reviews will be information about the book that you've written yourself.

One of the nice things about Amazon is that other authors have come before you. You don't need to break new ground, you can crib the brilliance of others!

Several other elements that are often skipped by the self-published author are pieces like the profile page. But don't neglect it! One month Best said he had more than 400 views on his profile in December alone. Entry points that support the call to action to buy the book help underscore credibility and allow multiple ways to bring your message to your buyer.

The last point with tip No. 2 is the "Also Bought" and "Also Viewed" link to your book. There isn't much you can do to manipulate this except to ask people you know to buy a second book while they are in there buying your book. However, Amazon will automatically pair your multiple titles if you have them. So you don't need to suggest buying your own book!

To build a winning image, you need to have a book that looks like a winner. By creating an Amazon page that looks professional and mimics the same techniques as the bestsellers, you'll be in the game with your excellent book.

Next tip: Publish a Second Book

The Best Series Tip No. 1: Offer an Excellent Book

The Best Series is based on a presentation by Wheatmark author James D. Best, author of The Shopkeeper, The Shut Mouth Society, and the upcoming release Leadville. Best has offered 10 tips on how to use Amazon to sell your book and we'll look at each tip in depth in a series of blog posts.

Best Tip No.1: Offer an Excellent Book

One of the first things an author must consider before heading into open selling waters is whether their book is an excellent book. An excellent book doesn't mean the next J.K. Rowling. It means a quality book. Have you edited, revised, re-edited, revised again, and repeated the process several times? Is the book professionally copyedited and then proofread? The editing stage is crucial and should not be skipped. If you plan on selling your book in competition with other professional-level books, you need to make sure your book has gone through similar rigorous editing that a traditionally published book goes through.

Another aspect of the excellent book is the design and layout of the book. The interior should be elegantly designed to go along with the content of the book. A correctly designed interior can set you apart from the pack. Publishing books is becoming more easily available every day.

However, just because someone can upload a Word document, doesn't mean they know how to make a book. By working with your publisher or with a designer, you can make sure that your book will be well designed and well received.

And of course, lastly, because the first thing your buyer will see is the book's cover, you need an eye-catching and appropriately designed cover. Chartreuse may grab the reader's attention, but it isn't necessarily appropriate for, say, your book about wolves. Choosing a design that is fitting for your book and that will also be easy to see on a web-based seller like Amazon will help your project win readers before they even open the book.

For more information on book editing and design, visit our Author Resources section of the Wheatmark website.

Next tip on the horizon: Look Like a Bestseller

Kindle 2!

The newest version of Amazon's ebook reader, the Kindle, is here! Check it out by clicking here.

Ships February 24th.

Wheatmark Author Climbing the Charts at Amazon.com

On Wednesday, November 26, 2008, Jim Best's book, The Shopkeeper, rose all the way to #2464 on the Amazon sales rank. This is 2,464 out of 5,000,000 and it puts his book in the top 0.0005% of all titles available. What's more interesting is that he's done it all without putting money into marketing. He's put plenty of time in, certainly, but since publishing with Wheatmark, Jim has utilized his Amazon page as his greatest marketing tool. He has 18 five-star reviews. He has a blog on Amazon. He's also published a second book with Wheatmark, The Shut Mouth Society, which ranks at #15,953.

In fact, if you went to Amazon and typed in Western, in the book department, The Shopkeeper would come in at #3, right behind Cormac McCarthy's Blood Meridian at #2.

An independent fiction author can compete.

Thumbs Up, Thumbs Down: Book Reviews

One way to get the word out about your book is to have it reviewed.

Even when you can’t get the New York Times to even open your envelope, there are plenty of online book reviewers that can offer up insightful discussions about your book and can help lead other readers to it.

But there is a downside to having your book reviewed: you open yourself up to not always glowing reviews. Recently a post at http://botheyes.wordpress.com/2008/11/12/let-the-receiver-beware/ explored the issue of a negative review and the author’s reaction (lawyers were involved).

Understand up front that by asking a reviewer to read and discuss your book, you are asking for their opinion—which they are entitled to. If they don’t like your book, that is their opinion. Don’t get litigious. Get more reviewers! Someone will see value in your work!

Getting an Accurate Review of Your Book

First off, make sure your book is as professional as possible. Have it copyedited. Errors are a warning signal to readers that your book isn’t a quality venture--or worth their time.

Second off, before you ask for a review, make sure you do your homework. Do you like the reviewers style? When they don’t like a book, how do they write about it? Do they include images of the book? Do they review books only on the bestseller list or are they reading independently published work? Pick someone you feel good about.

Most reviewers will request a copy of your book. This does not guarantee they will review your book.

But those are just the “buyer beware” elements. The good parts are that online reviewers are generally more open to independently published books.

They also may be able to better able to reach your audience. For example, if your book is about weight loss, you’ll want to find a reviewer who is interested in your topic. The more expert your reviewer is on your book's topic, the more likely they will be to attract readers that want to learn more about that topic and will seek you out.

Let’s Talk Amazon Before We Go …

Those little reviews from readers on Amazon are gold. Particularly when they are positive! So ask people that have enjoyed your book to hop online and help you toot your horn.

The more positive reviews you have, the more confident someone will be buying your book.

Angry Booksellers, Angrier Bookmakers, and the Indie Art of War

Book industry trade publications are not generally known for their attention-grabbing headlines, and booksellers are not generally known as war-mongering hot-heads, but this morning’s PW email greeted me with one of the most intriguing subject headings this book marketing chick has seen in quite a while: "Angry Bookseller’ Speaks Out at GLIBA."

Read the article and you’ll learn that Publisher’s Weekly isn’t above sensationalizing an email subject heading in order to increase their open rate.

Read the comments following the article and you’ll find that there appears to be a growing disconnect between indie booksellers and indie publishers/authors.

While I don't think so-called "Angry Bookseller" Carol Besse (co-owner of Carmichael's Books and outgoing GLIBA President) could rightly be labeled as anything more than perhaps mildly perturbed (at least not based on anything revealed in this little article. I mean come on, there were no chairs thrown, no hair pulled – I've seen angry – this is not angry; this is maybe miffed), her "call to arms" (in preparation for war against Amazon.com) did manage to catch the ear, as well as the ire of some indie publishers and indie (ie: self-published) authors who feel they’ve been too long ignored by their bookselling brethren.

Rather than argue as to which literary indie group has the most to be angry about, let's just assume that these days there are plenty of problems to go around in the independent literary community, and it sounds like everyone has more than their fair share.

What was it SunTzu said in (what could be considered his best book on the subject ever) The Art of War? Ah, that's right (thanks Google): "Victory comes from finding opportunities in problems."

Or something like that.

Point being -- maybe the problems that indie publishers, indie authors, indie distributors, and indie booksellers are facing individually, might collectively present a big fat opportunity.

Maybe, if we all put our indie heads together, indie publishers and authors could work with indie distributors and booksellers to form mutually beneficial relationships.

Maybe we could even involve the likes of the indie book and publishing associations such as Independent Book Publishers’ Association and SPAN; and indie print reviewers like Foreword Magazine and Midwest Book Review; and while we're at it we could include the indie book blog-o-sphere, etc. to bring readers' attention to those lesser-known, but deserving, self-published & indie-pubbed titles.

Maybe in this war of indies and locals versus big-boxes and online giants, the best defense for all of us indies is a collective, customer-focused and value-rich offense.

I'll take my comments off the air…

Wheatmark Chess Title Achieves Master Rank

Ray Cheng’s Practical Chess Exercises captures best position on Amazon!

Wheatmark, Inc. (http://www.wheatmark.com), the independent author’s most powerful ally, is proud to announce that Ray Cheng’s book, Practical Chess Exercises, has achieved a #1 rank in the Chess category on Amazon.

The best-selling title also cracked the 1,000 mark on Amazon’s Sales Rank for the first time this week, placing it among the elite of the millions of titles for sale on Amazon.com.

Mere months after its release, the book earned admission into Wheatmark’s coveted Great Expectations program (http://www.wheatmark.com/greatexpectations.cfm)—one of the fastest sales records for a title in Wheatmark’s nine years in business (http://www.wheatmark.com/aboutus.cfm).

Practical Chess Exercises is Ray Cheng’s first book.

“It has been an absolute joy to work with the Wheatmark team. They have been professional, thoughtful, creative, and responsive through the entire process of getting my book into print and into the hands of my readers,” he says.

For more information on Wheatmark’s services, including the Great Expectations program, and to get started on publishing your book today, call Wheatmark toll-free at 1.888.934.0888 or visit http://www.wheatmark.com.

Ebooks--Will They Work for You?

I have been following the development of ebooks for eight years now. The one thing I still remember from Book Expo America 2000 in Chicago is how the topic of ebooks seemed to dominate every single workshop I attended. Ebooks were the next big thing.

We've been publishing books for eight years now and converting to and distributing our titles as ebooks has always been in the back of our minds. (We were even fortunate to register the domains ebookpublishing.com and ipublisher.com in time!) Yet the big ebook invasion promised in 2000 never really happened. There are still too many competing ebook platforms and formats to choose from. (See the recently resolved battle between Blu-ray and HD DVD for high-definition DVD formats.) Digital rights management (DRM) is also a mess. Besides, we already offer superior book publishing services and distribution of paper books, and we will do the same with electronic books only if it benefits our authors and the sales of their books.

Having said that, this may be the time to reevaluate launching our ebook services and I need your help! Amazon has recently introduced its ebook reader, the Kindle. This device breaks away from the other competing technologies by including its own wireless distribution system: you don't need a computer or Internet connection to be able to purchase and read ebooks on the Kindle. As we look into the launch of our ebook publishing services, Amazon's Kindle will definitely be on the top of our list for available formats.

I need your help with the following: Assuming that you have written or are writing a book, post a comment below with your thoughts on whether you think your book would be well-served by distribution as an ebook. Do share with us also whether you have a strong preference for a particular ebook format: Kindle, MobiPocket, Adobe Reader, Microsoft Reader, Palm Reader, etc. If we were to provide you with your ebook, would you want it distributed and rights managed by Wheatmark (through Kindle, Amazon, online ebookstores) or would you just prefer to get a particular ebook file (e.g. PDF) that you would host and distribute on your own website yourself?

Any comment you have, please, share it with us by posting it below. Anonymous posts are OK.