How to Promote Your Book to the Top of the NY Times Best Sellers List
Sankofa Literary Society Posting Home
Although Mark Hyman, M.D, the New York Times best-selling author and
practicing physician, had a strong, multifaceted marketing and sales
plan in place, the addition of an article-marketing strategy helped
push his book, UltraMetabolism-The Simple Plan For Automatic Weight
Loss to the No. 2 spot of the Times best seller list.
Dr. Hyman's article-marketing campaign was only one piece of the
puzzle, but it was an important piece, helping him establish key
relationships with site publishers that will result in increased,
targeted traffic and stronger sales for many months and years to
come.
By including a targeted article marketing program into your marketing
and sales plan, you too can achieve book-marketing success. Doing so
effectively requires planning and perfect execution from beginning to
end.
Step 1: Create an article that grabs reader interest
One of the most important parts of the article is the title. Remember,
the first three of four words of the title have the most weight with
Google and other search engines. The point of the title is to intrigue
your audience enough so that they actually sit down and read the
article. You may even want to make an outrageous proposition that you
can fulfill within your article, as we have with the title of this
article.
The articles that get the best results are those that provide unique,
high-quality content that solve at least one piece of a problem
puzzle. However, to convert readers to buyers, you must not give the
reader all of the answers to the how of solving a particular problem.
Instead, you want to tease them with some of the how and top it off
with the why it's important.
Step 2: Turn readers into prospects with a strong call to action and
an offer they can't refuse
You want to encapsulate the essence of what makes you and your
offering unique. This is your unique selling proposition. Do this by
chiseling away from your golden nuggets all the information that no
one cares about. Refine them into gleaming insights. Hammer them into
a logical sequence. Fasten them to reader benefits. Then polish and
polish it until your fingers ache, to create a glittering necklace of
persuasion that seduces the eye, charms the imagination, and dazzles
the reader with so much human interest that it is much easier to click
and go to your Web site than not.
If you add a free-bonus offer, you will make it even easier for
readers to click to your Web site. You can offer a sneak preview of
your book, a free e-zine subscription, or a free bonus report that
further enhances your credibility as an expert.
Step 3: Maintain reader interest and create a squeeze page
Think of your article as a sales funnel. Your article title, content,
bio box, and the link that you send your readers to should all flow
right into each other. Including a link to the main page only
distracts and frustrates readers: You will lose that sale forever.
When you promote your book in your bio box, take them to a squeeze
page within your site that convinces people why they should either buy
the book or subscribe.
Step 4: Target your audience with e-zines and Web sites that make a
difference
You need to find Web sites that are highly visited and e-zines that
are the most read, but more importantly you want to focus on Web sites
and e-zine publishers within your specific niche that have strong
emotional connections to their audiences.
Through our research for Dr. Mark Hyman, we found information for a
popular editor at About.com, which is among the top 50 sites on the
net. This submission resulted in over 1,500 opt-in and new sales in
one day, not counting the successes from other credible Web sites.
Step 5: Submit your article and build your links and traffic
Now is the time to perform the tiring, boring, and tedious task of
submitting your articles. But, as you're completing this process, know
that there is light at the end of the tunnel. By using these article
marketing strategies, you can build a steady stream of warm ready-to-
buy visitors and substantially increase your book sales.
* * *
By including article marketing into your multifaceted marketing and
sales plan, you too can achieve success in marketing your book. You
will then only be limited by your imagination and your time. The
question is, "What is your destination?"
Written by Eric Gruber
Article marketing expert and award-winning public relations
practitioner, Eric Gruber helped promote Mark Hyman MD's book to the
top of the NY Times Best Seller List. Reach him at Er...@prleads.com or
visit www.prleads.com.