Pricing is a critical aspect of marketing your book effectively, but I’ll admit it’s not always an easy decision! Pricing can influence how readers perceive the value of your work and impact your sales. Here are some smart book pricing strategies, along with insights into the psychology of pricing, to help you maximize their book's success:
1. Know Your Target Audience:
I see this a lot. Authors who don’t really understand the pricing constraints of their target reader. But understanding your readers' preferences, demographics, and willingness to pay. Tailor your pricing strategy to align with their expectations and budgets.
2. Launch Discounts:
Offering a promotional launch price can create a sense of urgency and excitement. Readers may be more inclined to buy if they believe they're getting a special deal. But launch discounts should be a short window only, 48 hours at most.
Numerous studies over the years have concluded that people who are certain of their beliefs are more likely to buy, buy sooner and spend more. These findings can help you sell more of your books to corporate buyers.
Viscerally, it makes sense. You are probably more likely to make a purchase if you are confident that you are making the right choice. It is a gut feeling, a sense that you are doing the right thing that makes you comfortable plowing ahead. You can get your buyers to feel the same about you and your book, too. And you can do all that not by using advanced sales techniques, but by being objective, building consensus, reinforcing a positive message and building your credibility.
A typical marketing plan has three major parts. The first is direction — your objectives for the planning period. The second is a statement of what you are going to do and the third describes how you will do it. Your task is to create the optimum combination of strategy and action that will achieve your objectives. Declare your dependence on strategic thinking and free your mind to create new ways to reach your goals. Here is how to do that.
Copyright Tips from experts* at CopyrightsNow.com
Question: Your friend or family member offers to create illustrations or take photos for your book. So, who owns the work product? And how do you copyright your book?
The answer depends on who has 'ownership' of the work created (i.e., illustrations, photos, etc.) and whether ownership gets transferred to you or stays with the original creator.
You may be thinking that using some photos or illustrations are 'No Big Deal' ... given it's a family member or friend. And you may be OK if the book is a flop and makes no money. But if the book is a 'winner' and earns lots of money ... that's when the 'wolves will come after you' ... and may claim it was their contribution that made it a success or even sue for copyright infringement and money damages for using their work!
How can people invest their book-marketing time, money and skills most effectively? I wanted to find the most complete and accurate answer, so I decided to consult a higher power: Warren Buffett. After all, Mr. Buffett is the ultimate value investor. I know the Oracle of Omaha is not a book marketer, but some of his investment strategies are remarkably applicable to book marketing — even if he never intended the connection. The book, The Warren Buffett Book of Investing Wisdom, edited by Robert L. Bloch, lists many Buffettisms about investing. Here are some that seemed remarkably applicable to investing in book marketing.
Becoming a success (as you have defined it) in book publishing is more an art than a science. You can learn all the right things to do, but the application of those actions is different for every situation, person, book and target buyer. One key to moving continuously in the right direction on your path is to have a strong belief in yourself. In other words, become DEAR to yourself.
Publishers want to increase sales with new books and new ways to market them. Yet in practice they wait for authors to submit manuscripts and then sell the published books through bookstores and online. The quest for innovation is lost to habit and tradition.
It doesn’t have to (and shouldn’t) be that way. There is a reliable, systematic process for developing new, different and more successful ways to publish profitably and simultaneously grow your business. The objective is to close the growth gap — the area between where you are now and where you want to be. There are four basic steps in this process.
When you look at your Amazon strategy, the question you need to ask yourself is “how can I make a shopper click the ‘buy’ button?”
This isn’t always easy or straightforward, but what isn’t going to help is putting your book on Amazon and hoping for the best. The reality is that Amazon isn’t going to do the heavy lifting for you. The platform has little to no incentive to promote your book.
It comes down to you doing the research and putting in the work. Here are seven things you can do on Amazon to reach more potential readers and, hopefully, sell more books.