Why Most Books Fail

Issue #787 Jan. 25, 2014
Publisher: Joan Stewart

“Tips, Tricks and Tools for Free Publicity”

In This Issue

1. Why Most Books Fail
2. Animated GIFs on Pinterest
3. Get Booked on Big TV Shows
4. Hound Video of the Week

This Weekend in the Hound House:

Playing catch-up this weekend after being away for six days on the “Publishing at Sea” cruise I hosted with Judith Briles, Amy Collins and Georgia McCabe. What a blast! And the weather was perfect. It was so successful, we’re already planning for next year’s cruise. Our authors learned every important aspect of the book publishing business–content all authors should know about long before they start writing. See Item #1 below.

1. Why Most Books Fail

Of the more than 600,000 books published in the U.S. alone each year, the average book sells fewer than 250 copies.

During the six-day “Publishing at Sea” cruise in the Western Caribbean this week, my three fellow presenters and I taught authors what they must know if they expect their books to become best-sellers.

Here’s why most books fail miserably:

–The authors don’t approach book publishing as a difficult, competitive, cut-throat business. That’s because most of them don’t understand the book publishing industry.

–Most authors don’t spend money on critically important things such as cover design and interior design. Book distribution expert Amy Collins, one of my fellow presenters who convinces bookstores to stock her clients’ books, says the first thing a book buyer will look at is your cover. If it’s less than perfect, the book goes on the junk pile, unread. They don’t give a damn what’s inside your book.

–Most authors publish without a platform, the ability to find their target audience online and off, interact with them and get them excited about their topic and their book. Platform is also credibility, authority and proven reach. Jane Friedman gives an excellent definition of author platform.

–Many authors don’t write for their target audience. Some authors can’t even define who they are writing for, a horrifying truth I’ve witnessed first-hand when I work with my author clients and speak at publishing conferences.

–When sales dip several months after launch, many authors give up and jump into writing the next book. Book marketing is a marathon, not a sprint. It’s a backbreaking and sometimes demoralizing grind in which only the strong survive.

I’ll be writing more about this topic here and at my blog, and sharing lots of things we taught our authors.

2. Animated GIFs on Pinterest

Starting this week, Pinterest now gives you the ability to pin animated GIFs on the web. Eventually, it will be available on mobile.

An animated GIF is a graphic image on a web page that moves. For example, you might see a six-second video of a dog doing a trick. The video loops endlessly so you can watch it over and over again. You can see lots of examples.

Here are five ways to use animated GIFs on Pinterest for publicity:

–To demonstrate something you are teaching, like a yoga pose, as part of a blog post.

–To show how a product, like a lint remover, works quickly, on your sales page.

–To illustrate how to do something difficult like flip sauteed vegetables in a frying pan. Include a link to the pin in a pitch to a journalist or blogger.

–To show a funny clip of a speaker’s presentation on the “Speaking” section of the speaker’s website.

–To show yourself receiving an important award, for your online pressroom.

If you’re not quite ready for GIFs yet, and you have a difficult-to-illustrate topic, get step-by-step instructions on how to create a Pinterest board of short tips that get great Google search ranking. I explain it in the video replay of a webinar on “How to Create How-to Tips for Non-visual Topics on Pinterest”.

3. Get Booked on Big TV Shows

Would you like to be interviewed on a top national TV show on ABC, NBC, CBS or Fox?

Find out how during a free 90-minute telephone seminar at 2 or 7 p.m. Eastern on Thursday, Jan. 30, when you’ll hear Steve Harrison interview a group of his producer friends who currently book guests for the major networks and shows like “Live with Kelly,” “Rachael Ray” and “The Wendy Williams Show.”

To register for this call, which is free except for your normal long-distance charges. (affiliate link).

Once registered, you’ll receive all the details back within five minutes.

Note: If you cannot attend, recruit someone to listen and take notes for you because the replay most likely will not be offered afterward.

4. Hound Video of the Week

On the “Publishing at Sea” cruise, I discovered the JFL Hidden Camera Pranks & Gags videos. Here’s a good one called Electrocuted Puppy.