So how do you create an irresistible sell? How do you create a product or pitch so perfect, that customers can’t resist it? We all want it, but finding that secret recipe to becoming someone that beckons success or that the media can’t stay away from can be tricky.
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First, you’ll want to look at your book as more than a book, look at it as a solution to someone’s problem, an experience, an adventure, but stop looking at your book and thinking of it as “just a book” – you’re not selling a book, you’re selling an experience. Think about the last TV commercial you watched. When was the last time someone came out and said “hey, I’m selling a widget, isn’t that cool?” No, instead they show you the experience the widget can give you and how it will change your life.
The first person you have to sell your book to is you. I talked to an author a few weeks ago and she told me, “well, the book is ok I guess.” OK? If you’re going to sell this book, you’re going to have to think it’s more than just “ok;” you’re going to have to love it. If you’re not passionate about your stuff, no one else will be, either.
Give your readers what they want, not what you think they need. This is a big one, and most retailers know this lesson by heart. Giving your readers what they want can be hard. How do you know what they want? By listening to them. We had a program that for years we sold on our web site. It was a “do it yourself” sort of a package that authors used to love. Then, we started getting complaints about the product (we offer full refunds on all of our products), so we returned the fees and took the product back to the drawing board. Consequently, we now have a redesigned, stronger product and people love it. Listen to your customer/reader and give them what they want, it’s that simple.
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What’s your Loss Leader? Do you have something you can give away? Loss leaders or “leave behinds” refer to inexpensive gifts, pens, freebie reports, booklets, or in some cases, your book. If it’s appropriate to your market, genre, and book, consider coming up with your own loss leader. I was at a romance writers convention recently, and some authors there had the cutest things, everything from custom chocolate bars to small containers of bubble bath (with the name of their book title on them, of course!). Consider what your loss leader is, and whether or not you want to create one.
And finally, you’ll want to use the right words to tell your story. This harks back to the “your book is more than a book” statement. Take a look at the words you’re using to sell your book. Are you pushing emotional hot buttons, are you tapping into your readers’ desires, hopes, and fears? If you’re not, go back and tweak the copy till it’s right, or better yet, hire someone to do it for you. I have yet to write the copy on my own books. Why? Well, I’m simply too close to it. Invariably I miss something, and it’s usually something big. Don’t let the big message slip through your fingers, get that copy to sing.
Being irresistible in the eyes of your reader is different for each of us, but the biggest piece to this is that it’s not what matters to us, it’s what matters to our buyer. By keeping the needs of your customer in mind, you’ll always have the exact right book, message, or product, and before you know it, you, too, will be impossible to resist.
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