1000 Ways to Sell Your Book ;)
A Light Comparison on Business and Book Selling
F. C. Minaker's book "1000 Ways to Make $1000" is available now on Amazon.
I've been reading a book called 1000 ways to make $ 1000 excellent book. Warren Buffet swears by it. Most notably are two quotes I've noticed. The first is: "A promised order pays no commissions." And the other: "Sell your man with the weapons he hands you."
The first is pretty explanatory. Ask for the sale. If they don't pay, there's no sale, regardless of the conversation:
"When you begin to sell, you are almost sure to find nearly everyone will promise you some business. You will be told, "I will keep you in mind," or "I will let you know when I need anything." People really mean these pleasantries when they say them to you, but they seldom bother to remember them after a salesman is out of sight. You must learn, and learn quickly, too, that a promised order pays no commissions, turns no factory wheels."
Minaker, F.C. One Thousand Ways to Make $1000 (p. 30). Kindle Edition.
The second quote is more profound than the first. When you talk to someone about your product, listen to what the customer is saying. Identify the customer's pain and see if you can satisfy their needs. Back in the time of John H. Patterson (a pioneer with cash registers), no one saw a need for the product.
"Mr. Patterson's success was due in a large measure to taking what seemed to be an insurmountable objection, and turning it into a reason for buying. Cash register salesmen were taught to turn the opposition to their advantage by pointing out to employers that when they put temptation in the way of their clerks, they shared the guilt of any clerk who pilfered the cash drawer. They brought the issue to the proprietor of the business by pointing the accusing finger at him rather than at his clerks. And as so often happens, once the right approach to the selling problem was found, the business began to grow. Even to this day, the leadership which this great company enjoys in the field of selling all over the world, can be traced to its policy of turning objections into reasons for buying. In the words of a famous cash register salesman: 'Sell your man with the weapons he hands you.'"
Minaker, F.C. One Thousand Ways to Make $1000 (p. 20). Kindle Edition.
Patterson's experience was in coal. By the time he was 40 years old, he had invested interest in a company with a patent for cash registers; no actual product. Back then, in the 1880s, cash registers made holes in paper. His opposition was retail clerks who were insulted by the insinuation that cash registers implied they were dishonest. As you may have guessed, Patterson used this objection to his advantage.
Purely as loose association and contrast, Indie Reader has an article titled Five Perks of Being an Indie Author. It states the five perks as:
1. Book Pricing
2. Digital Book Options
3. Book Updates
4. Amazon Optimization
5. Book Marketing
"Traditional publishing is alluring, but don't waste time waiting on a lucrative deal. Getting your book out there, even as an indie author, is going to get you farther, faster, than sitting on something that sounds better in theory then it is in reality."
Articles like this reinforce the desire to pursue your passion. They're excellent and essential but without the follow-through of a good business book. It's only half the execution needed.