Networking 108: Are you honest when you market your book?

Good Evening Everyone,

I hope that your evening is going well. I was thinking about integrity and honesty after I completed my homework. Too often, people are not honest in their dealings and that could signal the end of their business. Being honest is an important trait to have when you are trying to market your book.

Here are some honest tips to follow as you market your book:

1. Be honest when people ask you about your book. No one should know your book better than you. I repeat, no one should know your book better than you.

2. Be honest when people ask you for the cost of your book. If you are selling a book that has an online price of $21.95, you need to make sure that you tell people that you are selling your book for $21.95 or a price lower than that. Never inflate your book price above what is listed online.

3. Be honest when your market your product. If a customer ask you if your book is available as an e-book and you have not made an e-book, you need to tell them that the book is not available in an e-book yet. Tell them that you are in talks with your publisher to get the book created as an e-book. But if you do not have plans to turn your book into an e-book, do not led your customers to believe that an e-book is coming when you don't plan to make one.

4. Be honest when you say that you are selling books out of car. This means that you actually have to have some books in your trunk in order to say that. Do not say you have books and then people are lining up at your car and your trunk is empty. (You should be ashamed and utterly embarrassed if you actually do this!)

5. Be honest when you say that you are a first-time author or a seasoned author. Don't try to be something that you are not. Embrace the title that you have and move forward.

6. Be honest when you say that you are having trouble marketing your book. When you are honest, you are able to get assistance for others who can help you.

7. Be honest when you tell others about your publishing process. Don't act like your publishers treated you like gold when you know that you have to ride the necks of some people to get your book done on time. Keep it honest and say that you had a tough time but you made it through even in the midst of your storms.

8. Be honest when you say that you say that marketing your book is hard work. Between radio advertisements, newspaper ads, magazines articles, and television appearances, your life as an author is not a bed of roses. It is hard work.

9. Be honest when you talk about your inspiration for your book. Tell people who or what gave you the mindset to write the book that you have written. Keep it honest because you will be asked this question in other venues. You have to be consistent in what you say because people will call you out if you are telling two different stories. Again, be honest no matter what.

10. Lastly, honesty can increase your sales. But lies can decrease and close down your book sales. Invest in honesty so that people will know that they can trust your word when you speak it. You don't have to over think anything when you are honest. When you are honest, your words will flow naturally.

Run after your dreams until they are fulfilled. No matter what happens, keep it honest and keep it real!

The Author Journey continues..................