Are Published Books Slowly Dying?

March 10th, 2010

The fact is, it has been happening for a while. People are turning more and more to the internet as a source of information, over books.

Instead of heading off to the local library to dig up information, now people are often just turning on their computers in order to find the information they seek on a website. Does this shift towards technology mean the end of books?

No, there will always be a need for books in the future, as far as I can see. Academics rely heavily on books in their college studies and, later, careers. There are simply too many people in need of books for them to become a dying breed overnight.

If you ask any university or college student, they will tell you that their teachers want reliable sources for the information used. If you told one of these teachers that your source was a random website they would not be pleased.

In this age of technology anyone can own and operate a website claiming they are an authority on any given topic. With good marketing they can even become one of the top links in a Google search.

The site may look nice, it may look reliable, and the person to whom the words belong may seem very knowledgeable. But who is to say they are truly an expert? These sites are not regulated, and there may not be anyone checking the facts they state.

Books though are generally written by acclaimed experts in their fields. They have been checked and reviewed time and again. Books make it easier to weed out the good sources from the bad.

For the fact checks, and for the many people who will always love the feel of a good novel between their hands, I do not think that books will be going anywhere. At least not any time soon. As a book person, I hold out hope that the younger generations come to appreciate books the same way many of us already have.

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Calling All Unpublished Writers

March 10th, 2010

Thus far, you have finished your first literary masterpiece and sent it out to almost every possible publisher and agent which may be interested in signing unpublished writers. Ideally, since many months have passed, you ought to be getting some sort of feedback. Or perhaps, in a perfect world, a contract to publish your work could come and help make all of your dreams become a reality!

Unfortunately, for many of us unpublished writers, although we probably do get feedback, we don’t generally receive contracts to publish our works. As a matter of fact, according to Writer’s Digest, under 5% of the estimated total number of manuscript submissions are published at all. Of that 5%, just 15% accepted are for debut books.

I understand that these statistics can be extremely discouraging. However, do not give up! These things don’t have to be that hard.

Generally, in spite of common belief, many publishing houses as well as literary agencies want to find new authors. The problem that you find is that when you are looking at traditional publishing companies, the sheer quantity of submissions is a stumbling block to any new author.

Many companies will not accept manuscripts from unpublished authors; many companies will not accept unsolicited manuscripts; and, several others refuse to accept manuscripts that are submitted by authors that are not represented by literary agents. Reading through the various requirements of the publishing companies can be both frustrating and very time consuming. That is why it is good to find a publishing company that is truly interested in publishing good writing, regardless of where it is coming from.

Make sure that your writing is grammatically correct. Make sure that it flows well and will be marketable. The last thing that you want is to submit a manuscript to someone that is just going to look at it as a mess.

To all unpublished writers, visit http://firsttimeauthors.org to get a FREE writing e-book. Life for unpublished authors does not have to be so hard.

The Sales and SEO Elevator Pitch

March 9th, 2010

Does it make sense to invest time and effort in an SEO project, get readers to your page and let them drop off for lack of interest or confusion? Of course not competing for attention once you have captured a reader on your site is equally as important as getting him there in the first place.

Articulation of the value proposition you offer prospective clients in fewer than thirty seconds is of course imperative when meeting with prospects face to face. Prospects are receptive to a meaningful message for only a few seconds. A solid reason must be provided during this short time for the listener to keep paying attention. Lose the prospect’s attention here and it might be gone for good. Communicating the value statement in a very short period of time is then extremely important in building relationships and in sales work.

Many page authors make the mistake of occupying too much web page space to communicate simple value statements. In the case of a web page though, the 30-second rule applies multiple times per page and means that the author must continually campaign to keep reader attention. This often requires a careful scripting and organization of the web page message and generally involves two phases: getting the reader’s attention and keeping it throughout the page.

Social manners do not impact how a reader views a web page. If a page is confusing or doesn’t provide value, the reader clicks on to the next page or article. Reader’s don’t worry about being rude and can click off a page in a second. As people generally can read much more quickly than they speak, the page author has very few precious seconds to make the value statement and provide a really good reason for the reader to stay on the page.

It is of course no value to build a page that appears #1 on a Google Results list only to lose the prospect’s attention. Using the 30 second pitch rules to construct a message is important and makes the message efficient in terms of delivery. Here are four key points in structuring a blog post or web page using the ‘30 second pitch’ rule. These are:

Organization Description Tagging Value Wit

Organization – State the value up front with a bold claim or single reason the readers should pay attention. Bullet points can work nicely in that they lay out what the reader can expect to get by continuing down the page. Organizing a composition- for some authors- can be dreadfully difficult, but it is an absolute essential in competing for reader attention. State clearly the value of each point you are making and creatively remind her/him why it is important to keep reading.

Description Tags – When your page is returned on a search result, the display usually includes a sentence or two from the description that you set when you built the page. Brevity is a huge challenge here. You only have a few characters to work with in convincing a prospective reader to click on your page. Bold statements, quickly delivered are the key to success. Statements similar to “Improve Profits by 30% in 30 days” are useful, but the author must back up any bold statements with solid facts and statistics later on the page.

Value and Value Statement – This must be continually presented and re-stated throughout the page or post. Readers must be reminded of the value they will find by continuing to read through the entire page. Think of the value to the reader and then organize key points and present them one by one.

Wit – Charm and wit are useful in disarming the defenses of a critical and reticent reader. Making serious matters seem less intimidating can encourage your reader to initiate a business relationship with you. Reaching out to a prospective service provider is a difficult task – especially when the prospective customer has his guard up against being used or oversold. Wit usually fits better in the latter parts of your post, as you have already grabbed the readers’ attention with the value proposition and are attempting to respond to whatever call-to-action you are using.

Principles of the ‘30-second pitch’ are highly useful in web content construction. Keeping readers on your page supports the investment made in attracting readers and can turn readers into customers.

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