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Selling a Philosophical Work? Any ideas?

by Cam Connor
13 replies
I was wondering if anyone here has ever written copy for any type of philosophical work, and how it went... It seems like a tough sell, because though philosophical works can change lives and are very important, life-changing, etc, you can't really pitch them on the same direct benefits as you could if you were selling, for example, a book on personal development.

I guess your target market is people who have a thirst for knowledge, no? So perhaps the "I have information you don't, but would want" angle? Tough call.

The best philosophical copy that I've ever seen personally, is on the back of Atlas Shrugged:

"This is the story of a man who said that he would stop the motor of the world and did. Was he a destroyer or the greatest of liberators?

Why did he have to fight his battle, not against his enemies, but against those who needed him most, and his hardest battle against the woman he loved? What is the world’s motor — and the motive power of every man? You will know the answer.to these questions when you discover the reason behind the baffling events that play havoc with the lives of the characters in this story. ..."

Provocative.

So, I was wondering if anyone here had specific advice on selling philosophical works.

Not looking for general advice like: "Just use the basic principles of good copy", "Facts tell stories sell", "Logic tells, emotion sells" ... but actual advice related to this specific topic. Thanks in advance (yea, I thanks in advanced you... you owe me pal.).
#ideas #philosophical #selling #work
  • Profile picture of the author IDoTheLegWork
    Originally Posted by Cam Connor View Post

    because though philosophical works can change lives and are very important, life-changing, etc, you can't really pitch them on the same direct benefits as you could if you were selling, for example, a book on personal development.
    I think this is the crux of your problem. You not only can, but you must, sell
    a philosophical book, or any book, on what the reader will gain from reading it
    and what they will lose if they don't.

    The only way to do that is to know PRECISELY who your target prospect is.
    Is it someone seeking status for being "well read"? Is it someone struggling
    with a particular issue? Is it someone looking to bolster a point of view they
    have?

    Take a look at the letters Robert Collier used to sell a collection of books
    composed of the greatest works a Harvard professor had selected, or the
    "Outline of History" by H.G. Wells. He reached into the desires his prospective
    customers had that could be met by the books being sold.

    https://s3.amazonaws.com/sherus/The-...etter-Book.pdf

    If I had to sum it up in a nutshell you need to present the book in a way that
    has prospects believing the work is relevant, entertaining and will help them
    feel better about themselves, or give them an advantage, in some way -- AND
    leave them feeling at a disadvantage if they don't read it.
    Signature

    ..and you WILL contribute a verse.
    Indifference is the enemy that must be conquered.
    Appeal to the crowd by addressing the person.

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    • Profile picture of the author Cam Connor
      Originally Posted by IDoTheLegWork View Post

      I think this is the crux of your problem. You not only can, but you must, sell
      a philosophical book, or any book, on what the reader will gain from reading it
      and what they will lose if they don't.

      The only way to do that is to know PRECISELY who your target prospect is.
      Is it someone seeking status for being "well read"? Is it someone struggling
      with a particular issue? Is it someone looking to bolster a point of view they
      have?

      Take a look at the letters Robert Collier used to sell a collection of books
      composed of the greatest works a Harvard professor had selected, or the
      "Outline of History" by H.G. Wells. He reached into the desires his prospective
      customers had that could be met by the books being sold.

      https://s3.amazonaws.com/sherus/The-...etter-Book.pdf

      If I had to sum it up in a nutshell you need to present the book in a way that
      has prospects believing the work is relevant, entertaining and will help them
      feel better about themselves, or give them an advantage, in some way -- AND
      leave them feeling at a disadvantage if they don't read it.
      Great post Idothelegwork, thanks. I'll take a look at what Robert wrote for the college professor, (which is on page 95 by the way, if anyone's interested). So, I guess you're right, I could sell it that way... not sure why I was thinking I couldn't but it's true that not many people know the value of philosophy. ANYWAYS, what Ayn Rand did was very clever, she wrote her philosophies out as a story, and then sold the masses on its entertainment value, AND it's philosophical value.
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    • Profile picture of the author TracyBelshee
      Originally Posted by IDoTheLegWork View Post


      Take a look at the letters Robert Collier used to sell a collection of books
      composed of the greatest works a Harvard professor had selected, or the
      "Outline of History" by H.G. Wells. He reached into the desires his prospective
      customers had that could be met by the books being sold.

      https://s3.amazonaws.com/sherus/The-...etter-Book.pdf

      .
      Just wanted to thank you for the link. I've started reading a hard copy but it's a pain to keep with me where I work. Now I can actually read it in my spare moments
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  • Profile picture of the author Odahh
    if you hadn't mention ayn rand in both your posts i was going to say .. the best way at this point is to put you work into a fictional or fantasy setting.. or over a series of novellas on kindle .

    there is a guy on you tube a libertarian wih something like 1600 videos on philosophy ..last full video i watched was him having a meltdown at his viewers for not valuing his work with money ..

    there are plenty of skill writers on odask or elance that can help you write a good story around your philosophies you can even hit different niches ..
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    • Profile picture of the author marciayudkin
      Cam,

      The Great Courses company has fantastic copy for philosophy and other academic subjects in its written catalog. Sign up for their list by buying something from them. (They're always having sales.)

      Here is one of my Marketing Minute newsletters from 2007 about their techniques (which they're still using today)...
      Breathe Life Into Abstractions

      Got dry, abstract content? Your presentation of it need not
      be dull and tedious. The Teaching Company uses these
      techniques in its fun-to-read catalog of recorded college-
      level philosophy courses to bring an abstruse subject
      to life.

      * Engaging illustrations, including contemporary photos to
      set a mood, scenes from historic paintings, fanciful
      drawings (like a devil pulling on a man's left ear and an
      angel whispering into the right ear to depict conscience)
      and attention-getting montages (an alarm clock sitting on
      a stony hillside to portray the "argument from design" for
      God's existence).

      * Dramatic openers. Rather than use humdrum product names
      such as "Philosophy of Religion" for headlines, course
      descriptions begin with headlines like "Does God Exist?" or
      "Philosophizing with a Hammer."

      * Diagrams. A two-page spread indicates the birthplaces of
      Pythagoras, Parmenides and 17 other ancient thinkers on a
      map of Greece and Italy.

      * Who's who. Another two-page spread profiles Jonathan
      Edwards, William James and six other American greats.

      * Two quizzes - a word search puzzle for the names of
      Nietzsche's 10 favorite philosophers and a quiz matching
      ancient Greek philosophers with their hometowns.
      I have an advanced degree in philosophy and would be glad to talk to you about this a bit offline if you like.

      Marcia Yudkin
      Signature
      Check out Marcia Yudkin's No-Hype Marketing Academy for courses on copywriting, publicity, infomarketing, marketing plans, naming, and branding - not to mention the popular "Marketing for Introverts" course.
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  • Profile picture of the author Steve The Copywriter
    Cam,

    Both you and leg hit the target.

    You - "I have information you don't, but would want"

    Leg - "sell a philosophical book, or any book, on what the reader will gain from reading it
    and what they will lose if they don't"

    Me - do the above with lots of mystery and intrigue.

    Human nature and particularly every philosophy practitioner (what?) can't ignore it.


    Steve
    Signature
    http://www.warriorforum.com/warriors...right-now.html
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  • Profile picture of the author RickDuris
    You may want to look at Saul Alinsky's Rules for Radicals. I'm currently reading it. Political philosophy. But I'm looking at its relevancy to marketing.
    Signature
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    • Profile picture of the author Alex Cohen
      Originally Posted by RickDuris View Post

      You may want to look at Saul Alinsky's Rules for Radicals. I'm currently reading it. Political philosophy. But I'm looking at its relevancy to marketing.
      Sounds like another Special Report in the making!

      Go for it Rick.

      Alex
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  • Profile picture of the author Andy The Copywriter
    Are you trying to sell a philosophical product (like a book) or are you trying to "sell" an idea?

    I'm not quite sure which it is from your OP.

    If you want to know about how to market philosophical content, look at Stefan Molyneaux does.

    He hosts the biggest philosophical radio show on the internet with over 70 million downloads. Has a few hundred thousand youtube subscribers.

    His basic strategy is to tie in his philosophy with current events... And churn out a *lot* of content.
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  • Profile picture of the author JamesDLayton
    Providing information is only half the task. Give it to them in ways they can implement. People are lazy. They don't want self improvement. They want YOU to show them how to improve. Dan Kennedy once joked that Napoleon Hill went broke because he didn't write (How To) Think (To) Grow Rich.

    But his joke was half true. People above ALL things... LOVE to hand over ownership of problems to others. And books that promise to hand-hold them through a certain problem are pretty much sold before written.

    James
    Signature
    "We are what we think about
    all day long." - Earl Nightingale
    One of the easiest transformations I ever undertook as a copywriter was reading that quote every day.
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    • Profile picture of the author Cam Connor
      Originally Posted by Steve The Copywriter View Post

      Cam,

      Both you and leg hit the target.

      You - "I have information you don't, but would want"

      Leg - "sell a philosophical book, or any book, on what the reader will gain from reading it
      and what they will lose if they don't"

      Me - do the above with lots of mystery and intrigue.

      Human nature and particularly every philosophy practitioner (what?) can't ignore it.


      Steve
      Yea, I agree with him. I don't know why I was thinking I still couldn't use the self-improvement aspect. Intrigue & mystery it is. I like that idea for philosophy as well. Make people intrigued about the Master Knowledge in my brain which I could teach them. lulz



      Originally Posted by marciayudkin View Post

      Cam,

      The Great Courses company has fantastic copy for philosophy and other academic subjects in its written catalog. Sign up for their list by buying something from them. (They're always having sales.)

      Here is one of my Marketing Minute newsletters from 2007 about their techniques (which they're still using today)...
      I have an advanced degree in philosophy and would be glad to talk to you about this a bit offline if you like.

      Marcia Yudkin
      Hey Marcia, thanks, I'll check them out. This isn't for something I'm doing immediately, but I'll keep you in mind, I'd definitely love to talk it out with you, A copywriter with an advanced degree in philosophy, this is definitely something you'd be good at!



      Originally Posted by RickDuris View Post

      You may want to look at Saul Alinsky's Rules for Radicals. I'm currently reading it. Political philosophy. But I'm looking at its relevancy to marketing.
      Never heard of it, but I'll definitely check that out. Thx. )



      Originally Posted by Andy The Copywriter View Post

      Are you trying to sell a philosophical product (like a book) or are you trying to "sell" an idea?

      I'm not quite sure which it is from your OP.

      If you want to know about how to market philosophical content, look at Stefan Molyneaux does.

      He hosts the biggest philosophical radio show on the internet with over 70 million downloads. Has a few hundred thousand youtube subscribers.

      His basic strategy is to tie in his philosophy with current events... And churn out a *lot* of content.
      Well, it would be a group of ideas, so it would be in some content format, such as a book (most likely a book).

      Funny you should say that, I just found him on YT for the first time a couple days ago. He had a great video on immigration (political philosophy). He definitely seems to know his stuff. Here's that vid if you're interested:

      .

      And you're right, that one is LONG (about an hour and 45 minutes) and he does seem to churn out a TON of content.



      Originally Posted by JamesDLayton View Post

      Providing information is only half the task. Give it to them in ways they can implement. People are lazy. They don't want self improvement. They want YOU to show them how to improve. Dan Kennedy once joked that Napoleon Hill went broke because he didn't write (How To) Think (To) Grow Rich.

      But his joke was half true. People above ALL things... LOVE to hand over ownership of problems to others. And books that promise to hand-hold them through a certain problem are pretty much sold before written.

      James

      Yea, I heard Napoleon Hill was broke in his elder years... pretty sad. Especially considering all the personal tutoring he got from the great Andrew Carnegie (the richest man in the world at his time). And especially considering his understand of metaphysical and scientific laws, and abundance... I'm not sure how he allowed himself to go into such a poverty mindset. Strange, really...

      But yea, peeps are lazy, so there's certainly an opportunity to sell it as such.
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      • Profile picture of the author JamesDLayton
        Well W. Clement Stone knew why. He hired Hill to train his sales staff and made him a millionaire. Hill knew the way he just didn't define a path. He had no system. Stone wrote a similar book to Think And Grow Rich and it had pretty much the same content BUT..... he knew how to set systems in place. Hill didn't.... he knew the way to get rich just not the way to implement it for himself. W Clement Stone took his work and systematically put it to work. And the rest is history.

        James
        Signature
        "We are what we think about
        all day long." - Earl Nightingale
        One of the easiest transformations I ever undertook as a copywriter was reading that quote every day.
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  • Profile picture of the author selfdisciplineacademy
    Just sell with 2 things

    1. Rapport - build trust by making promises and delivering - WIN-WIN
    2. Value - It all has to be based around this. -

    Plus use results + 'you can too' in headlines and titles
    Signature

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