I Wrote a Book and It Is Killing Me -Thank You All

102 replies
I spent almost 2 years writing and editing my book. I believe it is a great book. It is 235 pages. When I finished it, I published it on my own site, Payhip, Lulu and Amazon. I was so happy. I sent a free copy to friends and family on facebook to get feedback. Most said they did not have time to read it. The ones that did gave me positive feedback.

I was in need of immediate funds so I set it up on several sites. Then I tried to promote it. It very quickly became apparent that unless you have it on Amazon and can offer it free for a few days, most sites won't let you post it. Because I did not sign up for kdp and already had it on other sites, it did not qualify. Trying to sell it directly from my site was not working. I submitted it to dozens of sites with no luck. I also posted a lot of graphics with my url on pinterest. I was not getting any traffic from them. I was soon unable to afford hosting so I lost my site. Now even if someone sees my ads they can't find my book. My computer monitor is going out so I have not been able to edit the url on the graphics.

I am doing everything I can to stay positive. Watching helpful and motivational videos, reading, taking walks and using positive self talk.

I now only have it listed on Payhip, Amazon and Lulu. It is very difficult to get traffic to the Payhip site. I need immediate cash as I am in trouble financially. I am open to any free ideas to effectively market my products. I found a list of ebook site here on the forum, but I posted to them with little results. I set up 3 sample chapters that people can download on my Payhip site. I have not had enough traffic to get it noticed. I also submitted it to sharing sites but they only work if you promote the page.

I am in need of ideas, moral support and someone to believe in me. I am frustrated and broke. Any advice on how to effectively promote my book and other products would be much appreciated. I have found a lot of great advice in this forum over the years so I am sure I can find some solutions again.

Thank you for taking time to read my post.

Tracie


Thank You! Thank You! Thank You!

Hello Fellow Warriors,

I wanted to edit this post in order to say thank you to everyone who has offered advice, marketing tips, comments, feedback and all the wonderful offers for help. It has always been difficult for me to ask for help. I really wish I had not waited so long to ask. I have always loved the Warrior Forum and gotten good advice.

I want everyone who posted to this thread to know how much I appreciate your generosity. It is amazing to me how many people will reach out and help in times of need. Reaching out to the people in this forum has made me realize just how many kind and generous people there are in the world. Sometimes we forget. The marketing information that I have received from this post far exceeds any marketing course I've ever purchased. It is hard for me to express how much gratitude I feel for all of you who have helped me and offered encouragement.

I realize that a lot of people wonder why it took me two years to write a book. I only had a few hours a week to spare for my book as I was working on a children's package and working full time at the same time. I would love some feedback for my kids printables website. You can see it at: azpazazbunch.com

I realize now that I need to take my book apart and rework and rewrite it. I really appreciate all the advice you have offered here to help me. I now know how to achieve my original goal with my book. I started writing this book just because I wanted to help people because I was extremely overweight and started doing things to distract myself. Many of these things helped me overcome my depression and boredom with life that led to the weight gain in the first place. I am happy to say I lost 65 pounds.

As I rework my book and am ready to start promoting (before it is done), I am sure I will contact you again to let you know how it is going. Once again let me say thank you so very much for all your support.

Tracie
#advertising help #book #killing #promotion ideas #warrior help #wrote #wrote book
  • Profile picture of the author kubikdanon
    I either didn't see the topic of the book or you didn't say that.
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    • Profile picture of the author Tracie Johansen
      It is about how to stop eating out of boredom and learn how to have fun again.
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      • Profile picture of the author Layer Cake Group
        Originally Posted by Tracie Johansen View Post

        It is about how to stop eating out of boredom and learn how to have fun again.
        It sounds like your niche is either health or motivation, or both. As was already mentioned, become a member of FB groups, forums, etc... You don't have to so much promote your product in this instance as you do yourself.

        You are the authority in the "stop eating out of boredom" niche, and the "learn how to have fun again" niche. Put your product in your signature and join the conversations.

        That's the best advice I have for a no budget campaign.

        All the best
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  • Profile picture of the author gvidass
    What is this book about? I believe it takes lot of effort to become good selling writer, you might be a good writer one of the best, but you need to know how to sell it. I don't know if you understand what I'm saying, but being a good writer is not enough. I suggest you to hire a person who is good at books marketing and can teach you how to advertise your book. As well I would like to read it
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    • Profile picture of the author Tracie Johansen
      Originally Posted by gvidass View Post

      What is this book about? I believe it takes lot of effort to become good selling writer, you might be a good writer one of the best, but you need to know how to sell it. I don't know if you understand what I'm saying, but being a good writer is not enough. I suggest you to hire a person who is good at books marketing and can teach you how to advertise your book. As well I would like to read it
      Thank you for your comments. I have found that writing sales copy is the hardest thing for me to write. I would love to hire someone to market for me. The problem is I do not have the budget for it.
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  • Profile picture of the author Mattdawg841
    May have missed it but I didn't catch what the book was about...but it shouldn't really matter as the process would be the same....

    What you may want to do to help get some traffic to your site would be to search the 'niche + forum' for your book. This will help you find some forums where people who are interested in what your book is about are hanging out. You can then post what your book is about or explain the problem your book solves is, then post a link to the sales site.

    Another thought would be to go to Facebook and search for groups for whatever the niche of the book is. These would also be people interested in what your book is about. Join the group and do the same thing as above, post what your book is about or the problem it solves along with a link to the sales site.

    Both are great and free ways to generate a ton of potential traffic and will hopefully get you some sales as well

    I hope that helps and best of luck to you!
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    • Profile picture of the author Tracie Johansen
      Thank you for you suggestions. I have posted it on some facebook sites. I need to look for a specific niche.
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    • Profile picture of the author Tracie Johansen
      Originally Posted by Mattdawg841 View Post

      May have missed it but I didn't catch what the book was about...but it shouldn't really matter as the process would be the same....

      What you may want to do to help get some traffic to your site would be to search the 'niche + forum' for your book. This will help you find some forums where people who are interested in what your book is about are hanging out. You can then post what your book is about or explain the problem your book solves is, then post a link to the sales site.

      Another thought would be to go to Facebook and search for groups for whatever the niche of the book is. These would also be people interested in what your book is about. Join the group and do the same thing as above, post what your book is about or the problem it solves along with a link to the sales site.

      Both are great and free ways to generate a ton of potential traffic and will hopefully get you some sales as well

      I hope that helps and best of luck to you!
      Thank you. These ideas are very helpful.
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    • Profile picture of the author Frank Donovan
      Some people write books because they just have to get their thoughts down on paper. In those instances, I can understand writing first and promoting later (if at all). But if your primary objective is to make a profit from your writing, you have to first find a market and decide on your promotion methods before you think about typing a single word. Otherwise, it's doing things bass ackwards.

      You don't say what topic your book covers, but if even your friends and family claim not to have the time to read it, I have to wonder if it's an in-demand subject. You might be able to salvage something from this project by searching for similar titles and seeing if there's a market out there you can tap into - but you're probably best advised to put this down to experience, and next time start off by writing for a specific and reachable market.


      EDIT: You posted this as I was responding:
      It is about how to stop eating out of boredom and learn how to have fun again.
      Have fun doing what? Is it a diet book, a recipe book, or both? Who's your target reader?

      .
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      • Profile picture of the author Tracie Johansen
        Originally Posted by Frank Donovan View Post

        Some people write books because they just have to get their thoughts down on paper. In those instances, I can understand writing first and promoting later (if at all). But if your primary objective is to make a profit from your writing, you have to first find a market and decide on your promotion methods before you think about typing a single word. Otherwise, it's doing things bass ackwords.

        You don't say what topic your book covers, but if even your friends and family claim not to have the time to read it, I have to wonder if it's an in-demand subject. You might be able to salvage something from this project by searching for similar titles and seeing if there's a market out there you can tap into - but you're probably best advised to put this down to experience, and next time start off by writing for a specific and reachable market.

        EDIT: You posted this as I was responding:

        Have fun doing what? Is it a diet book, a recipe book, or both? Neither? Who's you target reader?

        .
        Thank you for you comments. My book is about how to stop overeating, end boredom and just have fun. I have checked and find a great deal of demand for this subject. I researched the niche before I started to write. My mistake was to not promote it as I was writing it. I am just in need of ideas to start from here.
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        • Profile picture of the author Tracie Johansen
          Originally Posted by Tracie Johansen View Post

          Thank you for you comments. My book is about how to stop overeating, end boredom and just have fun. I have checked and find a great deal of demand for this subject. I researched the niche before I started to write. My mistake was to not promote it as I was writing it. I am just in need of ideas to start from here.
          No it is not really a diet book. It is really a way to keep yourself busy doing fun and enjoyable things. Most people eat out of boredom. This book includes over 1000 ways to end bordom. The first chapter includes things you can do without even getting off the couch. This is for people that have no motivation to do anything. It gets you started living again instead of sitting on the couch watching tv all day and eating. I must admit, I am having a hard time pinpointing a niche.
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          • Profile picture of the author Frank Donovan
            Originally Posted by Tracie Johansen View Post

            Thank you for you comments. My book is about how to stop overeating, end boredom and just have fun. I have checked and find a great deal of demand for this subject. I researched the niche before I started to write. My mistake was to not promote it as I was writing it. I am just in need of ideas to start from here.
            Originally Posted by Tracie Johansen View Post

            No it is not really a diet book. It is really a way to keep yourself busy doing fun and enjoyable things. Most people eat out of boredom. This book includes over 1000 ways to end bordom. The first chapter includes things you can do without even getting off the couch. This is for people that have no motivation to do anything. It gets you started living again instead of sitting on the couch watching tv all day and eating. I must admit, I am having a hard time pinpointing a niche.
            First you say you researched the niche and found great demand, then you admit you can't actually pinpoint a niche. From what you describe, it sounds like you've written an activity book. The problem is, people who aren't motivated to do anything are hardly likely to be searching for activity books.

            Perhaps you can focus on a specific group. For example, parents who want to get their kids doing something during the summer vacations. Or those who are housebound, perhaps recuperating from an illness. Can't really offer more concrete suggestions without knowing the contents.
            .
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            • Profile picture of the author Tracie Johansen
              Originally Posted by Frank Donovan View Post

              First you say you researched the niche and found great demand, then you admit you can't actually pinpoint a niche. From what you describe, it sounds like you've written an activity book. The problem is, people who aren't motivated to do anything are hardly likely to be searching for activity books.

              Perhaps you can focus on a specific group. For example, parents who want to get their kids doing something during the summer vacations. Or those who are housebound, perhaps recuperating from an illness. Can't really offer more concrete suggestions without knowing the contents.
              .
              Frank, I researched weight loss, overeating, boredom and fun. I can send you a free copy of the book if you like. If you will pm me your email, I can send a pdf copy as an attachment. I really appreciate your comments and ideas.
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  • Profile picture of the author TheZafraGroup
    What's the book about? You could do some guest blog posts. Just look for popular blogs in your niche and submit a guest blog post. If you could write a book with that many pages, you should be able to write a guest blog post with ease. If you can write at least one a day with it linking to your site or where ever you're selling that book, you will get some conversions. Just search for blogs in your niche that accepts guest blog posts and contact the owner. This strategy is free and highly effective.I do highly recommend however you build a list while going through this process. It's a critical step if you want to create long lasting results.
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  • Profile picture of the author writeaway
    You need reviews

    That's one of the KEYS to Amazon Kindle success

    Reach out to diet / lifestyle bloggers

    Reach out to influence leaders in that niche on Twitter

    You don't have to have MUCH MONEY to do these but the RESULTS can be AMAZING
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  • Profile picture of the author elmo033057
    My advice to you is to do whatever it takes to keeps the lights on and the baby fed. Once you have money coming in you can regroup and try it again.

    Seth Godin's first book didn't sell well at all, but he did whatever it took to make ends meet so he could try again. Very rarely will you come up with a book, business, product or whatever that will make enough money to be significant the first time you try.


    But you can't give up no matter what. I would keep the book and start the next one. You need to have multiple ways to make money that are within your writing skills. Bob Bly the great copywriter just came out with his 88th book this week. He writes books, white papers. info products, copywriting, brochures, etc.

    You do not have the luxury to sit around and worry about why something isn't working or selling. Try to market it as best you can and start the next project.

    By the way, how did you research the niche for your book?

    God Bless!

    Elmo
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    • Profile picture of the author Tracie Johansen
      Originally Posted by elmo033057 View Post

      My advice to you is to do whatever it takes to keeps the lights on and the baby fed. Once you have money coming in you can regroup and try it again.

      Seth Godin's first book didn't sell well at all, but he did whatever it took to make ends meet so he could try again. Very rarely will you come up with a book, business, product or whatever that will make enough money to be significant the first time you try.

      Failing Until You Succeed - Seth Godin - YouTube

      But you can't give up no matter what. I would keep the book and start the next one. You need to have multiple ways to make money that are within your writing skills. Bob Bly the great copywriter just came out with his 88th book this week. He writes books, white papers. info products, copywriting, brochures, etc.

      You do not have the luxury to sit around and worry about why something isn't working or selling. Try to market it as best you can and start the next project.

      By the way, how did you research the niche for your book?

      God Bless!

      Elmo
      Elmo, you are right. I knew it would not be easy. I lost my job a couple of weeks ago. I am 55 and am having a hard time finding work. I was working full time and promoting whenever I was not working. I am just trying to get some income while looking for a job. Thank you for your advice.
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  • Profile picture of the author jbsmith
    Having developed 14 digital products that have sold very well, along with several others that have not :-) and helped many others along the way...the critical factors in how well an ebook sell are:

    1. How well you have targeted and then communicated how YOUR book will transform someone from a state they are in today to where they desperately want to be in the future. If you do not have that hook right, all the marketing in the world will not work. It sounds like you are close, but haven't really nailed it. You have written a book that you believe people need rather than a book people are urgently looking for. For example, if your ebook targeted helping women from binge eating, now that is a topic that is well searched, where the people desperately want to stop and will pay nearly any amount of money if they believe you can help them get there. Now, part of the solution may certainly be helping them get over boredom, get them busier and help them replace binge eating with other, non-eating, fun activities.

    2. Your eBook as a system or series of steps/course. Ebooks that sell a "technology", "system" or "solution" are much simpler to market and tend to far outsell ebooks that are just informational in nature - if you haven't structured your ebook that way - then could you? In most cases, it is easy to tweak the material into a 4-5 step system.

    3. Market It Like Crazy...to do this, you need the hook we talked about above, the system we talked about in #2 (ideally with some "beta" testers giving you testimonials and you need 110% belief and certainty in the effectiveness of your book - that comes across in the market. At that point, you need to be everywhere...give away reviews to bloggers, on social, collect testimonials and case studies and get them on social (they will sell far better than features or even benefits)

    Hope this helps,

    Jeff
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    • Profile picture of the author Tracie Johansen
      Originally Posted by jbsmith View Post

      Having developed 14 digital products that have sold very well, along with several others that have not :-) and helped many others along the way...the critical factors in how well an ebook sell are:

      1. How well you have targeted and then communicated how YOUR book will transform someone from a state they are in today to where they desperately want to be in the future. If you do not have that hook right, all the marketing in the world will not work. It sounds like you are close, but haven't really nailed it. You have written a book that you believe people need rather than a book people are urgently looking for. For example, if your ebook targeted helping women from binge eating, now that is a topic that is well searched, where the people desperately want to stop and will pay nearly any amount of money if they believe you can help them get there. Now, part of the solution may certainly be helping them get over boredom, get them busier and help them replace binge eating with other, non-eating, fun activities.

      2. Your eBook as a system or series of steps/course. Ebooks that sell a "technology", "system" or "solution" are much simpler to market and tend to far outsell ebooks that are just informational in nature - if you haven't structured your ebook that way - then could you? In most cases, it is easy to tweak the material into a 4-5 step system.

      3. Market It Like Crazy...to do this, you need the hook we talked about above, the system we talked about in #2 (ideally with some "beta" testers giving you testimonials and you need 110% belief and certainty in the effectiveness of your book - that comes across in the market. At that point, you need to be everywhere...give away reviews to bloggers, on social, collect testimonials and case studies and get them on social (they will sell far better than features or even benefits)

      Hope this helps,

      Jeff
      Jeff, Thanks for the great ideas. I am working on writing copy that sells. Yes, it is helpful to people that are desperate. I am going to work on that.
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    • Profile picture of the author AffiliateJ
      You may have created a work of passion without actually targeting the market correctly. Fortunately this is easy to fix. One client we worked with had a book that was doing well but was at the end of it's life.

      We chopped it into 5 books. We added a load of his blog posts in there for added content, then included some images and made a lot of smart use of whitespace in the books.

      Now he has a series of 5 books which sell for much more, than one single book alone. Now he can give the first book away for free.

      His previous buyers of his old book all love the new series and have left loads of positive comments on Amazon (this is like a refreshing version of the first book etc etc). They love it.


      The best part is in your case, you can literally take the same material and re-title the book to make it sound super attractive for a specific market eg:

      - How To Lose 17lbs Withou Dieting Or Excercising

      or

      The #1 Thing Every Fat Woman Does But Never Admits (and how to stop doing it)



      Not beautiful I know, but you've got to raise an eyebrow or two now and then. Then you can get in touch with sites to collect reviews in return for free copies of the first book in the series or use other hooks to get people reading.

      Also, there are two posts that spring to mind here:


      How to Write a Bestselling Book This Year — The Definitive Resource List and How-To Guide | The Blog of Author Tim Ferriss

      How Does a Bestseller Happen? A Case Study in Hitting #1 on the New York Times | The Blog of Author Tim Ferriss


      Good luck.
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      • Profile picture of the author Kay King
        I am just trying to get some income while looking for a job.
        You may be able to tweak the book/the copy/ or whatever in the future - right now if the quote above is your priority....do some freelance writing.

        You can write well - in English - hellloooo! Get on Upwork and other freelance site (I'd skip Fiverr myself) - and offer your services as a content writer - a ghostwriter for ebooks, etc. Be positive - professional - and fast - and you can earn money quickly.

        By "offer your services" ....this is what I mean:

        Read the hundreds of projects posted and learn to ignore the cheapos, etc - place dozens on dozens of bids on projects you can do. Emphasize your experience, maturity, English, etc. It takes some effort but you can get decent money coming in very quickly.

        You can keep promoting your book - or splitting it into a series of kindle books - or writing new books. My advice is to focus on income first if times are rough.
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    • Profile picture of the author Tracie Johansen
      Originally Posted by jbsmith View Post

      Having developed 14 digital products that have sold very well, along with several others that have not :-) and helped many others along the way...the critical factors in how well an ebook sell are:

      1. How well you have targeted and then communicated how YOUR book will transform someone from a state they are in today to where they desperately want to be in the future. If you do not have that hook right, all the marketing in the world will not work. It sounds like you are close, but haven't really nailed it. You have written a book that you believe people need rather than a book people are urgently looking for. For example, if your ebook targeted helping women from binge eating, now that is a topic that is well searched, where the people desperately want to stop and will pay nearly any amount of money if they believe you can help them get there. Now, part of the solution may certainly be helping them get over boredom, get them busier and help them replace binge eating with other, non-eating, fun activities.

      2. Your eBook as a system or series of steps/course. Ebooks that sell a "technology", "system" or "solution" are much simpler to market and tend to far outsell ebooks that are just informational in nature - if you haven't structured your ebook that way - then could you? In most cases, it is easy to tweak the material into a 4-5 step system.

      3. Market It Like Crazy...to do this, you need the hook we talked about above, the system we talked about in #2 (ideally with some "beta" testers giving you testimonials and you need 110% belief and certainty in the effectiveness of your book - that comes across in the market. At that point, you need to be everywhere...give away reviews to bloggers, on social, collect testimonials and case studies and get them on social (they will sell far better than features or even benefits)

      Hope this helps,

      Jeff
      Jeff, Thanks. I appreciate the great ideas.
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      • Profile picture of the author jbsmith
        My pleasure - you are getting a TON of great advice here, let's be clear though...it starts with re-targeting your niche - finding an urgent, emotional desire to transform (break a habit, look better, feel better, attract someone special, - in the words that your market is searching for)

        Take a few hours and really dig into topics around overeating - find out the "trigger" that people are using to look for solutions and then develop your "hook" around how you will finally help them get there.

        Take a look at Amazon (as Jason mentions) and closely look at the highest ranking books - most have to do with regaining CONTROL, stopping BINGE eating, being able to achieve a goal like fitting into their skinny jeans, or turning back the clock to how they USED to look. All of these are triggers for why people will buy a solution to overeating.

        Decide on your combination and then come up with a concept and title that reflects addressing the specific niche demand you choose. It all starts there...once you have that, you can rejig the content, redo cover, be on a far better track from marketing perspective.

        Jeff

        Originally Posted by Tracie Johansen View Post

        Jeff, Thanks. I appreciate the great ideas.
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  • Profile picture of the author RhysEvans
    My advice is to setup your website - maybe you've already done this, not too sure. Create a few articles related to your book and publish them on the site. Add a bunch of free resources and videos about several of the suggestions in your book - maybe someone on fiverr can help you create basic whiteboard videos for $5 each. Now promote the first chapter for free as a download on your site. Encourage your visitors to enter their email in exchange for a freebie.

    Now once you've built your list send them more freebies, insights into new chapters. Then I would start promoting your book. If its $47 then provide a 50% discount offer only for those subscribed to your list.

    Now to drive traffic, I'd use Facebook ads through boosting posts off your fan page for maximum exposure at the quickest time. Promote one of your free articles with a eye catching photo.

    If you think your book has potential then I'd recommend signing up for Clickbank and offering a 75% commission on affiliates to push your product to their sites, lists.

    Good luck.
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  • Profile picture of the author nuliknol
    Originally Posted by Tracie Johansen View Post

    I spent almost 2 years writing and editing my book. I believe it is a great book.
    When people goes broke, it is not about the income, it is about expenses. Check that, and you won't need any help from us.

    Good luck
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  • Profile picture of the author IronMikeTaylor
    Hey Tracie,

    As for your marketing budget, you could check out the folks at Fiverr.com for a $5 gig to create marketing copy for you.

    Regarding the price of your book, because you are not widely known at the present, you might consider lowering your price from $10 to $4.99 which will give you a $3.49 royalty per book.

    While $3.49 may not seem like much, it does add up (ONLY) if people will purchase it. $3.49 per book is certainly better than $0. Your book is downloaded so you have no overhead and the $3.49 (.70% of list price) is easy sleep money.

    My wife wrote a book titled "How to stop binge eating a few years ago. Then she came across the Udemy.com site and turn her book into a class and earn approximately $4000 her first month but it has since dropped dramatically.

    Consider writing a post or two for different sites that your book touches on. For instance, you wrote something about "Partner Play - Fun With Your Mate". You might write an article for a marriage, family matters or housewife website about fun things to do with your mate. You can either say a few things from the book or not (I wouldn't). The draw line would read something like this in part...
    "...Nonetheless, there are many, many things you can do for fun with your mate."

    Now, the words "fun with you mate" would be a hyperlink back to your book on amazon (with the website owner permission to include a link back to your book for the content you've added to their site)

    Of course the link back to your book should be an Amazon affiliate link so you can receive a referral fee from amazon in addition to your Amazon royalty fee. My wife wrote a book about our courtship via emails called "A True Love Story Through Emails". She referred visitors to her web site to the book via an Amazon affiliate link and I believe she receives about .15 cents per book in addition to her 70 percent royalty for the purchase of the download.

    Then repeat the process for other websites you think your book would be a nice fit for.

    Don't forget that when people click on your link that sends them to Amazon, you will be entitled to a percentage of whatever they purchase from Amazon for the next 24 hours providing they click on your link first.

    I used my Amazon affiliate link this way when my wife promoted our Love Story book and I earned about $70 in affiliate referral fees for doing nothing. Multiply this on several website and you might be able to draw a nice piece of change to help somewhat until you can create a better performing platform.

    We are family here and I am a firm believer that there is enough money out there to support us all.

    Now have at it.

    Iron Mike
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    • Profile picture of the author Tracie Johansen
      Originally Posted by IronMikeTaylor View Post

      Hey Tracie,

      As for your marketing budget, you could check out the folks at Fiverr.com for a $5 gig to create marketing copy for you.

      Regarding the price of your book, because you are not widely known at the present, you might consider lowering your price from $10 to $4.99 which will give you a $3.49 royalty per book.

      While $3.49 may not seem like much, it does add up (ONLY) if people will purchase it. $3.49 per book is certainly better than $0. Your book is downloaded so you have no overhead and the $3.49 (.70% of list price) is easy sleep money.

      My wife wrote a book titled "How to stop binge eating a few years ago. Then she came across the Udemy.com site and turn her book into a class and earn approximately $4000 her first month but it has since dropped dramatically.

      Consider writing a post or two for different sites that your book touches on. For instance, you wrote something about "Partner Play - Fun With Your Mate". You might write an article for a marriage, family matters or housewife website about fun things to do with your mate. You can either say a few things from the book or not (I wouldn't). The draw line would read something like this in part...
      "...Nonetheless, there are many, many things you can do for fun with your mate."

      Now, the words "fun with you mate" would be a hyperlink back to your book on amazon (with the website owner permission to include a link back to your book for the content you've added to their site)

      Of course the link back to your book should be an Amazon affiliate link so you can receive a referral fee from amazon in addition to your Amazon royalty fee. My wife wrote a book about our courtship via emails called "A True Love Story Through Emails". She referred visitors to her web site to the book via an Amazon affiliate link and I believe she receives about .15 cents per book in addition to her 70 percent royalty for the purchase of the download.

      Then repeat the process for other websites you think your book would be a nice fit for.

      Don't forget that when people click on your link that sends them to Amazon, you will be entitled to a percentage of whatever they purchase from Amazon for the next 24 hours providing they click on your link first.

      I used my Amazon affiliate link this way when my wife promoted our Love Story book and I earned about $70 in affiliate referral fees for doing nothing. Multiply this on several website and you might be able to draw a nice piece of change to help somewhat until you can create a better performing platform.

      We are family here and I am a firm believer that there is enough money out there to support us all.

      Now have at it.

      Iron Mike
      Mike, Thank you so much. This is great advice.
      Signature

      I Will Write a 30,000 Word eBook for Just $300 !!
      I Will Write, Edit and Format It for Kindle. PM Me.

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  • Profile picture of the author reachintan
    Hi Tracie,

    Let me share a wonderful article that will give you a clear direction of what all things you need to do to get your ebook floating all across the place.

    7 Great Ways to Promote Your eBook

    Thanks,
    Chintan
    Signature

    Chintan Mehta

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  • Profile picture of the author Happybidr
    I'm going to keep this short so that you really focus on this. It's THE MOST IMPORTANT thing about any book.

    The Title.

    You need a kick ass, sexy, I-gotta-read-it title.

    It is telling to me that you haven't mentioned the title of your book. (There are lots of posts here now so it might be buried in there, but still, it's BURIED.)

    Put your title out here and let us weigh in on it and help you get a better one if it doesn't measure up.

    Next, a great cover that supports the title. Very professional.

    Do you write for a living? Did anyone edit it? Proofread it? There are some great marketing minds on this forum so if anyone offers to look at it, make sure you follow through ASAP.

    I could say a lot more but I don't want to dilute my message. People DO judge a book by its cover.
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  • Profile picture of the author Jason Kanigan
    Time for some brutal honesty.

    I don't say this to discourage. Those of you who know me are aware I am about getting to the core of problems and moving on with positive solutions.

    Tracie,

    Let's start with the general stuff.

    Relying on a single product for your revenue is a bad idea.

    Relying on a single $10 product for all the money you need is a really bad idea.

    You're trying to make all the cash you need to pay your bills from this one low budget product, and the truth is it's never going to happen.

    Now I know you're saying, "Well WTH am I supposed to do then, Jason?" I said this would be brutal, and I said I give solutions. But the first step in getting out of this prison you've created for yourself is realizing success under the circumstances you have set up right now is impossible.

    How many $10 sales would you need to make your rent? Let's not even concern ourselves with any other amount.

    Kindle isn't going to pay you until far too many days down the line. So not only is it too hard to make the amount of money you need to survive, you don't get it until a month from now.

    Now, to get to the total number of sales you need to reach your money target, how much traffic would you require? We're talking bare minimum $500 = $10/sale X 50 sales = how much traffic? How many people need to see your book offer before one of them buys it? 1 in 100? 2 in 100? Generously, that's 50 views per sale X 50 sales = 2500 views.

    I'd call that an absolute bare minimum...and that's just for $500. Plus, we know KDP doesn't actually work that way--you don't get 100% commission, for instance. But let's look at the facts here: you need at least 2500 views a month just to reach something like that $500 minimum amount of money you need.

    Do you have a plan for getting those 2500 views? Because as great as the Amazon search engine is, it is not going to serve them up for you.

    Can you direct that many views with your own marketing activity? My guess is you'd be hard pressed to reach 200.

    Can you see how this plan is flawed from the beginning, just in the general case because of the math?


    Now let's get specific.

    This niche you've chosen...it's a weird one.

    Who's your target market? How would they go about finding your book? Who types in "I am eating too much because I'm bored and I need distractions"?

    Nobody.

    So in addition to your numbers problem you have a marketing problem.

    I just went to Amazon and tried typing in some search queries related to what I understand your book's topic to be.

    "I overeat" -- didn't autocomplete, offer any suggestions.

    "what to do about overeating" -- didn't autocomplete, but did give some related results.

    "overeat", "help I overeat" -- gave a few simple autocomplete suggestions, some of which could be useful to you.

    "need distractions from eating" -- didn't autocomplete or give results that were any good.

    "what to do I eat too much", "why you eat so much" -- didn't autocomplete, but did give physical diet pills results.

    "what to do when you eat too much" -- didn't autocompete; gave Guitar Hero in mixed results (whaa?)

    What we learned here is people are not searching for these terms. Otherwise, Amazon would have jumped to autocomplete relevant search terms. It's not.

    This means you need to do something about the title of your book and how it's perceived.

    You jumped into this with an idea. Doing things is good. However, you have to look at marketing, which in this case especially, because you're using someone else's search engine, is "How are people going to find my book?"

    They are not going to find it by typing in things like I tried above.

    Now those are obviously not the only search terms, and I may have missed some good ones in my 5-minute exploration. But the evidence tells me:

    1 - you're never going to get enough traffic the way you're doing it to make any money--for ANY book you write

    and

    2 - you don't have enough things for people to buy at the right levels to ensure you earn enough money to survive.



    Now let's move on to solutions.

    So far people have tried to give you solutions on optimizing what you've got. I hope I've impressed up on you that doing so at this point is akin to putting a Band-Aid on a deep stab wound. It just isn't going to work.

    Broke people try to "make as much as I can." This stinks. It's no target at all and nobody ever gets there.

    The first thing you have to do is set a realistic money target.

    What amount of money do you need every month to get by? Ignore how you're going to get there right now. What number do you really need?

    Once you've calculated this number (and you can always raise it later, as you begin to do better), then you can begin to figure out how you're going to get there.

    And we know that relying entirely upon $10 sales of an ebook no one is looking for is not the answer.

    One of the post powerful lessons a newbie can learn is how a front and back end to product sales work.

    You said you lost your website. OK. Free hosting is available (google the term). And it can be 'clean', no advertising, not a .wix or whatever subdomain. So that problem can be solved.

    Your monitor. You say it's kinda broken. All right--go to Goodwill and get a really cheap one. It doesn't matter if it's ugly right now. Look on Craigslist for deals. They're there. Put a request on Freecycle or CL asking for one as a donation.

    At the worst you could use your local library's computer for short periods. Or maybe you have a friend you could impose upon for the short term. At any rate, these are solvable problems.

    Back to the front and back end sales issue.

    You can accelerate your progress towards your money target with back end products.

    Let's say everything is somehow going great. A miracle! People are buying your $10 product. Great! Let's say 20 buy this month.

    Now what?

    What can they do next?

    What else can they get from you?

    Right this instant...nuthin'!

    That's kind of a problem, wouldn't you say?

    This is just my opinion, and my opinion is that a Kindle book should NEVER be the 100% cash cow money maker your business relies on. It's just not big enough. It should be a "nice if it works," occasional path into your other products & services (read: back end) people can find and use.

    So what else could you offer for people to buy once they have bought the book and gotten a little more familiar with you?

    Writing services?

    Affordable group coaching to make sure they remember and DO the activities to stop themselves from eating due to boredom?

    More expensive individual coaching for the same?

    Start planning these out.

    How many customers, conservatively, do you think you can generate a month?

    See how these start chopping down that total money requirement? They really accelerate you getting to your money target.

    2 copywriting clients at $500 apiece = an additional $1000/month.

    5 group coaching clients at $25 (don't you DARE charge any less, or they won't have any commitment to it--in fact, you should charge more) apiece = $125

    1 individual client at $250 = $250

    Already we're at $1375 in new-to-you income...and these are very conservative figures for an active marketer.


    Now let's move on to the Marketing problem.

    This, once you get past your math problem (the one we just covered in super depth), is your main problem.

    Earlier I said you picked a weird niche.

    In my experience, though, it has one REALLY BIG thing going for it.

    Although people are not searching for those specific terms, or even know distracting yourself to avoid eating due to boredom is a solution, loads of people have the overeating problem.

    In fact, the overeating/shame/weight loss thing is a total crossover success-in-waiting providing you get into the right marketing channel where people are listening.

    I hope you are ready to talk because the place a hungry market is waiting for your help is through PODCASTS AND RADIO TALK SHOWS.

    It's so general interest that I can't think of anyone who wouldn't want to pick the story up.

    Self-help.

    Motivation.

    Weight loss.

    Morning zoo.

    Exercise.

    Stay-At-Home.


    Do you think if you appear as a guest on 6-8 podcasts and radio shows this coming month that will have an effect on driving traffic?

    Do you think those numbers will be significant and really help you get closer to that 2500 we were talking about earlier? That they'll add up fast?

    Much faster than trying to pick up onesies and twosies through sig marketing or hoping people accidentally fall into your website?

    THIS IS A TOPIC PEOPLE WANT TO HEAR ABOUT.

    They just don't know what to call it. We saw the evidence of that above.


    Get out of the victim mentality.

    Get yourself a monitor that works--barter, beg, borrow, buy (super cheap).

    Get yourself a free hosting account.

    I guarantee you can have this stuff done by tomorrow afternoon.

    Google podcasts and radio shows and apply to them as a guest interviewee. They NEED content. Their business is a little monster with a never-ending appetite for new content and that's you.

    Write 6 or 7 standard questions about your target market, what happens to them, who they are and what they do, and your solution, and put them into a pdf to include with a headshot pic attached to your interview requests.

    Practice your answers. The hosts are so lazy--especially the radio hosts--they will literally read them out in the order you provide. This is your opportunity to set the stage however you like. And at the end of each appearance, they will all ask, "So, how can people get in touch with you? Learn more about you?"...

    ...and now you have your answer.

    Not just the book.

    But your coaching.

    Your writing.

    Your other services.


    Get your plan together. Understand your numbers. Get your marketing aligned with HOW PEOPLE ACTUALLY BUY what you're selling. Develop a back end for your funnel.

    It doesn't have to take long to implement this stuff. You can easily sell a 6-week coaching program without knowing exactly what you're going to put inside it--heck, asking your buyers what they want from you after they buy is perfectly acceptable and a great way to ensure customer satisfaction.

    But get out of that narrative about "two years" and how you got here. Move on. Move into the new plan, the one that works for you.
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    • Profile picture of the author Happybidr
      Lots of great information here. Jason's post was particularly needed, I think, given your situation. Forgive me for keep adding in additional ideas but I am up in the middle of the night only because I'm in pain so short posts are the best I can offer.

      Re Jason's idea, among my varied past I was at one time the producer and guest host of a nationally syndicated live radio talk show, so I used to book and interview authors. I must say many radio shows might not be that interested in a self-published book since we get so many releases from mainstream publishers. But certainly Internet podcasts are good targets. One idea you might do is get someone who knows how to do a good interview and have them do a short audio interview of you that you could post on YouTube yourself. Then you can send podcasters the link. For those with this kind of format where they don't do all the interviews, some might pick it up and put it on their channel. Make sure you or the host mentions the title at the beginning and the end (and middle!) and let people know it's on Amazon, etc. Practice a few times with your "host interviewer" so you get used to being concise and interesting with your answers. List the main Qs you want to ask as Jason suggested and be ready with good answers. Be relaxed and have fun with it.
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    • Profile picture of the author Happybidr
      Holy crap, Tracie, I just googled you and found the cover of your book. Honestly, girlfriend, it is HORRIBLE. You need some serious help with that cover. Go on Amazon, find the top 10 books in your niche (diet niche, which always involves overeating) and mimic their covers. Get someone at Fiverr to do 3 covers for you.

      I write for a living, and am a former newspaper reporter and author. I've written for TV, radio, newspapers, and for many high level government agencies and elected officials. If I saw that book I wouldn't open it. And your title sucks too. Since you're desperate, you need this dose of reality. But I gave you some practical ways out of it, too, so focus on those. And listen: everyone who writes a book thinks it is great. But they're not always right. Hopefully you will get some experienced people to give you an honest review. I would offer but I just don't have the time as I'm overbooked already.

      Good luck.
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      • Profile picture of the author Kay King
        Tracie -

        I would advise ignoring all of the well meaning advice on how to position/sell your book. If you re-read the thread as I did - you'll see almost all of your posts have been about convincing us of the value of the book...then you began to see the reality of the financial situation.

        Thing is - you don't have the luxury of time/money now to continue to promote a book that isn't selling. If it were me and I'd worked hard on it and had faith in it - I'd pull it from circulation until I had time to rework/rethink/replan and relaunch it.

        I bought a used monitor in a thrift shop for $12.50 some time ago - it worked perfectly for two years! I've seen rows of monitors in thrift and pawn shops. You will feel better if you start making things happen - go find a monitor you can afford.

        You need a job - and possibly freelance work to subsidize income if the job doesn't pay what you are used to. I expect you've seen a financial crunch coming for some time - and hoped it would go away. I've been there, done that - you have to take charge to solve it.

        You are 55 - yes, hard in the job market BUT you can feature maturity and experience in a positive way and many employers value that. On a freelance site those are big pluses.

        Your book focused on "boredom" - but his brother may be "tunnel vision". This book won't save you financially at this time - accept that and keep going. You can do this!
        Signature
        Saving one dog will not change the world - but the world changes forever for that one dog
        ***
        One secret to happiness is to let every situation be
        what it is instead of what you think it should be.
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      • Profile picture of the author AnniePot
        Tracie, you are most probably not going to like what I'm about to tell you, but you came here for advice. I have a number of books published under my maiden name on Amazon, both non-fiction (travel and pet care) and fiction (romance), and I'm an ARCs reader for several good British authors, so I think I know my stuff.

        1. As an earlier reply mentioned, your book cover is not good. You need to get a professionally produced cover as a priority.

        2. You need to reduce your price drastically. No-one is going to consider buying your book for $9.99 or anything close to that.

        3. I read a sample of your book contents via Kindle's 'Look Inside' feature and to be absolutely blunt, your style didn't engage me. Your writing may be grammatically correct (for what I was able to read), but it's flat. It doesn't stir any emotions. It doesn't grip me with a desire to read more. A good writer conveys a perception of excitement and I just don't get this.

        To be absolutely blunt, this book isn't going to make your fortune in the immediate future. With a new cover and a drastic price drop you may achieve a few sales, but it's never going to come close to replacing your lost income.

        Apart from the criticisms I've raised, virtually no author, no matter how good, has significant success with one book. You need to build momentum with multiple books, a mailing list, and a horde of faithful readers.

        EDIT: Kay posted while I was writing this. Take her advice. It's spot on. Put your book on the back burner and make replacing your lost income your first priority.
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        • Profile picture of the author Tracie Johansen
          Originally Posted by AnniePot View Post

          Tracie, you are most probably not going to like what I'm about to tell you, but you came here for advice. I have a number of books published under my maiden name on Amazon, both non-fiction (travel and pet care) and fiction (romance), and I'm an ARCs reader for several good British authors, so I think I know my stuff.

          1. As an earlier reply mentioned, your book cover is not good. You need to get a professionally produced cover as a priority.

          2. You need to reduce your price drastically. No-one is going to consider buying your book for $9.99 or anything close to that.

          3. I read a sample of your book contents via Kindle's 'Look Inside' feature and to be absolutely blunt, your style didn't engage me. Your writing may be grammatically correct (for what I was able to read), but it's flat. It doesn't stir any emotions. It doesn't grip me with a desire to read more. A good writer conveys a perception of excitement and I just don't get this.

          To be absolutely blunt, this book isn't going to make your fortune in the immediate future. With a new cover and a drastic price drop you may achieve a few sales, but it's never going to come close to replacing your lost income.

          Apart from the criticisms I've raised, virtually no author, no matter how good, has significant success with one book. You need to build momentum with multiple books, a mailing list, and a horde of faithful readers.

          EDIT: Kay posted while I was writing this. Take her advice. It's spot on. Put your book on the back burner and make replacing your lost income your first priority.
          Annie, I appreciate your honesty. Thank you for the good advice.
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          • Profile picture of the author MValmont
            I heard this story over a hundred times...

            It's always the same thing: the person write the book, they are SO IN LOVE with the book and they think it's the greatest thing ever, then they try to sell it and it doesn't sell.

            The fact is this: Marketers make money, not authors. There is a reason why it's called a Best-SELLER book.

            The funny thing is, a lot of these ``authors`` make fun of people like me who often do not write the books themselves but pay ghost-writers to write them. They accuse people like me, who are basically just businessmen of publishing junk on Kindle. The fact is, most of my ghost-writers are amazing and they produce high quality work that people actually want to buy.

            It just seems to me like so many self published authors are so mad because they have no idea how to market their book properly and they end up assuming that all the people that are successful with kindle publish crap.

            And by the way, i'm assuming your book is great, I haven't read it. I'm not talking about you i'm talking about other people.

            I would recommend you to follow a good system on how to publish on Kindle. There is no point IMO to publish on other platform, there is plenty of money to be made on Kindle
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            • Profile picture of the author Nico Puegher
              The best choice for you is to start a blog, make it about some topic related to your book.

              It won't happen in a week but you will be able to create your own business in the long run, provide value to your readers, start your own email list and offer them some free ebook or something helpful in exchange for their emails.

              Once you have a decent amount of followers, you can promote your book to them because they will be interested in your content, that's why they're in your email list.

              Besides you can promote to them other things as well, maybe other books from other people while you make commissions.

              Posting a few things on Pinterest will not work, you need to be consistent and take action every day, you can't expect to have tons of traffic just in a week, that's not possible.

              Don't give up and keep working hard, start a blog, start an email list, start promoting your products and other products as well.

              Maybe while you're doing all of this, you can find small jobs on freelance sites like Freelancer or Upwork, there're tons of jobs related to writing, proofreading and more that you can do pretty easily with your experience and talent.

              You said you already have a website, don't know if it's a blog but you should have a blog, help other people and teach them what you know, once you have loyal readers or buyers they will recommend your products to their contacts.
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            • Profile picture of the author MissWrite
              Originally Posted by MValmont View Post

              Marketers make money, not authors. There is a reason why it's called a Best-SELLER book.
              Best quote ever.
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    • Profile picture of the author bluejeans
      Originally Posted by Jason Kanigan View Post

      5 group coaching clients at $25 (don't you DARE charge any less, or they won't have any commitment to it--in fact, you should charge more) apiece = $125
      I thought your whole post was excellent - proactive and very helpful, but I do take one exception to it - there are far too many people out there these days calling themselves "coaches" with no credential to back that up and no understanding of what being a coach entails. I'm enrolled in a course myself to gain my ICF professional credential so I think having awareness that there's a lot more to coaching than just calling yourself a coach is important.

      eta: just googled the OP and I agree, the cover is poor. It looks more like a list giveaway than a book, and actually, building a list off of this could be a better long-term strategy for earning income. Heart-breaking as it is to say, it's not going to pay the rent alone. Building an audience is what could lead to a longer-term income-earning strategy.
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    • Profile picture of the author Tracie Johansen
      Originally Posted by Jason Kanigan View Post

      Time for some brutal honesty.

      I don't say this to discourage. Those of you who know me are aware I am about getting to the core of problems and moving on with positive solutions.

      Tracie,

      Let's start with the general stuff.

      Relying on a single product for your revenue is a bad idea.

      Relying on a single $10 product for all the money you need is a really bad idea.

      You're trying to make all the cash you need to pay your bills from this one low budget product, and the truth is it's never going to happen.

      Now I know you're saying, "Well WTH am I supposed to do then, Jason?" I said this would be brutal, and I said I give solutions. But the first step in getting out of this prison you've created for yourself is realizing success under the circumstances you have set up right now is impossible.

      How many $10 sales would you need to make your rent? Let's not even concern ourselves with any other amount.

      Kindle isn't going to pay you until far too many days down the line. So not only is it too hard to make the amount of money you need to survive, you don't get it until a month from now.

      Now, to get to the total number of sales you need to reach your money target, how much traffic would you require? We're talking bare minimum $500 = $10/sale X 50 sales = how much traffic? How many people need to see your book offer before one of them buys it? 1 in 100? 2 in 100? Generously, that's 50 views per sale X 50 sales = 2500 views.

      I'd call that an absolute bare minimum...and that's just for $500. Plus, we know KDP doesn't actually work that way--you don't get 100% commission, for instance. But let's look at the facts here: you need at least 2500 views a month just to reach something like that $500 minimum amount of money you need.

      Do you have a plan for getting those 2500 views? Because as great as the Amazon search engine is, it is not going to serve them up for you.

      Can you direct that many views with your own marketing activity? My guess is you'd be hard pressed to reach 200.

      Can you see how this plan is flawed from the beginning, just in the general case because of the math?


      Now let's get specific.

      This niche you've chosen...it's a weird one.

      Who's your target market? How would they go about finding your book? Who types in "I am eating too much because I'm bored and I need distractions"?

      Nobody.

      So in addition to your numbers problem you have a marketing problem.

      I just went to Amazon and tried typing in some search queries related to what I understand your book's topic to be.

      "I overeat" -- didn't autocomplete, offer any suggestions.

      "what to do about overeating" -- didn't autocomplete, but did give some related results.

      "overeat", "help I overeat" -- gave a few simple autocomplete suggestions, some of which could be useful to you.

      "need distractions from eating" -- didn't autocomplete or give results that were any good.

      "what to do I eat too much", "why you eat so much" -- didn't autocomplete, but did give physical diet pills results.

      "what to do when you eat too much" -- didn't autocompete; gave Guitar Hero in mixed results (whaa?)

      What we learned here is people are not searching for these terms. Otherwise, Amazon would have jumped to autocomplete relevant search terms. It's not.

      This means you need to do something about the title of your book and how it's perceived.

      You jumped into this with an idea. Doing things is good. However, you have to look at marketing, which in this case especially, because you're using someone else's search engine, is "How are people going to find my book?"

      They are not going to find it by typing in things like I tried above.

      Now those are obviously not the only search terms, and I may have missed some good ones in my 5-minute exploration. But the evidence tells me:

      1 - you're never going to get enough traffic the way you're doing it to make any money--for ANY book you write

      and

      2 - you don't have enough things for people to buy at the right levels to ensure you earn enough money to survive.



      Now let's move on to solutions.

      So far people have tried to give you solutions on optimizing what you've got. I hope I've impressed up on you that doing so at this point is akin to putting a Band-Aid on a deep stab wound. It just isn't going to work.

      Broke people try to "make as much as I can." This stinks. It's no target at all and nobody ever gets there.

      The first thing you have to do is set a realistic money target.

      What amount of money do you need every month to get by? Ignore how you're going to get there right now. What number do you really need?

      Once you've calculated this number (and you can always raise it later, as you begin to do better), then you can begin to figure out how you're going to get there.

      And we know that relying entirely upon $10 sales of an ebook no one is looking for is not the answer.

      One of the post powerful lessons a newbie can learn is how a front and back end to product sales work.

      You said you lost your website. OK. Free hosting is available (google the term). And it can be 'clean', no advertising, not a .wix or whatever subdomain. So that problem can be solved.

      Your monitor. You say it's kinda broken. All right--go to Goodwill and get a really cheap one. It doesn't matter if it's ugly right now. Look on Craigslist for deals. They're there. Put a request on Freecycle or CL asking for one as a donation.

      At the worst you could use your local library's computer for short periods. Or maybe you have a friend you could impose upon for the short term. At any rate, these are solvable problems.

      Back to the front and back end sales issue.

      You can accelerate your progress towards your money target with back end products.

      Let's say everything is somehow going great. A miracle! People are buying your $10 product. Great! Let's say 20 buy this month.

      Now what?

      What can they do next?

      What else can they get from you?

      Right this instant...nuthin'!

      That's kind of a problem, wouldn't you say?

      This is just my opinion, and my opinion is that a Kindle book should NEVER be the 100% cash cow money maker your business relies on. It's just not big enough. It should be a "nice if it works," occasional path into your other products & services (read: back end) people can find and use.

      So what else could you offer for people to buy once they have bought the book and gotten a little more familiar with you?

      Writing services?

      Affordable group coaching to make sure they remember and DO the activities to stop themselves from eating due to boredom?

      More expensive individual coaching for the same?

      Start planning these out.

      How many customers, conservatively, do you think you can generate a month?

      See how these start chopping down that total money requirement? They really accelerate you getting to your money target.

      2 copywriting clients at $500 apiece = an additional $1000/month.

      5 group coaching clients at $25 (don't you DARE charge any less, or they won't have any commitment to it--in fact, you should charge more) apiece = $125

      1 individual client at $250 = $250

      Already we're at $1375 in new-to-you income...and these are very conservative figures for an active marketer.


      Now let's move on to the Marketing problem.

      This, once you get past your math problem (the one we just covered in super depth), is your main problem.

      Earlier I said you picked a weird niche.

      In my experience, though, it has one REALLY BIG thing going for it.

      Although people are not searching for those specific terms, or even know distracting yourself to avoid eating due to boredom is a solution, loads of people have the overeating problem.

      In fact, the overeating/shame/weight loss thing is a total crossover success-in-waiting providing you get into the right marketing channel where people are listening.

      I hope you are ready to talk because the place a hungry market is waiting for your help is through PODCASTS AND RADIO TALK SHOWS.

      It's so general interest that I can't think of anyone who wouldn't want to pick the story up.

      Self-help.

      Motivation.

      Weight loss.

      Morning zoo.

      Exercise.

      Stay-At-Home.


      Do you think if you appear as a guest on 6-8 podcasts and radio shows this coming month that will have an effect on driving traffic?

      Do you think those numbers will be significant and really help you get closer to that 2500 we were talking about earlier? That they'll add up fast?

      Much faster than trying to pick up onesies and twosies through sig marketing or hoping people accidentally fall into your website?

      THIS IS A TOPIC PEOPLE WANT TO HEAR ABOUT.

      They just don't know what to call it. We saw the evidence of that above.


      Get out of the victim mentality.

      Get yourself a monitor that works--barter, beg, borrow, buy (super cheap).

      Get yourself a free hosting account.

      I guarantee you can have this stuff done by tomorrow afternoon.

      Google podcasts and radio shows and apply to them as a guest interviewee. They NEED content. Their business is a little monster with a never-ending appetite for new content and that's you.

      Write 6 or 7 standard questions about your target market, what happens to them, who they are and what they do, and your solution, and put them into a pdf to include with a headshot pic attached to your interview requests.

      Practice your answers. The hosts are so lazy--especially the radio hosts--they will literally read them out in the order you provide. This is your opportunity to set the stage however you like. And at the end of each appearance, they will all ask, "So, how can people get in touch with you? Learn more about you?"...

      ...and now you have your answer.

      Not just the book.

      But your coaching.

      Your writing.

      Your other services.


      Get your plan together. Understand your numbers. Get your marketing aligned with HOW PEOPLE ACTUALLY BUY what you're selling. Develop a back end for your funnel.

      It doesn't have to take long to implement this stuff. You can easily sell a 6-week coaching program without knowing exactly what you're going to put inside it--heck, asking your buyers what they want from you after they buy is perfectly acceptable and a great way to ensure customer satisfaction.

      But get out of that narrative about "two years" and how you got here. Move on. Move into the new plan, the one that works for you.
      Jason, you have brougt up some very good points and ideas. Thank you for taking the time for all the great advice. I will keep working on making the changes I need to make. I appreciate everything you wrote.

      Tracie
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      • Profile picture of the author Jason Kanigan
        Originally Posted by Tracie Johansen View Post

        Jason, you have brougt up some very good points and ideas. Thank you for taking the time for all the great advice. I will keep working on making the changes I need to make. I appreciate everything you wrote.

        Tracie
        This isn't advice...it's a COURSE in online marketing.

        You can apply what I shared to any product or service.

        It's what I am paid to teach people. But because I gave it for free here, it's just "advice" to people...sad.

        What I showed you took me over 2-1/2 years to learn...AFTER I had been a corporate manager for 15 years.

        But people don't see it...they dismiss it as having the same value as other posts...don't get me wrong other people definitely have sound advice to give but nobody looked at the numbers the way I do. You're beaten before you begin as most people are, and don't even know it.

        I find this all pretty frustrating.

        Now is a good time for a laugh

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        • Profile picture of the author Tracie Johansen
          Originally Posted by Jason Kanigan View Post

          This isn't advice...it's a COURSE in online marketing.

          You can apply what I shared to any product or service.

          It's what I am paid to teach people. But because I gave it for free here, it's just "advice" to people...sad.

          What I showed you took me over 2-1/2 years to learn...AFTER I had been a corporate manager for 15 years.

          But people don't see it...they dismiss it as having the same value as other posts...don't get me wrong other people definitely have sound advice to give but nobody looked at the numbers the way I do. You're beaten before you begin as most people are, and don't even know it.

          I find this all pretty frustrating.

          Now is a good time for a laugh

          Jason, You are so right. The answers you and others have given me here are better then most of the marketing courses I have paid for over the years. Thank you and everyone in the forum for all the fantastic information. You are all so nice to help.

          Tracie
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    • Profile picture of the author solomonm
      Jason Jason,

      Very interesting Points.
      I have four eBooks on Kindle with very few sales. The niches are minimalism, Survivalism, Free Prescription discount card (make Money) and Cannabis.
      Originally Posted by Jason Kanigan View Post

      Time for some brutal honesty.

      I don't say this to discourage. Those of you who know me are aware I am about getting to the core of problems and moving on with positive solutions.

      Tracie,

      Let's start with the general stuff.

      Relying on a single product for your revenue is a bad idea.

      Relying on a single $10 product for all the money you need is a really bad idea.

      You're trying to make all the cash you need to pay your bills from this one low budget product, and the truth is it's never going to happen.

      Now I know you're saying, "Well WTH am I supposed to do then, Jason?" I said this would be brutal, and I said I give solutions. But the first step in getting out of this prison you've created for yourself is realizing success under the circumstances you have set up right now is impossible.

      How many $10 sales would you need to make your rent? Let's not even concern ourselves with any other amount.

      Kindle isn't going to pay you until far too many days down the line. So not only is it too hard to make the amount of money you need to survive, you don't get it until a month from now.

      Now, to get to the total number of sales you need to reach your money target, how much traffic would you require? We're talking bare minimum $500 = $10/sale X 50 sales = how much traffic? How many people need to see your book offer before one of them buys it? 1 in 100? 2 in 100? Generously, that's 50 views per sale X 50 sales = 2500 views.

      I'd call that an absolute bare minimum...and that's just for $500. Plus, we know KDP doesn't actually work that way--you don't get 100% commission, for instance. But let's look at the facts here: you need at least 2500 views a month just to reach something like that $500 minimum amount of money you need.

      Do you have a plan for getting those 2500 views? Because as great as the Amazon search engine is, it is not going to serve them up for you.

      Can you direct that many views with your own marketing activity? My guess is you'd be hard pressed to reach 200.

      Can you see how this plan is flawed from the beginning, just in the general case because of the math?


      Now let's get specific.

      This niche you've chosen...it's a weird one.

      Who's your target market? How would they go about finding your book? Who types in "I am eating too much because I'm bored and I need distractions"?

      Nobody.

      So in addition to your numbers problem you have a marketing problem.

      I just went to Amazon and tried typing in some search queries related to what I understand your book's topic to be.

      "I overeat" -- didn't autocomplete, offer any suggestions.

      "what to do about overeating" -- didn't autocomplete, but did give some related results.

      "overeat", "help I overeat" -- gave a few simple autocomplete suggestions, some of which could be useful to you.

      "need distractions from eating" -- didn't autocomplete or give results that were any good.

      "what to do I eat too much", "why you eat so much" -- didn't autocomplete, but did give physical diet pills results.

      "what to do when you eat too much" -- didn't autocompete; gave Guitar Hero in mixed results (whaa?)

      What we learned here is people are not searching for these terms. Otherwise, Amazon would have jumped to autocomplete relevant search terms. It's not.

      This means you need to do something about the title of your book and how it's perceived.

      You jumped into this with an idea. Doing things is good. However, you have to look at marketing, which in this case especially, because you're using someone else's search engine, is "How are people going to find my book?"

      They are not going to find it by typing in things like I tried above.

      Now those are obviously not the only search terms, and I may have missed some good ones in my 5-minute exploration. But the evidence tells me:

      1 - you're never going to get enough traffic the way you're doing it to make any money--for ANY book you write

      and

      2 - you don't have enough things for people to buy at the right levels to ensure you earn enough money to survive.



      Now let's move on to solutions.

      So far people have tried to give you solutions on optimizing what you've got. I hope I've impressed up on you that doing so at this point is akin to putting a Band-Aid on a deep stab wound. It just isn't going to work.

      Broke people try to "make as much as I can." This stinks. It's no target at all and nobody ever gets there.

      The first thing you have to do is set a realistic money target.

      What amount of money do you need every month to get by? Ignore how you're going to get there right now. What number do you really need?

      Once you've calculated this number (and you can always raise it later, as you begin to do better), then you can begin to figure out how you're going to get there.

      And we know that relying entirely upon $10 sales of an ebook no one is looking for is not the answer.

      One of the post powerful lessons a newbie can learn is how a front and back end to product sales work.

      You said you lost your website. OK. Free hosting is available (google the term). And it can be 'clean', no advertising, not a .wix or whatever subdomain. So that problem can be solved.

      Your monitor. You say it's kinda broken. All right--go to Goodwill and get a really cheap one. It doesn't matter if it's ugly right now. Look on Craigslist for deals. They're there. Put a request on Freecycle or CL asking for one as a donation.

      At the worst you could use your local library's computer for short periods. Or maybe you have a friend you could impose upon for the short term. At any rate, these are solvable problems.

      Back to the front and back end sales issue.

      You can accelerate your progress towards your money target with back end products.

      Let's say everything is somehow going great. A miracle! People are buying your $10 product. Great! Let's say 20 buy this month.

      Now what?

      What can they do next?

      What else can they get from you?

      Right this instant...nuthin'!

      That's kind of a problem, wouldn't you say?

      This is just my opinion, and my opinion is that a Kindle book should NEVER be the 100% cash cow money maker your business relies on. It's just not big enough. It should be a "nice if it works," occasional path into your other products & services (read: back end) people can find and use.

      So what else could you offer for people to buy once they have bought the book and gotten a little more familiar with you?

      Writing services?

      Affordable group coaching to make sure they remember and DO the activities to stop themselves from eating due to boredom?

      More expensive individual coaching for the same?

      Start planning these out.

      How many customers, conservatively, do you think you can generate a month?

      See how these start chopping down that total money requirement? They really accelerate you getting to your money target.

      2 copywriting clients at $500 apiece = an additional $1000/month.

      5 group coaching clients at $25 (don't you DARE charge any less, or they won't have any commitment to it--in fact, you should charge more) apiece = $125

      1 individual client at $250 = $250

      Already we're at $1375 in new-to-you income...and these are very conservative figures for an active marketer.


      Now let's move on to the Marketing problem.

      This, once you get past your math problem (the one we just covered in super depth), is your main problem.

      Earlier I said you picked a weird niche.

      In my experience, though, it has one REALLY BIG thing going for it.

      Although people are not searching for those specific terms, or even know distracting yourself to avoid eating due to boredom is a solution, loads of people have the overeating problem.

      In fact, the overeating/shame/weight loss thing is a total crossover success-in-waiting providing you get into the right marketing channel where people are listening.

      I hope you are ready to talk because the place a hungry market is waiting for your help is through PODCASTS AND RADIO TALK SHOWS.

      It's so general interest that I can't think of anyone who wouldn't want to pick the story up.

      Self-help.

      Motivation.

      Weight loss.

      Morning zoo.

      Exercise.

      Stay-At-Home.


      Do you think if you appear as a guest on 6-8 podcasts and radio shows this coming month that will have an effect on driving traffic?

      Do you think those numbers will be significant and really help you get closer to that 2500 we were talking about earlier? That they'll add up fast?

      Much faster than trying to pick up onesies and twosies through sig marketing or hoping people accidentally fall into your website?

      THIS IS A TOPIC PEOPLE WANT TO HEAR ABOUT.

      They just don't know what to call it. We saw the evidence of that above.


      Get out of the victim mentality.

      Get yourself a monitor that works--barter, beg, borrow, buy (super cheap).

      Get yourself a free hosting account.

      I guarantee you can have this stuff done by tomorrow afternoon.

      Google podcasts and radio shows and apply to them as a guest interviewee. They NEED content. Their business is a little monster with a never-ending appetite for new content and that's you.

      Write 6 or 7 standard questions about your target market, what happens to them, who they are and what they do, and your solution, and put them into a pdf to include with a headshot pic attached to your interview requests.

      Practice your answers. The hosts are so lazy--especially the radio hosts--they will literally read them out in the order you provide. This is your opportunity to set the stage however you like. And at the end of each appearance, they will all ask, "So, how can people get in touch with you? Learn more about you?"...

      ...and now you have your answer.

      Not just the book.

      But your coaching.

      Your writing.

      Your other services.


      Get your plan together. Understand your numbers. Get your marketing aligned with HOW PEOPLE ACTUALLY BUY what you're selling. Develop a back end for your funnel.

      It doesn't have to take long to implement this stuff. You can easily sell a 6-week coaching program without knowing exactly what you're going to put inside it--heck, asking your buyers what they want from you after they buy is perfectly acceptable and a great way to ensure customer satisfaction.

      But get out of that narrative about "two years" and how you got here. Move on. Move into the new plan, the one that works for you.
      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[10523803].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author Happybidr
    Tracie,
    In case you haven't done this yet, after you get a great title and cover, put together a great email and send a free copy of the book to a bunch of bloggers who write about that niche. Say you Enjoy their blog, and since we're interested in the same issues, I wanted to send you one of the first copies of my new book, TITLE. It's about blah blah blah. Which as you know, is a big problem for so many people. Offer them a free copy to one of their readers, and offer to do a guest post about the topic on their blog (if they do that). If you don't want to write the post, say you think their readers might be interested in some of the topics you cover and give her a link to share with them about how to get it. If it's free on Amazon say it will be free for the next XX days so they'll hopefully share it sooner than later.

    Just some thoughts.

    Good luck.
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  • Profile picture of the author cjsparacino123
    I would love to read your book!
    Signature

    Grab a Free copy of my investing/marketing eBook!
    http://bit.ly/2h8XV41

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    • Profile picture of the author Tracie Johansen
      Originally Posted by cjsparacino123 View Post

      I would love to read your book!
      I sent you a PM. Thanks, Tracie
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  • Profile picture of the author Brent Stangel
    If it were me and I'd worked hard on it and had faith in it - I'd pull it from circulation until I had time to rework/rethink/replan and relaunch it.
    This is the best advice you've received thus far.

    I bought a used monitor in a thrift shop for $12.50 some time ago - it worked perfectly for two years!
    I have at least three that still work, in my junk shed...I can't give them away.

    I suggest you take Kay's advice above.
    Signature
    Get Off The Warrior Forum Now & Don't Come Back If You Want To Succeed!
    All The Real Marketers Are Gone. There's Nothing Left But Weak, Sniveling Wanna-Bees!
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    • Profile picture of the author JohnMcCabe
      Going to piggyback on one of Jason's suggestions. (I seem to be doing that a lot lately - he's saved me a lot of wear and tear on my keyboard. )

      Podcasts and talk radio shows. Great suggestion.

      Another poster noted that getting national exposure as a self-published author can be tough.

      So don't start with local exposure. Start with your local media - either your own city, or the closest large market. News directors are always looking for 'local person makes good' stories. And more and more national sources watch local feeds for ideas. Make a good impression on a local show, or an article in a local paper, and you might be surprised at the traction you can get.

      But only if your book is up to snuff. From what Kay and others have said, you have a ways to go to reach that point.

      Great marketing can help a so-so product, but it can absolutely kill a bad one. Especially in this era of social media.

      I wish you luck...
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      • Profile picture of the author Tracie Johansen
        Originally Posted by JohnMcCabe View Post

        Going to piggyback on one of Jason's suggestions. (I seem to be doing that a lot lately - he's saved me a lot of wear and tear on my keyboard. )

        Podcasts and talk radio shows. Great suggestion.

        Another poster noted that getting national exposure as a self-published author can be tough.

        So don't start with local exposure. Start with your local media - either your own city, or the closest large market. News directors are always looking for 'local person makes good' stories. And more and more national sources watch local feeds for ideas. Make a good impression on a local show, or an article in a local paper, and you might be surprised at the traction you can get.

        But only if your book is up to snuff. From what Kay and others have said, you have a ways to go to reach that point.

        Great marketing can help a so-so product, but it can absolutely kill a bad one. Especially in this era of social media.

        I wish you luck...
        John,

        Your ideas are wonderful. I am going to rework my book and start fresh. Thank you for taking time to offer advice.
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    • Profile picture of the author plancheros
      There is a lot of things to do. For now , please go to facebook and add a group named:

      Pat's First Kindle Book (From Start to Finish)

      Blessings
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  • Next time do what the Martian guy did put it for free so as you write the 2 years you can see if people like it not keep it secret for 2 years. Most people finish a book in less then 3 months fiction and 1 to 3 weeks non fiction then figure out if it's a looser so they can move on
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    • Profile picture of the author Tracie Johansen
      Originally Posted by HelpingYouBeAnExpert View Post

      Next time do what the Martian guy did put it for free so as you write the 2 years you can see if people like it not keep it secret for 2 years. Most people finish a book in less then 3 months fiction and 1 to 3 weeks non fiction then figure out if it's a looser so they can move on
      The book did not actually take 2 years. I was working on my Azpazaz Bunch package at the same time and also working full time. I was only putting in a little time each week. My mistake was to not promote it as I was writing.
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  • Profile picture of the author mycleanhouse
    Some great ideas on book launching here, thanks all for their useful advice. I am launching my kindle soon.
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  • Profile picture of the author Jack Ma
    I understand your situation now. Like the whole world turning back to you no matter how hard you tried. But please don't lose hope, hope like the light at the end of the cave can lead you go through the dark.
    I wish best thing will come to you soon.


    Jack Ma
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    Do you want to Discover about my journey to quit my old job and live the way i want?
    Click here to my Squeeze Page
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  • Profile picture of the author Jason Kanigan
    @Tracie

    Did you get your free hosting set up?

    Did you get a monitor? If you didn't, and money is an issue, PM me where you are and I will find something local to you thru Craigslist for you to pick up or solve the problem another way (like you find one at Goodwill and I will call to pay them for it.) We're not going to let a $15-25 problem stand in the way!
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    • Profile picture of the author Tracie Johansen
      Originally Posted by Jason Kanigan View Post

      @Tracie

      Did you get your free hosting set up?

      Did you get a monitor? If you didn't, and money is an issue, PM me where you are and I will find something local to you thru Craigslist for you to pick up or solve the problem another way (like you find one at Goodwill and I will call to pay them for it.) We're not going to let a $15-25 problem stand in the way!
      Jason, Thank you so much for your generous offer. I sent you a pm. You are so kind.

      Tracie
      Signature

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  • Profile picture of the author joybanerjee
    I would like suggest you to plan things up quickly - As you have put so much hard work completing your goal and its time to promote.

    Now Promotion is the Key? Make People Aware About the Book and Value which Book is going to Give a Person who will buy that book.

    Until people will able to gain some confidence about your product - How They Can Buy a Book?

    Things are changed now you need to pick out some portions of your book and create an awesome contents and start a YouTube Channel and Build Audience and setup your platform from where they can buy that book easily hassel free...

    There are lots of way you can get floods of Traffic naturally its important believe in you and your work - Let me know if you need any support in YouTube Promotions? I will be happy to Assist You

    Best of Luck

    Joy Banerjee
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    • Profile picture of the author Tracie Johansen
      Originally Posted by joybanerjee View Post

      I would like suggest you to plan things up quickly - As you have put so much hard work completing your goal and its time to promote.

      Now Promotion is the Key? Make People Aware About the Book and Value which Book is going to Give a Person who will buy that book.

      Until people will able to gain some confidence about your product - How They Can Buy a Book?

      Things are changed now you need to pick out some portions of your book and create an awesome contents and start a YouTube Channel and Build Audience and setup your platform from where they can buy that book easily hassel free...

      There are lots of way you can get floods of Traffic naturally its important believe in you and your work - Let me know if you need any support in YouTube Promotions? I will be happy to Assist You

      Best of Luck

      Joy Banerjee
      Joy,

      Thank you for your ideas. I have been working on some videos. I am going to rework my book. I would love your help with some ideas for videos when I am ready to relaunch.
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  • Profile picture of the author Hairylyme
    Hi Tracie, your book needs re-branding. Different title, different cover = different book? Actually, yes, too some - inc those sites you had trouble with. I'd love to read it. Please PM me for more. Best, H.
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    • Profile picture of the author Tracie Johansen
      Originally Posted by Hairylyme View Post

      Hi Tracie, your book needs re-branding. Different title, different cover = different book? Actually, yes, too some - inc those sites you had trouble with. I'd love to read it. Please PM me for more. Best, H.
      Hairylyme,

      You are right. I am going to rework my book and get it right. Thanks for your input.
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    • Profile picture of the author Hairylyme
      Tracie, I have lots of useful info to share with you (free). Are you open to receiving? Law of Attraction put you in the right place here for sure, send me your contact details and I can tell you more. Let's get this book going. H.
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  • Profile picture of the author PinkStar
    When ever I buy a kindle book I read reviews. And since books can also be listed by avarage customer reviews this is important to get a good listing so did your friends who read and liked the book post a review? If not, maybe ask them to?
    Signature
    Move it along folks, nothing to see here
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  • Profile picture of the author ANonnaMoose
    If you want money right away, sell something on eBay or Amazon. Or use your writing skills to write articles, blog posts, etc. for others online.

    Regarding publishing and making money via KDP, you will have to "go to school" and it will take time (2-3 months perhaps to get a good start). A good place to start is with this new book by Chris Fox: Robot CheckRobot Check

    I will PM you with additional, helpful information.
    Signature
    A-Nonna-Moose
    Think loose; write tight.
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  • Profile picture of the author MsMel
    Lots of good advice here, but let me help you prioritize and help teach you HOW to do some of the things you're being told to do.

    1. Get a job, or income, any legal way necessary immediately, and THEN work on the book. Every solution for the book challenges will take time you may not have if BILL is knocking on the door.
    2. Here's a cover artist on Fiverr that I recommend highly, as I've used her for several projects: https://www.fiverr.com/pro_ebookcovers
    3. Your Title should be based upon keywords AND pack a punch. You can do this by having a two or three word title with a subtitle that uses keywords. For example: "Kick-It! Six Ways to Have Fun and Stop Stuffing Your Face" (of course, this is off the top of my head, and not based upon research.)
    4. If you have a smartphone, sign up for Periscope, and get on there at least daily and read a little bit of your book, and talk to people. Your passion will come through, and they'll get to know your work. It is FREE to do this audience building. If you get your replacement monitor, and have a camera, do the same thing on Blab.
    5. Sign up for Twitter and Social Jukebox (https://www.socialjukebox.com) and create a list of at least 24 Tweets, with your new book cover image in some of them, and home-made memes in others to highlight bits of your book.
    6. Get WordSwag app and create your own memes. These can be plugged into your social jukebox.
    7. Relaunch your recreated book on Amazon, and take it off all other platforms. Sign up for KDP select and promote the living daylights out of the book launch for at least two MONTHS before the relaunch to build buzz. Offer the book for FREE for 5 days. This is how folks create a best seller.
    8. When you relaunch your book, put it in a category without a ton of competition. Diet is too much competition, but happiness is a niche category that will serve you better for visibility.
    9. Join author groups and learn all you can for the next 2-3 months what other are doing.
    10. Create a tiny "report" or cheat sheet that highlights things you cover in your book, and give it away as a readers email list opt-in. This is where people type in their email and get the report for free in exchange. That becomes your money maker ---- that email list. Without it, you will not make it as an author in today's climate.

    I hope that helps, and if you want to see my work and what I've built in the last 10 months following these things you can look up MsMelEdwards.com or look for my books on Amazon as Mel Edwards. I'm still new, too, and not paying my bills with my half-dozen books, but I'm growing it, and have a small non-promoted list of about 300 people.

    I also highly recommend my coach, Shelley Hitz of ShelleyHitz.com for learning from. Almost everything I know I've learned from her.

    Good luck.
    -Mel.
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    • Profile picture of the author Tracie Johansen
      Originally Posted by MsMel View Post

      Lots of good advice here, but let me help you prioritize and help teach you HOW to do some of the things you're being told to do.

      1. Get a job, or income, any legal way necessary immediately, and THEN work on the book. Every solution for the book challenges will take time you may not have if BILL is knocking on the door.
      2. Here's a cover artist on Fiverr that I recommend highly, as I've used her for several projects: https://www.fiverr.com/pro_ebookcovers
      3. Your Title should be based upon keywords AND pack a punch. You can do this by having a two or three word title with a subtitle that uses keywords. For example: "Kick-It! Six Ways to Have Fun and Stop Stuffing Your Face" (of course, this is off the top of my head, and not based upon research.)
      4. If you have a smartphone, sign up for Periscope, and get on there at least daily and read a little bit of your book, and talk to people. Your passion will come through, and they'll get to know your work. It is FREE to do this audience building. If you get your replacement monitor, and have a camera, do the same thing on Blab.
      5. Sign up for Twitter and Social Jukebox (https://www.socialjukebox.com) and create a list of at least 24 Tweets, with your new book cover image in some of them, and home-made memes in others to highlight bits of your book.
      6. Get WordSwag app and create your own memes. These can be plugged into your social jukebox.
      7. Relaunch your recreated book on Amazon, and take it off all other platforms. Sign up for KDP select and promote the living daylights out of the book launch for at least two MONTHS before the relaunch to build buzz. Offer the book for FREE for 5 days. This is how folks create a best seller.
      8. When you relaunch your book, put it in a category without a ton of competition. Diet is too much competition, but happiness is a niche category that will serve you better for visibility.
      9. Join author groups and learn all you can for the next 2-3 months what other are doing.
      10. Create a tiny "report" or cheat sheet that highlights things you cover in your book, and give it away as a readers email list opt-in. This is where people type in their email and get the report for free in exchange. That becomes your money maker ---- that email list. Without it, you will not make it as an author in today's climate.

      I hope that helps, and if you want to see my work and what I've built in the last 10 months following these things you can look up MsMelEdwards.com or look for my books on Amazon as Mel Edwards. I'm still new, too, and not paying my bills with my half-dozen books, but I'm growing it, and have a small non-promoted list of about 300 people.

      I also highly recommend my coach, Shelley Hitz of ShelleyHitz.com for learning from. Almost everything I know I've learned from her.

      Good luck.
      -Mel.
      MsMel,

      You have some very good ideas here. I am going to make some serious changes. Thank you so much for your help.

      Tracie
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    • Profile picture of the author Tracie Johansen
      Originally Posted by MsMel View Post

      Lots of good advice here, but let me help you prioritize and help teach you HOW to do some of the things you're being told to do.

      1. Get a job, or income, any legal way necessary immediately, and THEN work on the book. Every solution for the book challenges will take time you may not have if BILL is knocking on the door.
      2. Here's a cover artist on Fiverr that I recommend highly, as I've used her for several projects: https://www.fiverr.com/pro_ebookcovers
      3. Your Title should be based upon keywords AND pack a punch. You can do this by having a two or three word title with a subtitle that uses keywords. For example: "Kick-It! Six Ways to Have Fun and Stop Stuffing Your Face" (of course, this is off the top of my head, and not based upon research.)
      4. If you have a smartphone, sign up for Periscope, and get on there at least daily and read a little bit of your book, and talk to people. Your passion will come through, and they'll get to know your work. It is FREE to do this audience building. If you get your replacement monitor, and have a camera, do the same thing on Blab.
      5. Sign up for Twitter and Social Jukebox (https://www.socialjukebox.com) and create a list of at least 24 Tweets, with your new book cover image in some of them, and home-made memes in others to highlight bits of your book.
      6. Get WordSwag app and create your own memes. These can be plugged into your social jukebox.
      7. Relaunch your recreated book on Amazon, and take it off all other platforms. Sign up for KDP select and promote the living daylights out of the book launch for at least two MONTHS before the relaunch to build buzz. Offer the book for FREE for 5 days. This is how folks create a best seller.
      8. When you relaunch your book, put it in a category without a ton of competition. Diet is too much competition, but happiness is a niche category that will serve you better for visibility.
      9. Join author groups and learn all you can for the next 2-3 months what other are doing.
      10. Create a tiny "report" or cheat sheet that highlights things you cover in your book, and give it away as a readers email list opt-in. This is where people type in their email and get the report for free in exchange. That becomes your money maker ---- that email list. Without it, you will not make it as an author in today's climate.

      I hope that helps, and if you want to see my work and what I've built in the last 10 months following these things you can look up MsMelEdwards.com or look for my books on Amazon as Mel Edwards. I'm still new, too, and not paying my bills with my half-dozen books, but I'm growing it, and have a small non-promoted list of about 300 people.

      I also highly recommend my coach, Shelley Hitz of ShelleyHitz.com for learning from. Almost everything I know I've learned from her.

      Good luck.
      -Mel.
      Mel,

      Thank you for all your wonderful ideas, suggestions, resourses and marketing advice. I am going to work on all the suggestions.

      Tracie
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  • Profile picture of the author affinitymc
    It's always a good idea to model someone who has succeeded in your niche. Here's one such success story, Susan Peirce, who used Jeff Walker's Product Launch Formula to go from zero to six figures:


    Hope it helps!
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  • Profile picture of the author BDazzler
    I have had issues with stress and boredom eating , so in theory, I am a serious potential reader ... however, right this second, it does not appeal to me, I have no temptation to ask ... "Gee that's awesome where do I get it?"

    Three things:
    1. Writing a book is never about the primary money: I am a technical writer, in a high paying industry, with a major publisher my first book was listed #1 on the Library of Computer and Information Sciences when it launched. I figured I made a total of about $3.50 per hour or so on it. However, it did establish me as an expert in my field and resulted in a lot of secondary money.... THEREFORE ... you must be in this for the long haul, and look at follow up income. I understand being short on funds, but the book is not necessarily the best way to get them fast.

    2. Your blog, twitter feed, facebook page (and any groups you are in) must show you having the fun you are having ... use the techniques in your book to demo results... "This is what I do now rather than having a cup-cake" ... "Isn't this better than chocolate?"

    3. You're going to need do do some paid advertising.

    I do think the idea about pulling it and relaunching with a marketing plan is a good one.
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  • Profile picture of the author loybanks
    Originally Posted by Tracie Johansen View Post

    I spent almost 2 years writing and editing my book. I believe it is a great book. It is 235 pages. When I finished it, I published it on my own site, Payhip, Lulu and Amazon. I was so happy. I sent a free copy to friends and family on facebook to get feedback. Most said they did not have time to read it. The ones that did gave me positive feedback.

    I was in need of immediate funds so I set it up on several sites. Then I tried to promote it. It very quickly became apparent that unless you have it on Amazon and can offer it free for a few days, most sites won't let you post it. Because I did not sign up for kdp and already had it on other sites, it did not qualify. Trying to sell it directly from my site was not working. I submitted it to dozens of sites with no luck. I also posted a lot of graphics with my url on pinterest. I was not getting any traffic from them. I was soon unable to afford hosting so I lost my site. Now even if someone sees my ads they can't find my book. My computer monitor is going out so I have not been able to edit the url on the graphics.

    I am doing everything I can to stay positive. Watching helpful and motivational videos, reading, taking walks and using positive self talk.

    I now only have it listed on Payhip, Amazon and Lulu. It is very difficult to get traffic to the Payhip site. I need immediate cash as I am in trouble financially. I am open to any free ideas to effectively market my products. I found a list of ebook site here on the forum, but I posted to them with little results. I set up 3 sample chapters that people can download on my Payhip site. I have not had enough traffic to get it noticed. I also submitted it to sharing sites but they only work if you promote the page.

    I am in need of ideas, moral support and someone to believe in me. I am frustrated and broke. Any advice on how to effectively promote my book and other products would be much appreciated. I have found a lot of great advice in this forum over the years so I am sure I can find some solutions again.

    Thank you for taking time to read my post.

    Tracie
    What is the URL for your book on Amazon? I'll check on it and perhaps do some free advertising for you. OK?

    Loy Banks
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    • Profile picture of the author Tracie Johansen
      Originally Posted by loybanks View Post

      What is the URL for your book on Amazon? I'll check on it and perhaps do some free advertising for you. OK?

      Loy Banks
      Loy, Thank you so much. I really appreciate your help.
      Robot Check

      Tracie
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  • Profile picture of the author jimmy12121
    So have u tried putting the book up on click bank or authors?? This way the rite people will target your book and u pay commissions after sales
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  • Profile picture of the author affinitymc
    As a follow up to my previous post re Susan/Jeff and the product launch, for the big jump in subscribers she had a joint venture partner who had a big list of diet conscious people- they came to her after her seed launch.
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  • Profile picture of the author willie robertson
    Hi Tracie,

    Give these Facebook Groups a try:

    https://www.facebook.com/groups/3571...?ref=bookmarks ..... Pat's First Kindle Book (From Start to Finish)

    And https://www.facebook.com/groups/WritePublishProfit/

    They usually help would be authors get started in the right direction.
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    • Profile picture of the author motorkitty
      Hi Tracie,

      I just read through the sales page and preview chapters of your book. Just two cents from someone who's dealt with weight issues their entire life. Overeating to the point of being severely overweight or obese generally stems from emotional triggers, not from boredom. Being emotionally hungry or starved (which you did touch on briefly in the beginning) is not the same thing as just being bored with your life. Most people overeat to try to quell sadness, fear, anxiety, etc., not because they can't think of something better to do. Then, add finding the motivation to make a change (an entirely different beast with many, many arms) to the mix, and I think you're just taking too many complex issues and trying to quickly package them into a neat and tidy list.

      Also, all of the ideas I read in your list can easily be found anywhere, and are not new or revelatory. However, with some sprucing up and a few nice graphics they could each easily be made into fantastic, shareable posts on Pinterest (an incredible source of free traffic for the weight loss/motivation niche). You literally have 1001 potential posts. Start using some of them to promote. By setting up Pinterest, Facebook, maybe even Instagram, and a free blog that someone mentioned above, you could start marketing now with zero investment while also re-working your book into a more narrowly defined and succinct niche using your absolute best actions/ideas.

      And why not take some of your 1001 ideas and turn them into free downloads for your email list? Like "10 Things You Can Do Today to Stop Overeating." etc. then send out weekly progress reports and support. Get people really excited for the relaunch of your book.

      I know this doesn't bring you money NOW which is your main concern, but it is an investment in a long-term solution, and there were many great ideas posted above on how to make money short-term through other endeavors.

      Again, just my two cents.

      Dawn
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  • Profile picture of the author NateYoung
    The main thing to remember when writing a book or creating products is to pick a niche that you are passionate about and stick with it. Over time you will slowly begin to become an authority figure about your specific niche and that's when you will gain a strong following who will always buy your products or books.

    For example my niche is how to deal with debt collectors and I have a book published on Amazon. But my main niche is drop shipping and how to source products from manufacturers and distributors.

    The main thing to remember is to keep your head up you will get there as it takes time to make a good living online. Another thing to remember is to keep the great smile and pretty eyes.

    Much Aloha

    Nathan
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  • Profile picture of the author Hotcoffee
    Hello Tracie,


    Writing is tough and writing an ebook is even tougher. I admire you for doing so and for reaching out to others to get ideas on how to jump start your marketing efforts.


    I have gone through some trying times and have found a couple of methods to help me focus and get back on track.


    Sometimes, it helps to stop what you are trying to do. Then "back up, and start over", so to speak....


    Take stock of your situation, the good old pen and paper helps identify issues and solutions.


    List your priorities.... income, food, paying the bills. Then list your goals and dreams, set this list aside for now.


    Get back to taking care of YOU, and your living situation. So, genenerating income is the number one thing to work on.


    Maybe you could find a part time job to help with your money situation. I know it is not easy to find a job, but maybe there is something you could do even temporarily. There are some businesses.... even cities and counties, that hire temp workers.


    Once you get money coming in, you will feel better and some of your stress will be gone. Then you can "start over" with your ebook.


    You may find that setting "it" (the ebook and marketing) aside, it may help you with fresh ideas. Keep a notebook handy and just jot down ideas, thoughts, phrases etc.... when the come to you. Do not dwell on them, just scribble it down, you will be going over your notes at a later time.


    Find ways to brainstorm with someone who understands your internet niche, this will make you feel better and maybe generate more creativity and ideas.


    Hang in there!
    Nancy
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    • Profile picture of the author jamespereira
      Hi Tracie,
      Have you heard of Blab.im?

      It's similar to Periscope. You can use both to promote your book. It's free marketing. Try it and see who joins or watches your sessions.

      Hope this helps.

      James
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    • Profile picture of the author Tracie Johansen
      Originally Posted by Hotcoffee View Post

      Hello Tracie,


      Writing is tough and writing an ebook is even tougher. I admire you for doing so and for reaching out to others to get ideas on how to jump start your marketing efforts.


      I have gone through some trying times and have found a couple of methods to help me focus and get back on track.


      Sometimes, it helps to stop what you are trying to do. Then "back up, and start over", so to speak....


      Take stock of your situation, the good old pen and paper helps identify issues and solutions.


      List your priorities.... income, food, paying the bills. Then list your goals and dreams, set this list aside for now.


      Get back to taking care of YOU, and your living situation. So, genenerating income is the number one thing to work on.


      Maybe you could find a part time job to help with your money situation. I know it is not easy to find a job, but maybe there is something you could do even temporarily. There are some businesses.... even cities and counties, that hire temp workers.


      Once you get money coming in, you will feel better and some of your stress will be gone. Then you can "start over" with your ebook.


      You may find that setting "it" (the ebook and marketing) aside, it may help you with fresh ideas. Keep a notebook handy and just jot down ideas, thoughts, phrases etc.... when the come to you. Do not dwell on them, just scribble it down, you will be going over your notes at a later time.


      Find ways to brainstorm with someone who understands your internet niche, this will make you feel better and maybe generate more creativity and ideas.


      Hang in there!
      Nancy
      Hi Nancy, Thank you for all your good ideas and moral support. I really appreciate you taking time out to help me.

      Tracie
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  • Profile picture of the author Mikem099
    You could rework the book content a bit and the title, cover etc to make it unique and then present it to KDP as a new book. Either way, treat it as a learning experience not a failure Just another attempt at making a light bulb.
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  • Profile picture of the author seobro
    Annie, thank you... That is good advice you are giving us.


    Quote:
    I bought a used monitor in a thrift shop for $12.50 some time ago - it worked perfectly for two years!
    I bought a used tube monitor at the good will store for $9.95 six years ago. It is still working and the $250 LCD screen lasted only two tears, I mean years.

    Hi Tracie:

    Big thing is your need money. Yeah, as in right away I would go over to FIVERR and sign up. Create a book editing gig. Help people edit their own books and make some money. That is what you need to do and forget about the over eating book as it is not selling right now. Books are funny, they take up a lot of time and produce little money. This is especially true now. Look at all the changes done by amazon. For example, paying us per page.

    OK as a book editor you should charge $5 to edit 500 words, but to start out you might do 1000 words until you build up your rep. It is not a lot of money, but it will help you when you start to write book two three, four, five, and six.

    All the best to you!
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  • Profile picture of the author dutchguy
    Hello Tracie,


    First of all I want to congratulate you on creating an finnishing a product on a topic you're passionate about. Very little people manage to do this.


    There are some issues with your book listing on Amazon, a lot of them are already mentioned in this post. The bad news about fixing this, is that it will take time and money.


    Since I've also read your on a shoestring budget and looking for ways to start making money with this product quickly this excludes a number of options.


    I didn't read your book, but I'm going to assume that your very knowledgeable about this topic and that you have a great personal story with your own experiences about comfort eating.


    So things you can do to start making money on this:


    - reach out to blog owners, see if they want to be an affiliate for this product where you split revenue on each sale they make


    - be a guest on podcast where you're interviewed on your life story and your experiences and are able to mention your book


    - give away half your book via an optin page and at the end of this first half put the link where they can get the full book


    - do a bundle offer with 2 other authors who have books about weight loss and make an irresistible 3 for 1 offer


    - besides making a little revenue on a book sale offer an upsell like a 1-1 Skype consultation service


    There are plenty more things I could mention which could help you and you can do even without any budget.


    I'm also planning to offer coaching services myself on internet marketing and growth hacking if you are interested send me a PM, I'm willing to give you a free Skype consultation in which I will do my best to provide real value and advice you can immediately put into action.


    I want to do this because I have experience in doing online marketing on my own sites and products but not yet with coaching other people so it's also good practice for me. Send me a PM if you're interested.


    Regards,
    Pat
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    • Profile picture of the author Tracie Johansen
      Originally Posted by dutchguy View Post

      Hello Tracie,


      First of all I want to congratulate you on creating an finnishing a product on a topic you're passionate about. Very little people manage to do this.


      There are some issues with your book listing on Amazon, a lot of them are already mentioned in this post. The bad news about fixing this, is that it will take time and money.


      Since I've also read your on a shoestring budget and looking for ways to start making money with this product quickly this excludes a number of options.


      I didn't read your book, but I'm going to assume that your very knowledgeable about this topic and that you have a great personal story with your own experiences about comfort eating.


      So things you can do to start making money on this:


      - reach out to blog owners, see if they want to be an affiliate for this product where you split revenue on each sale they make


      - be a guest on podcast where you're interviewed on your life story and your experiences and are able to mention your book


      - give away half your book via an optin page and at the end of this first half put the link where they can get the full book


      - do a bundle offer with 2 other authors who have books about weight loss and make an irresistible 3 for 1 offer


      - besides making a little revenue on a book sale offer an upsell like a 1-1 Skype consultation service


      There are plenty more things I could mention which could help you and you can do even without any budget.


      I'm also planning to offer coaching services myself on internet marketing and growth hacking if you are interested send me a PM, I'm willing to give you a free Skype consultation in which I will do my best to provide real value and advice you can immediately put into action.


      I want to do this because I have experience in doing online marketing on my own sites and products but not yet with coaching other people so it's also good practice for me. Send me a PM if you're interested.


      Regards,
      Pat
      Hi Pat,

      Wow, thank you for your generous offer, great ideas and advice. I am going to rework by book. Can I contact you in the future? I would love to talk to you more when I get things more organized.

      I appreciate you,

      Tracie
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  • Profile picture of the author onlineworker11
    Hi so it is the a ebook you have written? You haven't though about publish it as a "solid" /usual book in hard cover? It should be easier to get it published with an smaller book publishers then to get it pubslished with a big name in book publishing. Just a thought...
    Signature

    Turn $1 into unlimited $197 Click this.

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  • Profile picture of the author nanotrip
    Before writing the next ebook I would learn all about keyword research.
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  • Profile picture of the author Nue
    Yikes. This thread is very disturbing. If you're facing financial troubles so big you cannot even afford to pay for shared hosting, you need to solve that immediately. Forget about selling your book for now and get a job. I know that is probably really tough, but at this point you are just gambling with your time - you don't have a sales strategy for your book, you have no audience or web/market presence, and you have no marketing budget. Without those things, your time is most likely being wasted trying to bootstrap book sales. You might get lucky and hit upon a few sales, but are you really willing to leave your financial security up to luck?

    Further, the subject of your book is highly sensitive and, while there is definitely a market for it, you need to build up trust and reputation to sell it reliably. People will sense you are desperate to sell it, and thus they will feel like you are exploiting their emotional problems (boredom-related overeating and not being able to have fun is often depression) for a quick buck. You need to build a brand to get traction with this stuff, and that takes time.

    You need a job or a grant or some kind of steady money before you can do the kind of ground work required to build up an audience for your work and brand yourself appropriately. You can't do this stuff when you are desperate, it is too random. Please forget about your book for a while and find a job. Work on this stuff in your spare time. as it stands now, you are taking massive risks. Anybody in the Western world who cannot afford to host a site is in serious financial difficulty, you must solve that before anything else.
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  • Profile picture of the author hbeedee
    Hi Tracie

    It seems that you have got yourself a lot of great advice so you probably do not need my pennyworth. But if you would like a sneaky way of using Instagram then please IM me. No its not a product or anything. I'm just not prepared to put it up here since it is proprietary information that I paid for. Its just something I know about that will cost you nothing to implement. Or you can spend a little and get even bigger results I'm offering it because I've been broke myself and I know how hard it is.Cheers
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    • Profile picture of the author Tracie Johansen
      Originally Posted by hbeedee View Post

      Hi Tracie

      It seems that you have got yourself a lot of great advice so you probably do not need my pennyworth. But if you would like a sneaky way of using Instagram then please IM me. No its not a product or anything. I'm just not prepared to put it up here since it is proprietary information that I paid for. Its just something I know about that will cost you nothing to implement. Or you can spend a little and get even bigger results I'm offering it because I've been broke myself and I know how hard it is.Cheers
      Thank you so much for the information. You are so nice to help me out.

      Tracie
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  • Profile picture of the author MikeChrest
    I agree with the idea of making a blog since you love writing books. Your blog content won't be a problem since you already got that talent that keeps your audience interested in what you write. Start with the basics by creating a blog and inviting people in social media. Just keep it interesting and follow your passion. From there you will slowly work your way to the top and succeed.
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  • Profile picture of the author Morganlp
    I think Ricky Gervais got the idea. I hope it made you laugh and make an idea out of it.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XxnpAQh8vPQ
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  • Hi Tracy,

    I am sorry to hear your story, if you want I can host your website on my shared server for free. I can also install wordpress for you if you want. You can get your own subdomain name.

    once you can get some funds, you can buy your own domain name (usually about 9 dollars / year) and you're right back where you were.
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    Automate your twitter account with TwitKid.com

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    • Profile picture of the author Tracie Johansen
      Originally Posted by fredflintstone200 View Post

      Hi Tracy,

      I am sorry to hear your story, if you want I can host your website on my shared server for free. I can also install wordpress for you if you want. You can get your own subdomain name.

      once you can get some funds, you can buy your own domain name (usually about 9 dollars / year) and you're right back where you were.
      Thank you for your generous offer. I am going to rework my book and then get it set up. You are very kind to offer hosting. Can I get in touch with you when I get things ready?

      Thanks again,

      Tracie
      Signature

      I Will Write a 30,000 Word eBook for Just $300 !!
      I Will Write, Edit and Format It for Kindle. PM Me.

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  • Profile picture of the author videobyemail
    Good luck with the book. Alot of great answeres were given here!
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  • Profile picture of the author OussamaBusiness
    Good luck Sister , I think you create a great book please if you are finish to create this great book please i need your book
    Contact with me : oussamabusiness@hotmail.com
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  • Check out what the writer of Martian did he made tons of money with his book and try something like that he basically put everything for free while making it so he can build a following who took place during the process then he put it on amazon and other sites now it's a bestseller and a movie but it was free as he was writing it (real time)
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    Join Next Live Mastermind Zoominar 100% Real World Secrets to Get Up And Running. Are you Stuck? Don’t miss it www.MonthlyMastermind.org
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