Jennifer Lancaster

May 8, 2023

Media Kit Examples for Authors

Find the more up-to-date author media kit templates on this newer post. Why not create a media kit for when you approach Podcasters? An author media kit can give you something professional-looking to back up your media pitch with. It could also be used for approaching editors for guest posts. So I thought, oh surely there will be a media kit example or template on Adobe’s store. Yes, there are quite a few lovely ones, but they are all for blogger-influencers! Not a single one for authors… So, the press kit template found wasn’t terrible relevant, with its sponsored posts part and social stats part, but I pressed on. My three-page effort is probably not the most suitable for you either, as every specialist will have something different they want to include. The main thing is to think about what…

November 6, 2024

Self-Publishing, Selling eBooks and Media

The Reasons Your Indie Book Isn’t Selling and What to Do About It

Since selling your already self-published book is probably the hardest thing you’ll try to do after changing your own car oil, I’ve compiled some ‘low hanging fruit’ ideas to get you started. If your book has been published through XLibris, Balboa Press, iUnivers, AuthorHouse, etcetera, then the raw cost to you of buying in your book may also be a barrier to making any profits. I heard that a regular trade paperback could be $12 each to buy in! (It should be more like $6 + shipping). Thin Records Could be the Problem If you used a ‘publishing package’ at a big group, then you might have no idea what your book record contains—and thus how poorly it may be filled out. Alas, it may also be an ISBN registered in a foreign land. Once you confirm that booksellers here…

December 23, 2020

Book Marketing

Why do Authors Need a Marketing Mindset?

Even a simpleton will realise that novice or pro authors and business owners alike need to focus on their marketing activity. But, which elements do we need to work on—and why? Coming from a ‘why’ perspective, it gives any author a strong enough motive to move past their comfort zones. Hell yeah! Rather than worrying over your ‘product’ (book or service), your message is front and centre. This is great because it means people connect with your hook or your ethos. You will be learning about brand, benefit writing, landing pages, keywords, and teaser lines: all stuff that is handy for attracting anyone to any book. A niche marketing mindset is even better. That’s because choosing a niche will help an author attract fans with this laser focus. Using certain words, a phrase, a slogan or even a book title…

January 14, 2025

Book Marketing

How to Make a Book Landing Page

When creating your book sales page or course landing page, start with these questions: 1. What’s the purpose of my sales page? Have one clear call to action, like subscribing for a free chapter, buying a pre-order, or taking up a special fans & followers offer. 2. What am I offering my readers? Not more information, but an ability to earn more, do more, be more productive. 3. How will my prospects benefit from what I’m offering them? — A strong “what’s in it for me”. 4. Have I incorporated the strongest selling points in the headline? 5. Is there one clear reason for my ideal readers to buy? 6. Can I summarise some of my longer paragraphs with easier to read lists (written in direct voice)? 7. Does the design allow for ease of reading? White space and title case…

November 6, 2024

Book Design, Self-Publishing

Save Time (and Money) with Book Design Templates

This post is about saving time and how to use book design templates yourself. But, if you’re a professional, you’ll probably want to hire a book designer. Why? Because great book designers match the typeface to the cover and they think about the whole book’s look and feel. They can’t use a template for that, except as a starting point for size and margins. The other reason is because they are pros at it. First of all, I can’t mind-read whether you are using MS Word, InDesign, or Pages. (If you’re considering another program, like Publisher, for book design, it’s probably not a great idea). For fairness, we’ll talk about each one. Personal Fave: InDesign Yes, there are some benefits to subscribing to Adobe InDesign, and one of them is a selection of instantly downloadable ‘sort of free’ fonts. (The…

June 21, 2019

Selling eBooks and Media

How to Apply a Unique Selling Strategy to Books

One reason that new businesses fail is because they don’t have enough customers… generally because, says Paul Bassat (founder of Seek.com), “They think they are solving a problem… but that problem doesn’t really exist”. An even more common reason is… in the competitive marketplace, they “don’t offer any unique features that others don’t have”. It’s the same with books that help an author’s profile: the book must have a unique angle. Why apply a unique selling point to writing books? When writing a new book, I think about a strong selling point that my book can offer Australians. For example, the book market is small for Australians looking to grow their money knowhow or micro business. But I don’t worry over that, as there is an advantage in not competing with international finance/business gurus. Instead, I focus on compiling the kind of…