Today's Feature Article

The Top Seven Mistakes eBook Authors Make
Jim Edwards and David Garfinkel

eBooks are the hottest thing going on the Web right now!

Authors with the entrepreneurial instinct are making anywhere from a few hundred to tens of thousands of dollars per month - that's right, per month - by selling ebooks online.

Why are some authors doing so much better than others? We've discovered seven key mistakes that most ebook authors make (and in doing so, hold themselves back from major success):

1. They don't write to a specific, target audience.

The biggest mistake most ebook authors make is they don't clearly define, identify and visualize who they are selling their ebook to. On the Web, to be successful, you must write to a specific group of people who have specific interests. Make sure that you know exactly who is going to buy your ebook, and where you can find them online.

2. They don't automate as many of their business activities as possible.

Selling ebooks, though it is highly profitable, is not a business where you make hundreds of dollars per sale.

Automate everything you can - credit card processing, ebook delivery, as much technical support as possible. If you can't automate a function, delegate it to someone else.

3. They don't have a compelling title for their ebook.

Use words that convey the benefit of what's in the ebook, as well as words your audience is familiar with.

A bad title for an ebook: "Online Marketing for Newbies." A good title for the same ebook: "97 Ways to Promote Your Website - No Experience Required."

4. They try to cover too much ground.

Many ebook authors convey a lot of information but don't cover anything in-depth. As a result, they never fully explain anything in enough detail to provide any useful value to their readers. This is a very bad mistake to make, especially when it comes to how-to ebooks, which happen to be the best type to write.

5. They are not proactive in their marketing.

It would be nice if marketing for your ebook simply happened on its own - but it doesn't. You have to do it yourself. After you've promoted your ebook to the people on your own mailing list (if you have one), then you have to contact other Website owners and persuade them to be your affiliates. You should do this continually.

6. They don't differentiate their ebook from its competitors.

When you choose your topic, even if there are a hundred other ebooks out there on same general subject, choose an angle for yours that will make it easy for yours to be distinguished from the others.

For example, right now job-hunting ebooks are very popular. There are dozens that are big sellers. "Secrets of Breaking Into Pharmaceutical Sales" has a very specific title that sets it apart from the competition, and is aimed at a clearly identified target audience. Incidentally, it's selling very well itself.

7. They write ebooks that nobody will pay for.

Many ebook authors write about information that either people can get for free, or that people are not actually interested in enough to pay for the information.

Before you invest weeks or months into the writing of your ebook, invest a little time investigating whether other ebooks in the same subject area are selling on the Web.

So, there you have it - the seven big mistakes to avoid. Remember, the opportunities are plentiful - and huge - right now for anyone who wants to become a best-selling ebook author. Simply use common sense, follow our advice, and let your literary career flourish!

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Jim Edwards and David Garfinkel, are co-authors of "eBook Secrets Exposed: How to Make Massive Amounts of Money in Record Time With Your Own eBook (whether you wrote it or not!)," the authoritative guide to publishing and marketing ebooks on the Web.

Guerrilla Marketing author Jay Conrad Levinson says, "If there ever was a 'must-read' for this century, it's this book." For more information Click Here => http://www.thecassiopeia.com/ebooksecrets

Today's Motivational Reading

An Average Person
byBrian Tracy

A tremendous god-given talent? Inherited wealth? A decade of postgraduate education? Connections with the top people in your field?

Fortunately for most of us, what it takes is something very simple and accessible: clear, written goals.

A study of Harvard graduates found that after 20 years, the three percent of them who had written goals achieved more financially than the other 97% combined!

"An average person with average talent, ambition and education, can oustrip the most brilliant genius in our society, if that person has clear, focused goals."

Subscribers' Corner

Have You Ever Been to Nantucket?
by Pamela Geiss

I don't know if you remember the television show "Wings" or not. It was a cute comedy show whose reruns are now being shown on the Nick at Nite Network about two brothers who ran a small plane service on the island of Nantucket.

Anyway, the other night I had the show on and a girl was talking about how the travel business had risen 15% on Nantucket since she started working for the agency. One of the guys made that comment that it was cold there in the winter with absolutely nothing to do, so how had she managed that. She said she started thinking about what kind of person would really love being in a cold and barren place in the middle of winter and realized it would be a masochist. So, she looked up societies and found the Masochist Society and sent them a promo on travel to Nantucket in the winter. Lo and behold, a bunch of them made reservations!

Now, of course this was meant to be funny, but I thought how brilliant her idea really was. Talk about targeting your advertising! This was a perfect example of a person truly thinking about her target market.

And that's what you need to do to be successful in your business. If you spam or just send out ads anywhere and to anyone, you are wasting your time and money and resources. Stop and think about it: You would get many more sales if you target your market and send to those who would be interested in what you are selling. Would you rather send an email out to 50,000 horse lovers when you are selling dog shampoo or send the same email to 5,000 members of the American Kennel Club? Which one do you think would get you the most orders for dog shampoo? It's not always the number of emails you are sending that gets you the best results.

Don't forget, your time is worth something. Spend it wisely and you will reap the benefits. Building a business online or off is hard work and takes more time than you think. Don't waste it spamming people who will either report you or at the very least, delete your email.

Big business hires market research companies to tell them where to send their catalogs and direct mail. There is a reason they do that! They don't want to waste their money and efforts advertising to people who won't be interested. They want the best odds they can get, and you should be thinking the same way. Hey, maybe you aren't big business yet...but if you don't start thinking like big business, you never will be!

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Pamela Geiss owns LotsaPerks.com, an online advertising agency. Visit her today below and get a copy of her free Ebook, "Digital Deception". http://www.lotsaperks.com

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