Customer Reviews

1001 Ways to Market Your Books: For Authors and Publishers

5 star:		(140)
4 star:		(18)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

John Kremer hits a home run with this spectacular classic reference on how to market books. Whether you are an author or a publisher, this book is a must! Every useful promotional idea you might think of is included here, from the most traditional methods to guerrilla marketing techniques.

In fact, this book is so packed with creative ideas for marketing books that it's easy to make it part of your marketing campaign. Everything from book cover design and redesign tips, to web site listings in directories and search engines, to getting yourself onto television programs (even news programs sell books) is covered. Simply make a commitment to implement two ideas from this book each week for a few months, and watch your sales soar!

What I love the most about 1001 WAYS TO MARKET YOUR BOOKS is the way it inspires me to ask myself, "What am I willing to do to promote my book?" Kremer makes the point that any good book can become successful when it is properly promoted so buyers know what it's about, why they need it, and how they can buy it.

If you are looking for the very best reference on promoting books, look no further. This is it!

i was writing "winning at internet poker for dummies" for wiley and my agent recommended this book when i asked what i could do to help promote my title ... so i'm coming from a sort-of weird angle; monster publishing house with an established name, new author trying to figure out how to sell more books.

"1001 ways ..." is written, at its heart, for publishers, and *especially* self-publishers. as others have mentioned here, it's a tad less valuable for authors.

the good news is it's jammed full of ideas, tricks, tips and techniques ... and at 700 pages, there are a ton of them ... something in here will help you, i guarantee it.

the bad news is that a larger-than-you-would-expect amount of information is conflicting (e.g. "start at the top when trying to get reviews on your books, one review at the top offsets thousands at the bottom," ... several pages later, "you need to start at the bottom of the media chain for reviews, you're most likely to get success there." "send all your review copies by overnight express" then later, "don't bother with expressing your drafts, it's a waste of money."), some strange (e.g. "do a book signing in a donut shop") and, as with any book of size, a lot that's just not applicable to you ...

worse, there isn't an overlying set of plans ... nothing that says, "if you're this kind of publisher, read this and this, but ignore that," "if you're an author doing how-to books, ignore anything we mention about this," "if you have a budget of this much, you should focus only on these things."

so the combo of a nearly infinite amount of information, crossed with no overlying skeletal plan, can make the book tedious and time consuming. reading it reminds me of eating dinner with a really smart friend -- you ask her a question, and then just listen to her go on and on and on with no apparent purpose; or even memory of what she's just said.

then too, i ordered a brand new copy from amazon and it's copywritten 1998. that's a bit too old, especially if you need contact names.

the good news is that mr. kremer keeps an update on his web pages. the bad news is it means you have to sit with a book by your computer as you go back and forth to do anything fairly serious (and worse, you [are recommended] more of mr. kremer's services whilst you're on the site).

so should you get it? sure. but be prepared to spend time and you've *got* to put your thinking cap on and think about you. narrow your focus, narrow your plan, pick and choose to suit your style (he says this in the book, later he says, "don't be afraid to try multiple different ideas." argh.)

if you don't have a lot of time. if you don't have a lot of energy. and especially if you think you've found another book that is more applicable to your specific situation, buy that instead. it'll save you the aggravation.

thanks for reading.
[...]

"1001 Ways to Market Your Book" is the single best reference for authors and book publishers I have ever read. This should be on the bookshelf of every author, publisher, and bookseller who really want a successful book. John Kremer describes far more than 1,001 ideas, tips and suggestions for marketing books. This is a must-have reference.

I have had this title for quite sometime and I use it as a reference book. I think this is the single best book for the want to be author/publisher to the established author/ publisher. Many times I have been confronted by someone who is thinking of self publishing. This is the book that I suggest each and every time! Like a reference book, you will find helpful hints, ideas and contact information. If you are new to the business this title will aid in guiding you to thinking of the many aspects of the book business. It also will aid in defining some of the many avenues in marketing. 1001 Ways to Market Your Book is a title you will keep on your bookshelf as I have!

Reviewed by Ted Lea, author of "When I Grow Up I'm Going to be a Millionaire (A Children's Guide to Mutual Funds)". This book has helped us sell many books - it is loaded with ideas both for authors and publishers. It could take a lifetime to follow up on all the recommendations and suggestions that John Kremer has provided. If you are an author - buy it, read it and read it again over and over again. Great stuff.

If you only use a handful of the ideas you find in this book, you'll achieve phenominal book marketing success. I used this book to launch my own marketing campaign for my first self-published book and continue to go back to it again and again for new ideas. Does it work? Yes! I'm currently using it to: prepare a new launch for a completely revised edition of my first book, develop a marketing plan for a book I am publishing for another author, and find new ways to introduce my second self-published book slated to go to print in the next few months. John Kremer is the "guru" of book promotion!

John is the consummate marketing-guru; this spectacular guide explains many new and different ways of looking at the business of selling books. It is one of our required reading books for our staff, is given to every author we sign and I often quote from it during my publishing classes. The real benefit from this book is that it helps you develop a new way to think and see marketing opportunities. While it has proven incredibly helpful to the self-publishing community, it is also a valuable tool for those authors who have signed with a publishing house. Get a copy of this book today and start selling your books!

John Kremer's book on marketing for writers covers a critical subject: what do you do after publication to market your book. Only a handful of available titles address this critical issue. Most publishers do little publicity; instead, they edit (maybe), print, and ship. Marketing is mostly up to the author. But most writers are clueless. This book is a wonderful resource. Use it. Borrow from it. Most publishers refer their writers to this book for a good reason. Highly recommended.

John Kremers book, "1001 Ways To Market Your Books" belongs in every authors, and publishers hands. NOT on their bookshelf, but IN their hands! As an author and self-publisher, this book has shown me not only what to do, and how to do it, but also when things should be done to make the most of my marketing time / talent / resources. Bottom line is this: If you want to sell more books, start by FOLLOWING THE ADVICE IN THIS BOOK!

John Kremer's web site is very informative, so I expected more from this book. (I also purchased a CD containing numerous short articles that was extremely disappointing)The problem with this book is that it tries to tell you so much that it doesn't tell you enough. Kremer seems to want to overwhelm you with ideas, many of which are marginal at best (e.g. skywriting as a marketing tool)and the result is a confusing mishmash of half-baked ideas. Much of the text is regurgitation of very basic marketing principles you can glean from any marketing text. The book seemed poorly organized and fragmented. Kremer apparently sold "ads" in his book disguised as short "informational" articles by people trying to sell various products and services to book publishers. I found these extremely annoying, especially when found in a book that is priced 50% higher than other (better) books on the same subject.