For most people that’s probably true because if all you do is put your book on Amazon, if all you do is tell your friends and family about your book, if all you do is go all over social media and tell people about your book—you’re probably not going to sell very many books. But it doesn’t have to be that way. Take off your author hat and put on your business hat. You can say, “My book is my business,” or “My book will massively grow my business.” Either one can be true; it’s up to you.
Sales does not deserve the stigma that it has because we’re all involved in sales in some way or another. Let’s say that you work at the Mayo Clinic, which is here where I live in Rochester, Minnesota. Let’s say that all you do is you work in the research department, and you don’t even talk to people. Are you still involved in sales? Of course. The Mayo Clinic is a large corporation ($11B in 2016), and they provide a lot of value for a lot of people. If you work in research, you’re helping them provide value and provide a good service to people, and so you’re involved in sales.
How about Mother Teresa? Do you think of her as a salesperson? Well, she was. How do you think she got so much money donated to her ministry so that she could continue helping people in the streets of Calcutta? She was a salesperson and provided a lot of value for people.
Being a salesperson doesn’t have to be something. We buy products and services every day. Nobody complains about the checkout person at the grocery store because they’re a salesperson. You just don’t think about it.
So, think about this: What value does your book provide? What problem does it help people solve? You want to help the people who will benefit the most from your book, find your book. When you find them, tell them how your book will solve their problem; how it will take away their pain or improve their life. People need and are looking for these solutions and if you have the solution for them, and it’s your job to provide that for them. When you wear your business hat, keep in mind that what you’re really wearing is your “I help people” hat.
Don’t sell yourself short, no matter what your book is. For example, let’s say that you have a book where you show people how to use Microsoft Excel better. You help people learn how to use Excel better and to understand it and do more with it. Let’s say that that book helps this specific person who uses it at their job, and they start helping other people learn how to use Excel better, they help more people. They become known for being smart and for helping people, and because of your book, they’re going get a raise or a promotion. They become better able to provide for their family, and they’re going to feel happier and more satisfied. Now you see how your little book about Excel has now helped improve one person’s life and probably will help a lot more people, especially if you can find and then help the right people find your book.
If you don’t know how to help people find your book, just hire somebody that can. Remember, you don’t want to spend all of your time learning all of the tech stuff and learning all of the little things that take a lot of time to learn when all you have to do is hire somebody. It never costs as much as you think it does, and the value that you get is worth way more than what you pay for it. Do what makes the most sense for you to do, whether it’s writing a book or creating a course or coaching people or whatever it is that you want or need to do to build your business.
When it comes to hiring somebody to help people find your book, that’s where JETLAUNCH comes in. That’s one of the things we do. We help you identify your audience, identify what the most compelling problems are that you solve with your book, and then we drive traffic to your book or your sales page. We help people find out about you and your book and improve their lives because of what you offer.