Ways of Communication

12 01 2008

There are many ways to communicate today compared to fifty or sixty years ago. Not that I’ve lived long enough to have experienced what we had back then, but I’ve read about the challenges of those days to communicate compared to today’s communication connecting more people in the shortest amount of time possible. This can be good and bad.

I enjoy writing as a way to communicate, it enables me to take time to sit down and put on paper my thoughts and intentions, it’s tangible. It’s something you can read over and over again, it can be treasured.

The phone is another way of communication I utilize but not as frequently; I use it mainly for business purposes or for personal calls that need immediate attention.

E-mail is yet another way to communicate which I also utilize for business and to send a written message I need deliver right away. I don’t waste much time on chain letters. I like to receive personal messages instead of forwarded messages even though some of them are beautiful.

Visits and get togethers are the ones I enjoy the most, all your senses get involved on this one and you can feel the warmth of those who interact in a given place. I wish I could visit more frequently but time and distance sometimes prevents it. I need to make a big effort to create time to make it happen on a regular basis.

The way we communicate and with whom has a lot to do with the level of comfort we feel with each other. Some people attract more sincere conversations than others just because they are not uptight and judgemental about every little thing you say. Others keep you at bay because they are shut down inside from the rest of the world. Others seem to be opened but try to analyze you or get to know you but it’s only to attack you, to find faults and flaws. While you are talking to them they are trying to figure out “your intentions” according to their own preceptions disregarding yours. Those, I’m afraid to say, don’t get much communication with others either, specially from me.


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Categories : Networking, Personal Issues, Relationship

Sign my Guestbook

9 11 2007
This is so cool! Some of my friends already have one. Go ahead and add your picture and don’t forget to write me a message.


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Categories : Networking

Selling Books by the Thousands

22 09 2007

reading

What comes first, writing or selling your book? To tell you the truth the question is not which to do first but to write a book that people want to read. The key ingredient to write a book and sell thousands of it is to attach the book to a worthy cause.

There are thousands of companies and non-profit organizations all around the country in dying need to raise funds for their advancement. I’m sure you can find a few which you can identify with. You must be passionate about what you write because it will take a lot of work and effort in your part not only as you write the book but on the long road of promoting it. When your initial enthusiasm fades away it is your commitment to impact others with your book what will help you finish your project. A book promotion takes a minimum of two years and ideally you’ll be promoting it even longer.

Writers mistakenly think that they way to sell a lot of books is in bookstores when in reality it is outside, where you go directly to your audience. You must know who your audience is and where to reach it; the way to find out who your audience is by creating a marketing plan for your book. When you have a marketing plan you have a clear road map to deliver the book to the people.

A good way to promote your book and sell thousands is by attaching the book to a company. Companies need books and educational materials on an on-going basis, not only that but they also have built-in budgets for those expenses. All you need to do is find out what they need or are looking for, do a research on the topic and develop a book for them. This is where networking helps. While talking to business and non-profit organization’s owners you can find a need and fill it. When you come up with a book or book idea you can approach the company in order to offer them the book for their organization, ideally the book will be a good product to them to do fundraisings for their cause. They can give the book away to their supporters as an incentive or to create awareness to gain even more support. You can even offer them to sponsor the book and customize the book for their company by including documents, reports or a letter from the chairman, by doing so they will pay you to write and publish the book. When a company sponsors a book a special seal is designed and displayed prominently on the book cover. The better the sales potential of the book the bigger the amount the company will be willing to pay to sponsor it. They are basically paying for exposure, that’s why the marketing plan of your book is so important. It’s what you’ll present to the company in order to negotiate the terms for a sale order or potential sponsorship. Once the company accepts your book and agree upon a percentage of sale profits to go to their company, they will also agree to order and X amount of books when it’s published. Not only that but they will help you promote your book. The reason why they will do so is because your book will help their fundraising and raise awareness about their company’s mission.

In a nutshell here is what you do:
• Make a commitment to find a worthy cause
• Be passionate about it
• Find the right company
• Be persistent and know the market
• Prepare a proposal explaining why your book is perfect for their cause
• Make a deal

About the author:

Clary Lopez is the CEO/Founder of Guerrilla Marketers Café, Free Book Promotion site.
She is an author, moderator and publicist. She is preparing to launch her next book, BookPromo Guerrilla Style. You can contact her at guerrilla@clarylopez.com or visit her websites http://guerrilla.clarylopez.com, http://bookhomestead.com and her official author site http://clarylopez.com


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Categories : Articles, Book Promotion, Marketing Research, Networking, Publishing, The Business of Book Marketing

Ways to Connect and Promote

30 10 2006

I have been visiting the many social network sites available today.  For those of you looking to connect to others online there is a lot of potential to this medium.  It takes time to find those who are most beneficial to your  promotional efforts but it’s worth the time to find them.

When you start your search for social network sites keep your audience in mind.  You’ve probably done some thinking about who are the people who will be reading your books, what they like, where do you live or work and what places they frequent.  Put that information together and start looking for the online places they might frequent.  The same goes for offline networking. 

There are certain details to keep in mind when utilizing these online social networks as discussed  by   UCBerkley News   on
Online social networks boost friendships, and perhaps risks.  We need to be aware of the possible dangers that our postings online could have in our future dealings in all realm of life.  Be professional and think about your privacy.  Anything that you post online could be there for many years to come as your life evolves and changes in many ways.  Use your common sense and use it to your advantage and not your downfall. 

Among social networks useful for writers you can find  WritersCafe ,  Writing.com  ,  AuthorsDen ,  MeetUp , MySpace , LinkedIn, and many others that you might want to research with a niche to your genre writing.  On your browser make a file of these social network sites so you can visit regularly.  Participate in the forums, write blogs or articles to drive visitors to your site or blog or book.  Make sure you are not posting adverstising, self-promoting pieces but contributions that the members will enjoy reading.  If they like your writing they will follow your links accompanied with your message signature. 

Let me know what you have used in the past and what kind of results you had.  It will be interesting to know what is available and how its used to help get the word out about our work.


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Categories : Networking