We know that you have put a lot of effort on your book, or that you are getting ready to do your best as soon as you start writing it. You have done plenty of preparation, you got your idea, and managed to set aside the time you need to get it done.
Still, you might not be 100% aware of some mistakes that you can make, and that might ruin all you have done. Sometimes, you are just so busy with the writing itself and so focused on your goal that it passes unnoticed by your eyes.
To help you to avoid it, here is a lot of the top seven mistakes than many authors still commit when trying to market their books, so you can check if you are on the right track.
#1 – Underestimating how the brain works
Many authors have very little understanding of how the brain works while deciding to make a purchase or while reading a book. Most of them will make decisions based on their own assumptions or on popular culture, which aren’t always reliable sources.
But it is crucial that those two processes are clear to you before you start putting a single word on the paper. If you don’t, you won’t be able to communicate your ideas or story in the way it should be, and your book you won’t be any close of becoming successful.
# 2 – Trying to reach a broad audience
As you know, not everybody will like your book. No author has always been a unanimity, so you don’t even worry about it. What is more likely to happen is that you will be read by a specific group of people with similar interests and preferences.
Still, it is significant the number of writers that aim to reach a broad audience. They think that the secret of becoming a best seller is by making everybody happy. But, as you should know at this stage of your life, this isn’t possible.
# 3 – Providing irrelevant information
Especially if you are dealing with non-fiction, it can be a deal-breaker. Your readers are expecting to spend their time absorbing something that is important to them, something that will add to their lives, not to waste their hours.
The way to prevent it is by considering what your audience think as relevant, not your opinion only. And remember that it also applies to fiction in the form of cutting unnecessary words, ideas, or even characters, which don’t seem to have a reason to be in your story. Kill your darlings, as they say.
# 4 – Overusing yellow press tricks
We know that it is very tempting to go this way, but you should refrain yourself from doing it no matter what. Yellow press tricks, such as overdramatic titles that don’t deliver what they say, should always be avoided.
Even though it can seem effective in the first moment, it will make you lose your credibility in the long term for sure. Your readers will be outraged and unmask you on their reviews. And you know how important reviews are to any book.
# 5 – Too much concern about the marketing
You are writing a book, and you want it to sell. Sure, it is well justified and understandable if you do it. But if everything that you do is focused on the sales, you might just miss the point.
And the point is to engage your readers and provide them with the best reading experience that you can. Sometimes there’s a chance to kill two birds with one stone but you may need some outsourced help. In this case, you’d better use the outsource services that have the highest ratings according to people’s opinion. But still, if the best marketing advice you find tells you to do something else, your primary concern should always be your craft and not if this or that element will help you to sell more books.
# 6 – Poor Readiness
Sometimes your book doesn’t sell, just because it is bad. Simple like this. And it is not necessarily about the wrong ideas or a weak plot. It can be about readiness.
Some books are just too hard to read. Their paragraphs are too long, the sentences are repetitive, and the character’s names are too hard to memorize. And it is a very delicate point when you are preparing and e-book, as the screen already make the process uncomfortable enough.
# 7 – No gauntlet to throw down
Last but not least, your book might be just boring. There is no challenge on it, no intrigue, nothing catching to keep your reader going on from page to page.
And people just don’t have much time to waste nowadays, so you can be sure that they will leave your book very soon if you don’t engage them. And they won’t be recommending it to anyone.
In Conclusion
Writing a good book isn’t easy, but you can prevent it to become repulsive by avoiding the seven mistakes listed above. They are very straightforward, so don’t worry: you should be able to spot them and fix them before your book reach the bookstores.
Steven Mehler is an experienced writer, SEO specialist and social psychologist that works as an editor at a local newspaper and a freelance writer. Steven also runs his own content agency and is writing a book. He has a long-term experience in writing articles based on blogging, marketing, SEO and social psychology.