Are you really finished with the work at that point?
You can take satisfaction in the fact that one of the harder elements of your experience in writing is over, but there are many details yet to attend to. You will need to write a cover letter and provide a synopsis or outline of the work, but you may have forgotten a key bit of research.
Market Research
In order to convince a potential publisher your work will make a needed contribution to the non-fiction subject matter you have chosen it is imperative to conduct some market research. This information is not only useful to the potential publisher it is key to their continued assessment of your manuscript. If you cannot provide a reason for the publisher to consider this work unique and marketable they will likely stop the review process at that point leaving the manuscript you worked so hard on untouched.
Every potential business conducts market research to find out if there is a need for the type of business they are seeking to establish. If a business decides they need to establish a hamburger fast food establishment, but the town already has enough 'hamburger joints' then the entrepreneur needs to establish research that indicates the hamburgers he will be selling are far superior than what is currently offered ? or he might go back to the drawing board and determine if there is another specialty food item that might be more marketable (even if it's a niche market).
For the writer this lesson indicates that your best market research should be conducted prior to investing creative energy in the crafting of your book. If you have already completed your manuscript without market research you might go back through your manuscript and find the many unique characteristics about your book and the content covered. This information should provide adequate material to move forward with the market research you need.
It may be hard to view yourself as a salesperson, but in the context of writing you must be able to present a clear case as to why the publisher should consider your work for publishing and in turn providing you with royalty checks for your efforts.
While the print publishing industry only gives authors a small portion of the proceeds after agent and publishing house fees, if you sell information products on the 'net, you'll get to charge more and keep almost 100% of the profits for yourself.
Typically, a non-fiction book at Barnes and Noble would cost the consumer an average of $9.95 to $29.95. But when you're selling information products ready for instant download on the 'net, you get to price it higher, because the selling point usually begins at $37 and rises all the way to the top at a $97 price point.
Plus, your overhead costs are low. Even if you outsource the creation of your information product, you're still able to recoup the investment after a short period of sales. You never pay for things like shipping and handling because everything is done electronically. It doesn't matter if your customer is next door or halfway around the world.
Why are consumers rapidly downloading information products? This is the age of high-tech, ultra fast development. Your readers may be sitting in an airport, accessing your e-Book from their laptop. It doesn't just have to be a written e-Book, you could also create: audio e-Books and videos tutorials. With the busy life styles of people today, they easier you make it for them, the better your results will be.
They want information now, not the next business day. If their child is up sick crying from colic at 3:30 in the morning, a mom can't drive to a bookstore to get a self-help book - but she can log onto her personal computer and download your e-Book, putting your advice into action within mere minutes.
Another reason information products are hot commodities online is because they often come with ironclad money-back guarantees, giving the consumer an added spoonful of trust. One of the most important features, beside the content, is to take all the risk away from the consumer. So always include a no-hassle money back guarantee.
If you create info products for sale yourself, then you want to make sure you produce top-quality deliverables and urge your readers near the end to start taking action with what they've learned to keep refund requests low and demand for your products high.
You can also provide tools and resources along the way; these could be free or paid. Of course when suggesting these tools, make sure you have tried and tested them as well. They could also be information packed sites, how to articles or blogs. You always need to keep the content and quality at the highest level possible.
Both Scott Lindsay & Unitii are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
Scott Lindsay has sinced written about articles on various topics from Payday Loans, Computers and The Internet and Mens Health. Scott Lindsay is a web developer and entrepreneur. He is the founder of FaithWriters () and many other web projects. FaithWriters has grown to. Scott Lindsay's top article generates over 1830000 views. to your Favourites.