| ow much would you pay someone to sift through your | | | | market. That's the first step to becoming a filter. |
| email each morning, deleting the garbage and | | | | Be crystal clear about what you're filtering. If you're |
| presenting you with the 5 (out of 500) emails you need | | | | sitting in a huge market like, let's say automotive, you |
| to respond to? If you already have someone like that, | | | | probably don't want to talk about every single car |
| lucky you! But if you don't, I bet this sounds like a | | | | that's out there or being developed. Perhaps you want |
| dream. In the age of a constant flood of information, | | | | to focus only on hybrid vehicles. Now your direction is |
| consumers will pay good money for a filter. So if you | | | | clear. Once you have this direction, your website |
| want to sell books, be the go-to person for your | | | | should reflect that. Your website should be the first |
| market. | | | | marketing piece you look at as you're developing your |
| If you're wondering how to become a filter, give some | | | | focus. |
| thought to the filters you may not even be aware of. | | | | Next, ask yourself if your book is a filter. If it's not, it |
| For example, in the book publishing market I can think | | | | should be. Being a filter is tougher for fiction authors of |
| of two major ones: Dan Poynter and John Kremer. | | | | course, but you non-fiction folks should have no trouble |
| Both of them are filters. Why? Well, they have zeroed | | | | leveraging this into your books. |
| in on their focused market and have become the | | | | Blog, podcast, and write, write, write on trends, reviews, |
| go-to people for everything publishing and marketing. | | | | hot new ideas and things that are so-so. I always tell |
| We have structured Author Marketing Experts the | | | | people that I am my own test lab. If you want to try |
| same way: all book marketing, all the time. | | | | something new in marketing, check with me first. It's |
| While you'll find filters in different markets, they share a | | | | likely that I've already tested it on myself. In fact, all of |
| lot of the same characteristics. Filters are out there | | | | our programs are built from things I tried first. If I don't |
| weeding through information so you don't have to, and | | | | like it, or it didn't work, I won't sell it. That's a filter. And |
| then they are posting their findings on their website, | | | | I'm not just talking about filtering stuff you can offer to |
| blog, or talking about it in their podcast. Sometimes | | | | a client, be objective! Be a filter for the competition, too, |
| they're doing a combination of all of these things to | | | | and by all means, send people to other vendors if they |
| keep their readers informed. | | | | can offer what you can't. Remember, the customer |
| Next, filters are so laser focused in their market that | | | | reader came to you first. |
| not only can they filter out the "noise" for you so you | | | | Make customization your best friend. So, let's use our |
| don't have to, they can then compartmentalize the | | | | car example again. Let's say you wrote a book on |
| noise into sub-filters. These sub-filters become even | | | | hybrid cars and your site is all about hybrids as is your |
| more significant, and here's why. Increasingly, we are | | | | blog, newsletter and podcast. But now you have built |
| living in an age of customization. I mean when was the | | | | your brand sufficiently, and it's time to break out into |
| last time you bought an entire CD or read an entire | | | | new areas. How about this: ebooks for focused |
| newspaper? More than likely you're buying your music | | | | markets. Quick and easy tips, like "Buying a hybrid for |
| one song at a time on iTunes, or you're reading your | | | | seniors" or "Buying a hybrid for families." The key to |
| news selectively or, in many cases, through RSS | | | | remember is that each of these markets has its own |
| feeds that allow you to tap into only the content that | | | | specific needs. When it comes to buying a car, the |
| you want. We'll put all of this together in a moment, but | | | | needs of a family are different from those of a senior |
| for now, start thinking about the customized element to | | | | or single. |
| what you're doing. | | | | What's your brand? Everyone's a brand, even Nora |
| The tools we have at our disposal (many of them | | | | Roberts. Becoming a filter will help you brand yourself. |
| free) make becoming a filter extremely easy. Blogs, | | | | Remember that people don't buy a book, they buy a |
| podcasts, RSS feeds, all of these help us to build our | | | | brand. If you're clear on your brand, you'll sell more |
| filter and therefore, build our audience. But before you | | | | books. Figuring out your branding doesn't need to be |
| launch headlong into filtering, consider these quick tips: | | | | complicated, but it does need to be focused. I'm not |
| Becoming a filter requires dedication, but the benefits | | | | talking about the kind of branding that requires hours of |
| will pay off in ways you can't imagine (and many that | | | | logo development. I'm not even talking about a brand |
| will fill your bank account). When I talk about dedication, | | | | that's necessarily original. Yes, you want to be unique, |
| what I mean is *you* must read every publication | | | | but the key isn't doing something no one else is doing, |
| that's out there on your topic so your reader doesn't | | | | the key is doing it better. |
| have to, and more than that, you should read outside | | | | So how can you become a filter? What's your market |
| of your area of expertise because you never know | | | | and focus? Perhaps you're thinking that you can apply |
| where the big ideas will come from. Take an | | | | some of these principles, but not all of them. That's OK! |
| afternoon, once a month, and devour your reading | | | | The thing to remember is that being an expert is |
| material. I read an average of 27 magazines a month. | | | | passé. I don't know if you've noticed, but these |
| Yes, it can be overwhelming (at times), but the upside | | | | days everyone's an expert. They're a dime a dozen. |
| is that you are constantly staying dialed into your | | | | What you want to be is a filter. |