How to Make Money with Your Non-Fiction Book – In Just 7 Minutes with Susan Friedmann

Resources/Links:

• Check out Susan’s FREE Playbook: The Author to Authority Playbook: How to Get Recognized as an Expert in Your Industry

Summary

Are you struggling with getting the “Best Seller” title on your book? Have you ever dreamt of selling thousands of copies of your book across the world? Do you want to ensure that your book’s message and value will be welcomed by readers? Do you want to know the secrets of marketing your book in a way that guarantees sales?

Susan Friedmann is on a mission to wipe out sameness and add vitality and differentiation to your marketing. She helps struggling non-fiction authors get known and paid for their expertise.

In this episode, Susan shares her insights on what makes a book unique and best-selling. She shares what readers want and look for in a book. She also talks about the right strategies and techniques on how you should be selling your book and get that “Best Selling” title real quick!

Check out these episode highlights:

• 01:19 – Susan’s ideal client: “My ideal clients are nonfiction authors who are serious about the message and the value that they bring to the marketplace. So, people who have expertise who really want to get recognized as being an expert in their industry.”
• 01:51 – Problem Susan helps solve: “The problem is, literally, as you said in the introduction, that they’re struggling to get known and paid for their expertise. They’re not getting the recognition and the income that they deserve, and they are just- they don’t know what to do.”
• 02:52 – Typical symptoms that clients do before reaching out to Susan: “Yes, the books are not selling. And they’re not selling because they think they are- it’s all about selling books, rather than selling the message and the value. And they often don’t realize that so their concentration is just on selling books.”
• 03:51 – Common mistakes that people make before they find Susan’s solution: “first of all, realizing that their message isn’t for everyone. They come to me and the first thing I say to them is, you know, “What do you want your book to do for you?” And it’s like, “Get it out to everyone.” And I’m like, “Hey, that’s really difficult, not even the greatest Procter and Gambles of this world can do that.”
• 05:51 – Susan’s Valuable Free Action (VFA): “Well, the step in the right direction is identifying the niche market, their real target. Who needs what they have to offer? And yes, it may be for everybody, but you can’t sell to everybody.”
• 06:47 – Susan’s Valuable Free Resource (VFR): Check out Susan’s FREE Playbook: The Author to Authority Playbook: How to Get Recognized as an Expert in Your Industry
• 07:28 – Q: Why do I do what I do? A: Because it really upsets me to see authors who have something really valuable to add and not being able to share their message, drowning in the tsunami of books, titles, and authors, and their book dies and it shouldn’t have to. So, I don’t want that to happen.

Tweetable Takeaways from this Episode:

“Let's throw the pebble in the pond, let the ripples flow out, and target a smaller group that is easy to get to. Then go from there.” -Susan Friedmann Share on X

Transcript
(Note, this was transcribed using a transcription software and may not reflect the exact words used in the podcast)

Tom Poland 00:09
Greetings, everyone! A very warm welcome to another edition of Marketing the Invisible. My name is Tom Poland beaming out to you from a Little Castaways Beach here in sunny Australia, joined today by Susan Friedmann. Susan, good day. A very warm welcome from down under. Where are you hanging out?

Susan Friedmann 0:23
I am hanging out in Lake Placid, New York, which is in the Upstate in the Adirondack Mountains, and there is about two feet of snow outside my office window.

Tom Poland 0:34
Sounds beautiful. A polar opposite, pardon the pun from us, which is the sunshine, beaches, and waves lapping on the shore. Folks, for those that don’t know Susan, she is on a whole band mission to wipe out blandness, sameness, boringness and add vitality and differentiation to your marketing. She helps struggling nonfiction authors get known and paid very well for their expertise. So, if that sounds like you, listen up, because, in just seven minutes, Susan is going to share with you how to make money from your nonfiction book. Susan, our seven minutes starts now. Question number one, who is your ideal client?

Susan Friedmann 1:19
My ideal clients are nonfiction authors who are serious about the message and the value that they bring to the marketplace. So, people who have expertise who really want to get recognized as being an expert in their industry.

Tom Poland 1:37
They’ve got the passion for the message, they’ve got the purpose, and now they want some pennies and profit to follow. Right?

Susan Friedmann 1:43
Very much so.

Tom Poland 1:44
So, what’s the- well, question number two, and six and a half minutes left, what’s the problem you solve for them? How do you define that?

Susan Friedmann 1:51
The problem is, literally, as you said in the introduction, that they’re struggling to get known and paid for their expertise. They’re not getting the recognition and the income that they deserve, and they are just- they don’t know what to do.

Tom Poland 2:08
Right. So, they’ve written a book already?

Susan Friedmann 2:11
They’ve usually written a book, if not, they are in the throes of it. Our company of eBook publishing actually publishes the book, but we’re very intent on helping them or guide them through the marketing process.

Tom Poland 2:24
Right. So, all that hard work, sometimes years of working part-time, finally got the book and feels like they’re the world’s best-kept secret. So, tell me about, other than the books, they’re not flying off the shelves or being shipped by FedEx overnight 1000 times a day, what are some of the typical symptoms that your ideal clients are experiencing before they find you? We’ve got five and a half minutes left. What’s going on, that they would be able to look at that and go, “I better reach out to Susan”?

Susan Friedmann 2:52
Yes, the books are not selling. And they’re not selling because they think they are- it’s all about selling books, rather than selling the message and the value. And they often don’t realize that so their concentration is just on selling books. Also, that there isn’t any money left to do marketing. They put all their money into producing the book, writing it, editing, wonderful cover, interior layout, the promotion, boom, and then nothing!

Tom Poland 3:25
Right. Sad. So-

Susan Friedmann 3:27
It is. It’s very sad.

Tom Poland 3:29
Question four and four and a half minutes left. These are typically smart people that invested a lot of time, a lot of money into their book, and it doesn’t sell, so they’re not going to sit back and do nothing. They’re going to try to get that book selling. What do you observe as being the common mistakes that these authors are making before they find your solution, stuff they tried that’s just not going to work?

Susan Friedmann 3:51
Well, first of all, realizing that their message isn’t for everyone. They come to me and the first thing I say to them is, you know, “What do you want your book to do for you?” And it’s like, “Get it out to everyone.” And I’m like, “Hey, that’s really difficult, not even the greatest Procter and Gambles of this world can do that.” So, realizing that the message isn’t for everyone, it’s for a specific niche market, let’s say. And then thinking that their book’s going to make them rich and famous. That’s a common mistake that they, you know, again, what they say to me, you know, “I want to- I want to sell a million books.” “So how many people do you have on your database?” “Well, nobody yet.” So- I mean, these are the kinds of- this is real, Tom!

Tom Poland 4:38
Right.

Susan Friedmann 4:38
This is what they come to me with.

Tom Poland 4:40
Right.

Susan Friedmann 4:40
Then posting the book on Amazon and thinking that Amazon’s going to do everything for them. Where in fact Amazon does diddly squat. It’s a shop window.

Tom Poland 4:50
But most purpose is to diddly squat apart from you. Because you’re well beyond the publisher. You’re actually an author marketing but may press more in that in a moment. Any other mistakes- we still got whopping three minutes left. Any other big mistakes that people are making?

Susan Friedmann 5:05
I think it’s not understanding, you know, how they can get it out to the marketplace, who they should be getting it out to. That’s why they relied so much on Amazon thinking that they just have to post the book there, and then Amazon’s going to sell it for them. Not realizing, as I said, it’s a shop window, and you’ve got to bring people to the shop window in order for them to buy.

Tom Poland 5:28
Right. Boy, this is going to resonate with a lot of people. I just know it. Folks, because I mean, I’m feeling tingles. I was thinking of the first book that I wrote, thinking, “Oh yeah. It could be like Tony Robbins or Harry Potter”, you know, and then nothing. Okay, so let’s help folks out. Question five, two and a half minutes left, what’s one valuable free action that someone could take? It’s not going to solve the whole problem, but it might take them a step in the right direction.

Susan Friedmann 5:51
Well, the step in the right direction is identifying the niche market, their real target. Who needs what they have to offer? And yes, it may be for everybody, but you can’t sell to everybody. So, let’s throw the pebble in the pond, let the ripples flow out, and target a smaller group that is easy to get to then go from there. And you know, do that through research, finding out what their challenges, that frustrations are in the marketplace, and then taking that frustration, that needs that the client, the prospect has, and matching that with your skills, your message, creating programs, workshops, speaking engagements. That’s where they’re going to make money.

Tom Poland 6:39
Thank you for that. Question number six, we’ve got 90 seconds left, one valuable free resource we could direct to. A landing page somewhere where people can get more?

Susan Friedmann 6:47
Yes. And I wanted to offer your viewers a special report that I wrote that’s called, The Author to Authority Playbook: How to Get Recognized as an Expert in Your Industry. And it goes through a lot of what we’re talking about and giving them problem solutions as well.

Tom Poland 7:04
The URL for that folks is bit.ly, so that’s B-I-T dot L-Y /author-gift. Go get it. I’m on that page now. It looks fabulous! So, it’s bit.ly/author-gift. 48 seconds left, Susan. Heaps of time. What’s the one question I should have asked you but didn’t? And the answer, please, in less than 35 seconds?

Susan Friedmann 7:28
Now, why I do what I do?

Tom Poland 7:30
Why do you do what you do?

Susan Friedmann 7:32
Why do I do what I do? Because it really upsets me to see authors who have something really valuable to add and not being able to share their message, drowning in the tsunami of books, titles, and authors, and their book dies and it shouldn’t have to. So, I don’t want that to happen.

Tom Poland 7:57
Susan Friedmann, thank you so much for your time.

Tom Poland 08:00
Thanks for checking out our Marketing The Invisible podcast. If you like what we’re doing here please head over to iTunes to subscribe, rate us, and leave us a review. It’s very much appreciated. And if you want to generate five fresh leads in just five hours then check out www.fivehourchallenge.com.