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[Promotion] Bestseller Coaching Program (Peggy McColl)

geena01

Do you know anything about this book publicity website? They seem to charge quite a bit of money!

But they make a lot of promises, too, and offer a money back guarantee.

Do you know anything about these guys?

I listened to a phone lecture they held last night regarding their mentoring program. I am withholding judgment for now, but I am curious to know if any of you have had any experience with them or any feedback about them.

Thanks so much for your help!
 

Kate Nepveu

Re: www.yourownbestseller.com

Okay, they say:
In short, the formula involves getting people with big email lists to send out an announcement asking people to buy your book on a given day at Amazon. This method isn’t “spamming” because only “opt-in” email lists are used.

So, no real word of mouth, no real distribution suggestions, just attempts to manipulate Amazon's ranking system--and who really believes that they're only using "opt-in" lists?

They sound exactly like people you'd hear on infomercials. Stay away.
 

maestrowork

Re: www.yourownbestseller.com

Speaking of publicity... anyone know of any PR firms or services, online or otherwise?

Thanks.
 

snarzler

Re: www.yourownbestseller.com

I would ask Dee Power, she and Brian Hill have used one.

Andrea 0]
 

geena01

Re: www.yourownbestseller.com

Thanks very much for your replies, guys.

I may be mistaken, but I think Jenna Glatzer (who runs this particular site, AbsoluteWrite) used them and liked them.

Jenna, if you are around, I'd love to hear your views.

Thanks!
 

popbop

www.yourownbestseller.com - Gilbert & McColl, Any review

Friends,

I've been solicited by a slick online marketing firm claiming they can help an author/publisher get their book in the Amazon.com bestseller list. The details are here...

www.yourownbestseller.com

Does anyone have experience with this method or these folks? There are some big name endorsements on the site. But, it seems a bit hyped-up to me. The hype is a real turn-off.

At $2500 for their tele-course, I need to talk to some people who have been there and done that.

I've found that Janna Glatzer has an hour-by-hour account on how it worked for her. She seems to have had good success -- getting her book up to number four on the Amazon bestseller list for a day or so.

Please contact me directly if you have any information that may be helpful in making my decision. I don't mind spending money if the payoff justifies it. But, I don't want to become anyone's sucker either!

Thanks!

Jim
Publisher
PopBop Press
p o p b o p - p r e s s . c o m

j i m r e a d @
p o p b o p - p r e s s . c o m

(remove the spaces to get to me or my site)
 

underthecity

Re: www.yourownbestseller.com - Gilbert & McColl, Any re

Jim,

A page back on this forum talks a little about yourownbestseller. Check out the <a href="http://p197.ezboard.com/fabsolutewritefrm11.showMessage?topicID=711.topic" target="_new">thread</a>.

Hope this helps!

underthecity
 

HapiSofi

Re: www.yourownbestseller.com - Gilbert & McColl, Any re

Okay, I now know that a short-lived high Amazon ranking is meaningless. I'll pass that on to other editors I know.
 

geena01

Re: www.yourownbestseller.com - Gilbert & McColl, Any re

Thanks for revisiting this issue! (I am the person who started the other thread on this very same topic).

And I am intrigued by HapiSofi's brief comment that a short-lived amazon rating is meaningless.

Could you elaborate a bit on this, HapiSofi. I know you have been on the board a while, and I would love to hear more about your opinion on this subject.

Like the person who started this thread, I was intrigued that Jenna Glatzer was so impressed by this company. (Her endorsement alone caused me to look twice at what this company is offering)

So, if possible, could you elaborate a bit on your point, HapiSofi?

Thank you very much!
 

James D Macdonald

Re: www.yourownbestseller.com - Gilbert & McColl, Any re

Okay, I now know that a short-lived high Amazon ranking is meaningless.

It was meaningless before, and it still is.

Why would anyone want a high Amazon ranking? Well, here's a case: Take Spiritual Marketing. This is a vanity-published book (it's out from AuthorHouse) that's been an Amazon #1 best seller. The author is an inspirational speaker who sells his books from the back of the hall -- that's a perfect niche for self-publishing -- but he's also a marketer. He knows the value of being able to put "#1 Bestseller!" on the cover of his book. His book has been at the top slot at Amazon twice -- months apart -- plummeting into the abyss in between, then rising just as abruptly. The sales graph doesn't look a thing like that of real book sales.

What happened there? My guess is that he bought all the books that he needs to sell at his speaking gigs from Amazon, rather than from his publisher. Bought 'em retail, selling 'em retail, collecting the royalty, got free shipping, and got those magic words to put on the cover. AuthorHouse is advertising that they have an Amazon #1 bestseller too -- even if it only lasted for a couple of hours.

That's marketing, that's advertising. If you can't see a way that sort of marketing will help you, don't bother.
 

geena01

Re: www.yourownbestseller.com - Gilbert & McColl, Any re

Hi James. Thank you for your input on this!

I think the other thing they do (at least this is what I gather from reading through some of their stuff) is they have these massive in-house mailing lists. They send these (supposedly opt-in) e-mail recipients requests to buy a book on a certain day, causing sales to spike briefly, and they offer the people on their e-mail lists various "bonuses" to take part in the buying blitz.

As you say, it is an artificial spike, but Gilbert and McColl further claim that it can lead to other things (sales of foreign rights, signing with big-time agents, etc.), and, not surprisingly, they have tons of glowing testimonials on their site extolling the virtues of their program (including one from Jenna Glatzer, head of AbsoluteWrite).

Thanks again for your help!
 

NomadPress

Re: www.yourownbestseller.com - Gilbert & McColl, Any re

I also think its use depends on your publishing plan. If you want to sell books over the long haul, spending money on a plan like yourownbestseller.com is worthless and can be detrimental to the long-term success of a book being sold through traditional book channels. If you want a (potential) short hit of a lot of sales one time, then it might be right for you. But being #1 on Amazon is never a true indication that your book is a best seller, and making that claim as a sign of the book's success immediately marks it as suspect. If you have $2500 earmarked for marketing your book, use it before the book is published to create some buzz about the book in circles where it matters: booksellers. You can get a good bang out of $2500 if you plan well.
 

absolutewrite

Re: www.yourownbestseller.com - Gilbert & McColl, Any re

Oops! Sorry I didn't chime in here. Yes, I did use this program in 2003 with Outwitting Writer's Block, and yes, I was really thrilled with the whole experience.

It wasn't a course then, though-- it was an ebook/audio book that cost about $95.

I learned a great deal about promotions in general, and my Amazon rank stayed high for the next few weeks as the buzz kept building. Amazon wouldn't confirm numbers for me, but I think I sold about 700-800 books on the "big day" and the following day.

The only real problem for me came in because my publisher didn't prepare for the demand. At the time, my initial print run (which was small-- only about 2500-3000, I think) had already almost sold out. They ran out of books on that day and took almost a month to restock. So I was literally getting e-mails from bookstores asking if I had any of my own stock left to sell them because customers had placed orders that now wouldn't be filled until after Christmas.

Bookstore availability went up, though it didn't have as dramatic a long-term effect as I hoped it would, possibly because of that month-long lag where my publicity efforts were wasted.

Keep in mind that mine was a niche book for writers, so to see it at #4 on Amazon's list was kind of amazing.

That led to more reviews, more interviews, etc. The buzz would not have continued if it were a bad book. But I do believe it's a good way to jump-start a good book that's not getting any attention. In my case, my publicist hadn't even sent galleys to the trades in time (I don't know what happened there) and stores hadn't ordered it in. I knew I had to do something to kick things off, and my editor and agent approved.

I had some things in my favor, though-- first, my own Absolute Write Newsletter with 75,000 subscribers who know my work, and second, friendships with nearly every other editor of writers' e-zines. Moira Allen put my book announcement above her own on her website. Other editors wrote to cheer me on and keep me awake as the numbers climbed. I was awed by the kind of generosity shown to me during that promotion.

I don't see it as a manipulation... I really did have to outsell Stephen King on those days to get that ranking. And if it took a few bonuses to convince people to take a look at my book... well, that's okay with me. Those same people went on to buy my next books. And I like getting "extras," too. :)
 

DaveKuzminski

Re: www.yourownbestseller.com - Gilbert & McColl, Any re

Is that book, now a course, aimed at non-fiction or fiction? Or does it even matter?
 

geena01

Re: www.yourownbestseller.com - Gilbert & McColl, Any re

thanks, Jenna! Your reply was very helpful!
 

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