Begin with the End in Mind…It’s Easier!
by Bob Schwarztrauber
Stephen R Covey, in his best selling book, “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People” lists, “Begin with the End in Mind” as Habit #2.
I also happen to think that is the easiest, most effective way to write books. Begin with the end in mind.
When the reader has finished your book what would you like them to KNOW, DO, or FEEL?
Also ask yourself, BEFORE you begin writing, “WHO is this book for?”.
In other words, you should develop a profile of the reader who can best be served by your book.
WHO will buy your book? Is your target reader male or female? Are they young, middle aged, or old? What is their income level? What is their education level? What job or hobbies do they have? Do they have kids, cars, pets, debts, illness, fears, or phobias? Do they vote? Who are their enemies and who are their friends? Do they own their own homes or rent? Where do they gather? Online? In a church or association?
The better you can define WHO your audience is before you start writing, the better you can craft your book to serve that buyer, tailor it exactly to their needs. Then, when they see your book advertised for the very first time there is no doubt in their mind. They say, “Oh, this is exactly the book I have been looking for. Finally! Someone understands me!!!”
And this of course will help you sell more books, more easily.
As you begin at the end and create this “perfect reader” profile, you should give special attention to the last point listed above, “WHERE DO THEY GATHER”.
When it comes time to sell your book, you need to know exactly where to go. And you want to be going, targeting your readers where they go.
For example, if your book is titled “FEAR-LESS Public Speaking“, a book about how to become a more confident public speaker, you might determine that your best reader is a business person who might attend Toastmaster meetings, where they gather in groups of 20 or more at a time and receive a monthly magazine that accepts advertising.
Knowing this makes it so much easier to get your book in front of the people most likely to buy it. You could give talks at Toastmaster meetings and offer your book for sale to 20 people at a time who are VERY likely to buy your book. Or you could take out a small ad in their monthly magazine.
That would certainly be a better strategy than putting your ad in the local Penny Saver newspaper where 99% of the people reading that paper would have NO interest in your book whatsoever. Conversely, in the Toastmaster group, probably 80% would at least be interested in your book and I’d bet half of them would buy it on the spot…because it was written with them in mind from the beginning.
Where do YOUR READERS gather?
I’d suggest, if you cannot answer this question, or if they do not gather in some sort of common group, media, or event then you will have a very hard time selling your book one by one as they find you. Might there be some group or organization who’s members your book would help and they would buy 100 or 1000 or 10,000 books at a time?
Knowing your end result at the beginning, WHO your ideal reader is and what you want them to KNOW, DO, or FEEL when they have finished your book helps keep your writing more focused and gives you a huge edge when it comes to marketing your book when it is done.
Think of cruise ship. Does it ever leave port without a destination? How far would they get without a rudder to steer them? You can have all the power in the world behind the ideas in your book, but if they lack direction or a well thought out course to get the reader from A to B, your book will become just another ship lost at sea. A sea of thousands of other books clamoring for their attention.
As in so many things, preparation is key. Do your homework first and then later you’ll be best positioned to reap the rewards for the work you’ve put into writing your very own best seller.
Begin at the end. Seems backwards, but it’s easier.
If you’d like additional help getting started on the proper path for your book, or finally getting your work published, feel free to contact me.
