I would like to welcome Tanisha Williams to NAG today. She will be back in a couple weeks to discuss a different topic as well. Today, though, she will be talking about why it is important to leverage social media and to talk some more about a new ebook platform Chat Ebooks. Click on the links to check out the site. Authors and readers alike are wanted!
Important note: Just as I am colleague Rachel Thompson have said time and time again, social media is not just sell, sell, sell, your book–it is about meeting and interacting with people and building relationships. Enjoy!
Ever since the advent of the Internet and e-reading devices, the self-publishing industry has virtually exploded in popularity. In the days before the digital revolution, self-publishing was somewhat frowned upon as a type of “vanity press”, where authors had to finance their own publishing efforts due to an implied lack of outside interest in the book. Nowadays, any author wanting to self-publish a book can present his/her work to a potential audience of millions of people with only a few clicks of the mouse. Needless to say, it is easier now than ever for aspiring authors to experience self-publishing success due to the outstanding opportunity that the Internet has afforded.
Hugh Howie, a prolific and highly successful self-published author, recently published an eye-opening report asserting that the earnings of self-published authors have actually surpassed those of authors who have signed with the big five publishing houses (Macmillan, Penguin Random House, Hachette, Harper Collins, and Simon & Schuster). This salient data point underscores the shift in the balance of power that is taking place where authors’ publishing capabilities and royalties are concerned.
Although this data is definitely encouraging to the aspiring ebook author, it is important to note that only a relatively small percentage of self-published authors earn the lion’s share of the royalties. According to a survey of over 5,000 authors conducted by Digital Book World, a mere 0.6% of self-published authors earned over $200,000 in 2013, and roughly one-fifth of the self-published authors surveyed earned nothing at all. While the number of extravagant success stories will always be in the minority, this does beg the question as to what may be the “missing ingredient” that keeps many self-published authors from achieving breakthrough success.
This is where ChatEbooks truly begins to stand out as a digital publishing platform. Although there are a large number of publishing platforms and venues to choose from, and each one has its strengths and weaknesses, ChatEbooks is unique in that it offers not only the ability to self-publish your book, but it also leverages the power of social media to connect authors with their readers in an unprecedented manner.
Most ebook publishing platforms allow you to upload and sell your book, as well as receive reviews from readers, but they do not offer anything in the way of establishing true connections with your readers through social interaction. ChatEbooks harnesses the strengths of social media in order to help authors and their readers engage and connect within the context of the selling/reading experience. If you are an avid ebook reader, you may be able to leave a detailed review of an author’s book, but wouldn’t it be even better if you could provide feedback directly to the author, and then have that author respond in kind? This is the type of interaction that ChatEbooks provides to its users. Having this kind of direct access to the authors whose work you have come to appreciate and support is nothing short of a book lover’s dream.
If you are an aspiring author, you will definitely appreciate the benefits of using ChatEbooks in light of the limitations of other publishing platforms. You will retain complete control over the pricing and distribution of your book, and you are allowed to keep 100% of the revenues from the sale of your book. Also, unlike many other digital publishing platforms, you will have immediate access to any monies generated from your book sales. The unique social media interactivity offered by ChatEbooks allows you to engage with your readers in an exciting and personal way, a benefit that can pay great dividends in the form of referrals and recommendations. It is no secret that word-of-mouth is still the most powerful form of advertising, and by offering your readers a personal connection to your work via ChatEbooks, you open the door for them to share your work with their network of friends. This can produce more fans of your books, and more revenues for you!
It is easy to see why ChatEbooks is the ebook publishing platform of choice for authors who are looking to expose their work to a diverse audience, and connect with their readers in a meaningful way. With the myriad of advantages that ChatEbooks offers, it only makes sense to join and begin taking advantage of this powerful self-publishing platform.
About the Author
Tanisha Williams is the author of two non-profit e-books “501c3 In 12-Steps” and “Simple Internal Controls That Protect Your Assets”. Her desire for more interaction with readers was the key inspiration behind the development of her latest business venture ChatEbooks (https://www.chatebooks.com/). ChatEbooks, launched in October 2014, harnesses the strengths of social media in order to help authors and their readers engage and connect within the context of the selling/reading experience.