SELLING EBOOKS ONLINE: How I Published 50 Ebooks on Amazon in One Year – And You Can Too!
December 30, 2011
[See all Inkwell Editorial Work-from-Home Titles Here]
PREFACE
In December 2010, I set a goal of publishing 50 ebooks on Amazon in 2011. Read more about my freelance writing goals for that time period here.
Get this first-hand advice on how to write and sell ebooks online for only $9.99 (Instant Download)
What You Will Find in This Ebook
In this ebook, I detail:
A) My Ebook Writing Success and Failures in 2011. In the summer of 2011, I fell way behind and was in danger of not making the deadline of finishing 50 ebooks in one year. I started blogging about it to get myself back on track. All fifteen parts of that ebook writing series is detailed here.
B) How to Reach Your Ebook Writing Goals: 18 Things I Learned from Publishing 50 Ebooks in One Year. I learned a ton of things about ebook writing this year. Here, I list the top 18 that kept me motivated and on track. Some of them will surprise you!
C) How to Price Your Ebook to Sell Online: 7 Things I Learned from Publishing 50 Ebooks in One Year. Pricing your ebook correctly is by no means the only thing you must do in order to make sales, but it’s one of the most important. Here, I dispense the seven things I learned about it that have allowed me to consistently earn four figures per month selling ebooks.
D) A Year of Selling Ebooks on Amazon: The Numbers. In this section, I go through a year of numbers – yep, how many I sold on Amazon.com, how much I earned, how much I averaged per ebook, etc.
Delving into the sales numbers was enlightening. I’ll outline some lessons I learned from keeping a keen eye on the numbers that will help me to sell much more this year.
Following is a complete Table of Contents.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
PREFACE, Page 2
SECTION I: MY EBOOK WRITING SUCCESSES AND FAILURES IN 2011, Page 4
SECTION II: HOW TO REACH YOUR EBOOK WRITING GOALS, Page 57
18 Things I Learned from Publishing 50 Ebooks in One Year, Page 57
SECTION III: HOW TO PRICE YOUR EBOOKS TO SELL ONLINE, Page 68
7 Things I Learned About Pricing from Publishing 50 Ebooks on Amazon in One Year, Page 68
How to Set Ebook Prices: My Pricing Formula, Page 72
SECTION IV: MY FIRST YEAR SELLING ON AMAZON – THE SALES NUMBERS, Page 74
4 Reasons Sucky Ebooks Sales Are OK – Really!, Page 75
Self-Publishing: Why I Drank the Kool-Aid from Jump, Page 76
Make Money with Ebooks: A Guaranteed Way to Make a Living as a Writer? Page 76
CONCLUSION, Page 77
ABOUT THE AUTHOR, Page 78
ENDMATTER, Page 79
Don’t write a word until you get this first-hand advice on how to write and sell ebooks. Only $9.99 (Instant Download)!
Writing and Selling Ebooks Online: Diary of My Quest to Publish 50 Ebooks on Amazon in One Year, Part XV
December 29, 2011
Note: This is the final entry in this series. See links to all entries in this ebook writing series at the end of this post. And, get the ebook, SELLING EBOOKS ONLINE: How I Published 50 Ebooks on Amazon in One Year – And You Can Too!
The universe definitely tests you to see if you really, really want what you say you want. What do I mean?
I was sailing right along right into the first week of this month – well on schedule to finish self-publishing 50 ebooks on Amazon, only to get a couple of major setbacks in the last couple of weeks. What were my setbacks?
2 Setbacks That Almost Made Me Miss My Goal
Well, I hadn’t touched a client project since July. And wouldn’t ya know it — The first week of December, my SEO writing company landed a big project – with a quick turnaround time – that I had to pitch in on.
The project took about 10 days to finish. This threw a major wrench in my writing schedule. Hence, here I sit in the early evening of December 29 – with the deadline a mere two days away – pulling together the final ebook. I was supposed to be finished with everything last week at the latest.
While getting a project isn’t exactly a setback, it threw my writing schedule out of whack – severely.
The second setback I had was a minor illness (cold / toothache). This happened yesterday, on the 28th, which cost me some precious hours because I took some medication that knocked me on my butt!
How to Tell When You’re Close to Achieving Your Goal
The lesson I take away from this is – there will always be challenges, especially when you are near the peak of whatever you’re doing. I almost count on this now, for it signals that I’m very close to achieving whatever I’ve sent out to do. Why do I believe this?
I’m Christian, so I look at it as God challenging me to see if I really want what I’ve prayed for. He wants to know if I’m really going to hang in there to get the job done. I’ve started to pay more attention to this over the last couple of years because it happens so often. Just when I think a goal is in reach and I’m going to “sail across the finish line,” an obstacle will invariably pop up.
If you pay attention, I’ll bet you’ll find the same — whether you’re religious or not. It just seems to be the way the universe works.
So just be prepared for this and keep in mind that there will always, always, alway be obstacles and the closer you get to a goal, the more challenging it will probably be.
41 Ebooks Written; 47 Uploaded; 3 to Go
Right now, I have 41 ebooks on Amazon. Last night I finished writing, formatting and uploading to this site (InkwellEditorial.com) another 6 titles. I have three more to go.
The final ebook I’m writing on right now will have two ebook pullouts, which will give me 50 published titles on Amazon.
Ebook Pullouts: An Easy Way to Increase Your Self-Publishing Income
To refresh, an ebook pullout is simply a chapter or portion of your ebook that you can sell as an individual product. For example, the most recent ebook I finished revising was The Small Biz Owner’s Completing Marketing Kit (IW-4). It has five pullouts that sell anywhere from $3.95 to $6.95 each (the full ebook sells for $24.95). They are:
Latest Ebooks Published
What Is Article Marketing? A Simple Tutorial from an Article Marketing Pro Who’s Written Over 1,000 Articles (IW-4A)
Article Marketing Checklist: Include These 8 Elements to Write the Perfect Article Every Time (IW-4B)
Marketing with Newsletters: How I Consistently Earn 4 Figures Per Month (IW-4C)
Postcards Marketing: A Simple Guide to How to Do It Right (IW-4D)
Marketing with Press Releases: A Simple Step-by-Step Guide (IW-4E)
What’s Left to Do to Reach the Goal of Getting 50 Ebooks Up on Amazon This Year
I have to format the above titles for Amazon, write product descriptions and upload them. This should take about 5 hours.
I have to finish writing, editing and proofing the final ebook; separate it into parts; create a main cover and two separate covers for the pullouts; write the descriptions, format all parts for Amazon and my site (pdf file); and upload. All of this should take 10-12 hours, which I’ll finish by end of day tomorrow, the 30th.
Saturday the 31st, I plan to finish formatting and uploading what I don’t get to tomorrow.
How Did Your Ebook Writing Goals Go This Year?
Did you set any? Will you set some for next year? Share in the comments below.
Down to the Wire!
So yeah, I’m down to the wire – but barring an out-and-out catastrophe, I will make my goal.
I hope you’ve enjoyed this series as much as I’ve enjoyed writing it, and wish you much luck with your ebook writing and self-publishing dreams. I’m going to grab a glass of wine and settle in for a couple of more hours of work.
Get This Ebook!
Update: This ebook was uploaded on 12/30 — Look for this ebook, Selling Ebooks Online: How I Published 50 Ebooks on Amazon in One Year – and You Can Too! on InkwellEditorial.com (click “Shop” from any page) on New Year’s Day — if not before! It covers:
A) My Ebook Writing Success and Failures in 2011. In the summer of 2011, I fell way behind and was in danger of not making the deadline of finishing 50 ebooks in one year. I started blogging about it to get myself back on track. All fifteen parts of that ebook writing series is detailed here. The name of the series is Writing and Selling Ebooks Online: Diary of My Quest to Publish 50 Ebooks on Amazon in One Year.
B) How to Reach Your Ebook Writing Goals: 7 Things I Learned from Publishing 50 Ebooks in One Year (Update: This section turned out to be “18 Things I Learned about About Writing and Self-Publishing Ebook). I learned a ton of things about ebook writing this year. Here, I list the top 7 that kept me motivated and on track. Some of them will surprise you!
C) How to Price Your Ebook to Sell Online: 6 Things I Learned from Publishing 50 Ebooks in One Year (Update: This section turned out to be “7 Things I Learned about Pricing). Pricing your ebook correctly is by no means the only thing you must do in order to make sales, but it’s one of the most important. Here, I dispense the six things I learned about it that have allowed me to consistently earn four figures per month selling ebooks.
D) A Year of Selling Ebooks on Amazon: The Numbers. In this section, I go through a year of numbers – yep, how many I sold on Amazon.com, how much I earned, how much I averaged per ebook, etc. Delving into the sales numbers was enlightening. I’ll outline some lessons I learned from keeping a keen eye on the numbers that will help me to sell much more this year.
Have a great New Year!
P.S.: Want to write and sell ebooks online for a living? You can! Get the guide that shows you how to start a successful self-publishing career — start immediately.
P.P.S.: Want to start a successful career where you have the mobility to live and work where you please? Visit our freelance writing bookstore for a ton of opportunities (freelance writing and internet marketing) to get you started.
Freelance Writing Goals for 2012: Get Busy Living or Get Busy Dying – The Choice Is Yours
December 27, 2011
The one lesson I learned from setting such ambitious freelance writing goals this year – and saw in black and white in hard numbers — is that success comes in stages. And, it all starts with planning. The older I get, the more I realize just how precious time is and the more stock I put in the time-honored saying:
“If you fail to plan; you plan to fail.”
I can’t believe another year is upon us. This year just flew by. Now it’s that time of year where many of us look back and assess how we fared with this year’s goals (if we made them) and what we want to accomplish in the coming year.
Did You Reach the Freelance Writing Goals You Made in 2011? If Not, Do This to Significantly Improve Your Chances of Doing So Next Year
If you made goals last year for this year, how did you fare in achieving them? FYI, if you haven’t made a habit of writing down your goals, it’s imperative that you do so. Why? Because research has shown that you exponentially increase your chance of achieving goals when you write them down; you won’t believe by just how much!
This year, I had three freelance writing goals. Following is what they were and how I made out.
Goal #1: Get 50 Ebooks on Amazon. I’m on track to accomplish this; by this Friday the 30th (Saturday, the 31st at the latest), I will have 50 ebooks published on Amazon.
I had to revise this goal along the way (ie, publish ebook pullouts). But, that’s one lesson I learned this year with this ambitious undertaking – sometimes you have to tweak or change your goals in order to reach them. The main thing is to keep your eye on the big picture and forge ahead.
Grade on achieving this freelance writing goal: A.
Goal #2: Start a YouTube Channel. I did this; currently there are 44 videos there. You can view Inkwell Editorial’s YouTube channel here. The reason I only give myself a C+ on this goal though is I want more videos there that talk about freelance writing, freelance SEO writing and freelancing in general. All of my videos are for the “living in Jamaica” series.
But I have a presence there now and the videos do feature links that come back to this site, so at least I’m getting some YouTube traffic. I plan to post more videos on YouTube next year.
Grade on achieving this freelance writing goal: C+.
Goal #3: Time Block Every Day. This has become a major part of how I start each day, and although I didn’t time-block every day, I’m conscious of what I need to be doing every second of every day. This was the whole point of this goal – to become mindful of every second of every work day so that I didn’t waste time.
Even when I’m goofing off surfing the net, I’m mindful of it – even if I don’t stop it right then. I may cut it short and/or work later or start the next day earlier to make up for lost time. So, mission accomplished!
Grade on achieving this freelance writing goal: B.
5 Lessons Learned from 2011 That I Plan to Use to Set Freelance Writing Goals for 2012
I. Don’t Set Too Many Ambitious Goals at One Time: I have a lot on my list that I want to accomplish next year, but one of the lessons I learned this year is that you can’t have too many ambitious goals at one time – especially if you don’t have help.
For example, one of my personal goals this year was to run a full marathon (26.2 miles). I wound up doing two half ones because I just couldn’t fit in as much training as I needed to be confident enough that I could finish a full one this time (I’ve done one full marathon and six half ones to date). I can do half marathons in my sleep, so I just rolled with that.
II. Keep the Most Important Goals Front and Center: I’m a Type A personality so when I set my mind to something, I hate to change it. But, I had to decide what was more important – running the full marathon, or reaching my goal of publishing 50 ebooks on Amazon.
My Life Goals
Of course, it was the latter, because that is necessary to reach my long-term (ie, life) goals of:
The option of retirement at age 55;
A paid-for home by 50; and
Full (or almost full) passive income streams by 50 – which is a bit more than four years away.
III. Feel Free to Tweak Goals: As I discussed above, I had to tweak my goals, eg, publishing pullouts of my ebooks on Amazon, which I hadn’t planned to do.
This does not mean that you cheat, change or abandon well-thought-out goals altogether just because you’re finding it hard to reach them. If you do this, you’ll never accomplish anything; it’s just another form of procrastination.
That’s why it’s important to think seriously about your life, ie, where do you want to be in 3, 5, 10, 20 years. And, make annual goals that move you closer towards those dreams.
IV. Learn from Those Who Are Where You Want to Be: Many of us have all the info we need at our fingertips to succeed at almost anything we want to do these days thanks to the internet. But, we don’t take the advice and run with it. So, I’m paying more attention to this this year. See 2012 Freelance Writing Goal #2 below for more info on this.
V. Don’t be Afraid to Spend Money / Barter to Make Money: For example, when the opportunity presented itself to grow my Twitter account this year, I took it because it fit in with my long-range goals.
I had just over 3,300 followers on Twitter when I bartered my firm’s article writing services for another firm’s social media account management services. They took my account from 3,300 to almost 11,000 Twitter followers in less than 3 months.
And now, I’m getting ready to spend money to grow my subscriber list. Both of these things move me closer to reaching my goal life goal of creating more passive income (again, see 2012 Freelance Writing Goal #2 below for more info on this).
My 2012 Freelance Writing Goals
With all of that being said, following are my freelance writing goals for 2012.
2012 Freelance Writing Goal #1: Get all ebooks written to date on Barnes and Noble. I hope to get this done in the first quarter of the year because it’s just formatting. This will immediately increase my income. By how much? I have no idea.
But as the ebooks are already written, it’s like free money just waiting because all I have to do is give readers Inkwell’s ebooks in the format they prefer (eg, the Barnes and Noble Nook instead of the Amazon Kindle).
2012 Freelance Writing Goal #2: Grow Email Subscriber List to at Least 25,000. This is a very ambitious goal – one I plan to hire someone to help with. Right now, my list is about 6,000 between those I contact manually (a list I’ve had for years) and those who’ve signed up via the subscriber box on my website.
But, as “the money is in the list,” I know I need to get more subscribers in order to boost my income to where I want it to be. This year, I grew Inkwell’s product list (ebooks) – so “the goods,” so to speak, are there. Now it’s about getting more customers who are interested in those goods.
Bob Bly, a leading direct mail copywriter, paid his webmaster to grow his subscriber list (so I’m taking a cue from someone who is where I want to be here). And grow it he did – going from 2,000 to 60,000 subscribers in only 6 weeks! Learn more about how to build your subscriber list for free.
Bob explains how his webmaster did this in his free online report, “Online Marketing That Works (http://bit.ly/rBdHOj (pdf file)). See Section 5 starting on Page 15. I emailed Mr. Bly asking for the name of his webmaster to possibly hire him to help me grow my list. He said he’s no longer in business. So, the hunt is on for someone who specializes in list building.
Are You or Do You Know an Email List-Building Expert?
If you know someone who does this – send their contact info to me please (see Contact link on every page of this site). I want to get busy on this goal ASAP!
2012 Freelance Writing Goal #3: Triple Income from Minisites. I have about five minisites that I (inconsistently) update. I average between $300-$350/month from them — putting in just a few hours per week.
A couple of these sites have been languishing because I don’t do very much with them at all. But I see the potential when I do update them. They’re in good niches and even with just a tiny bit of attention, I surmise that they could fairly easily be earning at least $1,000-$1,500 or more per month.
Now that I’ll have more time because I’ve finished the 50 ebooks goal; I plan to spend time updating/marketing at least two of these consistently next year. I might try to sell a couple of the others or just hold onto them to get to later. I’ll see how things are shaking out by the end of the first quarter with the two that I will start paying attention to.
2012 Freelance Writing Goal #4: Write at Least 12 Ebooks. That’s one per month, as opposed to the one per week (on average) I did this year.
The relationship ebook I wrote during the summer under a pen name – in one day no less! – has turned out to be one of my best sellers on Amazon. I was going to try to write more fiction next year; but to be honest, I’m not comfortable in that genre. I need a class.
But, writing about relationships comes naturally to me. I also happen to love the subject matter. And, with a degree in sociology, I just feel all-around more comfortable writing stuff like this; not to mention it allows me the freedom to write anonymously and develop a persona in a completely different niche unrelated to freelance writing.
Bottom line is, I plan to write half a dozen titles in this genre next year, in addition to continuing to add to Inkwell’s freelance writing, SEO writing, small business and internet marketing titles.
2012 Freelance Writing Goal #5: Market Existing Titles More. Inkwell Editorial has a hell of a lot products (ebooks) now, so the focus this year will be on getting the word out more about them instead of producing new ones. This means upping the ante with article marketing – one of my favorite (and most effective) marketing methods.
While my freelance writing goals for 2012 may seem extensive, it’s nothing I can’t handle – mainly because I will have hired help to accomplish two of the goals (minisites and growing subscriber list). Once all of Inkwell’s ebooks are uploaded to Barnes and Noble (again, by the end of the first quarter is the goal for this), that will no longer be an issue. And as I’m a writer, it’s what I do day in and day out.
BUT . . . instead of spending 6-10 hours or more per day writing new ebooks like I did this year, I’ll be updating a minisite, or writing an article to promote an existing ebook, or writing on that one title per month.
See? Completely manageable.
Making a Freelance Writing Goal List for 2012? The Most Important Thing to Remember
Keep your life goals front and center. Remove anything that doesn’t move you closer to your long-range goals. Again, this doesn’t mean that goals can’t be changed or tweaked, but if you’re constantly veering off into wildly disparaging directions year in and year out, it’s highly unlikely that you’re going to get where you eventually want to be.
Every goal I’ve made this year gets me closer to my long-range goals – which are basically about achieving financial security and creating passive income. You must have gazelle-like focus, as debt-freedom guru Dave Ramsey is fond of saying, to achieve goals. So stay focused.
Get Busy Living or Get Busy Dying
Another thing I learned this year by setting such an ambitious goal like publishing 50 ebooks on Amazon in one year is that you can pretty much do what you set your mind to. And, many of us are capable of so much more than we challenge ourselves to do.
So, I’m psyched for this coming year. It’ll be another one of hard work, but as I said, I saw the increase in my income this year from putting the pedal to the metal so to speak. Hence, I’m revving up again.
I may falter, some goals may change and I will most certainly be exhausted. But, one thing each passing year teaches me is that life is over in a nanosecond; and as the character played by Tim Robbins in the movie The Shawshank Redemption* said:
“You can either get busy living (the life you want); or get busy dying.”
I’m busy living – and creating – the exact life I want.
Are you?
FYI, there are just a few more days left to take advantage of Inkwell Editorial’s Holiday Deals and Discounts.
*One of the best movies I’ve ever seen; if by chance you’ve never seen it, do yourself a favor and do so. It features excellent writing, brilliant acting and superb directing. You won’t regret it.
What are your life goals? What are you going to do next year to start achieving them? Have advice for others in this area? Please share in the comments section below.
Here’s to a happy, healthy, prosperous New Year!
Yuwanda
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P.S.: Get the freelance writing opportunity that allowed me to be financially secure enough to travel, live abroad, get out of debt and really “live the freelance life!”
P.P.S.: Want to start a successful career where you have the mobility to live and work where you please? Visit our freelance writing bookstore for a ton of opportunities (freelance writing and internet marketing) to get you started.
3 Ways I Increased My Freelancing Writing Income This Year & How You Can Do the Same Next Year
December 23, 2011
Man, it’s been a hectic year! A good one, but hectic.
With Christmas being just a couple of days away and the New Year just around the corner, I’m sitting here reflecting on everything that’s happened this year and what I want to happen next year.
The Importance of Setting Goals
Last year, I set some goals for my freelance writing career (ie, my life) and it’s nice to look back to see where I faltered, where I succeeded and where I want to be next year this time.
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Editor Note: Inkwell Editorial Holiday Deals and Discounts: We’ve got some good ones, eg, 1/2 off!
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3 Ways I Increased My Freelance Writing Income in 2011 & How You Can Do the Same in 2012
I made some great strides this year — which I see in my monthly earnings. Following are three ways I increased my writing income this year — and how you can do the same next year. All it takes is planning.
(i) I made an almost 100% transition away from writing for clients to writing for myself. This allowed me to write more ebooks.
(ii) By the end of the year, I will have 50 ebooks on Amazon. Not only has this added another income stream (eg, a monthly Amazon payout), it . . .
(iii) Also increased website sales — by a good 25-30%. Being on a “worldwide stage” like Amazon really did wonders for my ebook sales — and I didn’t have to work quite so hard (eg, write as many articles for article marketing, which is my primary mode of marketing). This worked out great because I spent so much time this year pushing out (ie, writing) new ebooks.
Making the transition from writing for clients to writing for myself also gave me a bit more time to develop other income streams (eg, make money with minisites), which I plan to focus on more next year (more about that in this coming Tuesday’s newsletter).
None of this would have happened had I not planned for it. And that’s the reason I’m writing you today.
Where Do You Want to Be — Professionally and Financially — in 3 Years?
. . . or 5 years, or 10 years, etc. Have you thought about it? What are your overall life goals? What can you start doing this coming year to get there?
What Are Your Life Goals?
I’ve been saying it for years, but some of my life goals are:
The option of retirement at 55;
A paid-for home by 50; and
Full (or almost full) passive income streams by 50.
When I sit down to make my annual goals, I keep my life goals front and center. This is one sure way (outside of winning the lottery) to get where you want to be in 3 years, 5 years, 20 years, etc.
I know it’s the holidays and these things may be far from your mind, but if you want to start planning for a life where you can enjoy more holidays doing what you want — and not worry about having to rush back to a job — NOW’S the time to think about it, write it down and devise a plan for getting there in 2012.
Freelance Writing Goals for 2012
I’m narrowing down my list of goals for 2012 (see this coming Tuesday’s newsletter for full details).
Did you set goals last year? How did you make out? Are you going to set goals for 2012?
Let’s compare notes on Tuesday, ok?
Have a great holiday — be safe, be happy and be proactive about your life.
P.S.: Want to write and sell ebooks online for a living? You can! Get the guide that shows you how to start a successful self-publishing career — start immediately. P.P.S.: Want to start a successful career where you have the mobility to live and work where you please? Visit our freelance writing bookstore for a ton of opportunities (freelance writing and internet marketing) to get you started.
Freelance Writers: 2 Online Scams You Need to Be Aware of This Holiday Season
December 20, 2011
Boy I tell ya, times are tough and since it’s the holiday season, the scammers are out in full force – especially online. And, if you’re not careful, you can really fall for these because the thieves are getting more sophisticated.
If you’re a freelance writer – and/or are just someone who makes your living online, eg, internet marketing, affiliate marketing – you know how critical your computer/laptop is. If it gets infected with a virus, your work literally stops unless and/or until you can get it fixed.
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Editor Note: Inkwell Editorial Holiday Deals and Discounts: We’ve got some good ones, eg, 1/2 off!
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Of course, I’m a freelance writer who’s also into internet and affiliate marketing. Following are two scams that have happened to me within the last 24 hours. And, if I were not a seasoned online worker, it would have been so easy for me to fall prey to them, possibly costing me hundreds of dollars (not to mention hours upon hours of time).
Freelance Writers: Scam #1 NOT to Fall Prey to – The Microsoft Tech Department Phone Call Scam
Yesterday morning, I received a call from a guy saying my computer was infected. Had said he was calling from the Microsoft Tech department. He went on to say that Microsoftt had sent me an email “last week” which I’d probably ignored about this problem.
I said I don’t recall receiving an email and he said that’s why they were following up because I hadn’t responded and that they were getting “messages” (I guess he meant pings or something) that my computer was infected and that the virus needed to be removed. The call was from 254-30-005-7990 (+254300057990).
I Googled it, and the 254 is the country code for Kenya, which set my “scam” hackles up because a lot of computer/internet/online scams originate from Kenya (and Russia).
Anyway, the tech guy told me that I needed to follow the steps he was going to give me to tell me how to remove the infection. More warning bells went off.
I work online, so know to NEVER, EVER let a complete stranger take over my computer (which is what they’re trying to do when they tell you to follow “their instructions”). I replied:
Since you obviously have my contact information (remember, they called me), send me the instructions via email, and if I have questions after reading them, I’ll get back to you.
He replied, “You probably won’t understand them, so it would be best if you follow my instructions while I’m on the phone with you.”
I said:
No, send me the instructions. I’ll read through them and if I have any questions, I’ll get in touch with you.
He said, “Ok” and hung up. I haven’t heard from him again. Of course, no email was sent with “instructions” on how to remove the bot/infection.
Bottom line — this is a scam. I got off the phone and Googled the number he called from. Nothing showed up (which is why I listed it here).
Learn more about this scam here: http://bit.ly/u2OWrM. I posted to this thread what happened to me to add one more voice to the “don’t fall for this scam” discussion.
How Online Scammers Get Your Contact Information
If you’re new to the online world, you may be wondering, “Then how did he get your phone number and know to ask for you by name (which he did).” I own an online business, so it’s easy to find my contact info. Also, I’ve had the same phone number for years. Furthermore, these scammers buy lists of contact info from companies that compile this stuff.
The bottom line is, if you’ve shopped online, surfed, have a blog, a Facebook acct, a Twitter account or do any type of online activity where you’ve had to enter info (this includes having a simple email address), it’s relatively easy for someone – especially online scammers — to get your contact information. Unfortunately, that’s the simple truth in today’s wired world. Simple information like your name, phone number and email address are NOT private, no matter how much you’d like it to be.
So again, NEVER, EVER give anyone any information who contacts you FIRST — even if they use your name (whether it’s via phone or email). It’s easy to find this information online and IF YOU DIDN’T INITIATE THE CONTACT, then it’s 100% a scam. Your bank won’t call you and ask for personal info, the IRS won’t call/email you and ask for info — and neither will MICROSOFT.
Freelance Writers: Scam #2 NOT to Fall Prey to – The “Comcast Bot ‘Semi-Scam’”
The reason I call this is a semi-scam is that the notices purportedly come from a legitimate company (Comcast) about suspicious activity that “may” have infected your computer. The general consensus on messages boards seems to be that it comes from Comcast. However, others suggest it comes from hackers who are spoofing Comcast email addresses and sending mass emails to Comcast customers.
Following is how this semi-scam unfolded. You be the judge . . .
This morning, I logged onto my computer and as I was surfing, I get a message from “Comcast,” which is my internet/cable service provider. Mind you, the message came via a big banner across my screen with the Comcast logo and everything (see graphic below).
The message said something to the effect of your computer has been infected with a bot. It explained what a bot is, and instructed me to either: (i) Click to “Close” the screen; or (ii) “Go to the Antivirus Center.”
The image looks like the image just below (image courtesy of identitytheft.info). Note: Read this linked-to article. It explains more about this message and why you may continue to receive these kinds of notices. It should relieve your mind a lot about why you got this message in the first place.
My sister called the Comcast Tech Dept because she got the same message (she has the same provider as I do). The tech guy said if you got the message, then you have a bot and he told us to call a tech support number (1-855-805-3484). But, a virus scan of both our computers revealed no bot. And from the reading I did, what I gathered was that a bot “may” be on my computer because of a “suspicious website” that I “may” have visited recently.
Someone had written in on one of the message boards echoing this same experience, writing:
John12345678
New VisitorRe: Bot Alert Email
11-10-2011 09:17 PM
Thank you for providing that phone number. Ijust called and while the tech was extremely nice, the call did not provide much help. I told the rep that I have an antivirus on all computers, which is updated daily and that I ran full virus scan and malware bytes scan. He said that it was probably a suspicious website that was visited and to look out for suspicious emails. He also asked if I had router security, which I do. Basically he said that the email was to make sure I was “crossing on my i’s and dotting all my t’s”. No further action required. He did agree that the Comcast rep that told me it was a way of advertising their antivirus program was incorrect but went on to advise me of the comcast website where I could get free and paid product to enhance my security.
Why I Label This a Scam (The Comcast Bot Email Scam)
In my opinion, Comcast needs to alert its customers about this if they know that their customers are receiving these types of messages (and they do know, because there’s a forum on their website devoted to this topic, ie: http://forums.comcast.com/t5/Security-and-Anti-Virus/Bot-Alert-Email/td-p/1092311).
Also, when you call Comcast’s Customer Service about this, they are quick to give out the number listed above (eg, 855-805-3484). I Googled this number and the first result that pops up leads you to this website: http://cgps.idvault.com/support/contactus.html.
And, guess what’s right there on this page (see graphic below)? Yep, Antivirus software, tech support, etc. – and Comcast. Learn more about this antivirus software/tech support (Constant Guard) here: http://security.comcast.net/constantguard/. You can also learn more about the supposed “bot” that “may” be on your computer.
Here are links to a couple of forum discussions about the Comcast Bot infection: http://bit.ly/tfbed2 and http://bit.ly/w4BItK.
Comast Bot Message: Scam or Real Computer Infection?
The bottom line is, if this message does indeed come Comcast (and I beleive it does becasue of the info in the IdentityTheft.info article above) — they they should be ashamed of themselves.
No legitimate company should be scaring their customers this way. If there is a real virus infection, give the customer more detail IN THE INITIAL EMAIL (which should not be via a big-ass pop-up that scares the bejeezus out of them). Also, tell them to call their Comcast Tech Dept via the number on their monthly Comcast bills. Also, tell them about the probability (or NOT) of there being a real virus infection to their computer / laptop.
Don’t just give a vague message and tell them to click one of two buttons below, especially with so little detail. My sister wouldn’t click on anything because she didn’t know if the message itself (the one that purported came from Comcast) contained a virus. I clicked on the “Close” link.
If a company uses these kinds of scare tactics on their customers (which is highly unethical and borders on illegal in my opinion), I wouldn’t trust their antivirus software anyway. If I wasn’t as experienced as I am working online, stuff like this would make me crap my pants. How many people have ponied up for this antivirus software or signed up for tech support when they didn’t even need it?
I mean, if a company will stoop this low to market this way, how good can their services be? I’ve used Comcast for years – and am highly disappointed as a customer if they indeed are behind this.
Related Reading: AssociatedContent and PayPal Scams: How to Keep Your Online Earnings Safe 100% of the Time.
Hope this helps. Be safe online this holiday season.
Do you have an online scam story? Have any advice you can share to help “newbie” freelance writers/internet marketers/freelancers in general stay safe online? Please share in the comments section below. We all have to work together to help keep eachother safe online.
On a More Personal Note . . .
I’m back home in Atlanta safe and sound. Did another half marathon this past Sunday. It was a small one (only about 60 participants) and a little disorganized as far as course markings, start/stop points, number of loops to make, etc . Hence, I wound up running an extra lap (which meant an extra 2.31 miles). So I ran 15.4 miles instead of 13.1. As the race wasn’t officially timed, I was 
ok with that (guestimated time was 2:36). And as it’s the holiday season, I figured every extra mile I put in wouldn’t go to waste (I’m baking cookies and a cake this weekend – can we say waist expansion?!).
Since I’ve been back I also got my holiday decorating done, last client project of the year finished, and now the race is on to finish my 50 ebooks by year’s end. Will give one final update either this Friday or next – depending on how the schedule for writing is shaking out.
I hope that however you spend this Christmas that you are happy, healthy and are looking forward to the New Year. I know I am. I absolutely adore this time of year and run around all season long as happy as a two-year-old on Christmas Eve.
Now be good so Santa will leave something under the tree for you, ok?
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P.S.: Get the freelance writing opportunity that allowed me to be financially secure enough to travel, live abroad, get out of debt and really “live the freelance life!”
P.P.S.: Want to start a successful career where you have the mobility to live and work where you please? Visit our freelance writing bookstore for a ton of opportunities (freelance writing and internet marketing) to get you started.
Where Are the Opportunities in Freelance Writing for 2012? Here’s an Obvious, Easy Gig to Go After
December 13, 2011
Wanna know what I did this past weekend? I worked. I hadn’t touched a client project since July, but this month, my SEO writing company received two assignments for a total of 30 pages – to rewrite content (to make it unique) — for a company that provides home repair services in multiple locations. I pitched in because the client wanted a quick turnaround due to the upcoming holiday.
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Remember when we discussed why the Google Panda Update would mean more work for freelance writers, especially SEO writers, back in the early spring? We even touched on this in last week’s post on SeoWritingJobs.com when a new search engine optimization writer wrote in wanting to know what to charge for Web Copy SEO re-writes, among a host of other things – all because a potential client had asked her about it.
So I’m giving you a heads up – pitch clients on rewriting / repurposing content in 2012. It’s where a lot of opportunities in freelance writing are going to come from, in my opinion.
How to Pitch Clients to Land Freelance Writing Jobs That Involve Rewriting / Repurposing Content
I’m a big believer in educating clients first. Why? This gets them to invest in the process. And as I’ve said in a number of posts, if you’re the freelance writer who gets them invested in the process, who do you think they’re going to contact when they’re ready to have the job done?
Why you, of course!
One of the best ways to educate clients is to write and distribute special reports, like the one New Media Words produced on how to repurpose content to drive more traffic (which yields more sales and leads). It’s already on my calendar to do one at the beginning of the year talking about all of the search engine changes (ie, Google) that have come down the pike in the last year – focusing on the parts that have to do with content.
Search Engine Updates Mean More Writing Jobs for Freelancers
There’s been more than the infamous Panda Update. Google has stated that it does hundreds of updates a year. Only a few get the attention that Panda did. Some of the others you may not have heard of are:
Google Panda 2.5 Update: In spite of my research, I couldn’t figure out what exactly this update had to do with, other than it was more “minor updates” to Google Panda. {Disclaimer: I was sitting in a bar in Jamaica enjoying my last few days on the island before flying home for the holidays drinking rum and coke as I was writing this post, so wasn’t exactly CLEARLY focusing on what the heck I was looking for.}
Google’s “May Day” Update: This one “changed the way Google indexes so-called ‘long-tail’ queries, in which a user enters multiple keywords for a search;” and
Google’s “Caffeine” Update: This algorithm change, in November of this year, was all about building “on top of its [Google’s] previous “Caffeine” update in order to deliver more up-to-date and relevant search results, specifically those in areas where freshness matters. This includes things like recent events, hot topics, current reviews and breaking news items.”
So Why Do All of These Search Engine Changes Lead to More Work for Freelance Writers?
One of the running threads I hope you’re picking up on in all of these updates is that some sites lose and some sites win – as far as site traffic is concerned.
So what it boils down to is a win-win for freelance writers because if a site gains more traffic, then they strive to do more of what they’re doing to maintain their position. As for the losers, they need to recover. This means rewriting content, adding content, expanding content, etc.
How to Land Freelance Writing Jobs in 2012
So to land freelance writing jobs going into the New Year, one thing I’d advise is to put together a special report outlining a few search engine algorithm changes – as they relate to content marketing and development – and send it to prospects.
It doesn’t have to be long – 2-5 pages is sufficient. Post it on your freelance writing website as a free download (pdf), and email it to prospects in an email marketing campaign.
Opportunities in Freelance Writing Don’t Just Land in Your Lap: Be Proactive to Land Freelance Writing Jobs
It’s your job as a freelance writer to illustrate to clients the value you can bring to their business. Many of them are way too busy to even know about stuff like this. But, if you bring it to their attention in a well-written report, it can land you work for months – and possibly years – to come.
Note: I’m travelling this week, so will be hard to reach – unless you’re a student in one of Inkwell’s freelance writing ecourses (SEO copywriting ecourse; general freelance writing ecourse).
Hope you’re enjoying the holiday season. I’ve been too busy with training for marathons (finished the Reggae Marathon (half) in Jamaica on the 3rd of this month and have another one this Sunday, the 18th, in Atlanta); writing ebooks; and; this month – client projects – to fully take note. But, when I get back to the states tomorrow, my holiday will officially start.
Yes!
Until next week,
Yuwanda
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P.S.: Get the freelance writing opportunity that allowed me to be financially secure enough to travel, live abroad, get out of debt and really “live the freelance life!”
P.P.S.: Want to start a successful career where you have the mobility to live and work where you please? Visit our freelance writing bookstore for a ton of opportunities (freelance writing and internet marketing) to get you started.
One Good Reason NOT to Raise Your Freelance Writing Rates – and It Has Nothing to Do with Losing Clients
December 6, 2011
With the New Year approaching, as a freelancer you may be thinking about some changes you want to make in your business. One that usually tops the list is raising freelance writing rates. And, this is great. It’s an excellent time of year to assess where your freelance business is going. Or better yet, where you want it to go.
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I received an email from a freelancer a couple of weeks ago who said she was “in limbo and not sure if she wanted to focus on writing for clients anymore.” She wrote, in part:
I am so in limbo. Some days I am not sure if I want to focus on writing anymore. . . . I am tired of a sporadic income. I want [a] more consistent income.
Boy, have I been there! And the one thing I’ve learned is that to create a “consistent” income, you need to diversify.
And this is why I practically beg freelance writers to develop multiple streams of income. If you’re a regular reader of this site, you know I’m a big advocate of this. That’s why I write and publish my own line of ebooks, do internet marketing and have a few minisites that earn me somewhat passive income (it’s not totally passive; I still have to put in a minimal amount of work).
One of the main stumbling blocks many freelancers have though when it comes to this goal is finding time to fit in working on their own stuff while continuing to meet client deadlines.
3 Things I Did to Find Time to Develop Multiple Income Streams While Still Working as a Freelance Writer
If you ever want to get to the point where you develop other income streams completely unrelated to writing for clients, following is what the road is gonna look like (at least, this is what it took for me):
Plan: In and around 2009, I started to formulate a plan for my life. One of my goals has always been to pay off my mortgage by the time I’m 50 (just over four years away now). But, I had no clue how I was going to go about it. But what I did know was this – it probably wasn’t going to happen just from the income I was making as a freelance writer.
Sure, I could have put the pedal to the medal and increased my earnings significantly (especially as I’d discovered SEO writing and projects were coming in like crazy). But, I realized that I just didn’t want to. While I enjoy the freedom being a freelance writer allows me, I don’t always enjoy the work. Hence, I knew I had to find a way to increase my income that did not involve writing for clients.
And coincidentally enough, my ebook sales were starting to take off around this time. At this point, I had 12 to 15 or so published and once I dug into the numbers, I realized, “Hey, I can really make a go of this self-publishing ebooks thing!”
As an aside, I don’t believe in “coincidences.” I believe that the universe works to give you what you want – if you pay attention to it and are doing your part to make things happen.
Another factor the universe lined up around this time was the popularity of ebooks due to e-readers like the Kindle. So I was like, “You mean I can publish my ebooks – for free – on a worldwide site like Amazon – and keep 70% of the profits (depending on price). Hallelujah!”
I knew it was time to make the leap. So, I looked at my freelance business and instead of raising rates, I did the following . . .
Freelance Writing Rates: One of the reasons my freelance writing rates aren’t as high as I could command is that I set them to be able to seamlessly bring in projects so I spend less time on marketing for new work. This allows me to pay my bills without having to worry about where my next project was going to come from.
So when I hear people say, “Oh, you only charge $35 per article; that’s way too low,” I actually kind of chuckle because I know that I have a game plan for my life – one that doesn’t include writing for clients forever.
Has it meant I haven’t earned as much as a freelance writer as I could have? For sure. But again, it’s allowing me to achieve my long-range goals which, if all goes well, I should realize within the next two years.
Limit Client Project Time: Another thing I’ve done in order to be able to develop other streams of income outside of freelance writing is limit client project time.
There have been many times where I’ve turned down projects altogether. At other times, I’d give longer deadlines so that I limited the amount of time I spent each day/week working on client projects.
This was a drastic change from when I first started out as a freelance writer. Back then, I took on almost any and everything and would work around the clock to meet tight deadlines. Nowadays though, because I have my own projects, this is no longer an option.
The point I’m trying to get across here is that you must make your projects a priority just like client projects. Don’t leave them for “when you have free time” because you’ll quickly find that something will always come up.
The only way to achieve a goal is to set specific deadlines and create a roadmap – one you follow consistently – to reach them. One thing I do is time block my days. This is second nature to me now and keeps me totally focused.
Why Freelance Writers are Perfectly Positioned to Develop Multiple Streams of Income – Especially Online
Just because you can work as a freelance writer forever does not mean you’re going to want to. And the great thing about having the skill set you do is that it primes you perfectly to take advantage of creating multiple income streams – especially online – because so much of making money online begins and ends with content creation.
And, who creates content? Well freelance writers, of course!
Financial Self-Sufficiency – Within Reach
Will the road be easy? No. But as I get closer to my financial goals what I can tell you is this – it’s nice to know that in just a few years – if I continue to work hard – I will be financially “set.” And, this is what keeps me going.
I won’t have to worry about writing for clients or even writing as much for myself to live the kind of life I want — especially if my affiliate marketing and minisite income keeps increasing.
But, it all started because I made a plan that suited MY life; I went against “conventional wisdom” (eg, raise your freelance writing rates); and I hunkered down and did the work.
Freelance Business Owners: Do You Have a Plan?
Where do you want your freelance writing business to be in 2012 – and beyond? Start thinking about it – and formulating a plan now because you know what, 2012 is just around the corner. And, 2013 (and 2014 and 2015) will be here before you know it.
Hope you’re having a good week,
Yuwanda
P.S.: Want to write and sell ebooks online for a living? You can! Get the guide that shows you how to start a successful self-publishing career — start immediately.
P.P.S.: Want to start a successful career where you have the mobility to live and work where you please? Visit our freelance writing bookstore for a ton of opportunities (freelance writing and internet marketing) to get you started.
How to Price Your Ebook to Sell: 7 Things I Learned from Publishing 50 Ebooks on Amazon in One Year
December 4, 2011
FOREWORD
The following is an excerpt (a pullout) from the ebook, Sell Ebooks Online, How I Published 50 Ebooks on Amazon in One Year – And You Can Too!
In this excerpt, discussed are the 7 things I learned about how to price ebooks when I spent a year (2011) writing and publishing 50 ebooks on Amazon.
Sincerely,
Yuwanda Black, Publisher
InkwellEditorial.com
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Get this first-hand advice on what I learned about how to price ebooks online for only $5.99 (Instant Download).
Ready, Set, Go Publish!
In December 2010, I set a goal of publishing 50 ebooks on Amazon in 2011. I did it — and boy, did I learn a ton about pricing ebooks to sell!
What You Will Find in The Full Version of This Ebook (remember, this is only an excerpt, which is taken from SECTION III in Table of Contents below).
I detail:
A) My Ebook Writing Success and Failures in 2011. In the summer of 2011, I fell way behind and was in danger of not making the deadline of finishing 50 ebooks in one year. I started blogging about it to get myself back on track. All fifteen parts of that ebook writing series is detailed here.
B) How to Reach Your Ebook Writing Goals: 18 Things I Learned from Publishing 50 Ebooks in One Year. I learned a ton of things about ebook writing this year. Here, I list the top 18 that kept me motivated and on track. Some of them will surprise you!
C) How to Price Your Ebook to Sell Online: 7 Things I Learned from Publishing 50 Ebooks in One Year. Pricing your ebook correctly is by no means the only thing you must do in order to make sales, but it’s one of the most important. Here, I dispense the seven things I learned about it that have allowed me to consistently earn four figures per month selling ebooks.
D) A Year of Selling Ebooks on Amazon: The Numbers. In this section, I go through a year of numbers – yep, how many I sold on Amazon.com, how much I earned, how much I averaged per ebook, etc.
Delving into the sales numbers was enlightening. I’ll outline some lessons I learned from keeping a keen eye on the numbers that will help me to sell much more this year.
Following is a complete Table of Contents.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
PREFACE, Page 2
SECTION I: MY EBOOK WRITING SUCCESSES AND FAILURES IN 2011, Page 4
SECTION II: HOW TO REACH YOUR EBOOK WRITING GOALS, Page 57
18 Things I Learned from Publishing 50 Ebooks in One Year, Page 57
SECTION III: HOW TO PRICE YOUR EBOOKS TO SELL ONLINE, Page 68
7 Things I Learned About Pricing from Publishing 50 Ebooks on Amazon in One Year, Page 68
How to Set Ebook Prices: My Pricing Formula, Page 72
SECTION IV: MY FIRST YEAR SELLING ON AMAZON – THE SALES NUMBERS, Page 74
4 Reasons Sucky Ebooks Sales Are OK – Really!, Page 75
Self-Publishing: Why I Drank the Kool-Aid from Jump, Page 76
Make Money with Ebooks: A Guaranteed Way to Make a Living as a Writer? Page 76
CONCLUSION, Page 77
ABOUT THE AUTHOR, Page 78
ENDMATTER, Page 79
NOTE: This ebook pullout is 10 pages long.
Get this first-hand advice on what I learned about how to price ebooks online for only $5.99 (Instant Download).
HOW TO SELL EBOOKS ONLINE: 18 Things I Learned from Publishing 50 Ebooks in One Year
December 4, 2011
FOREWORD
The following is an excerpt (a pullout) from the ebook, Sell Ebooks Online, How I Published 50 Ebooks on Amazon in One Year – And You Can Too!
In this ebook excerpt, discussed are 18 things I learned about selling ebooks online from the year I spent (2011) writing and publishing 50 ebooks on Amazon.
Sincerely,
Yuwanda Black, Publisher
InkwellEditorial.com
###
Get this informative, first-hand advice on how to sell ebooks online for $5.99 (Instant Download)
Ready, Set, Go Publish!
In December 2010, I set a goal of publishing 50 ebooks on Amazon in 2011. Read more about my freelance writing goals for that time period.
What You Will Find in The Full Version of This Ebook (remember, this is only an excerpt, which is taken from SECTION II in Table of Contents below).
I detail:
A) My Ebook Writing Success and Failures in 2011. In the summer of 2011, I fell way behind and was in danger of not making the deadline of finishing 50 ebooks in one year. I started blogging about it to get myself back on track. All fifteen parts of that ebook writing series is detailed here.
B) How to Reach Your Ebook Writing Goals: 18 Things I Learned from Publishing 50 Ebooks in One Year. I learned a ton of things about ebook writing this year. Here, I list the top 18 that kept me motivated and on track. Some of them will surprise you!
C) How to Price Your Ebook to Sell Online: 7 Things I Learned from Publishing 50 Ebooks in One Year. Pricing your ebook correctly is by no means the only thing you must do in order to make sales, but it’s one of the most important. Here, I dispense the seven things I learned about it that have allowed me to consistently earn four figures per month selling ebooks.
D) A Year of Selling Ebooks on Amazon: The Numbers. In this section, I go through a year of numbers – yep, how many I sold on Amazon.com, how much I earned, how much I averaged per ebook, etc.
Delving into the sales numbers was enlightening. I’ll outline some lessons I learned from keeping a keen eye on the numbers that will help me to sell much more this year.
Following is a complete Table of Contents.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
PREFACE, Page 2
SECTION I: MY EBOOK WRITING SUCCESSES AND FAILURES IN 2011, Page 4
SECTION II: HOW TO REACH YOUR EBOOK WRITING GOALS, Page 57
18 Things I Learned from Publishing 50 Ebooks in One Year, Page 57
SECTION III: HOW TO PRICE YOUR EBOOKS TO SELL ONLINE, Page 68
7 Things I Learned About Pricing from Publishing 50 Ebooks on Amazon in One Year, Page 68
How to Set Ebook Prices: My Pricing Formula, Page 72
SECTION IV: MY FIRST YEAR SELLING ON AMAZON – THE SALES NUMBERS, Page 74
4 Reasons Sucky Ebooks Sales Are OK – Really!, Page 75
Self-Publishing: Why I Drank the Kool-Aid from Jump, Page 76
Make Money with Ebooks: A Guaranteed Way to Make a Living as a Writer? Page 76
CONCLUSION, Page 77
ABOUT THE AUTHOR, Page 78
ENDMATTER, Page 79
NOTE: This ebook pullout is 15 pages long.
Get this informative, first-hand advice on how to sell ebooks online for $5.99 (Instant Download).
Writing and Selling Ebooks Online: Diary of My Quest to Publish 50 Ebooks on Amazon in One Year, Part XIV
December 2, 2011
Since the last update in this ebook writing series, I’ve uploaded 6 more titles, for a total of 41 ebooks on Amazon. Remember, one is under an alias, so you won’t be able to find that one under my name. Note: See all posts to date in this ebook writing series.
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Editor Note: Inkwell Editorial Holiday Deals and Discounts: We’ve got some good ones, eg, 1/2 off!
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Newest Titles
Freelance Writing Samples: 5 Elements Samples that Land Freelance Writing Jobs Must Have (IW-37A).
Write and Sell Ebooks: How I’m Managing to Write So Many Ebooks
Pullouts – that’s my secret. I explain this concept in the post, Make Money Selling Ebooks: How to Create Your Own Ebook Publishing Empire By Writing Just One Ebook Per Month.
I get at least one pullout out of almost every ebook I write (unless it’s an e-pamphlet, like the SEO examples guide (a reference guide of 10 SEO writing samples)).
My goal is two or more though. This is easy to achieve when you have a broad subject. For example, the title I’m working on now is The Small Biz Owner’s Complete Marketing Kit! I wrote this ebook in 2004. I updated it last year, and am updating it again. As it discusses 8 free and low-cost ways for small business owners to market, it could ostensibly have 8 different pullouts.
This one will have two though. Why only two?
Make Money Selling Ebooks Online: How to Determine How Many Pullouts to Get from Each Ebook
Because I write pullouts on the parts of an ebook that I am most familiar with – and on what I think will be most popular with readers. In this case, the two pullouts will be on how to earn at least four figures per month publishing newsletters and how to promote your business using press releases. These will be done by next Friday, which will bring my count to 44 titles (almost home baby – yes!).
As I publish three newsletters (two of them weekly), I have a lot of experience with them and can dispense first-hand information. Same thing with press releases – especially on how to SEO press releases and how they can bring you great search engine juice.
Make Money Selling Ebooks Online: Tips for Writing Ebook Pullouts That Sell
Don’t forget SEO: Usually, when I do a pullout, I do so with SEO in mind, especially when it comes to titles, subtitles, headings, etc. The reason is, when you list your Table of Contents on your website, Amazon and the other places you publish, the search engines can return it in search results.
For example, one of the reasons I wrote the SEO writing examples ebook is that some keyword research revealed that this term (SEO examples) got good search engine juice and there wasn’t a lot of competition out there for it. So, that’s why I named the ebook the way I did.
Price Them Well: The SEO examples ebook has been my biggest seller on Amazon for the last three months – by a wide margin (so much so that I toyed with raising the price). It’s only $2.99 on Amazon – but I priced it that way for a reason, which brings me to the next tip . . .
Drive Sales to Higher-Priced Products: This ebook drives sales to my higher-priced SEO products, eg, the $39.95 one on how to start an SEO writing career and the SEO copywriting training manual, which sells for $77.95 on InkwellEditorial.com ($59.95 on Amazon).
Provide Real Value: Even though the SEO examples ebook is only $2.99, it provides real, tangible value. Proof? One reader wrote:
Wow! Thank you so much for recommending the e-book. It has much more info than I expected, especially for the price. If I had known about this earlier, it could have saved me many headaches (and dollars). I’ve only browsed through it so far but I’m printing it out now to read on my lunch break this evening.
I can’t wait to sign-up for the SEO copywriting course later this month. It’s going to be my Christmas gift to myself.
So, when readers see such high quality at such a low price, they feel comfortable purchasing your higher-priced items (eg, the SEO writing ecourse – which costs hundreds of dollars).
I can’t prove this, but my gut tells me that the reason I sell so many copies of the SEO samples ebook is because readers want to test one of my products in this niche. This then makes them feel confident making higher-priced purchase.
As an aside, when I’m writing a pullout (or ebook), I don’t think about the price so much. I write until I feel like I’ve covered the subject in sufficient detail, then I price it according to what else is in the line and/or what the full price of the ebook the pullout comes from will be.
New Ebook: How to Write Ebook Pullouts That Sell!
I’m going to be writing an ebook on this subject probably sometime early next year. Writing 50 ebooks this year has taught me sooooo much about this process. I’ve developed kind of a formula that seems to be working, which brings me to the next another thing I want to tell you about in this installment, which is . . .
The Money Honey! How Much Money Am I Making Writing and Selling Ebooks Online
I’m not going to talk specifics because really my earnings from Amazon are nothing to write home about – yet!
What I will say is this, last month, I sold more ebooks than I ever have since I first uploaded a title in December of 2010. And, my income is increasing each month. I’ve had two months since December where sales fell off and I earned less than the month before (in March I earned less than I did in February, and in September I earned less than I did in August).
But every other month, sales have increased – one month, they almost tripled! So, the more titles I add, the more money I’m definitely earning – and I’m selling a lot of different titles, which is encouraging because I don’t want all of my sales to come from just a couple of ebooks.
Writing and Selling Ebooks Online via Outlets Other Than Amazon (eg, Barnes & Noble)
I have a friend who uploaded a few of her ebooks to Barnes & Noble. The first day, she made sales and she said the process is so much easier than Amazon. So, in January, I will get all of my titles uploaded there as well.
I could ostensibly double my income from these outlets (I still sell the majority of my ebooks from this site). From what I’ve read though, most self-publishers still sell more ebooks via Amazon than other outlets. However, I have read accounts of a few who’ve said they sell more via Barnes & Noble.
All I know is, I have a s**tload of titles and I want them in as many places as possible. So Barnes & Noble is the next outlet, then probably Smashwords.
Although I’ll continue to write more ebooks, my focus next year is going to be on marketing the library I already have and getting them published via as many outlets as possible.
Writing and Selling Ebooks Online: My Last Title of the Year Will Be . . .
How I Published 50 Ebooks on Amazon in One Year (of course!). In it, I’ll reveal specifics on pricing, formatting issues, lessons learned, what to do, what not to do and a whole bunch of other stuff.
I’m trying to get all other titles done by December 23, that way I can spend the last week of the year pulling this one together. It’s the only thing on my agenda for that week – as I will be home (back in the states) and I’m going to relax and enjoy the last week of the season.
It’s been a helluva year . . . I hope you’ve had a productive one and are looking forward to 2012. I know I am!
What Are You Doing This Weekend?
I’m running a marathon. The Reggae Marathon is tomorrow here in Negril. Wish me luck! I’m doing the half (even though I’d trained for the full, I just didn’t feel ready for it — I’ve been tired a lot lately). But, a half I can do in my sleep. So, I’m looking forward to it. Off to pick up my race packet in just a little, and there’s a pasta party tonight for all participants.
I get to eat pasta — guilt free. Could the weekend start any better?! 
Have a good one,
Yuwanda
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