Blogging for Writers

Features vs. Benefits in Marketing & Book Proposals

What's the difference between features and benefits? Features are what a product has. Benefits are what a product does. If a feature of lipstick is it's rich moisturizers, a benefit of that lipstick is soft lips.

This is important for writers to understand when creating book proposals and marketing plans. Readers and publishers want to know what your writing has and what it will do for readers. For a more thorough explanation, checkout Brian Jud's Writing-World.com article. Note the telling quote by Charles Revlon, "In the factory we make cosmetics, but in the stores we sell hope."

Backstory: My first exposure to the idea of features vs. benefits came up while helping a friend with a book proposal. I had to understand the difference.  Off to Google I went.  Here's the helpful info I found:

Features vs. Benefits, or, "Why Should I Buy Your Book?" by Brian Jud on Writing-World.com

Writing-World.com Publishing Your Book page with loads of links

Michael Hyatt's e-book Writing a Winning Book Proposal also mentioned it. I didn't buy the $19.97 e-book because I don't need it yet. However, because he, as the CEO of Thomas Nelson Publishers, included those components in his book I feel safe recommending the book.

I also found some non-fiction book proposal models Writers-World.com that didn't include the features vs. benefits items, but those proposals were a little older.

Though I don't condone Seinfeld's idea of friends with benefits -which I'm sure correlate to the friend's features- I do endorse blogs with benefits, which are also related to the blog's features.

Now, go get your blog on..with all it's features and benefits.

Why Authors Need a Platform from Michael Hyatt, Thomas Nelson CEO

"If you can bring to the table, not only great content, but an established platform, you will have agents and publishers lined up to sign you." - Michael Hyatt, Thomas Nelson CEO, July 15, 2009 blog post "The Importance of Building Your Platform"

Michael sums up his address at the Music City Media Mixer luncheon in this post, addressing three reasons why authors need a platform and fours ways how authors can build a platform. Blogging is a natural fit for the how aspect. 

In the comments (Yes, he responds to comments.) Michael suggests about 700-1000 unique visitors a day is a good goal to shoot for. That will take some doing, but it's not impossible. In the same comment he says the total number of visitors per month is a better metric because it more accurately shows the size of your audience. He recommends Google Analytics for this. 

There are other valuable takeaways from the comments section, another benefit of a blog, so don't forget to read those. 

Now go get your blog on.

Lifehacker: Blog to Book

"More than ever before, literary agents are paying attention to quality weblogs, and publishers are looking for someone with writing chops and a fresh take on a topic." - Gina Trapani, author, Lifehacker blog and Lifehacker book

Gina offers excellent advice on how to Turn Your Blog into a Book. She started the Lifehacker blog in 2005. Two years later the Lifehacker book was published. She didn't start her blog wanting to convert it to a book, but she offers help to those who might have that in mind.Tips on writing the blog,the necessity of an agent and info about the proposal are covered. She links, of course, to her agent's tips on going from blog to book.

Gina will be speaking at the BlogHer '07 conference session "Blog to Book and Back Again."

Blogs as Platforms for Writers

"Platform is all about a writer showing they can get people's attention. Publishers need authors' help to get books into the market." - Terry Whalin from an 6/5/07 online Q&A session, Ask Terry.

Here are some notes I took on the conversation.

Someone asked how important platform is for an author. Terry said it was all important, especially for non-fiction writers. 90% of non-fiction books never earn back their advance. Writers with established audiences are important because of overcrowded markets.

He said it's sometimes hard for writers to see how to build a platform. Options he mentioned were the internet, speaking, being prolific with writing or collaborating with someone high profile. Be creative.

He didn't specifically mention blogging, but that falls under the internet category. It's also creative.

Since he mentioned non-fiction, let's think about that. Build your blog on your proposed book's topic. Don't use book material for the blog. Though it might work for some people, a general rule would be to supplement your material. Maybe you could use some of the things you had to cut. Maybe you wanted to go more in depth, but didn't have room.

It takes time to build your blog readership, but it can be done. Then you can use your blog stats in your book proposal to demonstrate an interest in your topic and writing style. It won't make you rejection proof, but if you can show a publisher you've developed an audience, that's one more thing in your favor.

Go get your blog on.