Mobilizing Your Community through Endorsements:

A Key Component of Your Marketing Campaign

What: Berrett-Koehler authors are asked to get endorsements for their books for a number of reasons. This tip sheet explains why we see this as a key part of marketing your book, who you should approach, and how to do it. We also tell you what you can do even if you’ve already got the finished book in your hands. (Skip to the end for that part.)

Why: Endorsements themselves are a nice enhancement for your book. They add credibility in the eyes of the readers.

But just as important, the prospect of having to solicit endorsements forces you to sit down and think about your community, which is vital.

The whole process of getting endorsements is actually one of the first steps in your marketing campaign. As our CEO Steve Piersanti wrote in his immortal and infamous article “Ten Awful Truths About Book Publishing,” “Everyone in the potential audiences for a book already knows of hundreds of interesting and useful books to read but has little time to read any. Therefore people are reading only books that their communities make important or even mandatory to read. There is no general audience for most nonfiction books, and chasing after such a mirage is usually far less effective than connecting with one’s communities.”

Asking for endorsements is a powerful way of connecting with key players in your community. People are often flattered to be asked to endorse a book. And the people who end up endorsing the book will then have some small sense of ownership—their names are in the book; they’ve spoken up for it. And it gives you a reason to go back to them after the book is out and ask for their help (more on that later) in spreading the word.

So when deciding who to ask for endorsements, think about your audience. Who do you know? And who do they know?

How: The process of securing endorsements for your book is not difficult but requires some thought and planning early in your marketing campaign.

What about big names I don’t know but who I know would love the book?
You’re still going to need a way in. While you can certainly send your book to Malcolm Gladwell with a nice note and hope for the best, without some kind of personal connection it’s doubtful anything is going to come of it. If your cousin’s daughter is on his staff and thinks she can get the book to him, give it a shot, but frankly your energy is better spent on people with whom you already have some connection. BK can also be a gateway to other BK authors, and many of our authors love to endorse other BK books.

What should I send?
You should send the final manuscript.

Your final manuscript is due four months before your book goes to press. Even though it won’t be copyedited yet, let alone laid out, that is the best version to send because it gives your potential endorser plenty of time.

Generally the front cover design has been finalized by the time the final manuscript is due, so if you’re sending a physical copy and want it to look nice, you can take it to your local FedEx Office, copy it, and put a printout of the book cover on the front. If you’re sending an electronic copy, you can paste the front cover into your file as the first page to give it a little more polish.

You can’t wait for your manuscript to be copyedited and laid out, especially if you’re targeting a big name who might be extremely busy or may need some time to think it over. That part of the process happens too close to publication.

For people you know well, you could send a less-than-final version of the manuscript. If they’re familiar with your work, they might only need proof that you finally wrote that book you’ve been talking about for so long.

Also, your prospective endorsers may not have a lot of time on their hands, so consider sending them just a portion of the manuscript, perhaps the portion that is most relevant to them, or highlight the portions you think they’d find the most relevant.

Finally, you can also include an example endorsement. More on that below.

How many endorsements should I get?
You should get lots, if they’re good ones.

Only two to four endorsements will fit on your book’s back cover. That’s where you’d put your big “gets.” But we can reserve as many pages as you think you’ll need for endorsements inside the book. But, again, the key is to fill these pages with people who can help the book. Go for quality, not quantity. (But quality-quantity is good too!)

Can I write the endorsements myself?
Yes, you can!

You can send a few versions of endorsements to your potential endorser and ask the endorser-to-be to pick one as-is, pick one and change it to his or her liking, mix and match, or start from scratch. This is a very common practice and is a good way to get an endorsement out of a busy person. It’s much easier to revise an endorsement than to write one. Just make sure two people don’t pick the same endorsement!

I’ve gotten my brand-new book from the printer! (Or I have some copies of my book lying around gathering dust.) What do I do now?
As a BK author you get a bunch of free copies of your book. Please use these to send a signed copy of the book to all your endorsers along with a nice thank-you note. But don’t limit your reach to only your endorsers. It’s a great idea to send similar letters to other interested parties: people mentioned in the book; your mailing list, personal or professional; anybody you think might be inclined to help create some buzz about the book. Signing the book to the person using the person’s name also ensures that they won’t turn around and sell it on Amazon!

We can supply customizable template messages and your book’s title should be mentioned, but basically your letter should go something like this:

For endorsers:

“Dear ________,

I am delighted to present you with a signed copy of my book, which you so kindly endorsed.

Or, for someone who is not an endorser:

As a token of my appreciation for allowing me to interview (you/your business/referring me/etc.), I’m delighted to present you with a signed copy of my book.

Then, for either group:

If you enjoy the book, I would really appreciate it if you would…

At this point you can insert a complete list of what anyone can do, or you can just include those items that you think the person would be most likely to do, based on your relationship with her or him. Here are some typical alternatives, from easiest to toughest:

• Please, post a review on Amazon.com. To do this, go to the Amazon site, look up (name of book), scroll down to Customer Reviews and click on Create Your Own Review and jot down a few lines.

• If you could publish your review of the book anywhere else—in a company newsletter or website, or, ideally, an industry or other type of national publication—I’d be grateful.

• If you have a website, it would be great if you could put a link for the book on your site. You probably already know about the Amazon Associates program, but Berrett-Koehler now has its own version: the Berrett-Koehler Affiliate Network Program. It works the same way as the Amazon program, but you get a 10 percent commission for all products sold as a result of people clicking on the link, versus 4 to 6 percent for Amazon. (For more details click here.)

• If you enjoy the book and think it would be helpful to your organization, my publisher, Berrett-Koehler, offers competitive discounts for bulk purchases. Just contact Marina Cook, Senior Sales Manager, for more details. Her email address is mcook@bkpub.com and her direct line is 415-743-6468.

• And finally: tell your friends! Mention the book on your website, send out an email, post something on your Facebook page, send your followers a tweet, or just talk it up.

Thank you again for (add a personal note here—endorsing, helping with the book, being a friend or mentor, etc.).

Sincerely,

(your name)

This will take only a relatively small amount of your time—you could do two or three a day, cut and paste most of the letter—but it could pay big dividends.

Your community is critical to getting the ball rolling for your book. Its members will be most receptive to your message, and if these “early adopters” tell their friends, and their friends tell their friends, the results could be exponential. Rounding up endorsements helps you hone your marketing skills and can be an important step in any grassroots marketing campaign. For more information on grassroots book marketing, see our Author Tip Sheet on the subject—click here.

Endorsements after the book is out: Continue to passively collect endorsements after the book is out. They may be useful for using in a Press Release, article, marketing materials, in your business, or if the book is successful enough, a 2nd edition!

Thanks to Associate Director of Sales and Marketing Michael Crowley for writing this edition. Please contact Kristen Frantz or Zoe Mackey about any of the content included here.

Berrett-Koehler Publishers

www.bkconnection.com

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