Great content is one of the key components to online success, and the most important - without it you will almost certainly fail.
An eBook, if properly planned and executed, can position you as an authority in your niche or sector. It also can help you attract visitors to your website or feature as a key part of a launch strategy. However, if you get things wrong, you can easily create a negative image that will be hard to reverse!
Here are SubHub's top tips to consider when creating you eBook, to get it AND YOU noticed...
1. Research your subject thoroughly
Once you have a subject in mind (I suggest one that fits with the core content of your website, if you have one), make sure it's something that will have appeal. Google your subject area and see what has already been written about it. Is it a 'hot topic'?
It's also well worth looking at search volumes for your subject. It's safe to say that if 100,000 people have searched for the subject you're covering in the last month, there's the opportunity for your eBook to become popular. A good place to start is the Google AdWords Keyword Tool.
If you're happy that there's an audience for your eBook, find out everything you can about your subject area and your key topics, and try to think of something you can add to the mix that can't be found elsewhere. What's your USP?
2. Create an outline of what will be included before writing your first draft
After you've completed your research, don't move directly into creating a first draft of your eBook. Instead, it is well worth you listing the key ideas or topics that you will be covering, using bullet points. Distribute this list to colleagues or peers for feedback. It's much simpler to make changes or additions at this point (and don't forget, it may be that a major rethink is needed!), rather than after you've written an entire draft.
3. Think early on about how you will be promoting your eBook
Make sure early on that you (or your PR team) think about how you will be promoting your eBook, so that when the launch date arrives a process is already in place for getting you maximum exposure. This can include pre-launch list building, social media planning, Clickbank promotion and joint ventures.
4. Invite guest contributors
Don't think that by using guest contributors you are weakening your credibility. In fact, it can work to your advantage to include exclusive content from experts in their field, especially if they are well known, with a large following. Your guests will almost certainly be inclined to promote your ebook theselves, in their blogs, to their email lists, to their Twitter and Facebook followers and elsewhere. Let your contributors be your ebook's co-promoters.
There's even more of a chance of co-promotion if you are making your eBook available as a paid product, as you can offer commission through the likes of Clickbank.
5. Print copies of your eBook
If you've written a lot of great, unique content and invested time and money in creating great looking graphics for your eBook cover and inside content, consider printing (on decent stock) a few hundred bound copies. This can make for a quality handout at conferences, a great bonus addition as part of a larger product launch, or a useful reminder to new prospects you've met face to face.
6. Plan your follow up strategy
Okay, so you've created a great looking ebook. What next?
Now is the time to take advantage of the attention, authority and buzz your book has hopefully generated.
Build on the theme of your eBook with articles, webinars and other tie-ins, such as conference appearances. If your eBook isn't tied in with a website, consider launching a blog or membership website focused on the subject area and topic offshoots. The are endless possibilities for what to do next. Your eBook is just the start!
7. Think of your next eBook!
If your first eBook has proved to be successful, your second should be even easier to create, as you now have a defined strategy to follow. Build on the success of what you've already created and strike while the iron's hot.
Conclusion
Ultimately, the above tips should prove useful in helping you create your eBook, but ultimately the number one thing you need is patience and determination. If you stay focused and keep your eyes on the prize you'll end up with a finished product you'll be proud of and other will want to read!