A friend recently asked me to look over her book proposal, and I noticed that
she didn't include any information about her "platform." When I asked her about
it, she said, "What’s a platform?"
A platform is indispensable if you plan to sell your book, and here's why.
"Platform" is a term used in the book-publishing world to describe what an
author-expert can offer to help market his or her book. Authors should include
this information when proposing a book to publishers and agents.
It confirms that the author has a built-in audience for the book, which is
obviously important to publishers. Publishers are in the business of selling
books, and they are most interested in authors who can help them do that.
A prospective author with a large fan base or with a large number of people
who have bought other products from the prospective author is more likely to
sell books than one who doesn't have a large audience.
In addition, many book publishers are cutting down or even eliminating
marketing support for all but the biggest-name authors, so a strong platform
from a prospective author helps assure sales.
What do publishers look for to ensure that you have a large following? Here
are some items:
- A TV show, radio show or column in a major media outlet
- Frequent guest appearances on a major TV show or radio show
- A large e-mail newsletter list or blog subscriber list
- Publicity in major national media outlets
- Frequent speaking engagements, especially to large groups
- E-books, and other books and products sold
"Having a great platform is critical when selling books to publishers," notes
literary agent Marilyn Allen of the
Allen O'Shea
Literary Agency. "It's the first thing I look at when considering a new
client."
Building a strong platform helped Jacqueline Whitmore, director of the
Protocol School of
Palm Beach, get an agent and publisher. Her book,
Business Class--Etiquette Essentials for Success at Work, was published
by St. Martin's Press in 2005. Whitmore's platform included an e-mail newsletter
subscriber base of 4,000 people, national publicity on TV and in print, and
frequent speaking engagements.
National publicity was the primary part of the platform Alan Haft used to
sell his book,
You Can Never Be Too Rich--Essential Investing Advice You Cannot Afford to
Overlook to publisher John Wiley & Sons in 2007.
"The publisher was impressed that I managed to get a large amount of national
publicity in top media without having a book already. The fact that the media
was willing to quote me made me very credible," Haft says. In addition, Haft had
written newspaper columns for small publications.
Building a platform isn't easy, but it's critical if you want to sell a book
to a publisher. It's also a great way to increase sales. So start building your
platform--and your business--today.
Margie Zable Fisher is the president of Zable Fisher Public Relations, the leader in small business public relations. To get her free e-mail tips and publicity opportunities, visit zfpr.com.