An Author Must Talk About the Book

The Rule of 3 Feet

Part 4 of An Author’s Guide to Hand Selling Books
by David A. Rozansky, Publisher, Flying Pen Press
Readers, Writers & Royalties columnist
October 10, 2007

[This is the fourth article in a nine-part series.]

In the first article in this series, I gave a general overview of why authors should sell their own books. In that article, I gave a list of the seven rules we teach authors about how they can hand-sell their own books.

To quickly review, these seven rules are:

1. The Rule of Use. Authors must use books to sell books. (Discussed in a previous installment).

2. The Rule of Sales. Authors must be mentally and logistically prepared to sell their books. (Discussed in a previous installment).

3. The Rule of 3 Feet. Authors must tell everyone that comes within 3 feet about their books.

4. The Rule of 200. Authors must prepare a list of 200 contacts and work those contacts as their core fan base.

5. The Rule of 5x5. Authors must make five separate contacts, five times a day, and try to sell their books.

6. The Rule of Writing. Authors must keep writing new books.

7. The Rule of Crowds. Authors must sell their books before large crowds, preferably on the Internet.

This article will discuss the third rule, the Rule of 3 Feet, in detail.

The Rule of 3 Feet is very intuitive, and very easy to apply. The Rule of 3 Feet states, “To Sell a Product, the Seller Must Tell Everyone Within 3 Feet About the Product.”

Naturally, if you tell everyone about a product, those who are interested in it will buy it. It’s like falling off a log. And of all the Rules of Hand Selling that I share in this series, this is the one that is the most powerful, as well as the most obvious.

However, despite it’s simplicity and it’s power, most authors do not practice it. Those who do understand how powerful this rule is often misapply it, by giving the hard sell to everyone.

It’s important to look at the rule carefully, to make sure that the author does not work the rule in the wrong way.

One very important aspect of the Rule of 3 Feet is that the author needs to tell everyone who comes within three feet about the book, not necessarily try to sell the book. While that may seem contradictory to the previously discussed Rule of Sales, we all have had the experience with the over eager sales person who would not go away. An author should never make readers feel uncomfortable. When it comes to selling one’s book, an author will find the soft sell is a better approach.

Why is that? People are intrigued by authors. Someone who has actually written a book, for some reason, cannot be turned away. So long as the author is interesting to talk to, the prospective reader will be happy to hear about the book for as long as the author wishes to talk about it. Books generate curiosity.

Here is what happens, in my experience. Someone is having a simple discussion with another when they learn that the other person is an author. The question is asked, “Oh, really? What is the book about?” Another version of this question is “So, what do you write about?”

It is simply amazing. In no other business have I seen customers so happy to turn the conversation to what it is the seller is selling. The hardest thing for the author to do in this case is to simply make it known that he has written a book. After that, the other person will begin leading the conversation, and the author will have plenty of opportunities to weave the sales pitch into the conversation.

Once the author has determined that the prospective reader is sufficiently interested, then the Rule of Sales kicks in and he can ask, “So, I have a few copies with me. I can sell one right now if you would like me to sign it.” Or some such derivative of that.

It is strange that this was today’s topic, as I just received an email from a large organization that wants to begin selling one of Flying Pen Press’s titles, the Game Day Poker Almanac Official Rules of Poker, to its members. This began as the result of talking to a poker player at a poker table, who in turn led me to find the association. If I had not mentioned the title, I would never have made the sale.

And this leads to the reason why the Rule of 3 Feet is so powerful. It is the very essence of networking. It is not important to make the sale to everyone within 3 feet, because no one can. It is silly to even try. But everyone who comes within 3 feet will know someone who will be interested in the author’s book, and that will lead to more buzz marketing, more sales.

Some writers are shy about discussing their book. These writers are uncomfortable about boasting about themselves or their writing. Often, they fear being judged or rejected. Instead of looking at the Rule of 3 Feet as a way of selling books, look at the Rule of 3 Feet as a way to make friends. Shy authors should let these new friends ask questions about the book, to lead the conversation.

Some authors I have met wear a plastic badge that reads “Ask me about my book,” often with a second pin that has the cover of their book. This works. I tend to use a sign in my straw hat that reads “Writers and Editors Wanted.” Other times, I simply carry my work with me; few people can resist saying something to a person who is marking up a sheaf of papers with a red pen.

Ultimately, the Rule of 3 Feet is about being yourself. An author doesn’t have to push the book on people who are not interested. Instead, authors should be interesting in and of themselves. Readers like authors who can spin good stories in conversation, that tends to convince them that the book is worth reading. Passionate about the book’s topic or story is contagious.

While the Rule of 3 Feet is about talking to people within conversation range, this should be applied to all conversations in all media, including the Internet. Writers should use a signature block in their email clearly stating the name of the book they have written. Encourage people to ask about the book. At the end of articles and blog entries, an author should include information about the book. Even on the phone, it never hurts an author to state their profession.

The Rule of 3 Feet is the root of networking and buzz marketing. Applying it is simple, and leads to great friendships with very little effort.

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I would enjoy hearing from book authors about how they get people to ask about their books and how they apply the Rule of 3 Feet. Please feel free to post your comments.

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In the next installment, I will discuss The Rule of 200. To subscribe to the entire series of articles on the topic of An Author’s Guide to Hand Selling Books, please click on the “Subscribe to this Group” button at www.ReadWriteRoyalty.Gather.com. To receive all of Mr. Rozansky’s articles, subscribe at www.FlyingPenPress.Gather.com.

David A. Rozansky is the publisher of Flying Pen Press. He has been in publishing since 1987, and has more than one million published words under his byline. Flying Pen Press is at http://www.FlyingPenPress.com.

Flying Pen Press is the publisher of Kelli Mix’s authoritative poker rule book, The Game Day Poker Almanac Official Rules of Poker (ISBN 978-0-9795889-2-1, trade, $19.95). Visit www.KelliMix.com to buy a personally inscribed copy of her book, or to play poker with her in the Kelli Mix Carroll County CASA charity poker tournament on Nov. 10.