The Surprising Marketing Tool You Should Be Using (Hint: It's eBooks)

When you've been outside in the hot sun, your eyes are going to be naturally attracted to some refreshing water. Unfortunately, it's not always that simple when it comes to getting a customer's eyes on your product. When you think of boosting your performance to reach your target audience, your mind may immediately go to social media, blogs, advertisements, and partnerships. While those are all good ideas and will likely improve your notoriety, there is a hidden secret to boosting your performance. Consider writing an eBook with valuable information and offer it to your customers. It could be a free download or something you sell for a discounted price.

Typically, companies use eBooks as an add-on to a package they are already offering. This makes the package more appealing to the average consumer as they get more out of the deal. In addition, using an eBook can establish your company as a leader among your competition.

Read on to discover five ways you can leverage eBooks for your business.

Increasing Sales

Once you have written your eBook and promoted its existence, customers should be able to find it on your website. Once they have navigated to your page to buy or download the eBook, it should lead them to another offer. This could be a link to register for your annual conference, a page for another product, or even a services page. Since you already have them there getting the book, it is a perfect time to get their eyes on other things your company does. Make sure whatever page the eBook leads to appeals to your customers, or they will likely just click away and go somewhere else.

Depending on what page you link to, you may want to include a call to action. For example, if it is going to the conference page, you will want to ensure you include something like, "Don't forget to sign up for our annual conference. Find out even more trade secrets when you attend." Even if you are giving away the eBook for free, the revenue you have the potential to gain from getting people to your website may more than compensate for it. Plus, if your eBook is truly helpful, people will likely recommend it to others which can lead to even more customers.

Generating Leads

In the lead-up to releasing your eBook, give away the first chapter for free. Even if you plan to ultimately give the entire thing away for free or at a low cost, the first chapter will create anticipation for your launch. Use your other platforms like social media and advertising to get the word out about the eBook.  Allowing users to sign up ahead of time and get the first chapter will give you leads on people who are both into free stuff and who are interested in your service or products.

Publishers have found a lot of success in releasing the first chapter or small excerpts to entice readers to buy the entire book. If you really want to increase your reach and generate more leads, find an influencer who can promote it on their own platforms. You will want to find an influencer who is related to what you are offering. For example, if you are selling garden hoses and partner with a makeup influencer over a famous DIY-er, you're less likely to generate leads due to a lack of audience interest in your product.

Establishing Credibility

Customers want to know that your company knows what they are talking about. Therefore, it is essential that customers see you as an expert on what you are offering, or they are not likely to buy your product or service.

Writing and distributing an eBook is an excellent way to both provide a resource for your potential customers and establish credibility in your field. It shows you know the topic well if you're able to write an entire book on it. It doesn't matter whether you have gained this knowledge over time by writing blog posts/articles or through research and work experience. An eBook is an incredible tool to make a name for yourself in your field while also providing plenty of value and expertise to your customers.

Engaging Existing Customers

In your quest to find new customers, you don't want to forget about the ones you already have. You need to continuously engage with your current customers unless you want to risk losing them. While an eBook is great for generating leads, increasing sales, and establishing credibility, it is also an easy way to engage with the customers you already have. Promote your eBook through your existing social media channels by providing an excerpt. Your current customers will see the excerpt and be drawn to your website by your call to action to keep them reading to find out more.

Improving Website Traffic

You can introduce your eBook to your audience by putting it on a dedicated page on your website. You want to heavily entice them to get the entire book. You can do this by providing the highlights and reminding the audience that the book contains info that may help take their business to the next level.

An eBook is a great way to get prospective customers to visit your website, ask about your services, or start a conversation with someone from the company. As long as you do a great job of getting information out about your eBook and creating an appealing design on your landing page, you should see more conversions as a result of your eBook.

At Acton Circle, we can help you develop a brand strategy from which you can create an eBook that resonates with your target audience. Contact us today!