Writing Effective Book Descriptions

It’s Memorial Day, and you know what that means?

Summer’s just around the corner. And, with it come the hot weather doldrums. Book sales slowdown. Sometimes they stop all together.

That got me to thinking it’s probably time to dust off my book covers, and start sprucing up my book descriptions. I spent this weekend rewriting all my book descriptions.

Most times when I publish a new book, I’ll grab a few quotes, and add a couple of lines to tie them all together. Sometimes it works. Other times, what I come up with can sound disjointed.

I decided to start from scratch this time, and take an all new approach. Part of that included using more HTML Code to highlight my descriptions. I used a lot of Amazon orange and bold black. The result really makes the descriptions stand out.

I started every description with either a bold black headline using the <H1> code, or else with two or three lines using Amazon orange <H2>.

Here’s the description I used for my book, How to Make Money Selling Old Books & Magazines Online.

There’s a lot of information out there about how to sell books on eBay

But there’s nothing quite like this

I’m going to show you how to tear apart old books and magazines, repackage them for sale on eBay, and how you can easily turn $15.00 into $250.00. 

Sounds impossible, doesn’t it?

I know all of my friends and relatives thought I’d lost my marbles when I told them what I do for a living. And, you can hardly blame them. 

Hey there. My name is Nick Vulich. Most people online know me as history-bytes. Over the last fifteen years I’ve made a living tearing apart old books and magazines and reselling them on eBay. 

Yes! You heard that right. 

I remove magazine articles, prints, and advertisements from old books and magazines, and resell them to ready buyers on eBay. 

I know it sounds kind of nuts. But, over the last fifteen years, I’ve sold over thirty thousand magazine articles alone. I’ve shipped them to China, Russia, Mexico, India, Australia, just about every country in the world. 

It’s an amazing business

Think about it for a minute. I take old books and magazines that libraries and individuals are ready to throw away, tear them apart, and sell one to ten page chunks to ready buyers around the world. 

And, here’s the best part! 

They pay me $15.00 to $50.00 for each of them. Several have sold for over $250.00 each. 

How crazy is that! 

If you’ve ever considered selling books or paper collectibles on eBay, this short guide can help you better understand

·         How to source product

·         how to write descriptions that sell

·         How to price your items for maximum profit

Selling vintage magazine articles, prints, and advertisements can be one of the most lucrative gigs on eBay. 

Here’s the thing. Even if this isn’t the product for you, the ideas presented in this book can kick-start your thinking about what you can sell on eBay. 

It’ll get you started looking at common everyday items around you and thinking, what if

·         Package these items together

·         Break it apart, and sell each piece separately

·         Or, what if I ….

You get the picture. People are selling just about everything imaginable on eBay. The problem is they’re all fighting to sell the same stuff, and as a result prices – and profits, go down. 

If you want to make real money on eBay – You need to change the rules

Create an all new game, where you’re calling the shots

Be an original, and make more money than you ever thought possible!

...............

You can check it out online here.

What I think makes it work is the description sets my book apart all of the way through. I poke fun at myself, telling potential readers “all of my friends and relatives thought I’d lost my marbles when I told them what I do for a living.”

After telling them I must be crazy, I add, “If you’ve ever considered selling books or paper collectibles on eBay, this short guide can help you better understand…” And, I explain what they’re going to learn in three bullet points.

This is something you want to do in all of your descriptions. You want to lay out the benefits people will receive from reading your book.

And then, I make one last pitch – “Here’s the thing. Even if this isn’t the product for you, the ideas presented in this book can kick-start your thinking about what you can sell on eBay.”

It’s like a whack on the side of the head.

I tell potential buyers, even if old books and magazines aren’t your thing, that’s not important. It’s the concept.

And, that’s where the last three lines in Amazon orange come into play.

If you want to make real money on eBay – You need to change the rules

Create an all new game, where you’re calling the shots

Be an original, and make more money than you ever thought possible!

…………..

I’d like to tell you it’s the greatest description ever, and it got me selling a hundred books a day, but the verdict isn’t in yet. I just posted this description.

What I like about it, is it talks directly to potential readers. It gives them a good look at what’s inside the book. It tells them three major benefits they’re going to take from the book. And, finally it has a strong call to action.

What I really like is the look and effect from stacking the Amazon orange type. I think it helps build authority.

For shoppers scouting out new books on a PC, I think the look is as important as the description. If they’re shopping on a Kindle, of course, the Amazon orange, and the big bold headlines don’t display. Because of that, you really need to make the copy count.

It’s got to reach out and grab potential readers.

It’s got to tell a good story.

It’s got to get them excited.

And, more importantly it’s got to make them press the buy button.

What do you think? Does this concept work for you, or do I need to head back to the drawing board?