| If you want to find more readers and sell more books, | | | | can a barber--someone who spends their time cutting |
| you must choose a title that immediately engages your | | | | other people's hair--become wealthy? What's the |
| prospective reader's attention and compels them to | | | | catch? Once you have engaged your prospect's |
| take the next step and learn more. That's why the | | | | attention enough to get them to ask a question, it |
| titles of many bestselling nonfiction books are intended | | | | becomes relatively easy to complete the sale. |
| to arouse the prospective reader's curiosity. | | | | Consider 2 books containing the same information: |
| Curiosity titles succeed because they are deliberately | | | | - The Wealthy Barber |
| vague, or intentionally provocative. Either way, | | | | - A Guide to Financial Independence |
| however, curiosity titles can sell more books because | | | | Which title is more memorable? Even better, Which |
| they attract attention and engage prospective book | | | | title promises you a better reading experience? |
| buyer, provoking questions that compel the | | | | Timothy Ferriss' The 4-Hour Workweek is a |
| prospective book buyer to take the next step: | | | | best-selling exampleof a contradiction title. Upon |
| - In a bookstore, the next step generally is to turn the | | | | encountering it, readers will typicaly ask: "How can it |
| book over and read the back-cover, or review the | | | | be?" or "What's the catch?" And, the book is |
| table of contents. | | | | turned-over, or opened, and the door has been opened |
| - Online, the next step usually involves reading the | | | | to another copy sold. Even if they don't believe the |
| book's description and skimming the reader reviews. | | | | title's premise, they're likely to want to know what the |
| In either case, the reader has been engaged, and is on | | | | author is trying to get away with! |
| their way to buying your book. | | | | The power of Outrageous titles attract readers by |
| The six types of "curiosity" titles: | | | | "going too far" |
| | | | Seth Godin, one of America's most popular marketing |
| 1. Titles that require explanation. These titles don't make | | | | authorities and personalities, is a master of the |
| sense on their own, arousing questions like "What's this | | | | outrageous title. One of Seth's best books is his Purple |
| all about?" Once prospective reader has asked | | | | Cow. After all, "Purple cows don't exist, so what he |
| themselves this question, they're almost certainly going | | | | talking about?" |
| to turn the book, or read on, to learn more. | | | | Another one of Seth Godin's books is his All Marketers |
| 2. Contradiction titles. These titles contain words that, | | | | Are Liars. If you're a marketing professional, you'd be |
| on the surface, contract themselves. These titles | | | | hard pressed not to ask, "What does Seth mean?" or |
| cause readers ask themselves, "How can that be?" | | | | "Has he really good too far this time?" And, having |
| 3. Outrageous titles. These go a step further in | | | | asked the question, your attemtopm jas beem |
| provoking reader's to learn more. | | | | emgaged and you explore further. |
| 4. "Peeping Tom" titles. These titles appeal to your | | | | Selling more books with a "Peeping Tom" title |
| reader's voyeuristic tendencies. Upon encountering | | | | Just as drivers always slow down when passing the |
| your title, readers want to know "What it was like to | | | | scene of an automobile accident, readers want to |
| go through that?" or "What's the real inside story?" | | | | know the inside story, they want to know what it was |
| 5. Exploration titles. These titles provoke questions like | | | | like to survive an event or go through an experience. |
| "What does the author mean?" They are provocative | | | | - David Ogilvy's Confessions of an Advertising Man is |
| in that they challenge the reader's existing knowledge | | | | a classic example of a "Peeping Tom" title. It promises, |
| by implying that there is more to be known about a | | | | and actually delivers, an insider's look at the thought |
| topic than the reader's already know. | | | | processes and one of the pioneers of modern |
| 6. Relationship titles. These titles sell more books by | | | | advertising. |
| creating a relationship between a topic and a frame of | | | | - In a similar vein, Paul B. Brown's Publishing Confidential |
| reference that readers can relate to. | | | | and Jerry Simmons' What Writers Need to Know |
| Although "transparent" titles that clearly describe a | | | | about Publishing, provide inside glimpses of book |
| book's benefits and the book's intended market are | | | | publishing. |
| usually the most desirable, sometimes "curiosity" titles, | | | | Curiosity titles can be successful for decades. Frank |
| like the ones described below, can sell more books. | | | | Bettger's "How I Raised Myself from Failure to |
| These titles can also be more memorable, making | | | | Success in Selling has been in print for well over 50 |
| word-of-mouth referrals and recommendations easier. | | | | years! This title connects with everyone's love of a |
| Secrets of titles that require explanation | | | | "rags to riches" story. The title also resonates with a |
| One of the most successful nonfiction book | | | | universal fear of failure. |
| successes of the past 30 years is Richard Bolles' s | | | | Examples of successful Exploration titles |
| What Color Is Your Parachute? which is updated each | | | | Exploration titles encourage readers to learn what they |
| year. Originating as a comment during a meeting | | | | don't know. They challenge the limits of a prospective |
| discussing the plight of those who have been | | | | reader's existing knowledge. |
| downsized, Parachute? books have sold over 10 million | | | | One of a best examples of an Exploration title is |
| copies around the world. | | | | Patricia Shultz's 1000 Places to See Before You Die. |
| With 10 million copies in print, clearly, the title has outsold | | | | The success of this concept has been repeated in |
| its more "straightforward" competition, because it | | | | other "1000" books, such as Workman Press's 1,000 |
| engages the reader's curiosity and begs the question, | | | | Recordings to Hear Before You Die and a host of |
| "How can this book possibly help me?" | | | | imitators. |
| The titles of Malcolm Gladwell's best-selling nonfiction | | | | Books don't sell themselves |
| books also arouse curiosity. The latest is Outliers. | | | | It takes a title to sell a book. Curiosity is one of the |
| When a reader picks-up a book with a strange title in | | | | most powerful techniques you can use when choosing |
| the "bestselling nonfiction" area of a bookstore, they | | | | a title for your book. Curiosity titles find more readers |
| inevitably ask: "What is an outlier?" and "Why should I | | | | and sell more books by engaging the prospective book |
| care?" This compels them to turn the book over, or--if | | | | buyer's interest and compelling them to learn more. |
| they're online--read some of the descriptive copy or | | | | When does a curiosity title make sense? A starting |
| watch the author video. | | | | point is to analze the titles of existing books in your |
| Contradictory titles | | | | field. What type of titles do they have? Are the titles |
| Contradictory titles can be very successful. They | | | | so descriptive and targeted that they lack character? |
| succeed by making the most of the brief second, or | | | | If so, a curiosity title might make sense. |
| two, available to attract a prospective book buyer's | | | | If you do choose a curiosity title, however, make sure it |
| interest and encourage them to spend more time | | | | is a meaningful one, one that--after a brief description |
| exploring your book's contents. The strength of these | | | | or explanation--makes sense to your readers. There's |
| titles comes from the apparent opposition between | | | | a thin line between arousing curiosity and confusing |
| elements of the title. | | | | your prospect book buyer. Curiosity titles, once |
| The contradiction between title elements can make | | | | explained, should become obvious, so they'll stick in |
| these titles very memorable. | | | | your reader's mind. |
| An example is David Chilton's Wealthy Barber. How | | | | |