Ebook Covers - How To Do It Right

If you've gotten anywhere near the topic of ebooks or how to create them, sooner or later the question of ebook covers will surface.

In case you're wondering, yes, it's important to have an image associated with any ebook you create. Why? Simply because it takes something that might otherwise be considered nothing more than a digital file and turns it into an actual product.

Now the question is, do you pay someone else to make the ebook covers or do you create them yourself?

Paying someone who is already experienced is naturally a sound decision, but not everyone wants to spend hard earned cash for yet another aspect of ebook creation and marketing.

The only other alternative is to make your own covers. So how do you go about doing that?

One choice would be to purchase a software program that allows you to automatically create them. Basically, you choose a cover style, add text and images, and the software program produces a professional looking cover.

Of course, not everyone is prepared to plunk down the kind of money it takes to purchase quality software. And if you choose any of the cheaper software out there, the ebook covers you produce will be of such inferior quality, you wouldn't have gained much.

Let's face it. No one is going to take your ebook seriously if the cover that represents the product looks unprofessional.

So the only choice left is to make your own images from scratch. Unfortunately, there's a learning curve with regard to the actual steps involved. How difficult a learning curve? That depends on the draw program you use to create the ebook covers.

For example, one of the most popular draw programs is PhotoShop. The problem is, it's expensive AND difficult to master. Especially if you're a relative novice. Not to mention the fact that these types of programs are designed to produce high quality graphics. Creating ebook covers isn't even remotely considered.

The good news is, there are plenty of low cost and free draw programs that are capable of producing professional quality covers. And the learning curve? They range somewhere between beginner and intermediate.

Which means most anyone can create their own ebook covers without too much difficulty. But again, draw programs aren't geared toward creating them. So determining how to do that can be quite frustrating.

Unlike other graphics, ebook covers need very specific functions that will produce plausible and attractive results. For example, most draw programs allow you to create rectangles (the basic shapes involved in ebook covers). The only problem is, they don't all allow you to easily skew the rectangles so the ebook cover will have the correct perspective and dimension.

The second biggest problem is text. Although the ability to create and customize text is a basic tool that most every draw program provides, you can't always properly manipulate it. If you can only reshape text one letter at a time rather than as a whole object, you won't be able to align text to the same perspective as the cover itself. At least, not within an acceptable time frame.

Another difficulty that's specific to ebook covers is whether or not you can easily incorporate images. Finding a good image is one thing. Trying to get it to look right on cover image(perspective, sizing, background) is a whole different story.

The bottom line? Choose a draw program that has all the necessary functions but isn't so complicated that it needs a graphics design specialist to figure it out. If you can do that, it's simply a matter of building your ebook cover one piece at a time...

First, create and position the individual parts. Next, size and place design images. Now add and enhance necessary text. All that's left is to finalize the ebook cover with a few finishing touches.

As long as you practice the steps individually and then collectively, you'll be able to create the kind of images you want and need.

And once you're capable of creating your own ebook covers from scratch? You'll experience the same confidence and satisfaction that comes with mastering any formidable task. Now that's success.

Maggie Lietz
eBookHelper.com

Maggie Lietz specializes in writing, creating, and publishing ebooks. Plenty of valuable information about ebooks, online business, and Internet marketing is available on her website at Ebookhelper.com. Professional services include website and graphic design, copywriting, and ebook cover images.

How To Sell Plenty Of eBooks

There is a successful procedure for getting good sales on your e-book.

1. Research your topic thoroughly. Really, you can sell almost anything if enough people want what you are selling, so do some digging around on websites like Ask.com to find out what people want the answers to. There are of course other sites to look at, even your favourite search engine should throw up some suggestions merely by typing in "How do I", and Google Trends will also show you what is hot at the moment.

2. Learn some basic copywriting. This is important because you have to be able to write a good sales page in order to bring attention to your product. Have a look at several sales pages, and start a swipe file of phrases which you think are particularly persuasive. After all, this is no different from what lots of copywriters are doing anyway. Remember to stress the benefits of your product, rather than the product itself. Your headline should stress the biggest benefit, the biggest promise, or the best value for money, either one of those will do for a compelling headline.

3. Make your e-book different from everyone else's. A common failing of newcomers to the Internet is to buy some MRR and PLR products and put them back up for sale without changing anything. This is crazy, as you are competing with thousands of other people, all selling exactly the same thing as you. You have to find some way of bringing something different or unique in your product. You will find that uniqueness is what sets you apart from all the rest. It stands to reason that if a product is merely duplicated all over the web, its value will be very low. For instance, you can go to a site like Tradebit, and look at all the E books which are for sale there. A lot of them have just been bought and immediately relisted at a lower price. This happens over and over again until you get to a ridiculously low price, something like 50 cents. So if you can make even one thing unique about your product, even at you just change the graphics, you will have a lot more sales. Try to make your product different and look as if it is good value. Remember everything that can be said about a topic has probably already been said, so don't let the thought of having to create something completely unique deter you.

4. Create bonuses that have high perceived value. Believe it or not, some people will buy a product just to get the bonuses. Just make sure that you check the rights to your bonus to make sure that you are allowed to give it away.

5. Only when you have done all the preceding four steps should you even begin to write the e-book. Lots of times your sales page will dictate what your e-book will do and how it should be set out. You can either write the book yourself, rewrite a PLR product so that it is at least 50% different from the original, or get a ghost writer to write it for you.

Follow these procedures and you should start to see far more sales then you have been used to up till now.

Peter Phillips is an author, internet entrepreneur and offline consultant living in Canberra, Australia

For internet marketing:
http://www.money-makingopportunities.com/

For offline consulting:
http://www.threepr.com/

Creative Ebook Writing Ideas

I have the desire. I have the keyboard. How do I find the best I have to write about? What if no one likes my writing? I imagine most aspiring writers have had those conversations with themselves. I sure have. The truth is, though, we all have many books inside us. Unique thoughts and experiences that are ours, and yet so similar and relatable to other people.

Sometimes in our day to day life, we get lost in the 'Matrix'. We forget our 'child like' curiosity, and our thoughts get clouded with, well, life. Give yourself a gift. The gift of time to clear your head and think. Dream, wonder, and breath. Getting quiet and closing your eyes, while inhaling and exhaling deeply can start the subconscious to fire ideas at you. Keep a notepad ready and write everything that comes to mind. No matter what it is. If you fall asleep, remember your dreams if possible. Keep that note pad with you everywhere you go, and determine to be present, aware, and curious of all around you. Not only will book titles jump out at you, but life will seem to spring up all around as well.

Our memories hold a library of joys and laughter, tragedy and tears. Even unpleasant times in your life can make useful book material, because there are people out there who have had the same experience, and may be comforted to know they were not alone. How you coped with or overcame the situation may be the answer they needed. No one has seen through your eyes, or had your thoughts and feelings. When your story connects with readers who can relate to it, they will laugh with you, cry with you, wonder with you, and even feel what you felt.

Practical topics, like our experience with pets like birds, cats, dogs, fish, or even more unusual critters, can make good ebooks. Also sports like fishing, hunting and archery skills. Gold mining 'how to'. Growing food, home building, home repair. Whatever your skills are can be helpful to many.

Real life adventures and unexplained oddities. Even fictional characters who have led amazing lives that the real us were to timid to ever venture. Humor is universally sought after. We all love to laugh.

Your work experience is valuable and helpful to thousands of readers. Health experience, and even hobbies can be a wealth of material.

If you're not a professional writer, and know practically nothing about ebook creation like I did, then you need a helping start to get your creative ebook writing ideas all together, written, and published online for sale. There's a lot of competition in the ebook world. We need an edge to jump in and let the world know we are here, and we have something to say.

To learn much more detailed information on how to take an idea and transform it into a published ebook, visit http://www.ebookstarts.com/
Also feel free to drop by my blog at http://www.newebookwriter.blogspot.com/