People do not buy the tangible paper and ink. They buy the intangible benefits, what the book will do for them. For fiction, this is fantasy, romance, adventure, or mystery. With nonfiction, they are buying information, inspiration, motivation, and help. This intangible value is the message you must take out to the world.
Advertising is the traditional vehicle, and the easiest.
You pay someone to reach your target market for you. Getting yourself on radio talk shows and on the speaker panel of conferences is harder, but effective, rewarding, and great fun. Below are a few tactics for reaching your potential readers and pulling books into the pipeline. Guerrilla marketing, where you go to your readers, such as the author who painted the book title on his car roof for people in high-rise offices to see. Some tactics cost very little, such as hosting an online chat room, but consume a lot of time.