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bestseller

Retweets Don't Make A Best-Seller

by Dr.Mani on August 28, 2009

RE-TWEET IT!

On August 25th, 2009, I had a fun-filled day launching my first ever print book, “Think, Write & Retire – How To Turn Words Into Wealth, Easily!“.

And in keeping with this era of social networking and marketing online, I was on Twitter most of the day, watching with mounting excitement as the buzz spread.

Tweet after tweet after tweet rippled across the Twitterverse. And as I watched the word spread like wildfire, rosy dreams of having an Amazon.com best-seller kept springing up before my eyes.

All who tweeted

And don’t get me wrong – the book launch went very well. My book started the week before with an Amazon.com rank of #821,902. On Tuesday morning, it was at #35,021. And by 3 a.m. on Wednesday, it had gone up all the way to #537 of all books listed on Amazon.com.

A few hours later, the book broke into the AMAZON.COM HOT 100 ranks, reaching #83 in Business & Investing, and a high of #474 overall.

Amazon.com HOT 100

Much of this was the result of the interest generated on Twitter.

But I wish Amazon.com awarded best-seller status based upon the number of tweets generated around a book – because then I would have BEEN NUMBER ONE… easily!
:)

Sadly, re-tweets do not make a best-seller. Book sales do.

And re-tweets not allow non-profits to do good work. Donations do.

Yet re-tweets will always be plentiful and profuse – because they are quick and easy. And therefore appealing.

The problem is, re-tweeting may be considered as EFFECTIVE ACTION, in and of itself.

It is not.

Impact, REAL meaningful impact, takes more than “quick and easy”.

It takes more than a casual involvement, for a few fleeting seconds, after which we get back to “business as usual”.

No. Impact takes effort. Commitment. Involvement.

Worst of all, impact takes TIME to achieve.

Time spent working behind the scenes. Without any fanfare or spotlights. Often doing the many tasks others won’t do, taking the trouble most are reluctant to take, hoping against hope that some day, all of it will pay-off in a big way.

Re-tweets are a prop to support the structure, for sure. Get your event or cause or product or service a quick flash of visibility among a wider audience.

But that impact is as fleeting and superficial as a casual ‘Thank you’ from a stranger.

It can, however, have the deep impact of a sincere smile from the same stranger – if the motivation behind it is deeper.

When you re-tweet from your heart.

And then, back it up by DOING something about whatever you re-tweet.

Like buying a book.

Or making a donation.

Or changing the world!

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Proud Dad

by Dr.Mani on July 29, 2009

RE-TWEET IT!

Ten years ago, I became a dad. It was an indescribable feeling, a thrill of excitement never before matched in an eventful and interesting life.

The memory of how I held the little one in my hand, staring in delight and wonder at the tiny bundle of joy, remains one of my brightest and best. Time and time again I have re-lived that moment in my mind, and every time since, it feels just as fantastic.

I knew what it really meant to be a “proud dad”.

Why talk about it today?

Because something happened yesterday which almost rivalled that special moment (no, it wasn’t quite the same, in fact, it came in a poor second when compared to being a dad, but was pretty special nonetheless!)

I became a proud… no, not dad, but PUBLISHED author!

I held in my hand the first copy of my new BOOK.

See – don’t I look proud?! :)

Think, Write and Retire book author

You can learn more about ‘Think, Write & RETIRE‘ here. And follow the blog where I share snippets from the book along with other valuable information for anyone starting to build an information business on the Web.

The official book launch is on August 25th, 2009. If you’d like to be a part of the events surrounding the launch, please let me know. You can learn more and sign up here.

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