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Last Updated on July 8, 2021
You might be wondering if anyone bothers to read anything anymore. Especially in print. Steve Jobs famously said that people don’t read anymore. That was just before launching Apple’s very own bookstore. That was classic Jobs. He didn’t mind being wrong if he could find a way to make a profit from it. The important takeaway is that Jobs was wrong, then. And you are wrong, now if you believe that people don’t read anymore.
We still have giant book retailers. The magazine section is still one of the largest sections in the store. Pop reading is alive and well. The fact that much of it happens on digital devices does not change a single thing. If anything, more people are reading than ever before because there are more ways to do the reading, including on sites like this one.
Cookbooks are among the bestsellers because the present generation didn’t grow up learning to cook. They are hungry for beginner-level cooking instruction. And you are the perfect person to provide it. Shed the notion that you have to be a professional chef to have something worthy to share. That is simply not the case. You already have what it takes. Here are the basics:
Sell It on Amazon
Before you start writing your book, it is prudent to know if there is an audience and a seller. You might be wondering, is selling on Amazon worth it? You will quickly realize from the ecommerce metrics that kitchen and cooking lead the way when it comes to Amazon customers. They can’t get enough kitchen gadgets and instructions on how to use them. This means that a cookbook is not just a good idea, it might well be the best idea.
Another place you can look for confirmation is your favorite video sharing service. There are two things that seem to always rise to the top: The first is cooking instruction. The second is anything to do with cats being cats. The takeaway is that you should augment your cookbook with a free video component, ideally, with a cat randomly entering the scene. Hey, there is no reason to reinvent the wheel or fight against what works. If you can get your cat to wear a chef’s hat, you are that much more likely to hit a million views. It couldn’t hurt.
Target Beginners
If you know how to cook for your family, you are way ahead of a depressingly large number of people. If your family likes your cooking, chances are some other family will like it as well. Do you have an Instant Pot? Do you think you make the best Instant Pod shredded chicken? If so, you are well ahead of the game. There are at least a million people who bought an Instant Pot because their friend talked them into it. After having it for several weeks, they barely know how to turn it on. That person is going to buy someone’s book whose shredded chicken recipe isn’t as good as yours.
By sticking with beginners, you will never run out of potential customers. Sure, your people will eventually grow beyond the basic instructions you offer. But they will be continually and endlessly replenished. There is another benefit worth considering: If you stick to beginning instruction, you will get very good at it. You will learn how to anticipate what beginners want to know. And you will become an expert at providing that instruction.
Insert Humor and Personality
Obviously, people will want lots of recipes with simple instructions and ingredients with which they are familiar. But they can get that anywhere. You have to give them a reason to choose your book. Include plenty of humor and personal stories about how you discovered the recipes. That is also what you need to do with your video offerings. Yes, people want to see you assemble and prepare recipes. But what you are really selling is yourself. Sell yourself to your video channel and your book will be an almost certain success.
Believe it or not, we do not have enough cookbooks for beginners, not even close. Amazon is ready. Aspiring cooks are ready. And your bright and winning personality is ready. At the end of the day, that is the recipe for success.
