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| Võ Minh Quân, or Quân Võ, is the author of Profit-Driven Digital Marketing, which was ranked as the #1 bestseller in the Global Marketing category on Amazon just one month after its release. Photo: giaoducthoidai.vn |
Võ Minh Quân is known at home and abroad for his book Profit-oriented digital marketingwhich was ranked as a Top New Release and then as the #1 Best Seller in the Global Marketing category on Amazon just one month after its release.
The 37-year-old author, also known as Quân Võ, published Profit-oriented digital marketing in March of this year.
It is available in three formats: e-book, paperback and hardcover. The English audiobook version was released in late June and is available on various global platforms such as Google Play, Barnes & Noble, Libro.fm, Kobo and. Audiobooks.com.
The book has reached readers all over the world, including in the United States, the United Kingdom, Ireland, the Netherlands, Japan, Germany and Canada. This global version is also included in the libraries of twelve universities in Ireland.
The newcomer’s first book is in Vietnamese and is titled Digital marketing is right for you (Digital Marketing for Managers) will be published by the end of 2022.
Digital marketing is right for you is available on e-commerce channels and major bookstores in Vietnam and was nominated for the “Top 5 Most Popular Vietnamese Business Books” and the “Top 10 Must-Read Business Books in 2023” by Saigon Business Magazine.
Quân was a student in the advanced computer science program at the University of Science in HCM City, in partnership with Portland State University in the USA.
He has founded companies in various fields and is currently the CEO of a digital marketing company in HCM City and a visiting lecturer on entrepreneurship at the University of Science.
“I was not an all-round student in secondary school, only ‘average’ in literature and ‘bad’ in chemistry because I couldn’t remember formulas well,” he told giaoducthoidai.vn:
But his curiosity about the social sciences has remained with him since his time as a physics student.
“The older I get, the more I enjoy reading and engaging with social sciences, literature and art because they are interesting. As I grew older, my curiosity grew and I read many books on various topics, both in Vietnamese and English. This is very much true for my current job and the motivation to write a book that many people would enjoy.” Said Quan.
“Of course, it was not easy to publish the book globally. In addition to the support of the platform in promoting the book, I had to overcome many challenges in order to write the book in such a way that Make sure it is not outdated and meets the taste of foreign readers.”
For Quân, writing a book is not just about sharing knowledge, but also about seriously thinking about the product, starting with the title, cover design, price, promotion and much more.
All of these aspects require time and skilled personnel.
As for the content, he believes it is important that it is engaging and relatable. Readers should find value in the book, be able to identify with the situations they experienced and apply the lessons learned to their lives.
“I don’t have a strong personal brand in the global market, so releasing the book on the international market required careful preparation, treating it as a serious product, doing market research and having a clear target audience,” said Quân.
“Competition on e-commerce platforms like Amazon is extremely fierce. Buyers rely partly on the author’s brand, whether he or she is well-known and trustworthy. While overseas markets are huge and diverse, and there are countless experts in different fields, the competition is even more complex for a new author like me.”
Self-publishing platform
In Vietnam, Quân works with the team at Giver Books.
Like other publishers, Giver Books supports authors with content editing, cover design, acquiring publishing licenses, and printing, distributing, and promoting the book.
However, instead of looking for a publisher with extensive support abroad to publish the English book, Quân decided to build his own team to help him with cover design, editing, and ensuring the book’s suitability for the international market.
He also explored the Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP) platform, an Amazon service to support self-publishing authors.
KDP was founded in 2007 and is used by many authors worldwide, but is still relatively unknown among Vietnamese authors.
“Royalties for authors depend on the format of the book sold – paperback, hardcover or e-book – and range from 35 to 70 percent of the list price. Amazon calculates royalties by deducting printing costs (for print books) and taxes based on the country or territory of origin,” he said.
“If an author wants Amazon to support distribution to retailers, they can pay an additional fee. The profit an author receives per book is not high, but in return, Amazon takes care of the rest by merely uploading the book file and cover design to the platform.”
Self-publishing on Amazon enables print-on-demand distribution, allowing authors to control the print quantity according to demand and thus save on printing costs.
In addition, Amazon has printing plants in several countries. The growing network of printing plants has the potential to transform the publishing industry by eliminating the need to physically transport books across national borders.
According to author Quân, KDP breaks down traditional hurdles in the publishing process and allows books to more easily reach their readers.
Quân also spends a lot of time on research and analysis, choosing keywords to help buyers find his book more easily through search engines. Choosing the book’s category for classification is crucial, such as the “Global Marketing” category on Amazon.
In addition, factors such as cover design, presentation format and pricing, which are based on research of foreign books in the same field, are crucial to market the book as an international product.
He also considers making price adjustments at various times to ensure the book’s competitiveness and make it a bestseller.
Inspire his children
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| Quân Võ’s books are available in the libraries of 20 universities in Vietnam. Photo: giaoducthoidai.vn |
It is known that one of the reasons the author writes his books is because he wants to give his children the opportunity to find their father’s achievements online.
In his opinion, personal effort is a way to push boundaries and pave the way for his children. What he achieves can serve as an example to his children.
“Selling books from Vietnam to the whole world is something not many people would have thought possible before. I strive to make it possible,” said Quân.
“I want my children to understand that they can achieve anything if they try hard enough, even if it is difficult and they do not take other people’s opinions seriously.
“I hope that what I do – including writing and selling books on Amazon and ‘exporting’ knowledge from Vietnam to the world – will give my children more confidence and motivation to pursue their potential and interests and not be limited by prejudices or barriers that society places on them.”
Quân started from scratch and thought through every step along the way. He constantly challenges himself with different milestones and overcomes numerous difficulties on the path of knowledge export.
“My wish is to help create a wave of Vietnamese authors who dare to ‘package’ their knowledge and experiences and share them with readers around the world, thus promoting confidence and pride in the Vietnamese intelligentsia,” he said. VNS
