Circle of Literacy Blog

Monday, August 21, 2006

John Wood's email

Hi, all. Here is John Wood's email about his upcoming book.

"Dear Friends around the world,

"Did you know that 80% of all books are sold by word of mouth?

"I'm writing you because you can have a huge impact on the number of people who are introduced Room to Read through my upcoming book, Leaving Microsoft to Change the World.

"There are only 50 days until the book hits the shelves on August 29th! With your help, the next seven weeks could set us up for incredible success, which would mean millions of dollars raised for children of the developing world.

"We are hoping to enlist an army of over 5,000 "buzz agents" who will spread the word about the book and book-related events during my 20-city, 3-month tour. There are 500 of you on this mailing list, so we're 10% there! I'm asking for your help in getting the other 4,500 ... ideally by the end of next week!

"Here's how it works. I'm asking each of you to email or talk live with 10 friends whom you think might be impressed with Room to Read's mission and who might enjoy hearing more about our story. All they have to agree to do is to receive a FREE electronic copy of Chapter 1, which chronicles my first visit to a rural Nepali school that had 450 students, but less than 20 books. It was here that the vision of Room to Read was born.

"To receive a copy, all you, or they, have to do us reply to this email with the words "Chapter 1" in the Subject line. (Or email book@roomtoread.org). We'll then email you and each of your friends Chapter 1, along with a request that they become "buzz agents" themselves.

"The power to create a best-seller, and to raise millions for Room to Read, is in our hands. It's no longer the major media who turn books into best sellers - it's the average person, and the power of their networks.

"I hope that you will take ten minutes to recruit ten potential buzz agents. We'll then keep all of you informed, over the coming months, about the book launch and other ways to help. I hope to see most of you during the worldwide book tour!

"Thanks in advance for your help.

"Warmest Regards,

"John Wood"