Google's Book Search program allows publishers to make previews of their books available on the Web, much like Amazon's Search Inside the Book program. Users can search the full text of books that Google scans and stores after receiving submissions from participating publishers at:
#www.Books.Google.com#
For each participating book, Google provides links to online vendors who sell physical copies of the book. Google won't say how many books are enrolled in the program, other than to say it's in the "hundreds of thousands."
Google Book Search provides free worldwide exposure for books, which is particularly valuable for publishers of niche and backlist titles where an expensive marketing program isn't feasible, according to Jennifer Grant, product marketing manager for Google Book Search. "That's really where Google and technology can come into play and help market these books very cost-efficiently ... and help these books find their readers."
Publishers participating in Google Book Search can link to their titles on their own Web site within links such as:
#http://print.google.com/ print?isbn=0123456789#
Be sure to replace the ISBN above (the digits following the equal sign) with the ISBN for your title. The only problem is, there's no guarantee the visitor who just left your site for Google will come back. If you're trying to get direct sales from your Web site, this could be an issue. At the Google Book Search site, your visitor will see #Buy# links to a variety of retailers, including Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble, BookSense, and of course Google Base, the search engine's product listing area.