We travel this maze of book marketing trying to find what works best for each of us. Different approaches work for different authors and genres. A marketing plan that works great for one author crashes and burns for another. As a self published author, what has worked best for you? How much time to do you spend marketing yourself or do you have help with your marketing efforts?
I look forward to trading marketing information with you!
Happy Writing!
Denise
Remember book marketing and publishing doesn't have to be stressful or costly.
Showing posts with label book. Show all posts
Showing posts with label book. Show all posts
Friday, October 1, 2010
Tuesday, August 31, 2010
Twitter and Facebook and Blogging…Oh My!
Do you know how many times I hear, “I don’t have time to blog, or post on Twitter or Facebook.
Too many times to mention!
The fact is, being an author is a business and this is part of the business. I tell my clients all the time that they have to make time. We never say we don’t have time to do our day job. Well sometimes we do but we go and do our job anyway. Your book business is no different. You will get out of it what you put into it. You have to make time.
Let’s think about it a minute. The exposure is amazing. You are now able to reach people you were never able to reach before.
That being said, isn’t it worth it to spend a little time updating your blog?
Let your publicist know every time you update your blog. They will know how to get the word out to others and it takes a bit of the pressure off of you.
I believe that to be successful in the book business, you can’t throw money at it. Spend some time and it will grow.
Happy Writing!
Denise
Progressive Book Marketing, LLC
Remember book publishing and marketing doesn’t have to be stressful or expensive.
Too many times to mention!
The fact is, being an author is a business and this is part of the business. I tell my clients all the time that they have to make time. We never say we don’t have time to do our day job. Well sometimes we do but we go and do our job anyway. Your book business is no different. You will get out of it what you put into it. You have to make time.
Let’s think about it a minute. The exposure is amazing. You are now able to reach people you were never able to reach before.
That being said, isn’t it worth it to spend a little time updating your blog?
Let your publicist know every time you update your blog. They will know how to get the word out to others and it takes a bit of the pressure off of you.
I believe that to be successful in the book business, you can’t throw money at it. Spend some time and it will grow.
Happy Writing!
Denise
Progressive Book Marketing, LLC
Remember book publishing and marketing doesn’t have to be stressful or expensive.
Thursday, May 13, 2010
Paying Your Dues
I have been on several sides of this business. I began my journey working in an independent bookstore as a manager where one of my many duties was scheduling book signing events with New York Times bestselling authors and making sure everything went off without a hitch. From there I worked for a publishing company and then on to my own business.
During my time at the bookstore I had the pleasure of meeting many wonderful authors but one that sticks in my memory is Steve Hamilton, NYT bestselling author many times over. He has an extensive list of titles under his belt. Now here is someone that could have been full of himself, but instead he was down to earth and a really great person. The size of the audience was not the deciding factor on how he addresses his audience. He made each and every person that came to get a book signed feel special and appreciated. Now here is a guy that wrote great books, traveled around on his own to book signings and kept his day job, even though he didn’t need to. This is an author that has paid his dues yet continues to promote his books in the same manner as when he was not well known.
In my line of work I meet with and speak to many first time authors that don’t know what to expect from this business. When I sit down with a potential client to discuss a marketing plan that works for them there are a few things I hear over and over.
I want to be on Oprah. I only want to do book signings near my home and only if they will pay me and or guarantee sales. How do I get stores to buy my book by the case?
Everyone has a wish list and we should always strive to be our best and take our work to the next level.
You may never get on Oprah but you don’t need Oprah to be successful. Bookstores won’t pay you and they can’t guarantee an audience nor do they buy books by the case under normal circumstances. This is a one at a time kind of business but that’s okay what fun would it be if we could predict every step of our success.
So in closing please, never think you are too big to get out there and talk to people about your work. Promote your 10th book with the same excitement you had with your 1st. It’s not the size of the audience it’s the quality of the company. If someone is there to see you then you have touched them with your work and that is very special. In closing never stop “paying your dues” and you will always have success.
Denise
Progressive Book Marketing
http://www.progressivebookmarketing.net
During my time at the bookstore I had the pleasure of meeting many wonderful authors but one that sticks in my memory is Steve Hamilton, NYT bestselling author many times over. He has an extensive list of titles under his belt. Now here is someone that could have been full of himself, but instead he was down to earth and a really great person. The size of the audience was not the deciding factor on how he addresses his audience. He made each and every person that came to get a book signed feel special and appreciated. Now here is a guy that wrote great books, traveled around on his own to book signings and kept his day job, even though he didn’t need to. This is an author that has paid his dues yet continues to promote his books in the same manner as when he was not well known.
In my line of work I meet with and speak to many first time authors that don’t know what to expect from this business. When I sit down with a potential client to discuss a marketing plan that works for them there are a few things I hear over and over.
I want to be on Oprah. I only want to do book signings near my home and only if they will pay me and or guarantee sales. How do I get stores to buy my book by the case?
Everyone has a wish list and we should always strive to be our best and take our work to the next level.
You may never get on Oprah but you don’t need Oprah to be successful. Bookstores won’t pay you and they can’t guarantee an audience nor do they buy books by the case under normal circumstances. This is a one at a time kind of business but that’s okay what fun would it be if we could predict every step of our success.
So in closing please, never think you are too big to get out there and talk to people about your work. Promote your 10th book with the same excitement you had with your 1st. It’s not the size of the audience it’s the quality of the company. If someone is there to see you then you have touched them with your work and that is very special. In closing never stop “paying your dues” and you will always have success.
Denise
Progressive Book Marketing
http://www.progressivebookmarketing.net
Friday, April 23, 2010
Check out this page turner A Woman's Worth
Nikita Lynnette Nichols is an author to keep an eye on. She can spin a tale like no other.You won't be able to put her books down. In A Woman's Worth, Monique Morrison had made a huge mistake when she moved into a home to play house with Boris Cortland. With on again off again wedding plans and a woman who had already signed on to play the role of his wife, Boris was in no hurry to seal the deal. In his mind, Monique wasn’t going anywhere so why not continue to play the field? Though she was in church, Sunday after Sunday, praying for God to touch Boris’ heart and turn him from his wicked ways, it seemed Monique’s pleas were constantly unanswered. Suffering from neglect, rejection and verbal abuse, Monique had all but given up on her dream of having a relationship that represented true unconditional love until Adonis Cortland moves in and does for Monique all of the things that Boris wouldn’t do. Could Boris’ cousin be the man that Monique had been praying for?
Nikita writes about topics we not only relate to but have dealt with or are dealing with.
Nikita writes about topics we not only relate to but have dealt with or are dealing with.
Sunday, April 11, 2010
Be An Informed Consumer
Let me start by saying, “If It Sounds Too Good To Be True, It Probably Is.”
Now let me explain my statement. I can’t tell you how many authors I have talked to and work with that published their book with one of the online publishers that offer services for a minimal fee. What a great deal! NO! Many of these publishers rely on the first time author to keep them in business. In most cases the author ends up with a book that is not accepted in the marketplace.
Bookstores typically don’t work with Print On Demand Companies (POD). More often than not the book is also missing valuable information that should be included.
Once you get past that there is the issue with the book price. That is the amount the author must pay to have each book printed. I have seen case after case where the author loses money by selling books. Shouldn’t it be the other way around?
This is one of the areas that the online publisher makes their money. They have the author charge an unreasonable amount for the book, and then charge half of the retail for each book printed. We won’t even talk about the shipping.
So now the author’s publicist has scheduled a book signing at an independent bookstore where the author can bring their books. Let’s say for arguments sake the book retails for $20 which is overpriced for the marketplace. The author paid $10 for the book plus shipping. Let’s assume shipping is $3 per book. So the author has $13 invested in each book which means for every book that sells the author makes $7, right? NO!
The bookstore expects their cut which typically is 40% of the retail. So now we take $8 and give that to the bookstore which leaves us with $12. Remember the author has $13 into each book which means for every book sold the author must pay $1. I’m no math expert but I don’t think this is how it should work. We won’t even talk about the time, gas, marketing tools etc…
How do you get around this? Be an informed consumer and remember, “If It Sounds To Good To Be True, It Probably Is!"
Denise
Progressive Book Marketing, LLC
progressiveoa@gmail.com
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