This morning on LinkedIn someone asked how to market his client's book. Here's what I suggested.
Check out Author Marketing Expert http://amarketingexpert.com . Penny Sansevieri and her staff are very good, and they share (for free) a monthly newsletter packed with advice about online marketing including tips for using squidoo, twitter, facebook effectively.
Follow me on Twitter: http://twitter.com/rowenacherry or rather, check out all the librarians and journalists and reviewers on my follow/following list. Click on the text links and you can find out and follow everyone I follow.
TRAILERS
Sheila English of COS productions (Circle Of Seven) runs the first and best book trailer making company. She's a friend of mine on LinkedIn. I'd be happy to introduce you, or meet her in a book trailer group/discussion.
COS productions will post book trailers in at least 50 locations. Check out youtube for half a dozen syndication possibilities for your trailer.
If you have a trailer, enter it in the New Covey Trailer Awards
http://thenewcoveytrailerawards.blogspot.com/2009/03/entry-15-knights-fork.html
(Feel free to vote while you are there... I believe there are 20 videos to be watched each month) Knight's Fork is mine, done by Sheila English's COS productions for around $300
Also Join FiledByAuthor, which is new, and you don't have to pay for a basic page
http://filedby.com/author/rowena_cherry/1792575
Also join Blazing Trailers http://blazingtrailers.blogspot.com/2009/03/knights-fork-by-rowena-cherry.html
BLOG TOURS AND GIVEAWAYS
JA Konrath is currently marketing his Jack Killborn novel AFRAID with a month long blog tour. Check out his blog to see where he is going. He also cleverly got 50 authors' competitive juices flowing, so several of them are writing and posting reviews in about 16 places each.
Emily Bryan recently did a 50-blog tour to promote Vexing The Viscount.
Find similar authors to your client/friend who are aggressively promoting, then ride their coat tails. Comment pleasantly on their blogs with discreet references (perhaps in a sig file, and in the allowed html link for every commentator) and you will be seen.
Establish a presence (that means make friends before marketing) on Facebook and Goodreads. You can do giveaways in exchange for the promise of reviews on LibraryThing.com and also on Goodreads.com
SYNDICATION
Use "Add This" for great syndication of your program
With apologies for a slightly self serving example, look here
http://www.booksamillion.com/product/9780505527400?id=4379755884528
The Add This feature is accessed through the "Share" button, click More and you will find links to 48 social networking sites! Take the time. Claim at least your author's name on each site (so no one else can).
RADIO
Check out the radio interviews done by Don MacCauley on http://www.TheAuthorsShow.com The interview is free. They'd like you to buy a promo package (tell them I sent you) but you don't have to do so. If you want a press release, a copy of your recorded interview, 12 months of publicity etc, the mid level package is $155 which is very reasonable, these days.
LillianandMe is another very good exposure which a lot of authors have found effective. This is a paid interview with radio station owner Lillian Cauldwell, however, it is competitively priced.
Disclosure. I am a host on her station, PIVTR http://www.internetvoicesradio.com
Contact Lillian or Pat Meehan. LCauldwell@gmail.com
Don't forget an Amazon page. Take advantage of all the bells and whistles they offer (many other booksites offer the same). Make friends, blog, add photos and notes, start discussions, tag your client's book. If you are grateful to me for all this fine advice and practical examples, take a moment to tag my book Knight's Fork http://tinyurl.com/KnightsFork
as FUTURISTIC ROMANCE
I'm not sure whether this is an object lesson in how to be self-serving while being helpful. I hope so. I'm a tad appalled at myself, but it took me at least an hour to write this skein of advice with live links, and probably on LinkedIn only 6 people will see it, which isn't a good ROI.
What do you think?
Six Things Writers Need To Stop Worrying About
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Some things don't change.
When I got my start in this biz, way back in 2002, writers had to get a lit
agent to get a publisher, then they did what their pu...
5 years ago
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2 comments:
I thank you for taking all the time to do this. I'm taking notes. I admire all the work you put into your blogs.
Susan,
Thank you very much for your kind remarks. I try to help. When I was starting out, a lot of authors helped me in various ways: Linnea Sinclair, Susan Grant, Victoria Alexander, Rebecca Sinclair, Jade Lee (she was Kathy Greyle at the time), and many others.
Sometimes, in the course of helping someone else, one discovers something really useful, too.
All the best,
Rowena Cherry
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