Posts
Publishing consultant John Mark Schuster just gave me an idea I thought was worthy to pass on. I'll print it here in its entirety:
"I recently spoke to an author who "hired" a college student to do
marketing/promotions for his book project.
He approached the Marketing Department at a local university and asked about
hiring a student to assist with his book promotional efforts. He was
surprised how much the college embraced him and shared that a student could
actually earn "credit hours" through an Internship program if set up
properly.
Benefits for the author:
-Having a college student assist with your book's marketing plan is a great
option for authors that do not have a lot of time or money to spare.
-You can interview a suitable candidate and pick a marketing student who is
well-suited for your needs.
-A college student knows how to effectively utilize the internet for both
marketing and research.
Perks for the student:
-College credit is earned and real world experience is a resume builder for
the student in this tough job market.
-They build a relationship with an author who may be able to help them
further develop in their professional life.
It is important to note that it will be your responsibility to provide the
student with your publishing or marketing goals. You will probably need to
complete a course credit form and outline your project in great detail to
the college's standards but in the end it could be a big payoff.
It will be your responsibility to further explore this option and complete
necessary forms/work but I hope this proves to be effective."
I might add that occasionally marketing classes like to take real businesses and suggest marketing plans for them. We did it last year with our not for profit and gleaned some great ideas.
Friday, May 22, 2009
Sunday, May 10, 2009
When "What Makes Sense" Keeps us from "What Works"
Need to sell more of your books? If marketing methods that make sense aren't working, try methods that don't make sense. This kind of thinking isn't unusual in the business world.
So what are some of the things that "everybody who's anybody knows for certain" about selling books, that we might want to question?
Assumption #1: The best places to sell books are in bookstores.
Assumption #2: Businesses that don't currently sell books are the worst prospects for selling my book.
Assumption #3: The larger the bookstore, the better.
Assumption #4: Go for the large cities since more people are there.
Assumption #5: Go for reviews only in the largest newspapers.
Assumption #6: The ultimate is to get on TV.
Why I Question These Assumptions
I now question all these assumptions:
1. If you're a best-selling author with a traditional publisher, bookstores are great places to sell books. Although, after distributors, wholesalers, and bookstores take their cut, you won't get much money for each sale, people know they can find your books there. But if you're not that well-known, or not with a traditional publisher, you'll probably have trouble getting into the bookstore. And if it doesn't sell within a few months, it may be returned to the distributor and never re-ordered.
That's why Dan Poynter is fond of saying something like, "Bookstores are lousy places to sell books." Great places to buy books, just lousy places to sell them. And it makes sense, once you think about it. If my book is one of 100 personal finance books in a large bookstore, why would someone choose mine over the high profile Dave Ramsey's and Suze Ormans? But if they find it in a smaller, non-bookstore setting, there's no competition.
Since my current book is self-published, I'm encountering hurdle after hurdle to getting into bookstores. I've got it into some locally owned bookstores, but chains are much tougher.
2. Businesses that don't currently sell books at all might take some initial convincing to sell my book, but if they take it on consignment, with no risk, they might like the idea of finding a new source of income. That's how my friend David sold 200 books in a local restaurant in about 6 months. I've currently got my book in a consignment clothing and furniture store, and a video rental store. I'll keep you posted as to how these go.
3. Larger bookstores mean more competition for similar books. Amazon means the most competition. If you have a niche book, like my Contemporary Christian Music Debate, Amazon's a great place to sell a book. People searching for "Christian Rock" or "Contemporary Christian Music" find it at the top of their search. But my book on personal finances, Enjoy Your Money!, competes against thousands of books on the same subject. It's unlikely that anyone would find it searching the term "personal finances". (However, once readers hear about the book from other sources, Amazon's a wonderful place to sell my financial book.)
4. While big-time authors should do well signing books in large cities, where they already have followings, I doubt they'd come out for small-time authors. But since most big-time authors go for the large cities, why not go for the smaller cities? People in smaller, established cities actually read their newspapers to get local news. Hearing that an author's in town, they might be delighted to come to the library and hear you talk about your topic and your book.
5. It's great to get coverage in big-time papers that have a large circulation. Three days ago a financial columnist reviewed my book in the Oakland (California) Tribune. I sold 11 books that first day, five the second day, and four the third day. (One personal actually called to order from me, so that I'm reasonably sure where the other orders came from. For the few days prior to the article, none sold at all.) But if you can't get the big papers, realize that several small ones may net you just as many sales.
6. TV is cool, but can be frightening as well. I was on Fox 5's Good Day Atlanta last Thursday. Great potential, but what if I froze up like the Psychiatrist's interview in "What About Bob?". Everything went great, however. Everyone raved about how relaxed I seemed, how I gave great information, how the station highlighted my book and gave great contact information, how they linked to my book information from their Website, etc. Yet, on the day of the broadcast, I sold exactly 0 books. That's not a typo. The next day I sold a few, but I suspect the sales came from my wife telling her facebook friends about the interview.
Am I glad I did the interview? Sure!
So don't put all your eggs into a few massive events, seeing them as your silver bullets. In the long run, the little, local stuff might be your biggest hit.
What are your experiences with what works and what doesn't concerning selling books? Are you questioning some common assumptions? Post a response and let's learn from each other!
- Who'd have thought that people would pay $3.50 for a cup of coffee? Starbucks did the nonsensical and built a great company.
- Who'd have thought you could make money by selling products so cheap that real businessmen "just knew" you couldn't make a profit? Wal-Mart did the nonsensical and built the largest retailing outfit in the world.
- Times were when people "just knew" that the universe revolved around the earth, that the earth was flat, and that time wasn't relative. But thinkers who entertained nonsensical thoughts discovered otherwise.
So what are some of the things that "everybody who's anybody knows for certain" about selling books, that we might want to question?
Assumption #1: The best places to sell books are in bookstores.
Assumption #2: Businesses that don't currently sell books are the worst prospects for selling my book.
Assumption #3: The larger the bookstore, the better.
Assumption #4: Go for the large cities since more people are there.
Assumption #5: Go for reviews only in the largest newspapers.
Assumption #6: The ultimate is to get on TV.
Why I Question These Assumptions
I now question all these assumptions:
1. If you're a best-selling author with a traditional publisher, bookstores are great places to sell books. Although, after distributors, wholesalers, and bookstores take their cut, you won't get much money for each sale, people know they can find your books there. But if you're not that well-known, or not with a traditional publisher, you'll probably have trouble getting into the bookstore. And if it doesn't sell within a few months, it may be returned to the distributor and never re-ordered.
That's why Dan Poynter is fond of saying something like, "Bookstores are lousy places to sell books." Great places to buy books, just lousy places to sell them. And it makes sense, once you think about it. If my book is one of 100 personal finance books in a large bookstore, why would someone choose mine over the high profile Dave Ramsey's and Suze Ormans? But if they find it in a smaller, non-bookstore setting, there's no competition.
Since my current book is self-published, I'm encountering hurdle after hurdle to getting into bookstores. I've got it into some locally owned bookstores, but chains are much tougher.
2. Businesses that don't currently sell books at all might take some initial convincing to sell my book, but if they take it on consignment, with no risk, they might like the idea of finding a new source of income. That's how my friend David sold 200 books in a local restaurant in about 6 months. I've currently got my book in a consignment clothing and furniture store, and a video rental store. I'll keep you posted as to how these go.
3. Larger bookstores mean more competition for similar books. Amazon means the most competition. If you have a niche book, like my Contemporary Christian Music Debate, Amazon's a great place to sell a book. People searching for "Christian Rock" or "Contemporary Christian Music" find it at the top of their search. But my book on personal finances, Enjoy Your Money!, competes against thousands of books on the same subject. It's unlikely that anyone would find it searching the term "personal finances". (However, once readers hear about the book from other sources, Amazon's a wonderful place to sell my financial book.)
4. While big-time authors should do well signing books in large cities, where they already have followings, I doubt they'd come out for small-time authors. But since most big-time authors go for the large cities, why not go for the smaller cities? People in smaller, established cities actually read their newspapers to get local news. Hearing that an author's in town, they might be delighted to come to the library and hear you talk about your topic and your book.
5. It's great to get coverage in big-time papers that have a large circulation. Three days ago a financial columnist reviewed my book in the Oakland (California) Tribune. I sold 11 books that first day, five the second day, and four the third day. (One personal actually called to order from me, so that I'm reasonably sure where the other orders came from. For the few days prior to the article, none sold at all.) But if you can't get the big papers, realize that several small ones may net you just as many sales.
6. TV is cool, but can be frightening as well. I was on Fox 5's Good Day Atlanta last Thursday. Great potential, but what if I froze up like the Psychiatrist's interview in "What About Bob?". Everything went great, however. Everyone raved about how relaxed I seemed, how I gave great information, how the station highlighted my book and gave great contact information, how they linked to my book information from their Website, etc. Yet, on the day of the broadcast, I sold exactly 0 books. That's not a typo. The next day I sold a few, but I suspect the sales came from my wife telling her facebook friends about the interview.
Am I glad I did the interview? Sure!
- It exposed a lot of people to the book who may buy it later.
- People often need to be exposed to a product several times before they purchase.
- I can purchase the video and use it on www.youtube.com and link to it from our publisher's Web page to show other potential media that I can handle interviews.
So don't put all your eggs into a few massive events, seeing them as your silver bullets. In the long run, the little, local stuff might be your biggest hit.
What are your experiences with what works and what doesn't concerning selling books? Are you questioning some common assumptions? Post a response and let's learn from each other!
Friday, May 1, 2009
Book Marketing Can Be Weird
What marketing plan will work best for you? Are there any "sure-fire" ways to sell books? Here's what I learned yesterday.
The Potential
I've heard cutting edge book marketers say that one of the biggest keys to sales is collecting e-mail addresses on your site or blog and then sending regular e-mails to give readers useful information and inform them about your books. That tact would seem to work perfectly for me, since I've got two busy websites, one for youth workers and pastors (www.youth-ministry.info ) and one for those who teach character in public schools (www.character-education.info ). About 1,000 people visit these sites each day, and I've collected over 10,000 e-mail addresses.
The Plan
I've thought all along that my biggest opportunity for marketing my book on personal finances is through those sites, by posting links from the sites to my book on Amazon (did this for weeks ago), and mentioning the book in e-mails to the site members. In preparation, a couple of months ago, I found a great company that I can send my e-mails through. ( Vertical Response offers wonderful tools for creating your e-mails, managing your lists, and reporting the results. They'll also allow not-for-profits to send 10,000 e-mails free each month.)
I've spent a lot of time over the past week putting together an e-letter to the members of the youth ministry site and figuring out how to set up and send the e-mail. I have about 6000 e-mail addresses from the youth ministry site and sent out the first 2,000 e-letters yesterday.
The Underwhelming Response
So far, exactly 0 people have bought books from that e-mail! (As of last night, only one had even clicked through the link from the e-mail to look at the book.) I also have reason to believe that I've achieved no sales through people discovering my book on the sites and clicking through to order from there. Go figure.
[May 29 update: I sent an e-zine to my next list - about 3600 people, primarily teachers, who subscribed to my character education site. I offered a copy of the book at 60% off, or free if they're on budget restrictions, to review as a possible text. Two paid and one asked for a free one. If just one of these three decides to use it for a text...if they like it...if they give me a good blurb to use with other teachers...this would be a great payoff for the time and effort. But still, only three request a book out of 3600 educators?!?. Then again, how many of these actually teach a personal finance class?]
The Lesson
Throughout my life, I've occasionally attended seminars by super-successful people, who, with knowing glows about their faces, taught me seminars such as "Five Easy Steps to an Effective Ministry" or "Seven Sure-Fire Ways to Sell Tons of Books." But for me, nothing was ever easy and either I sucked at implementing the "Seven Sure-Fire Ways," or they simply didn't work for me.
Today, I'm more likely to teach a seminar entitled,
"Strategies That Worked for Me, and Just Might Work for You, but No Guarantees."
You can see why I'm not teaching many seminars. Everybody wants the "Sure-Fire" stuff.
The Lesson
I was a bit down last night, due to the "failure" of this effort. But after reflection, I've learned a wonderful thing. I'll go ahead and send out the rest of the e-mails. Perhaps this is the first time they've heard of the book and they'll make a decision later on. Maybe they need to hear about it from several sources. But if I see no real results in the e-letters, then the good news is, I don't have to do e-letters any more! One less thing to do, so that I can concentrate on things that actually work for me and my book.
I believe that successful marketing is finding out what works for my individual personality and gifts, combined with what works for my specific book.
Every book is different. Some can be positioned well on Amazon and do great without any further promotion. My book on church music, The Contemporary Christian Music Debate, isn't setting any sales records, but it sells pretty steady, although I've done absolutely no marketing at all for the book in 14 years. Being a niche book, those who struggle with musical style in their churches are likely to find it by searching "Contemporary Christian Music" or "Christian Rock" on Amazon or through Google. This is very different from my financial book. A person searching "personal finance" on Amazon would find thousands of books on the subject and wouldn't likely find mine unless they searched the exact title. The difference in subject matter requires different approaches to marketing. [May 29 update: My financial book is now #3 on a search for "personal money management" on Amazon. I didn't think this could happen. I couldn't be happier to be wrong on this one!]
Every author is different. Some have bubbly personalities that shine on radio and TV and book signings. Others prefer writing articles, sending e-mails and blogging.
There are myriads of ways to sell books and probably no silver bullet that works for everyone. Beware of what everybody says you have to do. Beware of doing only what makes the most sense. Figure out what works for you and your book, then pursue it with a passion!
The Encouragement
Yesterday evening, Cherie checked our voice mail and discovered that a pastor friend wants to know how to get my financial book by the case. This was totally unrelated to the e-mails I sent out. Go figure. Marketing is weird.
Post by J. Steve Miller, Author of Enjoy Your Money! How to Make It, Save It, Invest It and Give It.
The Potential
I've heard cutting edge book marketers say that one of the biggest keys to sales is collecting e-mail addresses on your site or blog and then sending regular e-mails to give readers useful information and inform them about your books. That tact would seem to work perfectly for me, since I've got two busy websites, one for youth workers and pastors (www.youth-ministry.info ) and one for those who teach character in public schools (www.character-education.info ). About 1,000 people visit these sites each day, and I've collected over 10,000 e-mail addresses.
The Plan
I've thought all along that my biggest opportunity for marketing my book on personal finances is through those sites, by posting links from the sites to my book on Amazon (did this for weeks ago), and mentioning the book in e-mails to the site members. In preparation, a couple of months ago, I found a great company that I can send my e-mails through. ( Vertical Response offers wonderful tools for creating your e-mails, managing your lists, and reporting the results. They'll also allow not-for-profits to send 10,000 e-mails free each month.)
I've spent a lot of time over the past week putting together an e-letter to the members of the youth ministry site and figuring out how to set up and send the e-mail. I have about 6000 e-mail addresses from the youth ministry site and sent out the first 2,000 e-letters yesterday.
The Underwhelming Response
So far, exactly 0 people have bought books from that e-mail! (As of last night, only one had even clicked through the link from the e-mail to look at the book.) I also have reason to believe that I've achieved no sales through people discovering my book on the sites and clicking through to order from there. Go figure.
[May 29 update: I sent an e-zine to my next list - about 3600 people, primarily teachers, who subscribed to my character education site. I offered a copy of the book at 60% off, or free if they're on budget restrictions, to review as a possible text. Two paid and one asked for a free one. If just one of these three decides to use it for a text...if they like it...if they give me a good blurb to use with other teachers...this would be a great payoff for the time and effort. But still, only three request a book out of 3600 educators?!?. Then again, how many of these actually teach a personal finance class?]
The Lesson
Throughout my life, I've occasionally attended seminars by super-successful people, who, with knowing glows about their faces, taught me seminars such as "Five Easy Steps to an Effective Ministry" or "Seven Sure-Fire Ways to Sell Tons of Books." But for me, nothing was ever easy and either I sucked at implementing the "Seven Sure-Fire Ways," or they simply didn't work for me.
Today, I'm more likely to teach a seminar entitled,
"Strategies That Worked for Me, and Just Might Work for You, but No Guarantees."
You can see why I'm not teaching many seminars. Everybody wants the "Sure-Fire" stuff.
The Lesson
I was a bit down last night, due to the "failure" of this effort. But after reflection, I've learned a wonderful thing. I'll go ahead and send out the rest of the e-mails. Perhaps this is the first time they've heard of the book and they'll make a decision later on. Maybe they need to hear about it from several sources. But if I see no real results in the e-letters, then the good news is, I don't have to do e-letters any more! One less thing to do, so that I can concentrate on things that actually work for me and my book.
I believe that successful marketing is finding out what works for my individual personality and gifts, combined with what works for my specific book.
Every book is different. Some can be positioned well on Amazon and do great without any further promotion. My book on church music, The Contemporary Christian Music Debate, isn't setting any sales records, but it sells pretty steady, although I've done absolutely no marketing at all for the book in 14 years. Being a niche book, those who struggle with musical style in their churches are likely to find it by searching "Contemporary Christian Music" or "Christian Rock" on Amazon or through Google. This is very different from my financial book. A person searching "personal finance" on Amazon would find thousands of books on the subject and wouldn't likely find mine unless they searched the exact title. The difference in subject matter requires different approaches to marketing. [May 29 update: My financial book is now #3 on a search for "personal money management" on Amazon. I didn't think this could happen. I couldn't be happier to be wrong on this one!]
Every author is different. Some have bubbly personalities that shine on radio and TV and book signings. Others prefer writing articles, sending e-mails and blogging.
There are myriads of ways to sell books and probably no silver bullet that works for everyone. Beware of what everybody says you have to do. Beware of doing only what makes the most sense. Figure out what works for you and your book, then pursue it with a passion!
The Encouragement
Yesterday evening, Cherie checked our voice mail and discovered that a pastor friend wants to know how to get my financial book by the case. This was totally unrelated to the e-mails I sent out. Go figure. Marketing is weird.
Post by J. Steve Miller, Author of Enjoy Your Money! How to Make It, Save It, Invest It and Give It.
Thursday, April 30, 2009
Blogging About Popular Articles
How can we get more people to read our blogs? How can we choose topics to blog about that people are really interested in?
A recent marketing newsletter recommended connecting popular, recent articles with your blog posts. Since people are already talking about an article and its topic, mentioning it can add authority and interest to your post, as well as attract readers who are further exploring the subject matter.
Example: You've written a book on personal money management. So you go to the Wall Street Journal site and browse the most popular recent articles. How do you know which are the most popular? Go to this page , which lists their recent articles in order of "Most Viewed" and "Most Emailed." It also lists the most popular by section and their most popular blog posts. (You can do the same with the New York Times, and probably other major newspapers you follow.)
The most popular article is, "Rejection, How Colleges Do It." Interesting. It's more popular than the articles on the current outbreak of Swine Flu, that has people around the country panicking and wearing face masks. But it makes sense. It's Spring, close to high school graduation, and parents are wanting to make sure their students get into college.
So, I've found a hot topic that the readers of my money blog might find helpful. I could simply summarize the main points of the Wall Street Journal article and link back to the article if my readers want to read the source.
This little trick helps me to identify felt needs and quickly provide information to help my readers.
Posted by J. Steve Miller, author of Enjoy Your Money! How to Make It, Save It, Invest it and Give It.
A recent marketing newsletter recommended connecting popular, recent articles with your blog posts. Since people are already talking about an article and its topic, mentioning it can add authority and interest to your post, as well as attract readers who are further exploring the subject matter.
Example: You've written a book on personal money management. So you go to the Wall Street Journal site and browse the most popular recent articles. How do you know which are the most popular? Go to this page , which lists their recent articles in order of "Most Viewed" and "Most Emailed." It also lists the most popular by section and their most popular blog posts. (You can do the same with the New York Times, and probably other major newspapers you follow.)
The most popular article is, "Rejection, How Colleges Do It." Interesting. It's more popular than the articles on the current outbreak of Swine Flu, that has people around the country panicking and wearing face masks. But it makes sense. It's Spring, close to high school graduation, and parents are wanting to make sure their students get into college.
So, I've found a hot topic that the readers of my money blog might find helpful. I could simply summarize the main points of the Wall Street Journal article and link back to the article if my readers want to read the source.
This little trick helps me to identify felt needs and quickly provide information to help my readers.
Posted by J. Steve Miller, author of Enjoy Your Money! How to Make It, Save It, Invest it and Give It.
Friday, April 3, 2009
Week Three (Part 2) Think Local
Much of what we read concerning book publicity urges us to pursue channels at a distance: mailing the book to distant contests, book reviewers, book tours to major cities, etc. Sure, take advantage of opportunities around the country (and world), but while peering into the distance, don't overlook the possibilities close to home. Since it's difficult for me to travel, due to raising kids and caring for my 103-year-old granny, I'm spending a lot of time thinking about local sales.
My good friend David Cady, an hour north of me in Dalton, Georgia (pop. 30,000), self-published a riveting novel about a snake-handling cult entitled The Handler. In the six months of its existence, in addition to other outlets, it's sold about 200 copies at a local restaurant! That's more than the total sales of a significant number of books!
Local Potential
Local Stores
Last week I talked to local bookstores, local places I shop, local places I rent videos, the local gym where I work out. Most were friendly, receptive, and took a free copy to look over. [In case stores needed a book display, I bought some white, cardboard counter displays (8 5/8" wide) from Meridian Display (ask for Carole), at $4.34 each, for a box of 25 ($3.65 each if you purchase two boxes).]
Although you might have to go through more hoops with big chain stores, even Wal-Mart has has a way for local managers to purchase local products they wish to sell in their stores. It's called their "Local Purchase Program."
Local Speaking
In two weeks I'll speak to a group of about 100 students at a student organization at our local university. I'll be part of a panel on personal money management and will sell books in the back.
Think about speaking on the topic of your writing wherever it's appropriate. Civic organizations and schools are often looking for speakers on various topics. Perhaps your state has a grant like in Georgia, where approved authors are paid through the grant to speak in public schools.
Local Newspapers and Radio and Library Signing
Well, surely you've already thought about these. Your book is exciting news to your hometown. They want to know!
Excuse me, but 700,000 people in my county need a copy of my book. I'd better get out there and sell some!
My good friend David Cady, an hour north of me in Dalton, Georgia (pop. 30,000), self-published a riveting novel about a snake-handling cult entitled The Handler. In the six months of its existence, in addition to other outlets, it's sold about 200 copies at a local restaurant! That's more than the total sales of a significant number of books!
Local Potential
- 18,000 people live in my town of Acworth.
- 700,000 live in my county (Cobb), which is a part of metro Atlanta.
- 5.5 million live in metro Atlanta.
Local Stores
Last week I talked to local bookstores, local places I shop, local places I rent videos, the local gym where I work out. Most were friendly, receptive, and took a free copy to look over. [In case stores needed a book display, I bought some white, cardboard counter displays (8 5/8" wide) from Meridian Display (ask for Carole), at $4.34 each, for a box of 25 ($3.65 each if you purchase two boxes).]
Although you might have to go through more hoops with big chain stores, even Wal-Mart has has a way for local managers to purchase local products they wish to sell in their stores. It's called their "Local Purchase Program."
Local Speaking
In two weeks I'll speak to a group of about 100 students at a student organization at our local university. I'll be part of a panel on personal money management and will sell books in the back.
Think about speaking on the topic of your writing wherever it's appropriate. Civic organizations and schools are often looking for speakers on various topics. Perhaps your state has a grant like in Georgia, where approved authors are paid through the grant to speak in public schools.
Local Newspapers and Radio and Library Signing
Well, surely you've already thought about these. Your book is exciting news to your hometown. They want to know!
Excuse me, but 700,000 people in my county need a copy of my book. I'd better get out there and sell some!
Thursday, April 2, 2009
Week Three: Contacting Newspaper Columnists
How do you get newspaper columnists to write about your book? The secret? It's all about them, not about you and your book. Keep that in mind and you may go far.
1) They need to produce a column each week. Give them something that would delight their readers and make the writer look good. The fact that a new book is out isn't typically a great headline. Think deeper. Here's what I'm saying in an introductory e-mail to financial columnists:
e-mail title: Financially Illiterate Graduates
I Googled "Major Newspapers" and found them listed by state here:
http://www.newslink.org/metnews.html . By going to each newspaper site and looking through the sections and columnists, I was able to find their e-mail addresses.
3) Personalize your e-mail to each columnist. That way, it doesn't come across as a chain letter. I'm sure they get lots of books to review.
4) Offer them something. In other e-mails, I spoke of linking to their sites from my site, recommending their books, etc. If I publicize their projects, their more likely to publicize mine.
I've sent out my first four e-mails to columnists at the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, LA Times, and Washington Post. To prep for each of these syndicated columnists, I read a book by each one and am recommending their books from my Website. All but one have replied that they want me to send them a book. Cool!
5) When you send a book, include a brochure, press release and sign the book. Since they requested it, I wrote "Requested Materials" on the front of the mailer, to ensure it gets opened.
Hey, this is fun!
1) They need to produce a column each week. Give them something that would delight their readers and make the writer look good. The fact that a new book is out isn't typically a great headline. Think deeper. Here's what I'm saying in an introductory e-mail to financial columnists:
e-mail title: Financially Illiterate Graduates
Dear ____,
Thanks for your column, which helps so many with their personal finances.
With graduation season just around the corner, I knew that many of your readers would want advice for graduating high school and college seniors, who, as we are well aware, are typically clueless concerning getting jobs, excelling at jobs, entrepreneurship, and personal finance. Also, readers might want recommendations for graduation gifts (why not the gift of financial wisdom?)
My book, targeting young people (ages 16-27), just came off the press. I'd love to send you a free copy for review. I think you'll find it well-researched and documented, but written in story form to make it a quick, fun read. It covers getting and thriving in jobs, as well as saving and investing money. It's called: Enjoy Your Money! How to Make It, Save It, Invest It and Give It.
Hopefully, during these difficult economic times, the book can help young people catch a vision for working hard, living beneath their means, etc., before they get into serious financial trouble.
If you're interested in a free copy, let me know an address and I'll send it on.
Thanks again for your life and writing!
Sincerely,
J. Steve Miller
www.character-education.info
Put yourself in the columnist's shoes. Every year at this time, she's got to come up with something new that relates to the graduation season. My book gives great ideas. It's a win/win!
2) Find the columnists.
Put yourself in the columnist's shoes. Every year at this time, she's got to come up with something new that relates to the graduation season. My book gives great ideas. It's a win/win!
2) Find the columnists.
I Googled "Major Newspapers" and found them listed by state here:
http://www.newslink.org/metnews.html . By going to each newspaper site and looking through the sections and columnists, I was able to find their e-mail addresses.
3) Personalize your e-mail to each columnist. That way, it doesn't come across as a chain letter. I'm sure they get lots of books to review.
4) Offer them something. In other e-mails, I spoke of linking to their sites from my site, recommending their books, etc. If I publicize their projects, their more likely to publicize mine.
I've sent out my first four e-mails to columnists at the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, LA Times, and Washington Post. To prep for each of these syndicated columnists, I read a book by each one and am recommending their books from my Website. All but one have replied that they want me to send them a book. Cool!
5) When you send a book, include a brochure, press release and sign the book. Since they requested it, I wrote "Requested Materials" on the front of the mailer, to ensure it gets opened.
Hey, this is fun!
Monday, March 30, 2009
Publicity on Facebook: A Case Study
For some time, I've been contemplating how to let my 150 or so Facebook friends know about my book. I resisted letting them know the first day it came out on Amazon. They would have come to an Amazon page with no customer reviews, a publisher description that needed tweeking, and no way to "Search Inside" the book. But after two weeks, I had six nice reviews (all five-star) from people who had read my manuscript before publication and everything looked great to welcome all my Facebook friends. I was excited!
Here were some of my strategic thoughts going into it:
1) Put my announcement into the correct slot, so that it actually goes to all my friends (not just a select few, not just published on my Facebook page.)
2) Be personal and non-pushy. Facebook is a gathering of people I care for. Don't abuse that.
3) Time the announcement. I decided to do it on a weekend, when people are more likely to catch up with their Facebook friends. Otherwise, if I did it during the week and they checked their home page two days later, my announcement would likely be buried down on a secondary page and they'd never see it.
4) Let them know, in a few sentences, what the book's about, why they might be interested in getting a copy, and how they could get it.
Here's what I wrote (including the image):
The result? As of the end of the first day, I had two "Congratulations!" comments. Today, I find three more. But I don't see any sales from yesterday (I can track my daily Amazon sales through Booksurge). Not one.
Ruminations on my underwhelming Facebook publicity campaign?
1) Glad I did it. Hey, they're my friends and I want to share my excitement with them.
2) Yes, these are people I know and care about.
3) No, the book's not for everyone. Never expected all my friends to go buy a copy.
4) I'm unsure how many actually follow their Facebook homepage each day. Of 150 friends, I've got to wonder if 15 even saw my announcement.
5) Sales often come over time. Perhaps when they need to purchase a graduation gift, they'll think of it. If I get more response later, I'll update this report.
In the end, it's one less thing to worry about. I have plenty of ways to market this book. Now I can go back to concentrating on them. Facebook will continue to be a place where I keep up with my friends, rejoice with their successes and pray for their needs. It's not for hard "marketing" of my "products."
UPDATE: The following day, I got a few more personal responses. Now it's becoming more of a conversation item that will come up naturally as people interact. One will post a note on Facebook to say they're ordering the book, which may give an occasion for another to see the post, etc. With this new info, let's say that the announcement started a conversation that will continue. My book is a part of my life, and friends are interested in that aspect of my life.
Here were some of my strategic thoughts going into it:
1) Put my announcement into the correct slot, so that it actually goes to all my friends (not just a select few, not just published on my Facebook page.)
2) Be personal and non-pushy. Facebook is a gathering of people I care for. Don't abuse that.
3) Time the announcement. I decided to do it on a weekend, when people are more likely to catch up with their Facebook friends. Otherwise, if I did it during the week and they checked their home page two days later, my announcement would likely be buried down on a secondary page and they'd never see it.
4) Let them know, in a few sentences, what the book's about, why they might be interested in getting a copy, and how they could get it.
Here's what I wrote (including the image):
FINALLY! My book’s off the press and available at Amazon! It’s called, Enjoy Your Money! How to Make It, Save It, Invest It and Give It. Lots of documented research, but presented in a fun, story form. Nice gift for high school or college graduation. If you like it, pass it on to your other Facebook friends! (btw, my author name is J. Steve Miller)
The result? As of the end of the first day, I had two "Congratulations!" comments. Today, I find three more. But I don't see any sales from yesterday (I can track my daily Amazon sales through Booksurge). Not one.Ruminations on my underwhelming Facebook publicity campaign?
1) Glad I did it. Hey, they're my friends and I want to share my excitement with them.
2) Yes, these are people I know and care about.
3) No, the book's not for everyone. Never expected all my friends to go buy a copy.
4) I'm unsure how many actually follow their Facebook homepage each day. Of 150 friends, I've got to wonder if 15 even saw my announcement.
5) Sales often come over time. Perhaps when they need to purchase a graduation gift, they'll think of it. If I get more response later, I'll update this report.
In the end, it's one less thing to worry about. I have plenty of ways to market this book. Now I can go back to concentrating on them. Facebook will continue to be a place where I keep up with my friends, rejoice with their successes and pray for their needs. It's not for hard "marketing" of my "products."
UPDATE: The following day, I got a few more personal responses. Now it's becoming more of a conversation item that will come up naturally as people interact. One will post a note on Facebook to say they're ordering the book, which may give an occasion for another to see the post, etc. With this new info, let's say that the announcement started a conversation that will continue. My book is a part of my life, and friends are interested in that aspect of my life.
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