And other mysteries of book marketing
Over the years I've heard
this phrase thousands of times. Authors getting great reviews, getting awards,
even local media and still, book sales aren't happening. When you have external
validation, it's hard to really understand where the disconnect is, isn't it?
Sometimes though, it may be just a matter of taking a closer look and analyzing
your marketing using a different lens. Let's take a look at some things that you
may want to consider:
* Leverage: First and foremost is leverage. How are you leveraging all
of these other things? If you're not, you might consider it. It's easy enough to
slap an award sticker on your book, but what else have you done to promote this?
Consider:
* Announce it locally: Especially if you won the award.
Honorable mentions are great, but not as appealing to local media.
* Contact
your local bookstores. If they've said no before perhaps adding an award to your
resume might entice them. Remember people like what other people like. The same
goes for bookstores.
* Add it to your website. That's a given. Same for your
email signature line.
* Reviewers: If you have reviewers that are pending,
meaning you're targeted them with no response, why not make a second (gentle)
sweep and let them know you won this award?
* Endorsements: If you've been
after high-profile endorsements for your book but they keep eluding you, you may
have a better chance of it with an award in your pocket, so try pitching them
again.
* Reviews: If you have a lot of reviews and aren't seeing a lot of
sales, I would say take a lesson from the "leverage" piece above and see if any
of it applies to your pulling in more reviews. For example, if you have
endorsers who haven't responded to your requests, or bookstores that have given
you the brush-off, this could be a great way to gain their attention. The same
doesn't apply to reviewers, however. Most reviewers aren't swayed by books that
have tons of reviews. They either select the book or they don't, so don't push
this one too hard.
* Engagement: Sometimes when we get a "hit" somewhere we tend to focus
all of our energy there. That's a great thing, but maybe now it's time to step
back and see what else you can do that you haven't focused on. Try engaging
readers. When was the last time you sent a round of thank-you notes to reviewers
who reviewed your book, or posted a thank-you on their blog? If you're getting a
lot of comments on your website, or on blogs or interviews you've done
elsewhere, I would encourage you to connect with readers there, too.
Additionally, have you considering getting onto GoodReads, Library Thing or
Wattpad and building readership there? And a final note on engaging. If you're a
fiction author perhaps you should consider engaging your readers with your
characters. If you can get your readers to fall in love (or in hate) with your
characters, you can really build a strong audience that way.
* Media gets media: Some authors also come to me saying, "I've gotten
tons of local media but nothing nationally." This is also pretty typical but
here's something you can do. Media loves media and the more media you get, the
more you'll get - if that makes sense. When you pitch yourself to national
media, include a one-sheet of all of the places you've been featured. Even if
it's in your own town.
* The plight of book reviews: Do book reviews really sell books?
Candidly, it's hard to know. I do know that lots of exposure sells books but
it's really about the right kind of exposure and, beyond that, it's about
exposure in a myriad of areas. If you've been heavily focused on getting a ton
of book reviews, and your Amazon page is populated with more fond words than you
know what to do with, maybe it's time to move into a new area of promotion.
Content, content: There was a discussion around content during a recent event I
attended at both Digital Book World and Tools of Change. Both of these programs
had folks talking about the importance of free and also of putting out frequent
content. Don't wait eighteen months to release a book which leaves your reader
hanging for more from your characters.
* Realigning your perspective on book sales: Truth is, most of us
think we should be selling more than we are. We hear the "average" in book sales
and then on the flip side, we hear about folks like Hugh Howey who is selling
zillions of copies of his book. Where's the reality? Well, the answer is
somewhere in between. If you have all these awards and are selling a book a day,
I would say that depending on your market that may not be a bad start. For
example, if you're sitting in the contemporary romance market, that's a pretty
cluttered category so you may not sell as many as if you were in something more
niche. I've seen some authors who can't get beyond selling a book a month.
Seriously.
Reviews, awards, and nods from important people in your industry are
fantastic, but like a tree falling in the forest if you don't tell folks about
it, no one will know. Yes, you do often have to hit readers over the head with
things if for no other reason than people are busy. Got an award? Shout it from
the rooftops. Got tons of great reviews? Let's see if that can be a stepping
stone to something else.
In the end, everything is a pathway to something else. If you get a bunch of
awards for your book and figure your work stops there, that's a big mistake.
Follow the path to something else, which will take you to something else, and so
on. At some point at the end of that road you may very well find a pot of gold,
and, you'll likely be selling more books.
Reprinted from "The Book Marketing Expert newsletter," a free ezine offering
book promotion and publicity tips and techniques. http://www.amarketingexpert.com
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