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Marketing, Publicity, and Relationships
As I wander deeper and deeper into the world of book marketing and publicity, I get the feeling that I’m spinning my wheels. I am going where authors have gone before and feel as if I am offering very little that is new or unique. I have good books. My product, according to the reviews, my editor, my agent and my mother is good. So how do I sell the book? How do I get noticed in a world that is filled with noisy people yelling, “Look at me, look at me.” Yelling louder isn’t really an option for me. It makes me uncomfortable and I am not sure it’s effective. Besides, it makes my throat hurt.
One thing I have learned is that marketing and publicity are built on relationships. Last week, Jane Porter invited me to be her special guest at a reader’s tea here in Portland. She did that because we had a relationship that dates back about eight years. Last Wednesday. I had another media event fall in my lap because of a relationship I have with entrepreneur and 30 Second Mom founder, Elisa All. I’ve known Elisa for even longer than Jane, about ten years or so. The #30secondmom Twitter chat garnered me even more publicity and followers. Will that result in readers? I believe so. But these opportunities were the result of relationships, not vocal sales pitches.
I have built trust with these people. I am not using them simply to sell books. My association with them goes far deeper. As I write this blog, I am forging new relationships and though some of them have stemmed from the business of blogging, selling and producing, they are like friendships in that they are based on mutual respect. Am I wrong in thinking that friendship, respect and business can go hand in hand? Am I being naive?
For instance, yesterday I was interviewed by a media chica yesterday who writes for lifestyle blogs and online magazines. Smart, savvy, funny and a good writer—all things I admire. I met her online and now she is doing a story on me that may garner me more followers, readers, sales. But that isn’t what struck me about the conversation, rather, it was how fun and natural it was. This wasn’t just a business conversation for me— I wasn’t selling: I was connecting.
Sales, marketing, publicity, platform, brand, etc., are all sales terms that I’ll be delving into much more deeply in the coming months. I’m starting a marketing group with several authors to explore some of these ideas and more, and plan on taking several online classes concerning these topics. I am confident I will be able to find a marketing rhythm and style that is not only effective, but uniquely my own. And happily, I am starting in a place that is comfortable for me.
Relationships.
Blurring the Lines
Like most writer’s I know, I work from home. As I write this, it’s nine AM and I’m still in my pajamas and robe and contemplating whether I should take the time to make a decent breakfast with the appropriate protein/veggie/carb ratio or if I should just bolt a big bowl of sugar cereal. (Does Applejack’s count as a fruit?)
Now don’t get me wrong, I love working from home and I only feel a little bit of guilt when I realize I haven’t left the house in three days or haven’t showered in two. (Hey, I’m under deadline, don’t judge!)But I find that the longer I work at home, the more the lines between work and home get blurred. For example my to do list for the day:
Work on blog
Revise four chapters
Write illustrator back
Make green juice
Write new blog
Work on synopsis for new proposal
Vacuum
Choose and order promo swag
Ask Tracy where she gets her veggie seeds
Go over twitter chat post
Take review books to post office (oh, god, I have to leave the house!)
Make vet appointment for Ducky
Workout (This has been on my daily list for three weeks and I have been able to cross it off once. ONCE!)
Take out chicken for dinner
See? My life is blurred into a long list of OVERWHELMED.
I already work from three lists, Master, Weekly and Daily. They are a mishmash of things that have to be done in both my personal life and my work life. Does this increase the anxiety or should I separate them? The thought of adding another list to mix totally freaks me out. It might help if I had an office, but I don’t like the thought of being isolated from the rest of the family so I work in my dining-room. (I ditched the table and put in a desk years ago). Perhaps this increases the blur, I don’t know.
Perhaps in reality, even though combined to do lists overwhelm me, my writing life and my personal life are too intertwined in my mind to be separated. I’m a big picture person, maybe compartmentalizing my life into separate boxes simply won’t work for me and I am searching for a seamless balance between the three things in my life I have decided are priorities… my health, my relationships and my writing.
So while I envy those people who have a separate office and keep separate lists, I don’t think I will ever be that person. Do you guys keep everything separate? Do you think it increases anxiety or lessons it? I’m always looking for ways to hone the system!
Platform Building Blog on the Run
Don’t have time for a “real” blog so I’m going to do some totally unrelated bullet points and call it a day. Besides, I have been reading about successful platform building and apparently no one has the attention span to read a whole blog anymore (which makes me wonder why I am selling a COMPLETE BOOK, but whatevs). So here is my stab and building a freaking platform, which is a term I find kind of stupid anyway and makes me think of diving pools or seventies shoes, but again, whatevs! I am too frantically busy today to worry about it. So without further ado…
- Downton Abbey last night. My God.
- Do successful people ever sleep? I wanna know because I have no idea how I am supposed to develop and nurture relationships, write my books, publicize my books, workout, care for hearth and home, change the world, floss and get the eight hours of sleep all the doctors tell you you’re supposed to get?
- For the love of God, people, go buy my book.
- I may have some fabulous news to share soon of the publishing kind.
- Alex Guarnaschelli, is the shiz in the kitchen and she loves Downton Abbey. As an obsessed home cook, (It became my creative outlet once writing became my day job) I am a total fan girl. And we were sort of connected in the same tweet that someone retweeted, so now I have a tweet in the twitterverse totally linking us together for posterity. Sigh. And I should totally get points for spelling Guarnaschelli correctly.
- Did I mention you need to go buy my book? Summerset Abbey, available at a fine retail store near you. read more…
Promotional Musings
So the Summerset Abbey blog tour continues. I now know why authors say only do three weeks maximum–it’s because it’s difficult to keep up energy and momentum for that length of time. I’ve learned a great deal from the launch of Summerset Abbey concerning publicity and most of this I will be writing into sort of a report to myself. Things I don’t want to forget for the next launch which is in less than two months. *panics*
First off, I have learned to think both locally and nationally. Not only what can I do to promote my book locally, (visits, signings, book clubs, etc.), but nationally, as well, (reaching out to librarians, Skype, getting to know prominent independent booksellers.) I have also learned that I need to pace my efforts… we will see how successful I am at this in the coming weeks. But looking at my calendar, my question should be: How can I sell xxx number of books, that week?
I can see that some weeks are more promo heavy than other weeks. For instance, in the second week of February, I am doing a big promotional blog give away, am the special guest at a reader’s tea given by bestselling author, Jane Porter, and am participating in a twitter chat and give away for 30 Second Mom. That’s awesome for the second week, but what about the first week of February or the third? How can I sell xxx number of books, that week?
One idea is to do mailings that week, both email and snail mail. Another is to form a marketing group with four or five other published authors and hold meetings to exchange ideas. I could also reach out to authors whose books are similar to mine. Will it be successful? Who knows! I just know that marketing and promoting your book is far better than refreshing your numbers every fifteen minutes!
So what do you think? How will you sell books this week? Or if you’re a reader, what gets you interested in a book?
And the winner is…
The winner of the Summerset Abbey preorder contest is… Rosemary Krejsa! Thank you to all who participated!
Final Day for the Summerset Abbey Launch and Preorder Contest!
In celebration of the launch of SUMMERSET ABBEY, the first book in an awesome trilogy, author Teri Brown is holding a book lovers contest.And get this; the prize is your choice of one of the following-a Kindle Fire, A Nook HD, or a Kobo Vox!
All you have to do to enter is pre-order SUMMSERSET ABBEY through Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Indiebound, or through your local independent bookstore and then forward the e-receipt to: Teri(at)teribrownbooks.com.
Contest runs from January 3rd through January 14th.
Winner will be chosen at random and announced on January 15th, the day Summerset Abbey comes out!
Is that an awesome way to celebrate or what?
Winner (Sorry, US addresses only) can pick from:
–Kindle Fire HD, 16GB
–Nook HD, 8GB
–Kobo Vox, 8GB
Announcing the Summerset Abbey Series
Available January, 15th, 2013!
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