If you've ever tried gathering weeds without a bucket or flowers without a basket, you'll know that keeping all of the goods in your hands until you get to the final destination is a difficult feat.
The same is true with marketing.
You can put the feelers out, gather in all of these wonderful ideas, and yet, if you forget to house them, keep them in a place as you gather them from place to place you may find your ideas misplaced, or worse, lost.
When I began writing Marketing Your Book on a Budget 2012 (we're now at the 2013 edition) I began to gather ideas from websites and to try them out. The best ones I copied on sheets of paper. These sheets began to pile up on my desk until I had to do something with them.
I got a binder and put everything I'd gathered under a category.
This helped, and quite a bit, too. I could go and search under the category when I needed to work on "Reviewers" for example, or "Interviews," but I was still finding my life a bit hectic. I was still losing things; imagine that! I was still sorting through papers and website links and a ton of information.
That's when I decided to write a book. Sure, the book was written for you, but it was also written for me. I still have my binder, but I also have a physical book with all the meat enclosed. I don't have to go hunting for it like an armed robber; I can actually open it to the correct chapter and get the correct links for where I need to go. I can use my eBook and do the same this time using the direct links to get me where I want and need to go.
Now, I bet you're wondering, so where are the 5 ideas this writer promised me?
I try not to disappoint.
Reviews: Reviews are like bread and butter. Every writer needs some and dare I say, many, to get his/her name out there. And while it takes a good while to search for reviewers singly through a Google search, there are some nice folks out there who have gathered the reviewers for us. My favorite? stepbystepselfpublishing.net.
Free Advertising: Yes, free. If you put together a blog or write a blog for others, that's free advertising, but there are sites out there that will post a synopsis, a first chapter, your book's cover, links to purchase, etc. and all for free! One of my favorites: bookdaily.com
Blog Interviews: When a blog owner wants to interview you the process usually goes like this: You email them and tell them about your book, they respond with a list of questions you'll need to answer, you respond to the questions and email them back with appropriate cover, bio, author photo information, and they post this on their site at a future date. My favorite place: Morgen Bailey'sWriting Blog.
Book Signings: Now, I'm not talking about doing a book signing while sitting on the other side of a table, your books stacked to high heaven. I'm talking about a book signing at a hairdressers, at a gift store, at a craft show. I have done all three of these ideas and each signing has been successful. The main idea is not to sit behind a table, but to talk to those who pass by.
Word of Mouth: Did you know that the best way to get the word out about your book is to personally talk about it? That means the old fashioned let's talk to people at the grocery store while we're waiting in line, let's talk to the man at the gas station, let's make friends with our neighbors and those we associate with at church.
To gather in readers, it's important not only to have a "book" plan but to do something to implement it every day. That means getting those reviews up to six months before your book comes out, getting some free advertising from blog owners interested in new books, writing on your blog 3-5 days a week, and doing some spectacular book signings.
Watch as your readers gather in.
Kathryn has been a published writer since 1987. During that time she has published fiction and nonfiction for teens and adults. As a marketer for the past 10 years, she has learned what works and what doesn't for the beginning author who is eager to sell his/her work.
You can find Kathryn at: http://www.ariverofstones.com and http://www.ideacreationspress.com
Twitter: @kakido
Facebook: KJ.books
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