With
the New Year upon us – a new decade at that – I thought I would finally get with
the times and be a Spotify customer. It’s amazing how it takes me years to give
into something new. But I realize the
same may be true for you and your approach to book marketing and author branding.
For
me, my change from listening to the radio came at the insistence of my son, just
before he turned 15.
He’s
this generation’s poster child for not only using tech but embracing it. He doesn’t know from CD’s. He knows iTunes, You Tube, and digital
music. He doesn’t even know of local
radio before Sirius XM Satellite. I
remember big-sized records and 8-track tapes.
I remember cassette tapes and CD’s.
I recall the radio. But it’s been years since I bought any music or
listened to anything with any regularity. Now I stepped it up.
I
went on a download spree to build up my play lists. U2, Madonna, Pet Shop Boys,
REM, Expose, Michael Jackson, Prince, and today’s top hits were some of the
first selections. God, I missed
listening to music like this, easily hearing dozens of songs that I love and
feel inspired and moved by.
The
very first piece of music that I took ownership of was as a teen. I bought Rush 2012 and The Police. I loved the Walkman era and would walk for
miles while listening to 80’s songs, particularly UK boy bands.
But
I’m not lost in another decade. I continue
to appreciate today’s stars as well. I
am not a snob, believing that only old music is great. Today’s tunes
resemble this generation’s needs and desires and grew out of the stuff I
listened to.
Spotify
is easy. $15 a month covers my whole family,
who can listen on any device – phone, laptop, desktop, whatever. Unlimited
access to a zillion songs. I love it!
Ok,
so back to book marketing. Just as this was hesitant to move on to Spotify from a familiar but outdated,
less-efficient, more costly ways of listening to music, you likely are resistant
to some of today’s way of doing things to plug your brand, sell a book, and
promote your ideas. Well…get over it.
Blog.
Podcast.
Tweet.
You
can do it. You can type and/or talk, right?
Ok, not so hard. Ask anyone under
20 to help you if you need a push. You can do it – and you will love it once
you do.
Curiosity
and angst will melt away and you will feel like a burden was lifted, a wall
torn down, a bully silenced. In 2020, say good riddance to the methods of
thought and action that have retarded your growth and stopped you from realizing
your full potential.
Not everything
you know is useless. The past is not all
bad. No, no. But you just need to reboot and take the good
and make it better – and lose or diminish the bad.
My
father-in-law recently saw my teen-age son scan a check that he received for Hanukah,
into his iPhone and get deposited onto his debit card account. His reaction
was: “I hope I’m dead before I have to do that.”
He’s
74 or so but he has woefully not adapted to 2020. No smart phone. No computer. No Spotify,
social media, or digital banking for him.
But
once we let our mental holdbacks get sidelined and we give way to the latest,
greatest tools out there, we win. We feel like we are no longer on the other
side of a world gone by. We feel
emancipated.
You can
flourish this year if you allow yourself to delve into the things you’ve been avoiding. Create or update that website. Get onto social media or greatly expand your
footprint. Consider writing a blog or
taking an existing one and posting more often. Get a You Tube channel. Create a podcast.
2020
is a new year. God it’s 20 years since
the new millennium. It’s finally a
decade we can easily refer to – the 20’s vs. the aughts or teens – or was it
the 10’s. See what I mean? It’s your year! Why not?
2020 is here:
The
Olympics.
The
elections.
New
sports championships.
New
award-winning movies, music, theater, TV shows.
And
a new you, ready to attack technology or whatever the hell stands in your
way.
Obliterate
all obstacles. Take a chance. Make a
change. You will love it.
Shhh.
Billie Jean by Michael Jackson is playing.
DON”T MISS THESE!!!
New Year's Resolutions For
Every Author
Free 2020 Book Marketing Toolkit for Authors
17 Book PR Strategies That
Work
The Author Publicity
Priority List
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