It
takes courage for you to put on the hat of publicist. Welcome to my world, one
in which I have directly helped more than a thousand authors since 1989.
I
guess I could have called this the 7 ways or 15 or 30. The number is not important. The key here is
to understand there are certain ways to do something and specific steps that
need to be taken in order to book market like a pro.
I
have found there are certain things you will need to address in order to be
successful with your book PR efforts. Let’s explore the role in book publicity
of:
·
Time
·
Money
·
Connectivity
·
Creativity
·
Attitude
Always
realize that no one is an expert on everything.
I know what I know from
experience, observation, what I have read, and what others have told me. I also
use common sense and a vivid imagination.
I
have had the opportunity to work with so many unique, passionate, and
interesting authors and have learned that a lot of them follow certain patterns
of thought and action.
My
goal is to help you see that book publicity is necessary and achievable -- and
that you can play a big role in this area. I understand it is not easy nor even
something authors want to be involved with. Of course you would rather spend
your time writing, but you can’t dismiss nor ignore the power of book
marketing.
That
is your gift, your passion, your purpose. No one is born destined to be a book promoter.
But you can learn how to be one. Anyway, you have no choice in the matter. Your
books need attention in order for your writing career to continue – and thrive.
The key is to find a balance in your life, with your writing and with your book
publicity. Both are vital to your success.
I
spend a lot of time blogging about book publicity and marketing, not only
because I enjoy it, but because it is necessary for my career. I have probably
written the equivalent of way more than a dozen books over the past five and a
half years on my blog, http://www.bookmarketingbuzzblog.blogspot.com.
Here
are the five ways elite book marketers operate – and so should you:
Way
No. 1:
MASTER
THE USE OF YOUR TIME
Book
PR can be time-consuming. It is not always immediate that you see your investment
of time pay off.
You
have a lot to do. You need to research and build your media lists. You need the
right media outlets and to find the right people at them. You have to spend
time tracking them down and reaching out to them. You need to do follow-ups. You
are crafting and rewriting pitches, both verbal and printed. You are creating
and updating a web site.
Then
there is social media and blogging.
Plus
you have the rest of your life and your writing to tend to.
You
may feel overwhelmed. Don’t just talk or think about it – get it done!
Think
it through and then convert your thoughts into action.
So
how should you schedule your time?
Set
your priorities. Determine what is needed most, what you do best, what you like
to do, and identify what you dislike or are weakest at doing. Break it down
into manageable chunks.
Schedule
your time, but with flexibility. Leave time to strategize, reflect and to think
freely.
Then
leave time to execute.
Determine
what you can delegate. Time is money: What can you outsource?
Create
a timeline of when to start and end your PR campaign. Know what can be done vs
what should be done. And what needs to be done vs. your desire to get it done.
Too
many authors come to me when it is too late to really be effective. If you miss
a deadline or a window of opportunity, just move on. Be timely to capitalize on
your launch date, the news cycle, special dates, trends, anniversaries, or holidays.
You
will need to experiment in your PR – give it time. Diversify your approach and
vary your media pitches. Even try reaching out to the media at various times of
day and different days of the week.
Time,
no doubt is a precious commodity but make sure you leave some for your book
publicity.
How To Manage
Your Time
·
Assess
your true needs.
·
List
your core goals.
·
Examine
how you spend your time.
·
Stop
procrastinating.
·
Don’t
let things bottleneck.
·
Look
for shortcuts.
·
Consider
lowering your standards.
·
Set
time limits for a task.
·
Vary
your tasks throughout the day.
·
Acknowledge
your time-efficiency patterns.
·
Get
more energy by changing your diet, sleep, and exercise.
·
Work
longer days and in smarter ways.
·
Reflect
often on ways to improve.
·
Model
others who manage time well.
·
Cut
down on travel time.
·
Avoid
long lines.
·
Schedule
your days – leave little to chance.
·
Schedule
calls/meetings in 15-minute segments.
·
Be
aware of time windows to get certain things done.
·
Be
ready to react to a changing news cycle.
·
Drop
everything to pursue a new opportunity.
·
Respect
reviewer deadlines.
·
Respond
ASAP to a media inquiry.
·
Contact
the media way in advance of a holiday, honorary date, event or anniversary.
Be flexible on
time zones/availability
·
Be
willing to do interviews
·
In
the early mornings
·
And
late nights
·
On
weekends
·
Wit
overseas media
When should you
start your PR?
In
many ways PR is continuous.
·
There
is always something to be done.
·
Always
a blog post or tweet to send.
·
Always
someone to connect to online.
PR
campaigns should begin 5-6 months prior to your official publication date. Set
your goals and work backwards. Some things need time to unfold. Some can only
happen at a certain time. Leave time to learn about the media. Make time
available for the media – of any size.
Specific Things
Must Happen Early On
·
6
months prior to your book launch:
o Create your Web
site
o Brainstorm ideas
·
5
months out:
o Strategically
plan your campaign
o Develop your
press kit/media pitches
o Pull together
your Advance Review Copy (ARC ) media list
·
4
months out:
o Send out your
ARC’s
o Select/schedule
book signings and appearances
o Research the
media you plan to approach
·
3
months out:
o Solicit
testimonials
o Follow up on ARC
media
o Continue to
query book stores/speaking opportunities
·
2
months out:
o Contact non-book
reviewer media
o Approach online
reviewers
o Reach out to
tour city media
·
1
month out:
o Start scheduling
radio and TV interviews
o Finish ARC
follow-up
o Contact more
online reviewers
o Add on bloggers
and Web sites
o Hit daily
newspapers, newswires and weekly publications
·
First
90 days of the publication date:
o This is your
time for interviews and stories to run
o Media and
bookstores see it new then
o All short-term
media must be contacted
Stick
to your timeline and don’t deviate.
Way No. 2:
INCREASE YOUR CONNECTIVITY
Who
you know counts. How well you know them, is also key. What are you willing to
ask of them? What are you willing to
give to them? Make the relationship a two-way street, but obviously focus on
what you need to give in order to get what you want.
Build your lists
early and often:
·
Collect
emails
·
Can
you team up with the lists of others?
·
Befriend
people like crazy on Facebook or LinkedIn
·
Get
more Twitter followers – set daily or weekly goals
·
Attract
more people to your site with content/discounts/giveaways/special events
Your lists can
do the following:
·
Give
you a potential customer list.
·
Some
members can be carriers – they share with others.
·
Provide
an increased chance of going viral.
·
Can
give you helpful advice and resources.
·
Gives
you the ability to impact others with your message.
Your numbers
give the perception of importance and influence to:
·
Potential
consumers
·
Literary
agents
·
Speaker
bureaus
·
News
media
·
Publishers
How do you
connect with others?
·
Find
your target demographic.
·
Speak
their lingo.
·
Make
yourself accessible to them.
·
Give
advice or share helpful info to them.
·
Introduce
your connections to others.
·
Focus
your time on building relationships.
·
Invest
time to create new connections.
·
Ask
people for help.
·
Promise
to give them something.
·
Phone
or meet those you met online.
·
Email
or text those you have seen in person.
·
Be
vigilant in making connections.
·
Assist
others before you need to call a favor in.
The
connections that count the most are the ones you have with your fan base. Then
come the media.
You
need to research the media or acquire a database. You will need to know how to
make contact with them and when to contact them -- and exactly who to reach out
to at specific outlets.
You
need to think like them, think for them, and speak their language. Media begets
media.
It
is a numbers game – do your research and cast a wide net. Use social media to
meet and interact with the media, too.
The
old saying is true: It’s not what you know, but who you know.
To
add to that: It’s not what your book says, but what others say about it. Get
more people to say more things about it – it will make a huge difference in
sales.
Way
No. 3:
BE
A CREATIVE BOOK PROMOTER
You
need to be as creative with your book PR as you are with writing your book. You
need to infuse the media with your vision, hope, and conviction. Passionately
show the media what you see and feel and convince them the way you would try to
convince a court that someone is an innocent person. You can be creative in
what you say to the media: the ideas and words expressed. And creative in what
you show them, visually.
You
can be creative in how you find them, contact them, and follow-up with them. Your
creativity will be needed in how you contact the media. Creativity is not just
to be applied to writing books, but also in how you implement a strategy to
market your book.
Here are some
creative steps to take:
·
Think
of how you can turn your life into a news story.
·
Explore
what resources you have to call upon to help create a story for the media.
·
Be
creative in taking your entire book and turning it into a headline.
·
Be
creative in consolidating your book, life and writing career into a 15-second
elevator speech.
·
Be
creative in how you write your opening paragraph for your press release.
·
Be
creative with your Web site, book title, cover design, business card, etc.
·
Think
of whom you can partner with to help support your media efforts.
·
Get
creative in what you can trade or do for another.
·
Be
aware of the current news cycle and the media landscape and think of how to
capitalize on circumstances or trends.
Creatively
think of what separates you not just from other authors, but other experts on
your topic. Look and see:
·
How
can you make it clear that you have a solution to a problem?
·
Do
you have an idea worth exploring?
·
What
experience can you share that is too interesting to ignore?
·
What
truth needs to be revealed?
·
Is
there a fact that is worth showcasing?
·
Do
you have something new to say or can you find a new way to say it?
Explore
what you have to work with that can be turned into a story idea and then create
quotes, data, facts or ideas to support such a pitch.
How
do you move from the core of your comfort zone in talking about your book’s
theme to far-reaching story ideas?
How
creative will you be about being controversial and outspoken, instead of
silent, neutral or uncommitted on something?
You
may just be able to brainstorm your way to good publicity.
Way
No. 4:
MANAGE
YOUR BOOK MARKETING MONEY
Money
buys you time to work on your book PR campaign and book marketing efforts. It
can buy you marketing. It can buy you marketing help. It certainly can help
spruce up your web site. Money can help you pay for ads on Google and Facebook
and with your SEO.
It
can also pay for ads with Publishers Weekly, Library Journal and
publishing trades, which in turn may give you access to editorial coverage. It can even buy you reviews with certain
publications – Kirkus, PW Select, Clarion
Foreword. The wall that separates the two sides is paper thin.
For
some, they can even buy their way onto the bestseller list. It can give you the
ability to travel and go on tour. It can finance your holding of – or
participation in – events. Money can help you create a higher quality book
product, from the cover to editing to the paper quality and other add-ons. Money
may even afford you the ability to do stunts or gimmicks. It can certainly help
you hire a prominent name to write your foreword. You can pay someone to give
you a testimonial. You can hire someone
with a name to be involved as a spokesperson.
Can
money make a difference? Yes, but don’t waste it if you have it.
There are things
you can do for free, however:
·
Research
online for bloggers and media to contact by email and phone
·
Do
digital giveaways and free chapter downloads to inspire a following
·
Social
media, though it can be a time-suck, could also give you a boost
And
whatever you do in regards to spending money on PR, start sooner than later. You
can’t do it in too many stages over too long a period of time. You can’t wait to
first sell books in order to fund your PR. Make an investment, take a risk: You
have a limited window of time to strike.
Settle
on a PR budget and commit to it. How much money is needed depends on many
factors, namely:
·
What
is needed of others vs what you will do for yourself.
·
Determine
what is achievable and hire out for the things you can’t do or don’t want to do.
·
Stay
within your budget and don’t take out a second mortgage to fund it.
When
you hire a publicist, ask many questions. Then get quotes from several people
and compare their offerings. Be clear on what they will do: length of time,
amount of outreach and follow-up, expectation of results, and seek to
understand the process. Choose someone with a proven track record, perhaps from
a referral. Find someone who specializes in books and your genre. Make sure
they sound passionate, intelligent, knowledgeable, and available. Do not throw
money into PR expecting automatic results or favorable coverage. Support the
efforts of those you pay to help you – it is a collaborative process.
Money
can certainly make a difference, but you can still compete on a shoestring
budget.
Way
No. 5:
YOUR
BOOK MARKETING ATTITUDE
In
order to succeed at PR, you need to have the right attitude. Optimism is a must.
Persistence, too. You need a nothing-to-lose attitude. You have little to risk
in promoting your book – but you risk a lot by not. If you want a shot at
getting beyond obscurity, you will be a promoter.
You
need to be willing to invest your time and money – and to make a mental
commitment to PR. When you display confidence,
others believe in and like you. When you act with energy and enthusiasm, people
gravitate towards you. When you express something with conviction, people begin
to believe in you.
You
will sell yourself, not the book. You will sell a story, not the book. You will sell a benefit, not a feature. Be positive and pro-active – know that you
can do this.
That
said, be prepared for rejection – writers know something about that. Expect to
be ignored at least 75% of the time you call or email the media. And of the
remaining 25%, expect to be declined 85% of the time. But you are looking for a
handful of people to say yes.
Don’t
worry about who says no. Build on your successes.
Even
a bad review could have a good pull quote.
Be
of the belief that no publicity is bad publicity.
You
may think an interview went poorly, but you are not objective. You are too
close to it – maybe it was not so bad.
Do
not let ego lead you into thinking you don’t need to be helpful, involved, or assertive
– roll up your sleeves. Don’t let your past record -- good or bad – determine
your efforts now. Don’t allow what you hear from other authors to taint or
deter you. Don’t be jealous of others or think everyone has a hit but you. And
don’t think that no one ever breaks through. You must think big and dream and
to go beyond your reach. And you must think small and go after what’s reachable.
Set
clear objectives for yourself and identify reasonable goals. It is okay to have
a wish list, but don’t hold yourself to it.
You
need brains, resources, hard work, timing – and luck – which comes from all the
other things and a never-give-up, can-do spirit. That said, know when to pack
it in or consider re-tooling and re-launching your book. Or make time to move
on to your next book.
Whatever
you do, try to enjoy the process. Being a writer is special and seeing your
book talked about is like no other feeling.
You
can be a successful book marketer, not
just because you are a great writer, but because you can master the five ways
authors become an elite book marketer!
All-New 2017 Book Marketing & PR Toolkit
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