When
it comes to your approach to book publicity are you a buyer, borrower, or a
builder?
A
buyer hires someone to promote their book for them.
A
borrower is someone who gets some publicity as a result of his or her
publisher’s efforts.
A
builder is someone who builds their brand and takes an active role in securing
his or her media exposure.
Sometimes
an author can be pieces of all three simultaneously. Which one are you? Why?
Most
authors, if their book is published by a reputable book publisher, will expect
or hope for the publisher to provide some marketing muscle for their own
product. Often, authors are disappointed
by the quality and duration of such efforts, if any activity was actually initiated
at all.
They
need to have a Plan B to supplement where the publisher, even under the best
intentions, falls short. An author has
too much at stake with his book and brand to leave it all in the hands of a
publisher that may lack the resources or the desire to do a full-court media
press on your behalf.
Authors
who self-publish or whose publisher clearly indicates little or nothing will be
done to promote his or her book, the choice becomes clear: buy or build?
Buying
is not as easy as it sounds. Buy
what? For how long? From whom?
For how much? Authors may not know who is good or bad, for many
promoters have the illusionist’s ability to talk a good talk and seek to take
advantage of an author’s dreams, fears, ignorance, ego, and operating beliefs.
But
leaving the details aside, let’s explore the concept of buying publicity. The idea here is that you lock in a
professional who can contact the right media, in the way media wants to be
approached, with a great pitch, at the right time. You look for experienced guidance, strategy,
connections, and media coaching from this person. The publicist can improve your website, guide
you on social media, and offer ideas, creativity, and connect you to those who
can be of assistance. It’s like hiring a
contractor, a lawyer or even a surgeon – you are getting someone who advocates
for you and can quarterback the big picture.
Your
publicist is not a brick-layer, a lawn guy who merely cuts grass, or a person who changes the oil
in your car. Those jobs can be performed
by the unskilled. Book publicity is not
brain surgery, but it does require knowledge, media contacts, passion, good
writing skills, excellent research skills, media savvy, an assertive
personality, and a competitive mindset.
A good publicist can take you far.
Building
your publicity makes sense if you have no choice, as in no budget to hire a pro
and no publisher to rely on, but it’s a time-consuming process with a huge
learning curve. I champion those who
play an active role in their publicity, but I always caution against doing it
solo. By the time you figure out how to
do this efficiently and successfully, it’ll be too late.
Be a
builder, but don’t go it alone. Borrow
what’s available to you and always look to be a buyer because only then do you
take ownership of your fate and seize control of your book marketing.
DON”T MISS THESE!!!
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all authors invest in book marketing or book publicity?
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