While
attending paralegal school in what seems like a lifetime ago, I learned to
draft papers that provided a legal argument for a certain position, for or
against something. You looked at case
law, government regulations, and general rule of law to help you make a cogent
argument. It was all very dry, though
still up to interpretation, analysis, and clearly tied to the selection of specific cases that would determine how one would view an issue.
Writing press kits and pitch letters to the news media, though an act of
persuasion, is quite a different task.
Perhaps the two practices should merge.
When
you state your case to the media as to why it should pay attention to your book
or cover you as an expert, you need to convince them of facts, sell them on
ideas, and appeal to their personal sense of justice and passion. This is not so unfamiliar to lawyers, who in
addition to methodically discovering and sharing facts that support their side,
will in the end, win over a judge and certainly a jury, with emotional appeals
and the selling of personality. As an
author, think like a lawyer when trying to appeal to those who judge you – the
news media.
In
the case of lawyers and publicists, the words chosen to frame an argument are
so very important. All words have
precise meanings, but many have connotations -- a way in which we feel,
interpret and see these words. We attach
thoughts, feelings, even biases to certain words. Sometimes, the words you use are more
important than the reality they’re intended to reflect.
The burden of proof in a court of law is different than the arbitrary way a media outlet might be convinced to cover a story, but there is a similarity of process. In both situations, one must advocate convincingly of their side or risk failure. In court, some win their case by showing enough cause to doubt a conviction, but with the media the burden is always on the author or publicist to show why he or she is worthy of media exposure.
Lawyers
have to present their case live, in person, on a neutral territory – a courtroom. Authors and publicists do most of their
lobbying by phone, email, social media, or by mail. They rarely get to be in the same room,
face-to-face, with the media, and if they are together, it’s likely on the turf
of the media outlet. But whatever the
place or time one gets to appeal to the media, he or she must seize that moment
and do all that’s possible to turn the opportunity into a point of closure, a
moment of negotiated agreement.
Authors and lawyers are very similar. They may
resort to distortions, stunts, and factual withholdings in order to build their
points. They are supposed to be honest
and respect the law, but they will bend ethically in order to find a way to
convince others they have merit. Just as
lawyers will even defend those they believe to be guilty, authors will promote
a book they know is far from being an award-winning best-seller. They advocate to be heard, no matter what.
Maybe
comparing the legal process to pitching the media is silly. Lawyers are trained and licensed to do their
job, while, publicists have no requirements and authors rarely have any
training in book promotions. Whereas
lawyers can go to jail for lying, authors have no such fears when talking to
the media. Whereas lawyers may argue
over huge sums of money, life and death, or human rights, most authors don’t
have such things at stake.
Authors
can and should learn from other professions as to what can help them be better
at book promotions. They should watch
politicians, lawyers, car salesmen, and anyone who can provide insight on the
powers of persuasion. Everyone, at every
level, from an escort to a Fortune 500 CEO, has some insight to offer about the
power of sales and communications.
DON”T MISS THESE!!!
The Book
Marketing Strategies Of Best-Sellers
Step out of your book marketing prison
Do
authors have the right attitude to succeed at book marketing?
While
popularity of social media grows, traditional media still leads the conversation
Authors
should see book marketing like going to a gym regularly
How to
model success of authors for your own book publicity
How to be
persistent when marketing books effectively
How
authors convince media of their uniqueness
Authors
should zoom in on book marketing now
How
authors can communicate better when promoting a book
How authors can sell more books
No. 1 Book Publicity Resource: 2019
Toolkit For Authors -- FREE
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.