Election Lessons For Writers

 

 

Whether or not you voted in the recent and highly competitive mid-term elections, and whether or not your candidates won, there is a lot to take away for authors looking to market themselves and their books.

Elections are nothing more than marketing campaigns. The product being sold is merely the images, ideas, and promises of a candidate, and really of a party.

Did you see what was being sold — and how it was conveyed to voters? The campaigns played on human emotions, from fear to hate, and on visions of a new society, one steeped in values such as freedom and liberty. Each side twisted the facts to fit a narrative that got sold and packaged to the electorate.  

So, dear author, must you lie, hide facts, and obfuscate and misrepresent the truth? Hopefully not, but look at how politicians marketed themselves.  

They: 

* Paid for targeted advertising

* Posted often on social media platforms

* Used their blog/podcast/video channel to broadcast their message

* Had a campaign trailer

* Spoke in front of groups that would be open to their messages

* Got interviewed by the news media

* Promoted their website that was filled with propaganda

* Networked and made connections

* Asked for favors and help from their supporters

* Handed out fliers, mailed postcards, and sold or gave out swag 

Sound like a familiar strategy? 

Their messages came down to:

* Stating visions and values that they hope others align with

* Asking people to buy (donate to campaign)

* Stating an urgency to act (vote)

* Showing why they are unique, better, and different from others

* Inspiring others to join their tribe 

Again, sound familiar? 

Political campaigns are run quite similarly to book marketing campaigns.  

Whether or not you support Blue or Red candidates, we can all agree that all of the winning candidates executed great campaigns. All writers should model them and implement what works. 

 

Please Contact Me For Book PR Help

Brian Feinblum, the founder of this award-winning blog, can be reached at brianfeinblum@gmail.com He is available to help authors promote their story, sell their book, and grow their brand. He has over 30 years of experience in successfully helping thousands of authors in all genres.

 

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About Brian Feinblum

Brian Feinblum should be followed on Twitter @theprexpert. This is copyrighted by BookMarketingBuzzBlog ©2022. Born and raised in Brooklyn, he now resides in Westchester with his wife, two kids, and Ferris, a black lab rescue dog. His writings are often featured in The Writer and IBPA’s The Independent.  This award-winning blog has generated over 3.2 million pageviews. With 4,400+ posts over the past decade, it was named one of the best book marketing blogs by BookBaby  http://blog.bookbaby.com/2013/09/the-best-book-marketing-blogs and recognized by Feedspot in 2021 and 2018 as one of the top book marketing blogs. It was also named by WinningWriters.com as a "best resource.” For the past three decades, including 21 years as the head of marketing for the nation’s largest book publicity firm, and two jobs at two independent presses, Brian has worked with many first-time, self-published, authors of all genres, right along with best-selling authors and celebrities such as: Dr. Ruth, Mark Victor Hansen, Joseph Finder, Katherine Spurway, Neil Rackham, Harvey Mackay, Ken Blanchard, Stephen Covey, Warren Adler, Cindy Adams, Susan RoAne, Jeff Foxworthy, Seth Godin, and Henry Winkler. He recently hosted a panel on book publicity for Book Expo America, and has spoken at ASJA, IBPA, Sarah Lawrence College, Nonfiction Writers Association, Cape Cod Writers Association, Willamette (Portland) Writers Association, and Connecticut Authors and Publishers Association. His letters-to-the-editor have been published in The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, New York Post, NY Daily News, Newsday, The Journal News (Westchester) and The Washington Post. He has been featured in The Sun Sentinel and Miami Herald. For more information, please consult: linkedin.com/in/brianfeinblum.