My father always
told me that it's okay to make mistakes, it's how you learn. Well, I'm about to
tell you the mistakes I've made while marketing and promoting my books so that
you don't have to go through the same mistakes when you market and promote your
own books. I'll put them in list form so it's easier to digest.
Number 1. When posting on forums don't just promote yourself with no other redeeming
information. When I first started out I'd post summaries of my books and links
to buy them on sites that specifically said no self-promo. I didn’t listen. The
result: I got banned from these sites and all the networking they could have
provided. Provide content marketing material when you post. Writer’s are always
interested in information that can help readers find their books.
Number 2. Don't write articles that tell people how they are going to feel
about your book. For instance, don't write a blurb that says, "This is the
best book you'll read all year". Statements like that really turn off the
reader. Let the reader decide if they like what you’ve written.
Number 3. Don't believe the hype that paying for click advertising or putting
up banners are going to increase sales. The most important driver of sales is
word of mouth through social sites and networking… using grassroots marketing. If
you’re looking for the prestige that comes from seeing your book ad on a
popular website, then go for it. But statistically, it's a very small
percentage of people that will actually buy the book through a paid advertisement.
Sorry, but it’s a fact.
Number 4. Don’t think that by spamming social network sites that you’re somehow
going to go viral (meaning tens of thousands of people clicked on your info) and
sell a million books. Most social network site followers don’t want to see you
blurbing about your book a dozen times a day. They would rather watch kittens
playing piano.
Number 5. Just because you wrote a book, published it, and sold a few copies,
don’t think you’re going to be able to quit your job and retire. That only
happens to lottery-winning writers. I’ve had a few tweets and postings go viral
and it led to just a small increase in sales. It’s a cool feeling knowing so
many people have checked out your stuff, but not profitable.
Number 6. Write for yourself and don’t try to copy what’s out there just
because what’s out there is selling now. Be original and write what you want.
That’s the only true way of gaining a loyal reader following.
So there you have it. These are the mistakes I made early on in my writing
career that cost me loads of time and briefly damaged my professional online
persona. Do the exact opposite of these six things and I guarantee you’ll see
your sales rise and people will begin to notice you.
I also wanted to
let everyone know that I have two promotions going on tomorrow. One from
Ereader News Today and one from ChoosyBookworm.com. I highly recommend that
authors try to promote on both sites. ChoosyBookworm is a free service and
Ereader News Today gets paid on commission. They don’t make any money from your
promotion if you don’t. I think that’s one of the best deals there is for
exposure on the internet.
