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THE BOOK MARKETING EXPERT NEWSLETTER!
A newsletter all about SUCCESSFUL publishing and POWERFUL promotion.
Nov. 24, 2011 Issue #260
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in this issue
— Note From The Editor
— The 10 Deadly Sins of Website Design
— Feature Article: The New PR: Secrets to Turning Fans into Evangelists
— Blog Tip: Categories Vs. Tags
— Just For You: AME’s Book Marketing Resources
— Book Bits and Bites
— Walk a Mile in a Book Reviewer’s Shoes
— Tips for Getting Booked on National TV
— Open Now: The 2012 Indie Excellence Awards
— Check Out Our Custom YouTube Channel
— Penny in the News!
— Hear What The Publishing Insiders Have to Say
— Extend Your Brand Using Facebook As Page
— How, When and Where We Share on the Web
— The Elevator Pitch
— Reader Tip: QuickQuiz.com
— Social Media Snippet: Twitter Tracking
— Social Media Snippet: Kyoo
— Reader Tip!
— WHO ARE WE
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Penny C. Sansevieri, Editor penny@amarketingexpert.com
Welcome to a new issue of THE BOOK MARKETING EXPERT NEWSLETTER.
You are receiving this newsletter compliments of Author Marketing Experts, Inc. To opt out, please scroll down to the bottom of this newsletter.
Note From The Editor
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Welcome to another issue of the Book Marketing Expert Newsletter!
Dear Author,
Happy Thanksgiving! I hope you are enjoying this wonderful holiday with family and friends. I love this time of year and especially this holiday. It reminds me of the things I am grateful for: this wonderful team of women I work with every day, and all of you. Our dear, faithful readers who never fail to open an issue and dig in.
A couple of weeks ago an author emailed me; she said that she was at a writing event and during one of the Q&A’s, another author got up and said: “If you want some fantastic marketing tips, sign up for the Book Marketing Expert newsletter, it’s fantastic.” I was floored when she told me this. It takes a while to get people to become evangelists for your work, but when you do – it’s fantastic. So this week we’re not just talking PR, but how it’s changed and how you can harness that to turn your contacts into evangelists.
Warm Thanksgiving wishes from San Diego where I’ll be entertaining a house full of people today. Wish me luck 🙂
Penny, Paula, Amy and everyone at Author Marketing Experts, Inc.
The 10 Deadly Sins of Website Design
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Here’s a checklist that you can take with you as you work through the design elements of your website:http://www.huffingtonpost.com/penny-c-sansevieri/the-10-deadly-sins-of-web_b_956451.html
Feature Article: The New PR: Secrets to Turning Fans into Evangelists
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Twelve years ago when I was first in business it was unclear whether blogs would even make a dent in news and communication. Back then, if you wanted to get your book out you had to market to radio, TV, and print publications otherwise your message would die quietly and all your efforts to publish the book would go with it. Cycle forward to 2011. We live online and social media has almost replaced the nightly news.
Publicity and marketing have changed in ways that no one could have anticipated and that’s a good thing. Why? Because now so many channels have opened up to help us market. Could you imagine living in a world where if you didn’t get traditional media or even a regional paper to pick you up, no one would ever know about you? I did, and we marketed in that world. Believe me, it wasn’t easy.
And while it’s great that we have these channels, there is always a downside to this new, tethered, social media world. We have a lot of news. A lot of it. And not all of it is news, either. Some is just wasteful white noise and much of it, we ignore. Now, the challenge is no longer can you get peoples’ attention, but can you keep it? And can you keep their attention long enough to get them interested in your book enough to turn contacts into evangelists? One thing I’ve learned: it’s not a challenge everyone is up for and that’s OK.
If it’s not your thing to wrestle your way to the top of the Twitter posts or Facebook mentions, that’s fine. But if you want to get noticed and sell books, you’ll have to ramp up your game. Here’s how to do it:
Be good or be gone: For lack of a better term, there’s a lot of junk online. A lot of people ramble on about things that only they care about. We currently run a program that gets a lot of “Likes” to a client’s Facebook Page. We’re such a numbers driven society that people love this program. Here’s the kicker though: you can get Facebook Likes but that doesn’t mean they will keep liking you. You have to post good, interesting, unique and compelling content. There is so much information out there, you must be good, or be gone. You won’t even have to leave the virtual party because if you keep posting self-absorbed, look at me posts, no one will listen anyway.
Say something new: Please do not tell me the same thing I’ve already heard a million times. Don’t just repeat what everyone else is saying, offer your perspective, your viewpoint. Now, there’s a caveat to this: sometimes when you’re in a particular field you will feel like you are repeating yourself. In many cases, especially if you are teaching the masses, your clients or fans will need to hear a message several times before they get it. Sometimes repetition is good. But if you’re just repeating what someone else is saying with no new spin or twist on it, then it’s just boring.
No one cares what you say: Truth be told, no one cares what you tell them. What people care about is what their friends say, who their friends recommend. You must be so compelling, interesting, funny, helpful – or whatever – that people will start to evangelize your work. That’s when it happens: when you are interesting enough that people want to tell other people about you. Remember, no one cares what you say. They only care what their friends care about. A survey done by Edelman Digital noted that fewer than one in three people trust marketing messages. Scary, isn’t it?
Give consumers what they want: It amazes me how often marketers make consumers conform to their needs. Remember, it’s not about you, it’s about your consumers. Give them what they want and they will give you what you want. So often I see authors with messages that are highly ego based, meaning it’s about them. Leave your ego at the door and make it about your consumers. People want valuable insights, access to information and lots of free stuff. Yes, I said free. If the thought of free makes you shiver, here’s an article that shows you how to monetize “free:” http://www.huffingtonpost.com/penny-c-sansevieri/how-to-monetize-free_b_676794.html
Numbers matter: Let’s face it, we’re a society that pays attention to the numbers we see on Twitter and Facebook. If you are promoting yourself and have 10 followers on Twitter and 16 Likes on Facebook, you might want to think about paying more attention to these properties. Consumers like what other consumers like and the numbers associated with these sites often determine how “likable” you are. Bigger numbers get consumer (and media) interest.
Getting people to pay attention: You have to stop your consumers in their tracks, get them to put down their iPhone, iPad, droid or whatever gadget they’re consuming their news feeds on and get them to pay attention to what you are saying. How do you do that? This goes back to my first point: Be Good or Be Gone. Get people to pay attention by adding solid, helpful and insightful content to your feeds. If you ramble on about the flight you missed or the bad day you’re having, I can guarantee that people will turn the virtual channel.
Do stuff people will love: Getting people to love you is easy. Do stuff they’ll love. This is why I talk so much about giving away information, being helpful, being on top of your industry. I am always stunned when authors come up to me at conferences to tell me how much they love our newsletter (The Book Marketing Expert) or how much they love the information we share on Huffington Post. Give people what they want and they will give you what you want: love – and, hopefully, book sales.
Do stuff people will hate: Not everyone will love what you say and that’s OK. When I wrote “Why Some Authors Fail” (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/penny-c-sansevieri/why-some-authors-fail_b_534629.html) I thought everyone would hate that piece. It turns out some people did, and that’s OK. I once had a good friend and business coach tell me, if everyone loves you you’re doing something wrong. Embrace it.
Make random connections: Not all of your contacts or connections need to make sense. They are following you for a reason, because they want to be part of your information funnel. Here’s a cool little idea you might want to consider. Make random connections. What I mean by this is that every couple of weeks (or more if you have the time), email or direct message someone who is following you on Facebook and/or Twitter and ask them if they like the information that’s being sent to them and what you can do better. When you ask these questions, you may not always like the answer but I can almost guarantee that you will find it helpful. Our best information often comes from our audience. I’ve known some authors/speakers to develop entire content for a book based solely on audience questions. Their questions and feedback will show you their interest and hot buttons. Ask!
Stay on top of current trends: This is a big one for most of us. We’re out of time, out of ideas and well, out of time. Staying on top of current trends seems like it’s just another time suck. But trust me, it’s not. First, head over to Google alerts (it’s free) and sign up for alerts in your market or area of expertise. What happens when you do that? You’ll get all news items and blog posts on your topic funneled to you. This will help you gather ideas on new topics to blog on and new developments in your arena. Staying topical is important, especially if you’re trying to keep someone’s attention.
Be trendy: No, this isn’t a repeat of my previous paragraph. Here is what you do: go over to Google Trends, and search current trending topics. Want to drive more traffic to your site? Increase your Facebook Likes and Twitter followers? This is a great and fun way to do it: talk about current trends. Now, granted, you need to be able to speak to these trends and they do need to have at least something to do with your book. But if you can tie a hot topic into your specialty you can really drive some interest to your content. Why? Because if it’s trending in Google, it means the searches for this are pretty high. Higher searches mean a higher volume of potential people who can find your message.
You might wonder how all of this can help you get more exposure for your book, get more people to talk about your book, and sell more copies. Here’s how: it’s not enough to get mentioned in the news. While it’s great, that alone won’t sell your books. You have to get in front of enough people in a very interesting and unique way. You have to get them to fall in love with your message so much that they’ll talk about you, Tweet about you, and tell all their friends to go buy your book. The new PR isn’t going after Oprah (though big shows are always a great boost), it’s really about the consumers and the message.
How will you get your community so enamored with your message that you turn contacts into evangelists? That’s the new PR.
Sites mentioned in this article:
http://www.google.com/insights/search/
Blog Tip: Categories Vs. Tags
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Bloggers: Are you confused about the difference between Categories and Tags for your blog postings? Are you having a hard time deciding when to use each one? This post by Lorelle VanFossen is very helpful: http://lorelle.wordpress.com/2005/09/09/categories-versus-tags-whats-the-difference-and-which-one/
Just For You: AME’s Book Marketing Resources
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Join 20,000+ and “Like” our AME Facebook Page for marketing articles and tips, YouTube videos from our book marketing channel, notices about upcoming webinars, Publishing Insider shows, and more: http://www.facebook.com/bookmarketingame?ref=sgm.
Want Book Marketing Content? Visit the articles page on our AME website and you’ll find a range of articles by Penny, which may be used along with her byline (provided at the top of the page) at no cost. The complete list is at http://amarketingexpert.com/articles/.
Check out “Blogworld Technorati’s State of the Blogosphere” and much more on AME’s Book Marketing Channel on YouTube. New videos are added regularly to keep you up to date on all things book marketing! http://www.youtube.com/user/BookmarketingAME.
Book Bits and Bites
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Cruel World: Famous Authors’ Harshest Rejection Letters:http://flavorwire.com/232203/famous-authors-harshest-rejection-letters
Rejection Pile: Enjoy Jimmy Fallon’s Latest ‘Do Not Read’ List:http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/11/18/jimmy-fallon-do-not-read-list-video_n_1101318.html
Uniquely Odd: Offbeat Holiday Books:http://www.huffingtonpost.com/devon-corneal/offbeat-holiday-books_b_1097736.html
Budget Busters: 8 Ridiculously Expensive Books:http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/11/15/expensive-books_n_985951.html
Walk a Mile in a Book Reviewer’s Shoes
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Book reviews are a powerful way to introduce your book to potential customers and persuade them to buy, but your book is just one of many competing for the attention of book reviewers.
As you plan your book review strategy, it’s helpful to look at the review process from the reviewer’s point of view. Here are some things to consider:
* Book review journals and other major media receive thousands of books a year and can only review a small percentage of them. The daunting task of opening, sorting and disposing of this huge volume of books is often assigned to interns. Your beautifully designed press kit might never be seen by the editor or reviewer, so be sure to tuck a well-written press release inside the book.
* Reviewers receive many books that are not appropriate for the website or publication, have not been submitted in accordance with their review policies, or are not professionally produced. It’s frustrating for the reviewers to have to deal with these books – they consume both time and space. Be sure to read and follow the reviewer’s guidelines before submitting.
* Newspapers and magazines are shrinking due to competition from online media and lower ad revenue, and many have dropped their book review sections. Find a way to make your book relevant to the publication, and also look for coverage beyond the book review section.
* People who maintain book review blogs not only devote a considerable amount of time to reading and reviewing books, they also must create and maintain a website, post content to the site, and pay all of the associated expenses. Be gracious and considerate of book bloggers and their time. Ask how you can be of service. Consider offering an author interview, a guest post, or a book to give away on the site.
* Book reviewers are avid readers, but many of them receive no compensation other than a copy of the book. Consider your book a gift to the reviewer, to be used as they see fit, and resist the temptation to deface the book or mark it as a review copy.
* Your potential reviewers are most likely very busy people. Remember that you are asking for a favor and do everything that you can to make it easy for the reviewer to help you.
With good planning and a little empathy, you can get an edge over the numerous other books competing for limited review space.
Excerpted from How to Get Your Book Reviewed, by Dana Lynn Smith, http://bookmarketingmaven.typepad.com/get-book-reviews. Get more book marketing tips on The Savvy Book Marketer blog,http://bookmarketingmaven.typepad.com/.
Tips for Getting Booked on National TV
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The producer of Anderson Cooper’s new daytime show made suggestions to Arielle Ford: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/arielle-ford/book-marketing-tips_b_1082213.html
Open Now: The 2012 Indie Excellence Awards
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The Indie Excellence Awards contest is taking submissions!
NIEA celebrates overall excellence, including design and promotional text. To enter, please send one copy of your book per category entered. Books with publication dates of 2009, 2010, 2011 and 2012 are eligible. Books published anywhere in the world may be submitted as long as they are in English and can be purchased in the United States.
For more information, expanded category listings and entry forms please visit: http://www.indieexcellence.com
Check Out Our Custom YouTube Channel
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See what you can do to make your YouTube channel stand out – ours got a makeover: http://www.youtube.com/bookmarketingame
Penny in the News!
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* Penny’s new book Get Published Today received a rave review from BookBuzzr: http://www.bookbuzzr.com/blog/book-marketing/book-review-get-published-today-by-penny-sansevieri/
* UltraSocial ran Penny’s article “Six Simple Ways to Promote Your YouTube Channel:” http://www.ultrasocial.co.uk/article/27154/Penny-C.-Sansevieri-Six-Simple-Ways-to-Promote-Your-YouTube-Channel
* Penny has a series on book marketing underway at BookBuzzr:http://www.bookbuzzr.com/blog/?s=Penny+Sansevieri&x=0&y=0.
* Keep up with Penny’s latest publishing/marketing piece for Huffington Post: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/penny-c-sansevieri.
Hear What The Publishing Insiders Have to Say
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Be in the know and hear what the publishing insiders: Penny Sansevieri, CEO of Author Marketing Experts, Inc. – and her guests – has to offer in terms of tips and insights into the industry! Listen here. Publishing Insiders is now available on iTunes, so you can keep up with the show wherever you go!
Upcoming show:
Promote Your Book: 250+ Proven, Low-Cost Tips and Techniques on Tuesday, Nov. 29 at 7 p.m. Eastern
Join us as author Patricia Fry offers insights into tried and true book promotion techniques. Learn how to promote creatively; when, why and how to get involved in social media; how and when to submit news releases and tip sheets; ideas for arranging book signings, radio, and TV appearances; tips for submitting articles and stories for publication; how to land and present speaking gigs and much more.
Shows available for download at http://www.blogtalkradio.com/thepublishinginsiders:
* How and Where to Sell Your Self-Published Book
* Speaker Tips for Authors
* How to Get Your Book Reviewed
* All About Ghostwriting
* Publishing Insights from Ellora’s Cave
* Re-Purposing Your Content
* The Future of Author Events
* Selling Your Book in Bulk and Special Sales
* What Authors Must Know About Book Cover Design
* Literary Agents and Their Evolving Role in Publishing
* The Dos and Don’ts of Distribution, Parts 1, 2 and 3
* SPECIAL GUEST Seth Godin: Poke the Box
* Smart Self-Publishing: Why Book Design & Editing Matter
* Smart Self-Publishing: Making Money with eBooks
* Smart Self-Publishing Series: Becoming Your Own Publisher
* Branding: The Secret to Selling More Books
* Secrets to Getting Your Book Into Libraries
* Getting Your Book into Bookstores with Elaine Wilkes
* This Book Will Make You Money with special guest Jim Kukral
* How to Make Money on Twitter
* A Self Publishing Success Story
* From Blog to Book
* The Digital Book Revolution
* Powerhouse Promotion with Marci Shimoff
* eBooks: the Savior of Publishing or the Foe? with Joe Konrath
* Special Guest Mari Smith, queen of Facebook
* All Things Twitter! with Warren Whitlock
Extend Your Brand Using Facebook As Page
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You’ll have more opportunities for promotion when you use your profile as a Page: http://www.allfacebook.com/extend-your-brand-when-you-use-facebook-as-page-2011-10
How, When and Where We Share on the Web
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Discover the peak hour, top day and more to help you make the most of your social media promotion :http://responsiblemarketing.com/blog/2011/11/04/how-when-and-where-we-share-on-the-web
The Elevator Pitch
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You have about 3 seconds to get your message across, but the odds your pitch will get a response are greater online: http://menwithpens.ca/elevator-pitch/
Reader Tip: QuickQuiz.com
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Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning Frugal Book Promoter says, “Have you heard about QuickQuiz.com? It’s run by BookBuzzr.com and is a fun promotional tool for anyone who writes genre fiction and nonfiction. I imagine even some literary writers and poets might think of a way to use their quizzes!
Find information at http://www.bookbuzzr.com/blog/book-marketing/announcing-quickquiz-the-worlds-first-viral-marketing-technology-for-books/
Tip from Carolyn Howard-Johnson, instructor for nearly a decade at the renowned UCLA Extension Writers’ Program, and author of the multi award-winning series of HowToDoItFrugally books:
The Frugal Book Promoter http://budurl.com/FrugalBkPromo
Website: http://www.HowToDoItFrugally.com
E-mail: HoJoNews@aol.com
Social Media Snippet: Twitter Tracking
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Monitter.com: This site lets you plug in search terms and track them! http://www.monitter.com/
Trendistic.com: This site monitors hot trends so you can see what people are Tweeting about and jump into the conversation! http://trendistic.indextank.com/
Social Media Snippet: Kyoo
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Kyoo: Not a classic analytics tool, but it does give you a snapshot of online buzz relating to selected keywords. http://kyoo.com/
Reader Tip!
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If you’ve got a Reader Tip you’d like to share, please send it to penny@amarketingexpert.com with the subject line “reader tip.” Submissions should be 75 words or less.
WHO ARE WE
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Author Marketing Experts, Inc. is a full-service book marketing, promotion, and publicity company. We serve authors at all stages of marketing and promotion. We offer a full range of packages and services to choose from.
To see a price list or schedule a free consultation, send your e-mail to penny@amarketingexpert.com with the subject line “Author Services Info.” You can also visit our website at www.amarketingexpert.com.
Reprint permission
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Reprinted from “The Book Marketing Expert newsletter,” a free ezine offering book promotion and publicity tips and techniques.http://amarketingexpert.com/
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—– Copyright 2011 Author Marketing Experts, Inc. —–
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Contact Information
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email: penny@amarketingexpert.com
web: http://amarketingexpert.com/
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