Book Promo 101

by Nikki Leigh

This first in a series of books on how to promote your published work is by an author who speaks from long experience. Not only does she offer her own expertise, but she has also collected quotes from many of the best people in the business when it comes to getting their books "out there" and getting them noticed by reviewers, the press, and readers' groups

ISBN 1-59431-469-1 Non-fiction / Book Promotion / Media: Publicity

Also available in HTML, RTF formats.

Cover Art by Nikki Leigh



Introduction to Book Promotional Basics

My pen name is Nikki Leigh and in the chapters that follow I'll share information which will help you learn how to promote your book.

I've worked in promotional and marketing work for over fifteen years in a wide variety of industries. These include: video rental and sales, a franchise pizza business, furniture sales, a chiropractic office, home improvement office, and my business consulting and web design company.

When I signed a contract for my first novel, I had to learn how to promote my books. Most types of promotion are similar although each product or service is a little different. So, I knew a background in marketing would be an advantage. At that point, I needed to learn the ins and outs of book promotion and online promotion. There's no doubt the Internet offers a lot of possibilities and I needed to learn how to use those options. At that point, the search was on for free and inexpensive ways to promote my books.

The Book Promo 101 series is a way for me to share the things I've learned in the last fifteen years and the last several years in book promotion. Many authors I know don't really want to take the time away from writing to promote, but what's the point of having your work published--if no one reads it? From the things I've heard, most authors don't have a promotional background. I hope that putting the information I've gathered into a book that's easy to understand will be helpful.

Book Promo 101 is the first book in a series that I plan to write. Book Promo 101 is about the basics of book promotion. It will give you information about many kinds of promotion. In the upcoming books, I will focus on a specific type of promotion in more detail.

http://www.muzesmusings.blogspot.com

Let me tell you a little about myself and my background. I started writing seriously in the summer of 2002. At that point I wrote on weekends and the rare vacations from work. I completed the draft of my first book in 2003. Of course, I edited it for the longest time and started my second book. In the summer of 2004, I signed my first contract and the book was released in March 2006. In the mean time, I polished the second book and it was contracted by another publisher and released in January 2006. At the time this book is released, I have four novels in print and four business books in print.

In the summer of 2005, I left my day job and dove into freelancing fulltime (not the best idea) and I began writing non fiction that fall. I ghostwrote four marketing manuals for a variety of businesses and three other books. These projects were reasonably simple with my background in business management and promotion. These ghostwriting projects included marketing manuals for massage therapists, marketing for e-book authors, the benefits of joint ventures for therapists and a promotional book for ice cream shop owners. In addition, I signed a contract for another promotional ghostwriting project for alternative medicine therapists for another client in England.

I won't lie to you--promotion and marketing are enjoyable and frustrating endeavors. That's why we all continue to learn and hone our promotional skills, just like we continue to learn and hone our writing skills. This is especially true with Internet promotion since the options are always changing and new opportunities present themselves almost everyday.

Promotional work is something that anyone can learn. It can seem kind of mysterious and intimidating, but you can learn to promote your books. My goal with this series of books is to give you a variety of promotional options to market your books. Not every idea will work for you. It's better to read through the ideas and make a list of the things you think are right for you. If your list is really small, I suggest that you push outside your comfort zone. Give yourself the freedom to try new things and push the boundaries.

Be honest with yourself about what you can do. If you decide to try every single possibility, you'll spread yourself too thin. Try several things that seem simple. At that point, try something that's a bit harder. If you try a promotional option and you can't do it or you aren't getting results, move on to something else. That's why there is a wide variety of promotional options. There should be many that will work for everyone who reads the book.

I facilitate a series of character development classes and I tell the students in those classes to read the lessons with an open mind. I also tell them that they will learn much more with an open mind and the courage to try new things. That same advice works for each person that reads the books in this series.

As your promotional abilities develop, you should review your list of promotional options for a second time. Things are always changing and as our abilities improve, more things are possible. That's one of the things that make promotional work interesting for some people and frustrating for other people.

Within the pages of this book, I'll share tips and suggestions from some of my friends. These sections are titled "Professional Promoters Share Their Tips". I've rounded up some great promotional tips.

At the end of each chapter, there is a series of questions. Some are very easy and you'll find the answers in the chapter. However, some are meant to make you think and find ways to apply the things you learned to your promotional work. The idea is to help you spread your promotional wings and find new ways to promote yourself and your books.

My books are published with an e-publisher and I have e-books and POD (print on demand) print books. So, I totally understand the difficulties that POD and e-book authors face everyday. Most of the suggestions in this book will work for e-published, traditional published and self published authors.

I'm creating the Book Promo--Writer's Resource e-book. It's over 100 pages with thousands of links to information for writers. There are many types of links and information to help you in your writing, your research and your promotion. These are some of the many topics that are included:



Chapter 1

Develop a Marketing Mind

Each author has a responsibility to promote their books. Some large publishing companies offer some promotional assistance. Bestselling and well known authors get plenty of promotion, but those of us who are lesser known, need to do the majority of our promotion--ourselves. I could hide that fact from you, but it won't help in the long run. So, it's better to accept that it's a fact in each author's life. A word to any publishers who read this book--we appreciate any promotional assistance our publishers can offer, but we understand the majority of this work is our responsibility.

Before you begin to promote your book, it's good to develop a marketing mind. Anyone can learn to promote and I'll help you develop the mind set and identify the traits that are needed to be an effective promoter. Let's start with the way to develop a marketing mindset.

Adjust Your Mindset

* * *

There are many interesting ways to promote your book, both online and off. We'll discuss a lot of different ideas in this book. There are many free or inexpensive techniques you can use and these are my favorite things. Not all ideas are free and some will cost you money, but many aren't expensive. I'll be honest with you that these promotional ideas require your time and effort.

You have the alternative of hiring someone to do these things for you and we'll talk about that in chapter 3. Most of the ideas we'll discuss aren't complicated.

I've included the links to many web sites to make your search easier. Most of these ideas can be implemented by anyone. My hope is that you'll refer back to this book and continue to learn from it for years to come.

Many authors I talk with think marketing and promotion are beyond their abilities. I managed a business for a man about ten years ago and he never wanted to discuss advertising for the business. His usual response was that advertising "was that dirty 'A' word". Are you the type of person who believes that promotion is a dirty word or that it's beyond your ability?

Advertising and promotion are not bad words. In fact they are essential for a successful business and for authors who want to get their books into the hands of readers. Promotion can take many shapes and the type of promotion you choose depends on whether you promote online or off-line. These are some of the considerations that will be important in your promotional decisions and activities.

• The marketing avenues depend on the type of books you're promoting.

• What sort of promotional work would you be able to do?

• Is online promotion better since you don't have to interact face to face?



Promotional Professionals Share Their Tips

Mary Cox-Bilz and Arline Chase

Do whatever you have to do to overcome fear of rejection. You can use affirmations to help yourself get over your fears. Humans are funny creatures. If we hear something often enough, we begin to believe it. Go ahead, talk to yourself.

'I have written an excellent book!' Say it to yourself a hundred times a day, if you need to. Instead of wondering if you will ever be as good a writer as (insert name of favorite author here) say instead. 'I have done my personal best. My work is unique and worthwhile. ' Use these affirmations to help boost your self-confidence. Writing is not a competition, it's a shared effort. Some writers even go so far as to record their affirmations on cassettes and listen to them while they write and sometimes even while they sleep.

You didn't invest all those hours and all that work in your book for nothing. In communication, writing is half the act. Reading is the other half. The only way for readers to do their part is for them to notice your book. To be successful, your little book must attract attention. Therefore, your job is to wave your book in the air everywhere you go. Do everything you can to attract those readers who will fulfill the other half of the commitment.

Self-promotion, a key to creating sales, is a strange and uncomfortable concept that many writers want to avoid. Don't ask, Why bother? Ask instead, Why not?

Whether we hesitate from shyness, or fear of looking foolish, in the writing business it doesn't pay to hesitate when book sales hang in the balance. Take every opportunity to let people know about your book. Don't hang back, or stop to wonder if you might make a fool of yourself. By the age of eighteen, all of us have made fools of ourselves enough times to know that it's not fatal. In fact, a little tomfoolery can go a long way in getting people to remember you and your work. We promise you, Nobody ever died of embarrassment.