So, I finished my book, had my edits, made my revisions, found a cover image, and uploaded everything successfully to where it needed to go. Now, comes the dreaded next part. Marketing and Promotion.I hate this. I really do. Because I don't know how to do it. I spent years learning how to format correctly (hell, I spent YEARS just learning how to use WORD.) For my Regency romances I had a small following, so that when the next book came out, I really didn't do much except announce the book on the blog, once or twice on Twitter, and voila, sales.
However, trying to gain traction as a "new" author is a little daunting. I had thought about publishing this new book under my Anne Gallagher name, but if I did, then I'd lose the few reviews I'd garnered on REMEMBERING YOU. I didn't want to do that.Believe it or not, I have a marketing plan in place. I've been thinking of this for several months. Problem is, I don't know if it'll work. And you say, "Go ahead, try it. You won't know if it succeeds until you do." I know that. But...what if it doesn't?
When I'm cooking for a large crowd, I like to use my tried and true recipes. That way I won't mess up and everyone will say, "Oh, that was so good."
I'm kind of feeling that same way with this new book. I don't want to try anything new, afraid that people will say, "Oh, that just sucked." Or worse, I've just spammed them to death. I love Twitter, but it's just so full of crap these days, I don't want to be "one of those people".
Right now the book is up on Amazon for 99 cents until Christmas. I'm hoping some people will buy it and write a few reviews before I change the price. I'm also going to post some excerpts on the Robynne Rand blog and link those to Twitter. If you'd like a copy, I have epub, mobi files, and PDF that I can send you. If you'd like to write a review for Goodreads, that would be swell. If not, that's okay too.
Ads are not my thing, so that's out. I'm still unsure whether or not to do a FaceBook page. However, a friend said that the demographic I'm trying to reach is on FaceBook, so...we'll see.
Tell me -- What do you do for marketing and promotion? Any tried and true tricks? Any advice? Please share.
Anne Gallagher (c) 2015
7 comments:
No, haven't gotten this far yet. I know I have to do it, but eeesshh...I need a secretary...and I used to be in marketing. Go figure! I hate doing anything for myself because emotions get into play. When you learn the tricks, please share? LOve the cover.
Em -- I totally need a secretary. Oh, the luxury. My problem with marketing is I hate to spam and basically that's all anyone does anymore. "Buy my book!" I don't necessarily want you to buy it, I'll give it to you, however, my one request is that you leave a review. Word of mouth is still the only real way to sell books. At least that's my take on book selling.
I got results from Ereader News Today (http://ereadernewstoday.com/). Most of my promotion efforts haven't garnered much, so getting ANY sales was nice.
ohhhh I hate the 'back end' too
Hey, Anne
I've had a handful of friends tell me that FB pages didn't work for them. I tend to agree only because you have to get people to "like" the page. Even then, there's no assurance that it shows up on their feed. Most of the ones I've liked don't.
As for advice, the only sure plan is to get the book into the right people's hands. Whether you use "free" or discounted pricing is up to you. The important thing is not to spam.
No matter how much your friends and fans love you, if your postings look/sound like spam, it turns on an automatic ignore button.
I try to warn authors to go easy with the hand-waving but no one ever listens--until years later when it finally sinks in.
Just be your most sincere self and talk about your book to the people for whom it will matter most. Good luck!
I don't think there are any tried and true methods that will work every time. I never am sure what has worked and what hasn't. Good luck.
It's interesting reading these comments especially about facebook. Generally, as a reader, I have found out about my network of writers books through facebook, and do follow their posts on launches, book signings, and one even had a Facebook event party (all virtual) the day of her launch. I do want to support them so do purchase their books, and am grateful for their facebook pages.
Post a Comment