Ever notice those footpaths between bushes, those stomped down walkways that go from a parking lot to the sidewalk, the ones clearly NOT planned by the landscaper where folks have made their own trail to get from Point A to Point B?
Those are called Desire Paths. That's a term architects use to desire "non-authorized" walkways. Ones that occur spontaneously rather than through top-down planning.
You and I must establish Desire Paths to our books if we hope to be successful. An excellent presentation by Mike Arauz explains this concept:
http://www.mikearauz.com/2009/03/desire-paths-branding-for-digital-lives.html
So how can we do this as authors? There are two parts:
PART I. We must develop a product (book) that acts as a magnet to readers--encouraging them to create desire paths to book purchases/rentals.
PART II. We must develop promotional activities which attract those readers who would love/enjoy/need/want our books--helping readers create desire paths to the booksellers.
Here how we accomplish PART I:
1. Write about characters whose qualities are enjoyable for the reader. Ever read a totally annoying book? Not for long. I remember purchasing a hardback of a bestselling author I've enjoyed over the years. I had to work hard to finish it. When I handed it to my husband, he read a couple of chapters and said, "That's enough for me. None of these people are likeable and none of them like each other." What makes an enjoyable character? Humor, humility, talent, being treated unfairly, flaws, authenticity, and most of all your character has to LOVE something or someone other than herself. Call it Slan's rule, okay?
2. Create characters who learn and grow. I got soooo tired of the victims (read: protagonists) in the Oprah bookclub picks that I wanted to reach through the pages and dope-slap them. My Kiki Lowenstein does victim-esque things, but she also makes some stunningly brilliant choices and refuses to be run-over. She grows as a person through the series. There has to be a balance--if our characters were never "victims" there would never be any conflict--and it has to tip toward growth. (Okay, I'm using "victims" loosely. Think Superman and Kryptonite and Lois Lane. If he was all-powerful, there'd never be any question of whether he could succeed, right?)
3. Add twists and turns. (In other words, be unexpected.) To stay within a genre we must meet reader expectations and adhere to unwritten rules. (For example, a cozy can't have gruesome violence or its not a cozy, and your readers will be upset because, by golly, they wanted a cozy. They didn't want to get grossed-out. Didn't sign up for that!) But just as there's all sorts of creativity within the strict format of a sonnet, you can also put in all sorts of surprises along the way. And on paper, in books, people love surprises. In real life, not so much.
4. Set your hook. I'm not a good fisherwoman because I never learned the art of setting my hook. But, as a writer, I've figured it out. See, you have to tease and tantalize the reader with an unrealized expectation at the end of each chapter. Each book must both satisfy and promise there's more to come. Those of you who have read Paper, Scissors, Death know exactly what I mean. (I won't spoil it for the rest of you, but it's a dilly.) It's not enough to give people an enjoyable read. You have to leave them panting for Act II.
Which in this case is...
How do we authors translate the concept of Desire Paths into our marketing efforts?
I'll tackle that next week.
Meanwhile...What are you thinking, people? How do you create Desire Paths within your book?
Author
Showing posts with label promotion. Show all posts
Showing posts with label promotion. Show all posts
Monday, March 9, 2009
Friday, August 8, 2008
Go Tell It on the Mountain
You remember this song, right? I'm not trying to be disrespectful to anyone's religion, but I think this song title could well be adapted to our work as promoters of our books.
I think it's my job to tell anyone and everyone who meanders across my path about my books, because you never know when you are going to meet a new (potential) fan.
Let me give you a few examples:
1. I was talking with the account rep at National City Bank about transferring some money from one account to another. She said, "While we're waiting for this to go through, is there anything else I could do for you today?" And I said, "Sure! You could take a look at my new mystery on Amazon." Well, wouldn't you know it, she LOVES mysteries and scrapbooking, and she copied down my book title and told me she'd tell all her friends.
2. We said "Hi" to the nice lady in the villa two doors down from us here on Kiawah Island. She told us she was shocked because none of the renters here usually say hello, and she's a very lonely resident. "I've joined local bookclubs to get to know people," she said. And so I followed up with, "What kind of books do you read?" Then I told her about my book, and later I delivered a customized bookmark. Her daughter was visiting when I dropped off the bookmark, and my neighbor had already told her all about my book.
3. I found out that one of my doctors has a holiday boutique in her office each November. I asked if they would have an opening for me to come sell my books--and they were thrilled.
4. I talked to my sister who's a teacher about how important it is to promote my books. We changed the subject, and then, Meg said, "You know, they have a bookclub at school. I didn't even think about it, but there's no reason they couldn't read YOUR book."
5. I talked to Sonja who exercises right next to me at Jazzercise. She told me there's a book club in her association, and she's getting me the contact information.
6. At a party, I handed one of my business cards (with my cover on it) to Vickie Newton, a local news anchor for KMOV. She's planning to interview me as soon as the book comes out.
You don't have to be obnoxious. You do have to be strategic. And the conversation can't just be about you and your book...
But here's my thinking: I personally LOVE books. I really love knowing authors. And if someone shared information about his or her book with me, I'd be happy to hear the good news. As long as the person was respectful and not pushy. I'm always looking for that next new favorite author.
And I trust that there's a universe of other people who feel the same.
I think it's my job to tell anyone and everyone who meanders across my path about my books, because you never know when you are going to meet a new (potential) fan.
Let me give you a few examples:
1. I was talking with the account rep at National City Bank about transferring some money from one account to another. She said, "While we're waiting for this to go through, is there anything else I could do for you today?" And I said, "Sure! You could take a look at my new mystery on Amazon." Well, wouldn't you know it, she LOVES mysteries and scrapbooking, and she copied down my book title and told me she'd tell all her friends.
2. We said "Hi" to the nice lady in the villa two doors down from us here on Kiawah Island. She told us she was shocked because none of the renters here usually say hello, and she's a very lonely resident. "I've joined local bookclubs to get to know people," she said. And so I followed up with, "What kind of books do you read?" Then I told her about my book, and later I delivered a customized bookmark. Her daughter was visiting when I dropped off the bookmark, and my neighbor had already told her all about my book.
3. I found out that one of my doctors has a holiday boutique in her office each November. I asked if they would have an opening for me to come sell my books--and they were thrilled.
4. I talked to my sister who's a teacher about how important it is to promote my books. We changed the subject, and then, Meg said, "You know, they have a bookclub at school. I didn't even think about it, but there's no reason they couldn't read YOUR book."
5. I talked to Sonja who exercises right next to me at Jazzercise. She told me there's a book club in her association, and she's getting me the contact information.
6. At a party, I handed one of my business cards (with my cover on it) to Vickie Newton, a local news anchor for KMOV. She's planning to interview me as soon as the book comes out.
You don't have to be obnoxious. You do have to be strategic. And the conversation can't just be about you and your book...
But here's my thinking: I personally LOVE books. I really love knowing authors. And if someone shared information about his or her book with me, I'd be happy to hear the good news. As long as the person was respectful and not pushy. I'm always looking for that next new favorite author.
And I trust that there's a universe of other people who feel the same.
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
101 Ways to Market Your Books
101 Ways to Market Your Books by Joanna Campbell Slan, author of Paper, Scissors, Death (Available September 13, from Midnight Ink. ISBN: 0738712507 Pre-orders now accepted.)
This article was prompted by a challenge by John Kremer, author of 1001 Ways to Market Your Book.
1. As I write it, I think of the discreet audiences within and build in opportunities.
2. Get the best cover possible.
3. Ask for help refining my back cover matter.
4. Request over-runs of the cover.
5. Print marketing information on the inside of that over-run cover and use it like postcards, especially to market to booksellers who want to see the cover before placing an order.
6. Make interesting bookmarks. (I customized them and added flowers.)
7. Get blurbs from people with recognizable names.
8. Get reviews and permission to use those reviews in anyway I dream up.
9. Run a contest associated with the book. (Mine is The Best of British Scrapbooking administered now by ScrapBook inspirations Magazine in the UK.)
10. Send information about that contest through a variety of channels—online, websites, magazine, the magazine’s blog.
11. Offer a prize for the contest.
12. Put out birth announcements through an online invitation site when my book launches.
13. Have stickers made of the book’s cover.
14. Use cover stickers on name badges when I attend conferences.
15. Attend conferences.16. Ask to be on panels.
17. Ask to host tables at banquets.
18. Create super handouts that are “keepers” for any panel or appearance. Include marketing information.
19. At table (that I host) give away “goody bags” with items related to the book.
20. Invite booksellers or reviews or well-known fans to join me at that table.
21. Carry around a faux subpoena, fill it in to invite people to share my table on the spot.
22. Contact people through the business cards I collected last year and ask them to sit at my table.
23. Contact people from last year and tell them I’m looking forward to seeing them at the conference.
24. Offer my book as a prize for charity auctions. (Go to the social section of the daily paper and find these events.)
25. Give a portion of sales to a charity.
26. Ask to be a party of the charity’s annual event.
27. Ask to have my book publicized in the charity’s program.
28. If the charity has an auction, and if my item fetches a nice price, immediately tell the auctioneer that I will also offer a duplicate item for the runner-up. (This gives the charity twice the money, and me twice the exposure.)
29. Make a “jacket” for my three-legged dog and feature a photo of my book on it.
30. Have a tote bag made with the cover of my book on it. (Use the tote bag.)
31. Distribute bookmarks to the local library.
32. Go to the bookstore at the local airport and offer to help them put together a display of books by local authors.
33. Create shelf-talkers.
34. Send shelf-talkers with media kits to local libraries.
35. Ask friends to call their local library and ask them to order my book.
36. Offer to do a program at my child’s school.
37. Create handouts for the program with links to booksellers and my ISBN.
38. Staple a copy of my book to a cheap package of seeds. Add a card saying, “It’s spring and good books are blooming.” Leave in gardening centers.
39. Offer to do a program for retirement homes.
40. Create a handout for attendees from retirement homes—make it large enough to add the attendee’s photo and suggest they post it in their rooms so that their family can see my book when they visit.
41. Carry my book with me and read it while I’m waiting in public transportation.
42. Leave bookmarks on seats in public transportation.
43. Offer to do a lunchtime program for local companies.
44. Work with other authors to create a speakers’ bureau.
45. Come up with an idea for Chase’s Calendar of Events and CelebrateToday.com and have a holiday that relates to my book.
46. Offer free support materials online for my holiday.
47. Have a website.
48. Have a MySpace page.
49. Have a FaceBook page.
50. Enter myself on as many social authors’ groups as possible.
51. Come up with a list of blogs where it would be ideal for me to blog.
52. Ask them if I can guest blog.
53. Give them a copy of my book to give away.
54. Ask the blogs that allow me to guest blog if they’d suggest a friend who blogs.
55. Get my book into company libraries.
56. Get my book into hospital bookstores—don’t forget the shelf talkers.
57. Contribute to social marketing sites and add my book in my signature line.
58. Add my book in my signature line of all email.
59. Drop a business card into all our outgoing mail.
60. Have an open house in my neighborhood to launch my book.
61. Ask a local real estate agent if she’d like to host a book launch party for me and invite her clients.
62. Make my book available to my son’s school, and ask the librarian to send out a notice in the parent correspondence about my book.
63. Tell my doctor and dentist that I’d be happy to personalize a copy of my book for each of their employees.
64. Hold a book signing in a local grocery store near the holidays.
65. Package several of my books together with a ribbon around them and sell them as a package.
66. Offer to email people a free report or goody to anyone who shares an Amazon order number with me after purchasing my book.
67. Run contests through my blog that reward people for bringing in new readers. (They must identify the name of the new sign up so I know this happened.) Give away an excerpt booklet or a bookmark
.68. Create my own fan club—and have someone else run it.
69. Swap with an author friend: I put up her info on Wikipedia and she does the same for me. We both mention our books.
70. Work with other authors, create a program and offer it to libraries.
71. Offer to speak to book clubs at libraries and in schools.
72. Ask my spouse to keep my business cards with his and to hand out as appropriate.
73. Wear a pin made of my book cover to social events.
74. Made a donation to public radio and have four announcements about my book made in one day.
75. Contact all my local media with a story idea.
76. Apply to write a column for my local media.
77. Write articles for my trade publication.
78. Create a group of interested bloggers who will receive review copies of my book to start the buzz.
79. Attend local Chamber of Commerce activities and offer a program about my book.
80. Post information about my book on bulletin boards where I shop and exercise.
81. Promote my upcoming book signings with a flier for booksellers to drop in their outgoing purchase bags.
82. Put a contest in the back of my book—use it to collect more names/details about readers.
83. Offer character naming rights in a contest.
84. Offer character naming rights to a charity to be auctioned off.
85. Offer character naming rights to anyone who pre-orders my book through a local bookstore.
86. Have book club questions on my blog, and offer to be available by phone or online to clubs.
87. Take classes that are relevant to the topic of my book. Offer bookmarks and business cards to other students.
88. Have a large poster made representing something of interest in my book. (In my case, a harlequin Great Dane) Take it along to book signings to spark conversation.
89. Offer to take other authors (from out of town) around to do signings. This helps me build professional relationships with both the author and booksellers.
90. Find a society or association that would be interested in some aspect of my book (Great Dane Rescue Society), and ask them to run an article about me.
91. Designate a day when a portion of all sales are donated to that society or association.
92. Teach Adult Ed classes that relate to my books.
93. Teach something online that relates to my books (I teach online scrapbook journaling.)
94. Send a mailing to your high school alumni list.
95. Send a mailing to your college alumni list.
96. Send postcards (over-run of your covers) to stores that should stock your books. (In my case that’s scrapbookers.)
97. Offer to sign books in local coffee shops or Starbucks.
98. Check out your state’s arts programs, especially the visiting author programs.99. Offer to be the “author in residence” at a local high school.
100. If your family lives in another area of the country, ask them to help you set up a book signing there.
101. Ask people who read your blog to come up with 101 ideas for promoting their books. Tell them you’ll post them online.Check out John's site for 101 More Ways . . .
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