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Marketing Reality. Regardless of whether
you self-publish or work with an established publisher, you the
author/entrepreneur have to market your work.
Unless you are Stephen King, Sidney Sheldon, or Michael
Crichton or the like whose fans snap up each new book, you have
to work the system. You must actively market yourself and your books
to generate sales. You must make people aware of you and your information
products and your business.
Marketing and Promotion are the secret of success,
in any field. In publishing, marketing and promotion generally entails
preparing a media kit. These include a press release or news release,
a review copy of your publication or sample of your product, and
perhaps a photo of the cover.
To get publicity, send your package to journalists
who cover your topic and would be interested in your work. These
people include book reviewers and writers who might feature you
in their articles as an expert on your topic. You might work to
be a guest on radio and TV shows and write freelance articles on
your subject. Every time, you’ll want your byline to follow
this general format: “Eric Gelb, Author of Book Promotion Made
Easy.”
The more you can make you and your information products
and your business stand out from the competition, the more you will
sell.
Case Study—What we learned. When I started
self-publishing in 1991, I contacted my local newspaper, The
Nassau Herald (Lawrence, NY). They ran a human-interest story
on me with a nice photo of me, local author. The article featured
my background and accomplishments, described my book and even listed
ordering information. This article was not about personal finance.
Based on this article, the local bookstore stocked my book. This
article along with a press release became the cornerstone of my
press kit.
Begin with
your local newspapers and magazines.
Expand and branch out from there.
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