When I approach the preparation of my weekly Book Marketing Update, I purposely look for bloggers who aren’t the regulars that you and I routinely follow.
So you can be pretty much assured that my weekly roundup will contain different information than those of similar consultants.
I hope you enjoy this particular update.
David Gaughran always shares vital book marketing strategies. So if you don’t follow him on Twitter or sign up for his newsletter, do that now.
I also love the post by Mobile Monkey as well as the article on author photos.
Of course, I like all of the posts in this update; that’s why I included them!
Take care, stay healthy, and keep writing.
Book Marketing
How to Tell if Your Author Photo Is Sending the Right Message by K.M. Weiland: I see too many author photos on social media that — how should I say this — are just wrong. Please don’t use pictures of your dog/cat/bird/book cover as your avatar. Your readers want to see your face. Also, don’t camouflage your profile picture by wearing sunglasses. Okay, I’ve said enough. Be sure to read this post.
Book promotion which works: Promo Stacking and building your marketing plan by David Gaughran: This video describes what promo stacking is and how to use it.
Identifying Your Reader from Writers Helping Writers: A vital part of book marketing is to identify your reader as you start to write your book. Read this post to learn more about this aspect of book marketing.
Why You Should Hire a Freelance Publicist by Patricia Smiley and from Career Authors: “I’ve hired a freelance publicist twice in my writing career, the first time out of naïveté and the second time out of necessity. It was expensive, but I have zero regrets. We all know publishing is a business. As it turns out, so is writing. Authors have to invest in their careers if they hope to succeed.”
SEO for Authors
The Frustrating Realities of SEO Success by Dave Brown and from Sabrina Ricci: “Running a successful website requires effort in many different areas. In addition to coming up with a suitable design for the website site, authors will need to populate it with well-written content that attracts visitors. Many site owners hire SEO services to boost the popularity of their site, as writing SEO-friendly content themselves can be frustrating.” Note: I’ve never hired an SEO professional. If you want to hire someone, interview several experts and ask them what results you can reasonably expect to see and what the entire cost will entail.
Social Media to Boost Your Book Marketing
Facebook Best Practices from MobileMonkey: This post lists 20 best practices to increase fans and generate more engagement and traffic to your website.
Email Marketing
19 Lessons to Grow Your Email Newsletter by Brandon Zhang and from Better Marketing: Social media is awesome but you need to use social media to generate traffic to your website. You also need to use it to grow your newsletter list. Why? You can’t control how Facebook or Twitter changes its platforms. But with email marketing, you have your readers’ email addresses and you can develop your platform to best meet your readers’ needs or desires. This post will help you to grow your list and develop your unique platform.
Blogging
How To Maintain An Online Presence When You’re Battling With Your Mental Health from Blogging Wizard and by Kim Lochery: This is a fascinating blog post with real-world tips. I don’t agree with all of them but they are all worth considering.
Of Note
The Artist In The Machine: The World Of AI-Powered Creativity With Arthur I. Miller and from Joanna Penn: Joanna Penn is always ahead of the curve, leading the way for the rest of us. Don’t miss this important podcast. You can also read the text of her conversation with Arthur I. Miller.
7 Letters from Famous Writers Sharing Fantastic Writing Advice from Nicole J. Bianchi: I absolutely love the quotes in this post. They’re the best! Definitely read this blog post.
Quote of the Week
