Friday, May 6, 2016

My experience with marketing



When I was getting ready to publish my first book I had no idea what my marketing strategy was. All I knew was that I didn’t want to be one of those annoying people that kept talking about their book all the time and to anyone that would listen.

So when it came to publishing my book I aimed for a soft release of sorts. Meaning, I wasn’t going to make a big noise about it. Most of my fellow bloggers helped me spread the word and allowed me to guest post on their blogs. I tweeted about it a few times and mentioned it on Facebook. At first it was tempting to talk about my book non-stop. But soon I was annoying even myself. So I stopped.

However, when I was doing research about marketing, I kept reading about marketing must haves like:
  • ·        You must have a platform, preferably a blog (check)
  • ·        Take part in as many forms of social media as possible (check)
  • ·        Talk about your book (check)
  • ·        Have a reasonably priced book (check)
  • ·        Good book cover (check)
  • ·        Good editing (check)
  • ·        Another book (nope)
 And then you will have great success.

First of all, I’m a realist. I didn’t expect my book to suddenly be read by the masses. I knew for a fact that my book would upset more people than garner interest. I didn’t expect to sell a lot of books because I didn’t use any paid marketing options. I didn’t have the money to. My friends and I did all the marketing.

I didn’t go big on the marketing because I knew that I didn’t have another piece of work to offer potential readers. All I wanted to do was let the world know that my book was out and available for enjoyment. I wasn’t harassing anyone to buy my book. When I have more books out I might get more aggressive with the marketing.
  
What I learned is that you can follow all the marketing strategies out there and follow everything to a T, but it doesn’t guarantee you success. You have to do what feels good to you. Every book is different. Also, every writer is different too. What might work for all your friends might not work for you. 

I wish I didn’t sign up to most of the social media options. That I had stuck to one or two I liked best. I even started a newsletter to let potential readers know about my new releases.

I don’t mind growing my audience over time. I like the idea of starting out slow. After all, being a writer is about doing it in the long run. I might not release a book every six months, but I will release more books in the future. Please, don’t let others set the rules for you. Set your own and stick to them. You answer to yourself. Do what works for you. 

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