Archive for October, 2009

Another great book marketing idea, courtesy of Michael Volkin…

If there is one thing I know, that’s book marketing, and from time to time I learn about a neat new tool that makes selling books online just a little bit easier.  I would like to introduce you to Skirbit.  Skirbit.com allows an author to easily add a small widget to their blog which gives readers a chance to communicate directly with the author. At the end of the blog, this small widget asks one simple question “What should I write about?” What a perfect question. This allows an author to customize blogs based on reader suggestions.

If you want to be one of those authors who are really in touch with your audience, Skribit allows you to do just that.  Learning how to sell books on the Internet is a meticulous process but if you can get feedback, not only from customers, but potential customers, it will make the process much easier.

Once you create an account with Skirbit, you are presented with an easy to use dashboard to easily create your widget.  Simply code the code given to you in your blog and you’re done.

Michael Volkin is the author of the new book Social Networking for Authors-Untapped Possibilities for Wealth. Check out his book and book marketing services at www.SellaTonofBooks.com.

How many writers websites have you looked at? What seems to be missing from most of them?

Based on my experience, one of the biggest problems with author web sites is that they’re stale and dull. They’re more like a portfolio than a website. They include author photos, a bio, and details on the books. But do sites like this really have readers coming back regularly? With hardly any new content, why would someone visit more than once?

Lesson number one in website content strategizing: Never let your homepage stay the same for too long. If someone comes to your website and the homepage hasn’t changed (barring them coming on the same day, of course), the odds are they’ll never come back. If you want people to continue to visit your site on a regular basis, use your homepage to feature the latest news, reviews, blog entries etc… It’s absolutely essential in getting return traffic.

And this ties in with another thing missing from many author websites: interactivity. After all, an author isn’t taking full advantage of the web unless they use their site to interact with readers. That could be done in a variety of ways — a blog, a message board, an “Ask the Author” section, a poll, a contest, reader-submitted reviews, etc.

Use your book web site as an opportunity to build and maintain a relationship with your readers. Don’t be afraid to communicate with your site visitors. And make sure these communications are on the website instead of in private emails … people love seeing that you read and respond to what they have to say. It makes them much more likely to feel actively engaged in your website.

These types of interactivity are just some of the ideas that I give to authors when I put together their free proposal. This is one of the greatest strengths of our company. We understand the importance of incorporating fresh, interactive content into an writer’s website. And based on the author’s book and genre, we come up with creative ways to do that in a style that’s perfect for their audience.

So contact us today and we’ll put together a free proposal for you.  Whether you’re a novice in terms of websites or a seasoned expert, we’ll help guide you through setting up the perfect writer website to achieve your goals. One that’s always fresh and interactive.

Another marketing tip from our friend Michael Volkin at SellaTonofBooks.com

As an author you are considered an expert in the field in which your book is written.  The press is always looking for experts to interview, especially during a timely news release. For example, my book on Social Networking for Authors recently drummed up some good press as someone interviewed me about the popularity of Facebook.  The press called me because they noticed I was an expert in the field of Social Networking.  You can get the same exposure for free, by going to PitchRate.com.

Pitch Rate is a free service that connects journalists with subject experts for free media coverage.

Simply create an account at Pitch Rate and fill in your profile as completely as possible. Your profile is what members of the press read before they decide to contact you.  This is your chance to show the world what you are an expert at and why you should be considered an expert.

You can set your account to receive daily emails from Pitch Rate to see who is looking for experts in your area.  Requests can be easily sorted by category or keywords by visiting the “Search Requests” tab once you’ve signed in.  Once you’ve found a request you’re interested in, simply make a pitch and all of your contact info contained in your profile will automatically be attached.  At this point, it’s just a matter of playing the waiting game to see if someone is interested in you and your book.

One of the constant struggles I see with authors is the need to be continually marketing your book to be successful.  A website like PitchRate.com is great for authors to be able to quickly set up an account and receive marketing opportunities for an extended period of time.  With just a few minutes of work, an author can expose him or herself to potentially hundreds of press opportunities.

For more tips and tricks on how to sell a ton of books, go to Michael Volkin’s new website SellaTonofBooks.com and purchase his new book Social Networking for Authors-Untapped Possibilities for Wealth.

An interesting article on PW.com yesterday talked about a new crowd-sourced short story on Twitter. Fantasy writer Neil Gaiman is starting the story, and fans can continue it with their own 140-character contributions. BBC audiobooks will eventually compile the full story based on the reader contributions (they’re expecting about 1,000) and the audiobook will ultimately be available for a free download.

You can read the full article here:
http://www.publishersweekly.com/article/CA6701457.html?q=marketing

This is just one of the many new ideas that authors and publishers are having about using the internet and social networking sites to interact with readers and allow fans to be a part of the writing experience. Just something that all authors can keep in mind going forward…