Guest Blogger Crystal Reavis - Marketing Tips

Marketing tips for Authors - written by Crystal Reavis

Marketing is super important for authors to do to get themselves and their books in front of readers. Besides writing it’s the most important thing an author can do. Today I want to share with you marketing tips that have worked for me and others!

1.      Giveaways: People love free things so what better way to get your name out there? I did this with my first book and got a pretty great reaction. Even bestselling authors do giveaways from time to time. Terry Goodkind is known for giving away free copies of books. It doesn’t have to be a book though you can giveaway bookmarks or even magnets.

2.      Sales: Have a sale! Take 10% off for every purchase or give free shipping! People love deals and will usually jump at the chance to get a product they want on sale.

3.      Post to social media: Most of us do this anyway but the people who get the most interaction are those who don’t always talk about what they’re selling. Post questions, talk about other books and authors, do polls or post a funny meme. People will interact with those posts, in turn they will most likely be more positive toward posts about your own book.  Almost all of the most successful business does this and they excel!

4.      Book signings: I know as an author you’re probably thinking well this one is obvious but a lot of smaller authors don’t do these. Book signings allow you to get in front of potential readers and let them get to know you. They get to ask questions and let you know hat they loved/disliked about the book. This experience will stick with them.

5.      Get an ad on local radio: Pay for an ad on a local radio station, this will get you in front of the radio audience.  I never thought about doing this until I spoke to my publisher but it’s an amazing idea! A lot of radio stations have big audiences and this will help more people hear your name!

6.      Put an ad in the local paper: Same concept as the radio ad, this is all about getting you in front of more people that you may not have originally thought about marketing to, 

7.       Business cards: I had someone ask why business cards as an author? Well, you’re a business. Most businesses have business card. These will help you get your link out there, if you have a website or blog. This in turn will drive more people to your book link.

8.      Blog: Blogs are popular and a great marketing tool. Your blog will allow you to not only share about your book(s) but share your thoughts about anything related to writing. A lot of authors have blogs and many have said it helps them sell more books.

9.      Website: If you have a website you can put all your books on there, making it easier for people to find your books. This website can even include your blog making it more efficient for your readers to follow you. Websites are the number way people buy things anymore! It would be very smart to have a website.

10.  Build an email list: This is a great way to keep the people who are truly interest in your work well interested. You can send weekly emails, biweekly or even monthly. A lot of authors talk about their writing process, offer courses, free snippets of books, share what books they like, author to follow, what’s trending in the writing world etc.  It keeps you front and center of your readers minds. 

11.  Video: Make videos on YouTube or even Facebook. This goes back to allowing your readers to “see” you. You can talk about your writing process, how your book is going, have a Q&A, offer advice to aspiring authors, talk about the different genres and what to do/not to do if you write in those genres. You can talk about almost anything to build an audience this way. It keeps people engaged and allows them to interact with you in a totally different way. Many authors in this day and age have built their following almost entirely by making videos. 

12.    Have a book launch: When your book is ready for release have a book launch. This can be done in person or online. Many are done online now and are highly successful. You can do a giveaway at this time even; I did and it went well. Reveal your cover, ask your readers what they are most excited about your book. There are many ways to use this to your advantage! This in my experience is one of the best ways to market yourself.

There are many other ways that you can market yourself, this is just a few to get you started on your journey to marketing yourself as an author. If you have any you can add let us know!

Breaking Rules Publishing continues to accept submissions in all genres from writers around the world. Please email us at info@breakingrulespublishing.com or visit our website at www.breakingrulespublishing.com.

Watch what you say and watch what you do.

Watch what you say and watch what you do.

Tolerance  - Toleration and tolerance are terms used in social, cultural and religious contexts to describe attitudes and practices that prohibit discrimination against those practices or group memberships that may be disapproved of by those in the majority.

So I’ll go a bit further and say that speaking, writing or acting in a way that will offend others are not acceptable. AND, that as a person in the public eye, and now that you’ve written a book, a story, a poem and placed your work here in these magazines you are, that you should hold yourself to a higher purpose and level.

I can’t tell you how many times I have written emails in response to authors and their actions, behavior or manner of speech. Those same emails are deleted and a new one is written. The process? Is just to get the anger off my chest and out of the way. I will also admit that I’m not perfect, yet do my best to not say things that will offend others and place me and my company in a bad light.

Having said that – I recently read a post on one of the BRP writer's Facebook page. And who would have thought that Facebook would be such a place of misunderstanding or a place of false courage and strength for the writer? Back to the point. This author decided to place a post, yes on his personal page, that the world is growing more and more homosexual and that we should all hate this as well as all homosexuals.

Now I’m not here to tell you what to think, to debate the role of homosexuals in the world or if you should comply with the writer's thought and become a homosexual. What I am here to tell you is that you’re living in 2019. That you are working with a publishing house that is open and accepting to ALL individuals, regardless of their race, ethnicity, sexual orientation or whether or not they pick their nose.

So, to write something like that literally goes against all that we here at BRP believe in.

My response – was to remind this writer that they are seen by more people than just those that are within their 10 miles radius. That social media isn’t always the place to offer such statements as this will offend your possible audience. And sorry, but yes, you’re now a business and businesses typically don’t act this way.

His response – This is my Facebook page I can post what I want.

Agreed – but when you start to lose followers – you start to lose sales – this may be one of the reasons why.

His response – This is my Facebook page I can post what I want. And I think that in a year I want to cancel my contract and have someone else publish my next book.

My response – cool – but why wait. If you are unhappy with BRP because we are cautioning you against offending others – cool – we can cancel your contract now. There is no need to continue and have you have another year of being unhappy.

Yep – you guessed. He changed his tune. Unfortunately for him, I did not.

Somewhere along that way people, this guy, got it in his head that we are here to serve him. Let me correct that – we are a team, therefore, we don’t serve you or him – we work with you. If you see it differently, then this not the place for you.

Every time I speak to a new author I tell them that we are working together to make them and their book a success. That we as a team will come up with marketing ideas together that will hopefully move their book forward.

Keyword – TEAM

May I say that again – TEAM!

Breaking Rules Publishing doesn’t take orders from their authors – we work with them. Breaking Rules Publishing doesn’t give orders to our authors – we work with them. So when you have someone who sees you as someone beneath them it is best to cut the ties and let them go.

And now it gets better.

After giving him what he wanted he thought it best to reach out to some of our other authors and do his best to trash me and the company.

If I have to explain why this behavior is childish and unprofessional – then we have an even greater problem.

The point of this rant – just be kind to people.  Just be understanding with people and their views and for crying out loud – realize that you’re a business now – and I’m sorry to say – you’re going to have to act like one.