Holiday Promotion For Your Book

If you have not tapped into the holiday season to help promote your book, now is the time to start. Regardless of where you fall on the spectrum of how commercialized you think the holidays should or should not be, the fact is that the holidays can be a boon for your book sales.

Last Friday (the Friday after Thanksgiving) was called Black Friday because retailers would finally move from the red (losing money) on the year to the black (making a profit). Thanksgiving marks the beginning of the holiday seasons. With just a few weeks left until Christmas, now is the time to act if you have not started your holiday marketing. Here are some ideas for you to consider when it comes to holiday promotions:

• Run a "Buy One, Get One Half Off" sale- Tap into the gift-giving spirit by giving a price break for people who by more than one copy of your book.
  
  
• Holiday Inscriptions- One thing that makes a gift stand out is the uniqueness of it. Offer to inscribe a special holiday message to those who buy your book as a gift for someone else.
  
  
• Bundles of Joy- Do you have more than one book published? If so, bundle them together for a great holiday gift set.
  
  
• Greeting Cards- Offer to send a greeting card to the gift recipient when someone purchases your book. Since most people may be reluctant to give out a friend's address, you can send the greeting card to the purchaser who can then give it to their gift recipient.
  
  
• Video Greeting- For that special touch, use your webcam to record a special holiday greeting to someone who purchased your book. This can make a great add-on to the purchase of your book for someone who wants that perfect gift for a friend.
  

You can tap into your own creativity for other holiday ideas, but you definitely don't want the holiday marketing opportunity to pass you by. Good luck with your own "Black Friday" and happy holidays to you.

Tony Eldridge

Marketing Tips Around The Net: November 27th

Happy Holidays to everyone! Today, not only will we look around the net for great marketing tips, but we will start a new service where we announce upcoming audio/video events that you can watch or listen to to help you learn more about marketing your books. Each event is free to watch. You can read my Monday's post for more information on how to get your upcoming event (or on-demand event) listed in future Friday's Tips Around The Net posts.

Before we get to our tips, I wanted to announce that my new video tips for authors is out. In this video tip, I walk through using a free tool that will help anyone create banners for their website, including how to add pictures to the banner. You can also create buttons and ad boxes as well. The great thing about this is that it does not require a lot of technical knowledge or inherent creativity on your part to create great banners.

The video is available for subscribers to my marketing tips newsletters. If you have not subscribed to the free newsletter, you can do it now and you can even view a sample video before signing up.

Now, on to the tips...

1. Golden Rules of Social Media- Penny Sansevieri has a 7 rules for using social media that you will want to check out

2. How to test-market your book's title for free, before it's too late- Roger C. Parker shares this great tip as you bounce around book titles for an upcoming book.

3. Be Prepared for Opportunity- Are you ready when opportunity knocks? Shel Horowitz discusses why you should be.

4. Podcast: Joel Williams on Blogging Basics for Writers- Joanna Penn and Joel Williams discuss the basics of blogging.

5. Focused blogging to promote your brand, book or business online- Phyllis Zimbler Miller walks through how to use your blog to promote yourself online.

6. Book Publicity - Use a Benefit Funnel to Write Compelling Copy- Dana Lynn Smith invites guest Shel Horowitz to share his tips on writing great copy.

7. Don't Let Everyone Else Hog the Swine Flu Spotlight- Sandra Beckwith has a great post that helps us to see the importance of thinking outside the box to find great marketing opportunities.

8. Selling Yourself First By Gale Laure- Angela Wilson invites guest Gale Laure to share tips on how you can promote yourself as an author.

9. Is Your Blog A Thriving Community?- Joella Molson gives some great tips on how to capitolize on the interactive nature of blogs.

10. 3 Ways to Make More Money with Amazon's Affiliate Program This Christmas- Darren Rowse shares some tips based on his experience on how to boost your holiday sales with Amazon's affiliate program.


Marketing Audio/Videos Coming up Next Week

Who is hosting: MaAnna Stephenson of Just the FAQs
Who is the guest (if any): The Savvy Book Marketer, Dana Lynn Smith
Title of the show: How to Create a New Blog or Upgrade Your Existing Blog
Dates and Time: Air date Thursday, Dec. 4 at 8:00am CT
Link for people to learn more about attending: http://www.justthefaqs.net/podcast.shtml


Who is hosting: Joanna Penn from The Creative Penn
Who is the guest (if any): Interviewing Debbie Jenkins, co-author of "The Wealthy Author: The Fast Profit Method for Writing, Publishing and Selling Your Non-Fiction Book"
Title of the show: "How to Make Money from Your Non-Fiction Book"
Dates and Time: Podcast will be posted Thurs 3 Dec US time.
Link for people to learn more about attending: It will be on the home page of http://www.TheCreativePenn.com or you can subscribe to the podcast in iTunes here http://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?id=309426367 . You can also see all the backlist of podcasts here http://www.thecreativepenn.com/podcasts/


Who is hosting: Janet E. Smith
Title of the show: Marketing for Fun & Profit
Dates and Time: Tuesday from 4:30 to 5 p.m. eastern standard time
Link for people to learn more about attending: http://internetvoicesradio.com

That's it for this week's trip around the net. Remember to let me know if you have any audio/video events you would like to have included in future Tips Around The Net. Have a wonderful weekend and enjoy all the Thanksgiving leftovers!

30 Days To Launching A Product By Phyllis Zimbler Miller

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone. Today, I have decided to deliver a great resource for anyone who is launching an e-book, product or service. Phyllis Zimbler Miller has documented one of her product launches as it was happening to create a "how-to" guide for others who are lunching a product. This is literally like looking over her shoulders and watching her go through the launch process. The lessons you learn are priceless.

Before we link to each of her daily product launch articles as she counts down to her launch, I wanted to announce that my new video tips for authors is out. In this video tip, I walk through using a free tool that will help anyone create banners for their website, including how to add pictures to the banner. You can also create buttons and ad boxes as well. The great thing about this is that it does not require a lot of technical knowledge or inherent creativity on your part to create great banners.

The video is available for subscribers to my marketing tips newsletters. If you have not subscribed to the free newsletter, you can do it now and you can even view a sample video before signing up.

Now, on to Phyllis Zimbler Miller's classic resource on launching products!

Preparing to launch an online information product: Day 1 of the pre-launch

Getting the word out about an online information product launch: Day 2

Day 3: What problem will your product launch solve?

Day 4: Whether ‘tis better to have a long or short product launch sales letter

Day 5: Should the first month of a membership site be a free trial?

Days 6 and 7: Revisiting the topic of offering a free month trial

Getting the product ready and the word out about an online product launch: Day 8

Setting up a bundled offer for the product launch: Day 9

Solving product launch problems when the answer is no: Day 10

Be careful what you promise when promoting a product launch: Day 11

Membership programs are not one-size-fits-all: Day 12

Days 13 and 14: The trials and sometime triumphs of using Internet technology

A membership site is not a membership site just because someone says it is: Day 15

No need to turn lead into gold to capitalize on Internet business: Day 16

Article marketing can put your brand, book or business in front of your target market: Day 17

Creating a sense of urgency in an information product launch: Day 18

Beware of software programs that think like machines and not like people: Day 19

Creating a brand extension provides new opportunities for Internet marketing: Days 20 and 21

Preparing affiliate information is a part of an online product launch: Day 22

Recording first teleseminar – creating a back-and-forth conversation: Day 23

Leaving blog comments can get exposure for an information product launch: Day 24

Creating a one-page Web site to spotlight a single end goal: Day 25

Sending Facebook email invites for the Miller Mosaic Internet Marketing Program: Day 26

Checklist for upcoming information product launch – getting everything ready: Days 27 and 28

Getting across the value proposition of an information product: Day 29

With the information product launch only hours away – what’s in it for participants? Day 30

Unveiling the Miller Mosaic Internet Marketing Program: Ready, set, go!

Press release for Miller Mosaic Internet Marketing Program has different tone than the articles

There you go! I hope this resource helps you as you go through the process of launching your own products, services or e-book. Again, Happy Thanksgiving to everyone.

Why Visitors Leave Your Site And What To Do About It By Conrad Feagin

I am thrilled today to introduce you to one of my mentors when it comes to Internet marketing. Conrad Feagin is the founder of Technicallead.com, a company that has helped regular people learn complex software programs easily and quickly through a unique mix of video, e-learning and one-on-one mentor support. I always learn from him each time we meet, and today's post is no different. In it, Conrad tackles the problem authors and anyone with a web presence constantly faces--how to keep people from visiting your site and immediately bouncing away.

It's my pleasure to introduce you to Conrad Feagin...


Why Visitors Leave Your Site And What To Do About It
By Conrad Feagin


I think we can all agree website visitors are very valuable. Chances are you spend a good deal of time driving traffic to your site, so why would you want them to leave almost immediately?

You wouldn't - right? But if your site can't pass my 5-Second Test, you might as well be standing on a ship (a sinking one) waving them goodbye as they sail past. The sad truth is if you don't get their attention immediately, you've lost them for good.

Don't worry, by the time you get done reading this, you'll know how to quickly fix your site, grab your visitor's attention, and keep them there as long as you want.

Introducing The 5-Second Test

Here is the cold hard truth: Website visitors do not carefully digest each word on your website. In fact, the average visitor gives your home page a quick "once over" and if you are lucky they find something of interest and stick around for a while.

Remember, they call it "surfing the Internet" or "browsing" for a reason. We "Google" a topic and start clicking around until we find what we want. Oh, and by the way, out of survival we have become incredibly adept at ignoring 95% of the stuff we are browsing through.

So, now that we have set the stage. Let's take the test. You are going to take the test first and then I want you to find at least 10 people who have never seen your website before and have them take the test as well.

Here is the test:

1. Go to your website and spend just 5-7 seconds reading and then come back to this page.

2. Now, answer this simple question: Did the website hook me in? In other words, was there something on the site that grabbed my attention and made me want to find out more?

Now, it may be difficult for you to be objective about your own site, but once you ask 10 people to do this test you may be shocked at the failure rate of your site. Don't worry though, I have several things that will help you create killer hooks on your homepage.

Fix your headline

Your headline should be strong like an ox, attention grabbing like a head-on collision. It must be the first thing they see and it should force them to read more. Don't assume just because someone came to your site they're going to read all the information. They're simply not going to do it. On average, 80% of your visitors will read your headline, only 20% will read the rest. This is why your headline is so important.


So what makes a good headline?

It should be specific. Make sure your headline could only be at the top of your website - it's specific to you. Don't write a generic headline anyone could use. How are you different from everyone else? Use details.

Use powerful words. These should grab attention and create an action. Words like: Discover, Critical, Effective, Fascinating, Irresistible, Limited Offer, Masterpiece, Rewarding, Shocking, Tempting...

Also, consider using testimonials from your clients for great headlines. Only use real, unedited testimonials.

Tip: When you decide on a headline, use the same headline in your advertisements, and your website. It does not have to be the exact same headline, but very similar. Your goal is to lead your visitor from your advertisement to your website. Once they reach your site you want to lead their eyes to your headline. If you use similar copy in all three places they will know they’re in the right place.

Now, you want to get your visitor to do something. What good is a message like, "hey, I'm an author" or "read my book"? Well, not much. It doesn't make your visitor do anything. You want your visitor to take action.

You want them to leave their information and you'll give something in return - that's "Your Offer".

An offer simply means you're inviting someone to get something for giving something. It's based on promises by both parties. If you give me your name and number, I'll give you this report worth $47.

Your offer should be irresistible and something they can’t walk away from.

If you don't have a great offer then people come to your website, glance around, and leave. Remember your goal is to turn browsers into readers and loyal fans, get their contact info, and follow up with them later.

The rest of your copy should support this goal and if your headline is good enough, they will read the rest of your copy. Each paragraph should support your main cause (getting them to leave their info). Don't ramble. Be compelling and remember what's in it for them (maybe a report, a trial, a consultation, or how about a preview of your brand new book?). Stay focused on your goal (getting their contact info).

Remember to be specific and explain why your visitor should leave his information. Make your copy only as long as it needs to be, no longer than that. Only have the necessary information. Don't add a bunch of fluff and don't try to fool your reader, they will know and not trust you.

So why on earth would you want your visitor's information?

So you can build a relationship, gain trust, get repeat visitors, and increase your chances of getting a sale- or a loyal fan. Get their information by giving them something free, give them more free stuff via a newsletter. After you've courted them appropriately you should be able to ask for the sale.

Tip: Only ask for what you need. If you are sending a newsletter you only need a name and email. Keep it simple and you'll get a better response.

Remove any distractions that get in the way of your message.

Get rid of extra info, any links that take them away from your main message or away from your site, and images that aren't relevant.

Often I'll see sites where people let their ideas and design get in the way of the message. Beautiful sites are great, but people buy (or become your fan) because of your message. Complex copy might tell the whole story, but it scares people away because it's just too much.

Just remember, keep your message- like your website- simple.


-----

Conrad Feagin is the founder of TechnicalLead.com
He provides a unique training system combining live classes with Q&A, one-on-one support, and recorded video training - all at a fraction of the cost of a live classroom training. Students are spending less time learning new programs and more time increasing their income.

There's no reason to pay a web-designer because you can easily learn to build your own website in an afternoon with our Intro to Wordpress video <http://www.learnwebdevelopment.com/introduction-to-wordpress.html>. No prior skills required.

Find Great Free Audio and Video Marketing Content From Experts All Over The World

Starting this Friday, I will be adding a new feature to "Marketing Tips Around The Net" post. It will still contain links to 10 marketing articles hand-picked by me from experts all over the world. But in addition to that, I will also be including a list of new podcasts, teleseminars, Internet radio episodes, webinars, and new videos which will be available the following week.

Marketers, if you have audio/video events planned for release and you want me to include them in the Friday post, then send me an e-mail to:

BlogEvent [AT] marketingtipsforauthors [DOT] com
(or to an e-mail address you may already be using to communicate to me with).

To be included, your audio or video event must fit these criteria:

1. The event must be marketing in nature or an interview with an author.
   
2. The event must take place the week following the Friday post it is listed in.
   
3. It must be to a specific event (i.e., please don't sent me a request that says you have a BlogTalkRadio show every Tuesday you want included).
   
4. Please provide the following information:
   
   • Host name and guest name (if appropriate)
     
   • If Live: Day and time of event
     
   • If recorded, day you plan to post the recording for viewing/listening
     
   • Title (or subject) of event/recording
     
   • Link to where someone can find more information about the event/recording (this may be a link to your website's homepage where the final link to the recording will be posted when it's available).
     
5. The content must contain marketing material or interviews with authors to be included in the blog post.
   
6. Please send all requests between Saturday and Wednesday for inclusion in the upcoming Friday post.
   

I hope this becomes a great resource for people who are looking for good marketing tips via audio/video methods. If you have on-demand recordings on the subject of marketing, then I invite you to submit them to my Marketing Tips For Authors Link Directory. I created a new On-Demand Audio/Video Category where you can post links to your content. Every link in the directory is approved by me before it gets listed, so the content in it is free of spam.

If I see a link to a specific on-demand recording that catches my eye, the link to it may also wind up in my Friday's "Marketing Tips Around The Net" posts as well!

If anyone has any questions about this, please let me know.

Tony Eldridge

Marketing Tips Around The Net: November 20th

It's Friday, a rainy, cold one here in the Dallas area. Hmmm.... that's not too different from "It's a dark and stormy night," is it? Well, let's move on past my brilliant opening lines and get right to our trip around the net as we cover the globe looking for great book marketing posts and articles that catch my eye.

One quick note for you marketers who create podcasts, blog talk radio shows, teleseminars, mp3s, videos, and webinars; starting next Friday, I will be adding a new feature to my Friday's "Marketing Tips Around The Net" posts. In addition to the ten links I list, I will be listing upcoming audio/videos and events that will be made available the week following the Friday's post. If you would like to let my readers know of your free marketing audio/videos or events, you just have to let me know. Make sure you read next Monday's post (Nov. 23rd) for all the details on how to submit your content for inclusion in my post.

Now, on to to our trip around the net...

1. What Does Your Website Have to Do with Your Twitter Account?- Phyllis Zimbler Miller discusses the importance of making sure that what you say about yourself on your Twitter profile and on your website are consistent.

2. I'm a New Author. What is the Best Way to Get Published?- Carolyn Howard-Johnson invites guest blogger Marvin Wilson to answer one of the most asked questions from new writer.

3. Enhance Your Blog and Ezine with Guest Posts- Dana Lynn Smith discusses the benefits of inviting guest bloggers to contribute content to your blogs and ezines.

4. NaNoWriMo Day 18: Lessons Learned on Writing My First Thriller Novel- We are in the homestretch for one of the busiest months in many authors year. Joanna Penn gives a video update on her NaNo progress as well as a written summary of the lessons she has learned from the process so far.

5. Author profits begin when they clearly specify the back-end consulting services they offer- Roger C Parker discusses how authors can move beyond the royalties of their books when it comes to making a living as an author.

6. Join Forces to Slash Ad Costs and Make More Impact- Shel Horowitz talks about how authors can band together with local merchants to get ads at a discount while increasing the effectiveness of the ads.

7. 13 Ways I Get Back into Blogging after a Vacation- Darren Rowse shares his tips on getting back into the blogging grind after a vacation. From personal experience, I can not stress the importance of his first point.

8. Should You Pitch Your Book in Comment Sections?- Angela Wilson discusses a very interesting issue regarding book promotion activities through blog comment.

9. Avoid These Common Online Press Room Mistakes- Sandra Beckwith gives sound advice for authors who are submitting press releases.

10. Can Twitter's Ditch of Suggested Users Hurt Bloggers?- Kristen Nicole writes about Twitter's plan on changing up their Suggested User List, a topic that has been involved in heated discussions since Twitter rolled out this feature that makes suggestions to new users on who they may want to follow. Great stuff in here.

Well, that's it for today's trip around the net. I am on my way to bed, fending off a bug that hit deep into the night. The good: Lot's of rest will surely help me fend off this bug. The bad: I dread the pile up of e-mails that will inevitably come. My 3 year old twin boys made me a Mr. Potato Head to help me feel better-- believer it or not, it worked. No matter how bad I may feel, they always make be feel better.

Tony

Create Content For Others To Enhance Your Brand Exposure

As authors or professionals with a brand to build, we spend a lot of time looking into advertising and media publicity for our books, products or services. Today, I want to introduce an idea to you that may help you drive more traffic to your site, enhance your standing as an expert and build strong professional relationships with others. The best part about it is that it only requires sweat equity to pull it off. I want you to consider the benefits of creating content for others.

In my current role with Marketing Tips For Authors, I have created video and written content for other sites. The information I create is branded so that people know who I am and how to reach me after they view the content. In previous professional roles, I submitted professional tutorials to other sites which attracted a lot of free traffic to our site.

Site administrators are hungry for great content for their subscribers and viewers. If you can provide them with that content, most administrators will be thrilled to share it with their visitors. Here are some tips on the various types of content you can provide to others. Once you create the content, simply contact the sites you wish to be on to see if there is an interest.

• Written Articles/Tutorials- Articles are a great way to enhance your brand, but with a little tweaking to them, you can turn them into a tutorial. Tutorials are wildly popular in certain markets. To make a tutorial, you need to write up a step-by-step "how to" article. They don't have a lot of "why things work" just the how-to steps to accomplish the task.
  
  
• Video Tutorials- Can you do a screen cast or record yourself explaining how to do something? If you can do it well, you may find a niche in delivering great content to others. Video has become more mainstream than ever. This can give you a wide-open opportunity to find people to share your content with.
  
  
• Audio Files- If video is not your thing then consider creating audio lessons for others. With the popularity of iPods and other PDAs that can store MP3s, it's a great way to build a library of lessons that people can listen to on the go. Just make sure to let the listener know who you are and how to reach you online so they can find more of your great content.
  
  
• Co-Branded Auto-Responder Courses- Do you have an idea on a 10 lesson series that can be delivered via e-mail? Then why not co-brand it and ask someone if they will be interested in making it available to their list? You may not get the initial subscriber lists, but you will benefit from the traffic it drives to your site.
  

I hope this helps you get the creative juices flowing on how you can create content for other people. Remember, if you create great content, then you create a win/win/win situation: You win, the site administrator wins, and the visitor wins. It can be a great way to get in front of eyes that may never have been available to you otherwise.

Tony Eldridge

Write It, Speak It, Sell It! by John DiPietro

One thing I love about Twitter is that you meet top professionals in ways you may never have met them before. Today's guest author is someone I met on Twitter and Linked-In. He is a top marketer and world class speaker. Today, he will share his tips on how to use your status as an author and speaker together to sell more books. To get an idea of John's skills and ability, check out his blog, SALES AND MARKETING GURU, and watch some of the video of his seminars he has posted there.

It's my pleasure to introduce you to our guest author today, John DiPietro.


WRITE IT, SPEAK IT, SELL IT!
by John DiPietro

Bread and butter, beer and popcorn, and ham and eggs all are well known items that go together with each other. Here is one more to add to the list, writing and speaking.

The big issue is that the two skills require input from different sides of your brain. Once you master how to put the two together, the third element that will come into play is SELLING. You see, if you have a book, and then the capability to speak distinctly and clearly about it, people will want to buy it.

The converse is true also. If you can speak intelligently about a subject, then people will want to learn more from you about the subject. And even in this electronic world, the top way to gain credibility as a speaker is when you are a published author.

So you see how the cycle completes itself. Write a book, then talk about it and then sell it. Or talk about a topic, then write about it and sell it that way. Either way, these are two skill sets that are absolutely vital to any author.

The difficulty the speaker has in putting their words down on paper are common. The speaker usually likes to shift from topic to topic without much time in between. The author likes to dwell on the same topic for extended time periods and exhaust a topic.

Being a successful writer who is a great speaker can be just the combination necessary to lead to good sales of the book, either in the back of the room at a speaking event, or via online sales or bookstore sales.

The fact is, it is difficult to get shelf space at your local giant chain bookstore if you are not a celebrity, established writer or newsmaker. However, if you do not fit into any of the just mentioned categories, you can still self publish your book and sell it at speaking events.

Keep in mind, that it makes no difference what type of speaking event this is, even if you are not paid a fee for speaking. Good speakers that know how to sell from the stage, without appearing to be hucksters, can make good revenue from back of room sales and many times gain additional speaking events from that one.

The key is to exceeding the expectations of the audience. Today, just meeting expectations is not enough. You have to go the extra mile and really prepare for the event, even though you may have given the same speech several times. It's how you engage your audience that counts.

This means learning about the geographic area in which the speech is taking place. Have there been any non tragic news events that you can make reference to? Is weather an issue? How can you turn current events into part of your presentation? All of these factors are important in impressing the audience with the amount of customization or localization of your presentation.

Always have a supply of books with you in your car if you are speaking close by home. Volunteer to speak at every Lion's, Rotary, Kiwanis, Chamber of Commerce or other civic event that is within fifty miles from home.

Arrive early and greet the attendees and stay late to answer questions. Offer a set dollar amount per book sold that will go to a local charity or to the sponsoring organization itself. They will then help promote the sales for you during the introduction or thank you. Give away a book during a raffle or if an audience member answers a question correctly. You get to hold your book up in front of the entire audience. The last thing you want to do is be accused of using your presentation as a sales pitch for your book or other services. So please keep that in mind.

Speaking sells books. Books spawn more books and books lead to speaking gigs. It's a great ring of promotion and publicity if done properly.

-----------------------

About John DiPietro

John DiPietro is an author, speaker and marketer. His string of fifteen consecutive years as the leading sales representative at a Boston area radio station is a record that may never be broken. Today he speaks to organizations about using social media and live speaking events to enhance their business.

He can be reached in the Boston area at 508 829 9949 or via email at originaljohndipietro@gmail.com. You can visit his website at www.greatsellingresults.com

Marketing Tips Around The Net: November 13th

It's Friday and time for another trip around the net to look at book marketing lessons and tips that come from experts all over the world. We have some great stuff here, so sit back with your favorite beverage and let's dive into it.

1. Internet marketing: How many social networking sites are enough?- Phyllis Zimbler Miller discusses the question we all ask and even steers the conversation toward creating your own social networking site.

2. Turn Your Facebook Profile into a Friend Magnet in 7 Easy Steps- Dana Lynn Smith invites author Janice Curran to share her secrets on attracting friends to your Facebook presence.

3. November a Writing Month for Nonfiction Writers, Too- You have probably heard of NaNo (National Novel Writing Month) going on this month, but Carolyn Howard-Johnson lets us know that this month is for nonfiction writers as well. WNFiN (Write Nonfiction in November) is in its third year.

4. Speaking About Your Book: 7 Tips For Successful Public Speaking- Few marketing activities suit authors more that getting out there and speaking to people about your book. Joanna Penn gives you some excellent advice on this time honored activity.

5. 1,031 Book Cover Design Ideas for Authors at the Book Cover Archive- Book cover design is something that many authors are not prepared to do when their book is written. Roger C. Parker introduces us to a pretty cool resource when it comes time for us to design the cover of our book.

6. Pay-Per-Click, Part 1: How It Works- Shel Horowitz kicks off a series of posts on describing how PPC advertising works. Check out the related posts at the end of this one to dive into other post by him on the PPC subject.

7. S&S Selling Individual Book Chapters- Angela Wilson discusses Simon & Schuster's e-commerce strategy to sell a book by individual chapters. Many marketers have been doing this for a while and it's interesting to see the "big guys" doing it as well.

8. Kindle for PC Application First Look- Walt Shiel downloads Amazon's beta version of its Kindle for PC application and puts it to the test.

9. Tips for your blog, social media, publicity, and self-branding- Getting Past the Gatekeeper contains some great info, like this post on notes from their visit to the Self Publishing Book Expo. It's definitely worth the read.

10. More Self-Publishing Expo Tidbits- Getting Past the Gatekeeper continues with some more great marketing advice from their trip to the Self Publishing Book Expo.

That does it for this week's trip around the net. I hope you enjoy this November weekend. With fall in the air and Thanksgiving just around the corner (oh, and as the stores have been letting us know for weeks, Christmas too!) we're about to enter a busy time of year for everyone. But through it all, we will be right here, faithfully plugging away. Enjoy the weekend and I will see you next Monday.

Tony Eldridge

Infecting Your Marketing Plan Virally

Most of us know about viral marketing campaigns. They are the goal of many marketers and some people are great at them. So, what exactly is a viral marketing campaign? Simply, a pure viral campaign is one that spreads on its own with little effort and money on the creator's part. What are some viral examples?

• Youtube videos that spread like wildfire
  
  
• E-mails that get sent over the globe in a short period of time
  
  
• Hotmail- The original free e-mail service that spread like wildfire
  
  
• One Red Paperclip- This guy decided to trade a red paper-clip he had on his desk for a house. He did it in 14 trades
  
  
• Million Dollar Home Page- This guy sold a million pixels on his page for $1 per pixel
  
  
• Burger King's 2004 Subservient Chicken campaign- Type in a few commands and make the chicken do what ever you want him to do
  
  
• The Blair Witch Project
  

While people may spend money launching these campaigns, the viral nature comes when it's picked up by the public and passed on. Word of mouth is a vital element in viral marketing. When hen done right, your marketing campaign will have elements of viral marketing in it. As you create your campaign, think about how you can incorporate some or all of these elements into it. These are some of the things that help campaigns go viral:

• Open Access- You want your campaign accessible by everyone. For example, don't make people sign up to an e-mail list for a campaign you want to go viral. This doesn't mean that you don't have a mechanism to capture contact information, you just don't want to make it a prerequisite before someone can experience the viral message.
  
  
• Encourage Communications- If you have the ability for people to leave comments about your campaign, great. If not, find a way to give people the ability to comment
  
  
• Wow Them- What is it about your campaign that delivers the WOW! factor? Is is unbelievably cute? Cutting edge? Hilarious? Extremely useful? Against the odds? Never been done before?
  
  
• Push Emotion Buttons- The cute baby or puppy in the YouTube videos spread like wildfire because of the emotions they elicit. What emotion can you stir up?
  
  
• Encourage Proliferation- Never restrict people from posting, copying, embedding, or sharing anything about your viral marketing campaign. There is a time to restrict information sharing. Anything about your viral marketing campaign is definitely not the time. Release all information about your viral campaign and thank people for sharing it anytime they do.
  

The bottom line is that if you try to restrict access, dissemination of information, or any aspect of your viral message, you are shooting yourself in the foot and possibly setting yourself up for less than stellar results. Commit to building the viral message right and turning it over for others to help spread the news about it, and you are well on your way to creating a memorable, successful viral marketing message.

Tony Eldridge

15 Commandments for Getting FREE Publicity By Carolyn Howard-Johnson

I'm excited today to have a return marketing expert with us to give us an excerpt from her marketing book. Carolyn Howard-Johnson will give us 15 commandments for getting free publicity from her book, The Frugal Book Promoter: How To Do What Your Publisher Won't. Between her books, blogs, and websites, Carolyn helps to arm authors with some powerful book promotion techniques. Not only is she a writer, poet and book marketer, she is a former publicist for a New York PR firm and a marketing instructor for UCLA's Writers' Program. All this experience shows that she knows what she's doing and can help you market your book.

Without further delay, I'm excited to introduce you, again, to Caroline Howard-Johnson. (Oh, and please make sure you sign up for my free video marketing tips for authors newsletter).



15 Commandments for Getting FREE Publicity
By Carolyn Howard-Johnson

An Excerpt from THE FRUGAL BOOK PROMOTER:HOW TO DO WHAT YOUR PUBLISHER WON'T



A huge retailer once said that advertising works, we just don't know how, why, or where it works best.

What we do know is that advertising's less mysterious cousin, publicity, works even better. It is the more reliable relative because it is judged on its merit alone and carries the cachet of an editor's approval. It also is surrounded by the ever-magic word "free." The two are easily identified as kin.

These two often walk hand-in-hand and yet they can be incompatible. The editors of good media outlets will not allow the advertising department to influence them. Still, in an effort to be completely impartial they reserve the right to use advertiser's stories editorially if they deem them newsworthy. That is why it is helpful to use advertising in a vehicle that plays to the audience you would like to see standing in line for your book. This paid-for exposure then becomes an entrée to the decision-makers. A contact in the advertising department may be willing to put a news release on the desk of one of his editors, maybe even encourage her to look at it. There are no contracts, but it does sometimes work. If you're going to try this route, choose a "little pond", a bookish brochure or an "arty" weekly so that the dollars you spend will be noticed.

Sometimes a magazine or newspaper will run a special promotion called advertorial. These are sections where you pay for an ad and then the newspaper assigns a reporter to cover the story you want told. The article carries some of the prestige of editorial copy—that is the general reader may assume the article has been chosen only on its merits because of its copycat character. The writer or editor you meet will can be approached when your have something exceptional.

Still, advertorial isn't exactly FREE. If FREE sounds more like the fare that will serve your needs, carve out some time to do it yourself and follow these 15 commandments:

Educate yourself: Study other press releases. Read a book like Publicity Advice & How-To Handbook, by UCLA Marketing Instructor, Rolf Gompertz, a SPAN member. Order it by calling 818-980-3576. Join publicity oriented e-groups.

Read, read, read: Your newspaper. Your e-zines. Even your junk mail, a wonderful newsletter put out by the Small Publishers of North America (www.spannet.org) and one called The Publicity Hound (www.publicityhound.com.) My daughter found a flier from the local library in the Sunday paper stuffed between grocery coupons. It mentioned a display done by a local merchant in the library window. My second book, HARKENING: A COLLECTION OF STORIES REMEMBERED, became a super model in their lobby and I became a seminar speaker for their author series. Rubbish (and that includes SPAM) can be the goose that laid the golden egg.

Keep an open mind for promotion ideas: Look at the different themes in your book. There are angles there you can exploit when you're talking to editors. My first book, THIS IS THE PLACE is sort of romantic (a romance website will like it) but it is also set in Salt Lake City, the site where the winter games were played in 2002 and, though that's a reach, I found sports desks and feature editors open to it as Olympics © fervor grew and even as it waned because they were desperate for material as the zeal for the games wound down.

Cull contacts: Develop your Rolodex by adding quality recipients from media directories. The website http://www.gebbieinc.com/ has an All-in-One Directory that gives links to others such as Editor, Publisher Year Book, and Burrell's. Some partial directories on the web are free and so are your yellow pages. Ask for help from your librarian—a good research librarian is like a shark; she'll keep biting until she's got exactly what she wants.

Etiquette counts: Send thank-you notes to contacts after they've featured you or your book. This happens so rarely they are sure to be impressed and to pay attention to the next idea you have, even if it's just a listing in a calendar for your next book signing.

Partner with your publicist and publisher: Ask for help from their promotion department—even if it's just for a sample press release.

Publicize who you are, what you do: Reviews aren't the only way to go. E-books are important promotion tools and Twitter is big news right now (find me at www.twitter.com/frugalbookpromo). Katy Walls, author of "The Last Step," coordinated an "anthology" of recipes from authors who mention food in their books (yes, some my family's ancient recipes from polygamist times are in it). It is a free e-book, a promotional CD, and great fodder for the local newspapers. If you'd like a copy, e-mail me at HoJoNews@aol.com. Use it as a cookbook and as a sample for your own e-book promotion.

Think of angles for human interest stories, not only about your book but about you as its author. Are you very young? Is writing a book a new endeavor for you? Several editors have liked the idea that I wrote my first book at an age when most are thinking of retiring, that I think of myself as an example of the fact that it is never too late to follow a dream.

Develop new activities to publicize: Don't do just book signings. Use your imagination for a spectacular launch. Start an award. I give the Noble (Not Nobel!) for literary work each January at www.MyShelf.com. Get charities involved. Think in terms of ways to help your community.

Send professional photos with your release: Request guidelines from your target media. Local editors won't mind if you send homey Kodak moment--properly labeled--along with your release. Some will use it; it may pique the interest of others and they'll send out their own photographers. It's best, however, to send only professional photos to the big guys.

Frequency is important: The editor who ignores your first release may pay more attention to your second or twenty-fifth. She will come to view you as a source and call you when she needs to quote an expert. This can work for novels as well as nonfiction. I received a nice referral in my local newspaper because I am now an "expert" on prejudice, even though my book is a novel and not a how-to or self-help piece.

Follow Up: Shel Horowitz, author of Marketing Without Megabucks (http://www.frugalfun.com), reports that follow-up calls boost the chances of a press release being published. Voice contact builds relationships better than any other means of communication.

Keep clippings: Professional publicists like Debra Gold of Gold & Company do this for their clients; you do it so you'll know what's working and what isn't.

Evaluate: One year after your first release, add up the column inches. Measure the number of inches any paper gave you free including headlines and pictures. If the piece is three columns wide and each column of your story is six inches long, that is 18 column inches. How much does that newspaper charge per inch for their ads? Multiply the column inches by that rate to know what the piece is worth in advertising dollars. Now add 20% for the additional trust the reader puts in editorial material.

Set goals: You now have a total of what your year's efforts have reaped. New publicist-authors should set a goal to increase that amount by 100% in the next year. If you already have a track record, aim for 20%.

Observe progress: Publicity is like planting bulbs. It proliferates even when you aren't trying very hard. By watching for unintended results, you learn how to make them happen in the future.

--------


Carolyn Howard-Johnson is the author of THE FRUGAL BOOK PROMOTER: HOW TO DO WHAT YOUR PUBLISHER WON'T (www.budurl.com/FrugalBkPromo ). For a little over 2 cents a day THE FRUGAL BOOK PROMOTER assures your book the best possible start in life. Full of nitty gritty how-tos for getting nearly free publicity, Carolyn Howard-Johnson shares her professional experience as well as practical tips gleaned from the successes of her own book campaigns. She is a former publicist for a New York PR firm and a marketing instructor for UCLA's Writers' Program. Learn more about the author at http://carolynhoward-johnson.com or http://HowToDoItFrugally.com

Common Misconceptions About Google Organic And AdWords Search Results

Recently, I have been seeing e-mails promising me top placement on Google. Some tone it down and only promise me placement on page one of a Google search engine results page (SERP). I have also been asked if there is a direct correlation between the ads you purchase on Google and the placement of your organic search engine results. There are a lot of questions and misconceptions about Google AdWords and other pay per click (PPC) advertising out there. This post is an attempt to speak to the core of some of these issues.

One of the reasons I love this topic is that I have managed Google ad campaigns that often ran in the tens of thousands of dollars per month. I was rather good at it and knew what I was doing, having learned at the feet of a Google AdWords master. However, I admit that it's been a couple of years since I was that deep into AdWords (though I still maintain and use an AdWords account), so I spent a lot of time to make sure that the basic fundamentals of AdWords and organic searches are still the same. Based on my research, they are as I will fully document in this post with primary sources.

Why Is This Important?

It is the dream of most businesses who engage in PPC campaigns to have great placement in the first SERP because those links can drive so much traffic to websites. When someone types in a keyword in Google, most people will only look at the first page of results (unless they are finding a lot of relevant links) before they refine their search. Being on that first page can help you increase your profits substantially.

The SERPs contains two types of results: Organic (free) and Sponsored (AdWords-paid). Here is a screen shot that illustrates the two:





The organic results show up in the left column and almost always draw more clicks than the paid results shown at the right. Why? Most people know that the results to the right are ads placed by businesses paying to have their ad there. The organic results are not paid for by advertisers and thus are often viewed as being less biased than the ads.

Sometimes Google will place one, two or up to three ads above the organic results and then continue with the fourth ad at the top of the right column as in this illustration:



I have actually run AdWords accounts where sometimes my results showed up on the right and other times they showed up on the left, above the organic results. There is actually a debate going on as to the commercial value of the ads above the organic results. Some think that even though they draw more clicks, the clicks are overpriced and under-deliver because people click on them without knowing they are ads only to land on a sales page and immediately hit the back arrow on their browser. At least, the argument goes, when they click on the right column, they know they are clicking on an ad. This is the gist on how AdWords and organic results are displayed.

Now that we are on the same page, let's talk about some misconceptions that are out there regarding AdWords and organic search results. Some of these misconceptions are perpetuated by good, honest people who just don't understand how this works while some are perpetuated by dishonest swindlers out to scam a buck from you. More on those people at the end.


Misconceptions
(Click on the heading for my primary source)

• People who pay to have AdWords listings get preferential listings in the organic results- This is blatantly false but this idea still persists and probably will still continue long after today. If someone tries to convince you to let them open an AdWords account for them to increase your organic result placement-- run! The link in this heading will take you to a page where you can read this from Google:
  
  "On Google, although both organic and paid results appear in response to the same user query, the results are independent of each other. The ranking of an organic search result has no bearing on the ranking of any ads, and vice versa. This makes it possible for an advertiser to perform well in the paid listings and have an ample online presence, even if their site isn't present in the top organic search results."
  
  
• Someone can guarantee you the number one placement in the organic search results- Not only is this false, this is an unethical claim to make and good SEO experts will never make a claim like this. The link on the heading in this point takes you to a great Google page where you can learn more about SEO issues and warnings. In fact, Google ends this page with a link, address and phone number to report people to the FTC who you believe are making unethical claims. Here is the relevant quote for our point:
  
  "*No one can guarantee a #1 ranking on Google.
  
  Beware of SEOs that claim to guarantee rankings, allege a "special relationship" with Google, or advertise a "priority submit" to Google. There is no priority submit for Google. In fact, the only way to submit a site to Google directly is through our Add URL page or by submitting a Sitemap and you can do this yourself at no cost whatsoever."
  
  You can also read this Google forum question where someone asked if you can pay Google for the top search result (organic) and the answer was no. A Google employee chose the answer as the best to the question.
  
  There are a lot of scams out there where people promise you the moon when it comes to getting on Google. Most are too good to be true. Jill Olkoski writes of one scam in a post entitled, I can get you on the front/first page of Google!
  
  To be fair and balanced here, there are a lot of things you or an expert can do to help increase your organic placement results. In fact, a great SEO person his worth his or her weight in gold. Google even runs the Webmaster Central Blog and publishes an SEO Starter Guide with tips on how you can do just that! The thing to remember is that no one can guarantee you placement but they can do things to help you improve your current placement.
  
  
• If you want the best AdWords position, you need to outbid everyone else- OK, we really don't have time to get into all the things we need to know to be able to go out right now and make keyword bidding work, but suffice it to say that Google AdWords (paid) placement depends on two factors: Bid Amount and a Quality Score. The bid amount measure how much you are willing to spend while the quality score takes into consideration a number of items such as the relevance of the ad, the number of clicks the ad gets, the quality of the landing page, and much more.
  
  If someone is willing to spend 10 times what anyone else is willing to spend to get the top ad position, it's possible that their ad has such a poor quality score that the poor score will keep the ad from even being shown at all. Similarly, it's possible for someone to get the best position and actually pay less money for the spot than the ad with the second best position. How? Because the top ad has such a high quality score that it lowers the cost to the advertiser while rewarding them with the top spot. In this very dry, but good Adwords Learning Center video on Ad Ranking, you can see an example of how this can happen. (Jump to section 4 of the video (Actual CPC) to see this example right away).
  
  But if you really want to understand how the pricing on AdWords works, you can watch this video put out by Hal Varian, Chief Economist for Google, Introduction to the Google Ad Auction. It's one of the best and easiest explanation to understand that I have come across on this topic.
  
  
  
  
  Parting Thoughts
  
  Because so much money is involved in pay per click advertising, there is a lot of misrepresentation (innocent or more sinister) surrounding this marketing strategy. If you do your homework, PPC advertising can be a profitable part of your marketing plan. However, it can also suck the money out of your pockets faster than most other types of advertising while not delivering the results you are looking for. This means that you need to do your homework, research the claims of people who are promising you things that sound too good to be true, and make sure you understand what it is you are and are not purchasing (organic versus sponsored results).
  
  This is a fluid and ever-changing world of internet marketing, but always remember that Google has a lot of information for you on their site. If you really want to ramp up your Google PPC campaign, then check out these sources:
  
  
  Adwords Learning Center (Text and Videos)
  
  Google Business Channel (YouTube Videos)
  
  Perry Marshall (Mix of free and paid stuff- one of the best experts I have come across on Google AdWords Strategies- I am not an affiliate of his but I have learned a lot from him).
  
  
  Tony Eldridge

Marketing Tips Around The Net: November 6th

Happy Friday. The weekend is transitioning in and football is in full steam. Man, I love this time of year. But I also love Fridays because we can sit down with our favorite beverage (mine is a black cup of Joe), and check out what's going on around the net from other experts when it comes to book marketing advice, tips and tricks. Without further delay, let's get at it!

1. Social Media Case Study: Lessons Learned from Mistakes Made- In this BlogTalkRadio episode, Warren Whitlock talks with Matt Bacak and discusses lessons learned when you get a backlash against you in the social medial world.

2. Blog Ideas for Fiction Authors- Cathy Stucker, The Idea Lady, gusts on Dana Lynn Smith's site and gives some great blogging ideas for fiction authors.

3. Google introduces Google Social Search- Google already has a great blog search function and now Phyllis Zimbler Miller discusses Google's new presence in the social media search world.

4. Great Example of Author 2.0 Marketing and Connection…And What You Can Do Right Now!- Joanna Penn writes a delightfully wonderful post about a book she found in the bookstore and how it led to a Twitter conversation with the author.

5. Marketing on Web 2.0 Sites, Part 1: Why Participate in Social Networking?- Shel Horowitz shares his insights on why you should tap into Web 2.0. As a freebie recommendation, make sure you check out his related post at then end of the article to read Part 2: Social Networking Strategies.

6. Blog Tour Sample: Come Play with Us. And Learn!- Here's a cool post on Carolyn Howard-Johnson's site that lets you see how Karen Cioffi planned her blog tour. If you thought about a blog tour, check out this site too get an overview of how you can do it.

7. Dan Schwabel’s Personal Branding Blog shows authors how their readers can help them build their brand and sell more books- Roger C. Parker discusses Dan Schwabel and how he can teach authors on how to build their brand.

8. 10 Simple Video Blog Ideas- Like the idea of having videos on your blog but have no idea where to start? Let CT Moore give you some ideas.(Had to include this for some comic relief as well :) )

9. 3 Different Types of Keyword Research- Keyword research is a skill that is underestimated in importance by most people. Pradeep shares an interesting approach to this must-have skill.

10. Why Stories are an Effective Communication Tool for Your Blog- Darren Rowse tells how to bring the perennial power of story telling to work for you in your blog.

That's it for this week's trip around the net. I already fixed my fence this morning (who knew three year old twin boys could be so destructive?) Now it's a wait-and-see for me to see if my Indy Colts can remain undefeated in the NFL for another week. Whatever your plans, I hope you have a wonderful weekend with your friends and loved ones. See you next Monday with more book marketing tips!

E-Book Cover Service Creates Twitter Contest Book Cover

I am excited to share a couple of items with you today. First, my videos series/e-book on How To Create Twitter Contests is just about finished. Many of you know that my background is in marketing educational videos that the company I worked for created to learn products like Photoshop, Flash and Dreamweaver . With my new Twitter Contests product, I am combining my experience in creating how-to videos with informational e-books.

Twitter contests can be an effective and fun way to find followers who are interested in the information you have to offer. They are also an amazing tool too help build your brand.

The video series contains hours of video instruction, each video between 7 and 15 minutes on average, embedded in a PDF e-book. As you read the e-book, you will have opportunities to watch videos right in the e-book.

The video series is divided into two types of videos:

• Skills Based Videos- How-to videos that walk you through specific tasks of launching a Twitter contest as you "look over my shoulders" and watch me do it.
  
  
• Seminar Style Instruction- The same chapter topics in the e-book are also stand-alone topics in video format.
  

This series not only walks you through the steps of launching a successful Twitter contest, it teaches you the marketing principles behind why I do certain things in launching the contest. For example, here are some of the things you will learn about:

• How to create your own marketing army to help promote your contest
  
• How to incorporate viral marketing principles into your contest
  
• How to use the principle of scarcity to drive entrants to your contest
  
• How to find targeted followers and niche leaders for your contest
  
• How to pick the right prizes to attract the right followers (You will learn why popular prizes like iPods, cash, trips, gift certificates, etc... can actually work against your overall goal for the contest)
  
• Many, many more marketing principles
  

The series contains sample e-mail templates to help you contact people to help promote the contest, a time line so you know where you should be at each phase of the contest creation period, specific to-do's for each phase of contest creation, and many more tools to help you along the way.

As I get closer to launch, I will post more information about this video/e-book series. But I also wanted to share a service that I used in conjunction with this series. Andy Eaton, lead designer for a company called eCoverBee, created my custom cover for my e-book/video series. He worked with me via e-mail to capture what I was looking for, all for a price that was better than anywhere I could find.

I will definitely be using him in the future and recommend that you check him out for your e-book cover and graphic design needs. I don't get a dime if you use him; he's just a resource that I am happy to recommend. Here are the covers that he created for my upcoming series: ------- I will post more information about this series in the next couple of weeks. If you are a subscriber to my video marketing tips, you will get a sneak-peek at some of the videos found in the series. If you are not a subscriber to the free video newsletter, you can subscribe now and be ready to view the sample videos that I make available to my subscribers.

How OK! Magazine Taught Me A Thing Or Two About Book Promotion By Dorothy Thompson

Today, I am thrilled to have Dorothy Thompson as our guest writer. Dorothy is the founder of Pump Up Your Book Promotions, a full service PR agency specializing in online book promotion. She is also the author of numerous books including A Complete Guide to Promoting & Selling Your Self-Published eBook and 101 Internet Radio Shows to Promote Your Books among others. It's my pleasure to introduce Dorothy to you today as she talks about what the popular magazine, OK!, taught her about book marketing.

Before we get to Dorothy's article, I just wanted to mention that the new video tips for my subscribers is out. The 3 videos deal with time-management tools available to most users. These videos were prompted by a few requests for me to share my time-management tips with others.

This series of videos is actually three parts of a larger video broken into smaller videos of about 10 minutes each. Part 1 looks at Outlook and internet calendars. Part 2 looks at integrating e-mails into your task list and creating e-mails to go out at a later date. Part 3 discusses creating e-mail folders, automated rules to file new messages, and syncing everything with your mobile PDA devices.

The videos are free to all, but you do need to sign up for my free Video Tips Newsletter. Check it out. You can even view a sample tip before you sign up. And when you do sign up, you get access to over 45 minutes of free video tips instantly as my way of saying thanks.

Now, on to Dorothy's post...


How OK! Magazine Taught Me A Thing Or Two About Book Promotion
By Dorothy Thompson

I want to thank Tony for asking me to guest blog today!

Let's say I'm the editor of a weekly supermarket tabloid that focuses on celebrities. I'm writing an article on a certain celebrity couple's relationship that's been all over the news lately and I need quotes from a relationship expert.

And…I'm on a deadline. The few relationship experts I have in my rolodex are either out of town, won't answer their phone or are tired of being harassed by weekly supermarket tabloid editors.

Whatever the reason, I'm sweating, hyperventilating and don't have a moment to spare. Then, a light bulb goes off. This isn't old journalism, I scream! Get with the times!

So…I go to the Internet.

I know which search words I want to use and I fly over to Google and put them in. "Relationship expert" seems to be the operative phrase here and I frantically type it in their search box. As I'm busy, I stop at the first 3 pages of search and jot down what names I find (btw, the average Internet user finds what they are looking for in the first three pages of search).

And…I send out emails.

Less than 24 hours later, a "relationship expert" responds to my email. She is more than happy to give me a quote and I give her a call. Bingo bango, I have her quote and I send them off to the presses just in the nick of time.

A week later, the tabloid is sitting proudly on grocery store and bookstore shelves and I thank God for the wonderful powers of the Internet.

I can personally relate to this story because I am the relationship expert that the editor of OK! Magazine phoned whose quote appeared in the October 12, 2006 edition of one of the most popular tabloids on the supermarket shelves.

As an author who was learning how to promote her books online, I knew the powers of adding key search words to my press releases and blog posts, or anything else that was posted online. I knew I had to focus on the set of key search words that people (in this case a very important editor) would be using to find me.

And this is what I do for my clients at Pump Up Your Book Promotion. Before you even think about promoting online, you must come up with a set of key search words that will bring people to your website or blog where they can find out more about you and your book. Your name out there isn't enough. Your book's title out there isn't enough. Whether you write about relationships or historical fiction or poetry or the latest antics of your dog, if you want notoriety, if you want your star to shine, you must add to your online exposure by incorporating those key search words so that not only will your readers find you, but those hungry editors and journalists who write for big time newspapers and magazines, will too. Who knows? Maybe you'll get that email or phone call that will have you thanking God for the wonderful powers of the Internet just like I did.

Do you incorporate key search words in your blog posts? Have you ever been contacted by an editor because they found you online? We'd love to hear from you! Please leave your comments below so that others will learn by your experiences. Thank you and we'll see you next month!

Dorothy Thompson is CEO/Founder of Pump Up Your Book Promotion with almost a decade's worth of experience in online marketing. What began as an experiment after self-publishing her promotional e-book A Complete Guide to Promoting & Selling Your Self-Published eBook and 101 Internet Radio Shows to Promote Your Books turned into her thriving new career as an online book marketer. She is also the author of the children's book, No More Gooseberry Pie, the relationship anthology, Romancing the Soul, and the paranormal comedy novel, The Search for the Million $$$ Ghost which is under the consideration of a playwright in New York. Dorothy has written hundreds of online marketing articles and has been quoted in the celebrity tabloid, OK! She has also appeared on dozens of radio shows including Lifetime Radio, Single Talk, and Achieve Radio with Fran Silverman. Dorothy runs several blogs including her marketing blog, Book Marketing Buzz, The Writer's Life and Beyond the Books which are syndicated into USA Today, Chicago Times, Washington Post and other national newspapers. Dorothy resides on the beautiful island of Chincoteague, Virginia. Her offline interests include traveling, biking and sitting at the end of her dock and watching the sun go down. You can email her here.

Connect with Dorothy at Facebook at www.facebook.com/thewriterslife.

Connect with Dorothy at Twitter at www.twitter.com/pumpupyourbook.



 -------- Tony Eldridge is the author of The Samson Effect, an action/adventure novel that Clive Cussler calls a "first rate thriller brimming with intrigue and adventure." He is also the author of the Twitter marketing book, Conducting Effective Twitter Contests.

Award Winning Book Review Site Helps You Market Your Book

I am always excited when I find a great marketing opportunity for authors. A few days ago I came across a book review site called quite appropriately, The New Book Review. This blog is created by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of many books including The Frugal Book Promoter and The Frugal Editor.

The New Book Review was recently named 101 Best Blogs for Readers by Online Universities. If you are looking for more exposure for your book, then check out this new review site. If your book is new or you are trying to breathe new life into an old book, this review blog may be able to help you accomplish just that. Whether you are an author, reader or a book reviewer, your favorite book can be highlighted here.

The site works as a submission site where you submit the review to be posted. It is not a site that you send a copy of your book for the blog owner to review for you. The simple submission guidelines are found on the left sidebar. Just read and follow them and you are good to go.

Consider these marketing benefits for getting your book posted on The New Book Review or any other online book review site:

• More exposure- That's the name of the game when it comes to book marketing, right?
  
  
• Search Engine Food- The review will be saved and indexed by the search engines making it findable long after the review has been posted.
  
  
• Keyword Rich- By nature, the review on your book will contain the keywords (title, author name, characters, etc...) that are tied to yoru book.
  
  
• Cross-Promotional Opportunities- Book reviews are great marketing material to add to your other marketing activities. Whether you post a link to the review in your e-mail signature or link to it in your book's newsletter, you have more information about your book to send to potential readers.
  

If you are the author of a book looking for more exposure, check out The New Book Review. It's garnering attention by other online sites and you have the opportunity to ride on it's wave of popularity. Kudos to Carolyn Howard-Johnson for creating this brainchild and giving authors yet another way to market their books.