How To Handle It When PR Snowballs Out Of Control

Wow, this is the end of the month, year and decade. It's been a great ride, in spite of some major roller coasters along the way. My sincerest wish to you is that the upcoming month, year and decade is the best you have yet to experience.

That said, sometimes bad things can happen when we put ourselves out to the public. One lesson I always remembered in my PR courses at college is this: Always tell the truth... always. A lie will be more devastating the that cold, hard truth. Truth you can move past; lies can take away credibility that sometimes is impossible to get back.

But often, bad things happen when we have done nothing wrong. We engage in a marketing activity and someone gets mad because they were not included or trolls mark us for their favorite target and give us a miserable week or so. The list can go on and on, but you get the point.

So, what do we do when PR starts to snowball out of control? Unfortunately, there is no hard-fast answers. Much of this relies on reacting as the situation unfolds. But there are some principles that can guide us. Let's look at a case study from something in the sports world that's going on right now.

Last week, the Indianapolis Colts were the last team left with an unbeaten record. At 14-0, they were facing a team fighting for their playoff lives. The Colt's had nothing to gain this season by winning the game. Their playoff position was the best it could be. With two games left in the season, the Colts could have lost them both and they still would have been the number one seed in the playoffs.

The coach and VP made the decision to pull the starters with a little more than one quarter left in the game. The decision was based on sound logic. Rest your starters and make sure they don't get hurt before the playoffs start.

But the fans in Indy (one of the most supportive and polite fan base in the NFL) went ballistic. To this day, people are still writing posts about the decision to pull the starters. They called the coach and the VP all kind of names. It has been a PR nightmare and it is not getting better. Consider this:

1. Colts have rested starters in the past when in this situation with no cry of outrage from the fans.

2. The coach is a rookie coach with the best rookie record of any new coach.

3. The VP will probably go down in history for being the architect of the most successful team of the decade, if not ever.

4. This year, the Colts won more games in this decade than any other team has won in any decade.

5. This year, the Colt's had a regular season winning streak of 24 games, an NFL record.

How did things go downhill so quickly for the team with the best record in the league? That's where the lesson comes in for us.

One thing on the line this year was the perfect season. To go 19-0 and win the Super Bowl. 37 years ago, the Miami Dolphins went 17-0. Since then, the season has been extended. This was a chance for history. No other team has done it since, with the New England Patriots going 18-1, losing in the Super Bowl a few years ago.

The Colts fans wanted this piece of history. The players wanted it. The problem was that the Colt's management didn't want it. With a lead in the 3rd quarter last week, they pulled their starters and sacrificed their chance at history.

The fans erupted and Colt's management fanned the flames by not reacting to this textbook PR debacle in a common sense way.

1. The VP repeatedly stated that a perfect season was not his goal, but someone else's goal.

2. The VP said he was shocked at the fan's outrage, implying that the fans should understand his way of thinking.

3. The coach consistently backed up his decision and said he was moving on.

Were the coach and VP wrong? In my opinion, technically, no. But their mistake is in how they handled this PR meltdown. They hammered the technicalities and missed the human element in this.

There was no empathy.

They created an "us vs. them" mentality with their own fan base.

They were so concerned about being right that they fanned the flames of anger and resentment of their own fans.

When something like this happens to us, we need to first stop and ask ourselves, how can I see things the way others are seeing them. Rather than burrow into defensiveness, we need to use a little empathy to try to contain some of the ill will.

We need to acknowledge other people's point of view, even if we disagree with it. If we find ourselves fighting against our own customer base, then we will always loose the battle, even if we are technically right, no matter how much we wish it weren't so.

In the end, the VP and coach did little to ease the situation. But to his credit, the owner spoke in public about this and put himself on the line. In my opinion, he exhibited the wisdom of Solomon by doing two things:

1. He backed his management.

2. He showed great empathy to his fans.

Jim Irsay, Colt's owner, called the decision to pull the starters "Courageous" and said he approved it. But he also said "it was really a close call" and "I'm a fan and it was tough to watch because you knew you had an excellent chance to win the game. At the same time, you're trying to do what's best for the franchise. But you have to have the courage to do it."

People understand if you disagree with them. Most people are civil. But if you make people feel that their view is stupid or wrong, you are inviting your own PR nightmare.

A little common sense and empathy can go a long way to heal hard feelings. Kudos to Irsay.

Creating a Winning Workshop Part 2- The Write Format : By Dr. Glen B. Earl

Dr. Glen Earl, author, speaker and seminar leader, is back this week with part 2 of his Create a Winning Workshop post. Last week, he wrote about The Write Subject. This week, he tackles The Right Format. This is great info for authors looking for additional revenue streams or to build out your author platform.


The Write Stuff: Creating a Winning Workshop
Part 2: The Write Format
By Dr. Glen B. Earl

In last week's and this week's guest blog posts, I am writing general information about how authors can use presentations (speeches, seminars and workshops) as a marketing tool for themselves and for their books, and as an additional source of revenue.

In last week's topic I discussed the importance of the Write Beginning – choosing a topic (1) you are passionate about and (2) one that your audience wants; that intersection of passion and desire is your success sweet spot. In addition, I addressed the importance if choosing the Write Subject for your presentation, whether you are a novelist or a non-fiction writer.

The Write Format:
This week the subject is the Write Format, i.e, some details and form in designing the basic structure of your presentation. The first and most important question you must ask yourself is, “What the purpose of my presentation?” There are only three possible answers. They are to either Inform, Educate or Apply. Depending on your answer, every aspect of the presentation; the length, amount of information, cost, and what you do, or not do is determined by your answer.

All three types of presentations are very valuable. I recommend that eventually an author have different presentations that Inform, Educate and Apply, with all his/her topics. To Inform is to provide brief, general information. To Educate is to provide more in depth information and to Apply means the audience participant can actually perform the workshop material.

The Write Length:
In terms of length, Inform is most often a 40-60 minute presentation, Educate is generally a 2 hour seminar and Apply is quite naturally a 4-8 hour workshop (and depending on other factors, such as the amount of material, the workshop could be multi-days). A very popular format I use is a 4-6 series on the same topic, with each session, 1 hour long in length, provided as a webinar, live as a webcast through the telephone and/or the Internet/Computer. I find that timeframe is about the max people can and will commit to.

The Write Price:
Ah, yes, the price. For some, that is the key question. I submit to you, it is important to your success, but not critical. The price again is based on your purpose. I suggest to you, that one of the best ways to make money is giving FREE presentations and seminars (but NOT workshops). Informing the audience about you, your talents and expertise during a free presentation is an excellent, tried and true method of making money.

I give you three examples of people who determined, that for them, giving free presentations is an excellent way to make money…and they are very successful by doing so.

• Jeff Crilly, former local news person (http://www.realnewspr.com/) has sold over $100,000 of his book by giving free presentations.
  
  
• Michael Charest makes six figures a year as a business coach, giving free presentations (http://www.bgsllc.com).
  
  
• Jim Fortin (http://mindauthority.com/) conducts a free two hour seminar, where the audiences experience that value of his paid 8 hour workshop.
  

I know all three personally; I have attended their presentations and purchased their goods and services. I do not receive any monetary compensation for mentioning them here. I just know them, like them and have witnessed their success. At some point in time you will decide that some of your presentations (speeches, seminars & workshops) will generate income. Again, you may ask yourself, what do I charge? The following is my “rule of thumb” is based on over 15 years of designing, developing and facilitating fee-based workshops, on 80+ topics, in over 20 countries, to thousands of people. The cost is per person. These are examples for illustrative proposes and is not designed to be comprehensive.

• 1 hour webinars: possible prices: $10-$19 (individually) / $39, $49, $59 for a series
  
  
• 3-4 hour workshops designed to Inform: larger participant numbers (50+): $49, $79, $99
  
  
• 4 hour workshop designed for Application: smaller participant numbers (20-50): $129, $149, $199, $299
  
  
• 8 hour workshop designed for Application: Small group (10-20): possible prices $299, $499, $799, $999
  

As one can see, there is much thought and deliberation that goes into creating a presentation. However for me, the decision to create and give presentations has always been, and continues to be the Write Choice for me. I strongly recommend you consider giving presentations for fun and profit. Giving presentations is an excellent marketing tool, one that every writer ought to be using.

More Free Toys And Downloads For Authors

When I started this blog in February, I listed some free downloads that authors could use in a post called Free Toys and Downloads For Authors. Today, I want to add a few nice toys to that list.

** I just added 11 more Free Toys and Downloads that you can read about in a post entitled, Free Toys and Downloads List 3


1. Cam Studio- If you want to produce screen cast videos, then Cam Studio is a tool worth looking at. It's open source and it's free. The main commercial product in this category is Camtasia Studio, but at $300 a pop, it's a major investment.

Screencasts allow you to record everything on your desktop (or a portion of your desktop) as you narrate. It's great for video tutorials to show people how to do something on the computer. My free videos are all screen casts and you can view a sample by visiting my video sign-up page to see how screen casts work.

Cam Studio will even convert the huge AVI video it records into bandwidth friendly SWF file. However, there is no editing feature which really what makes Camtasia worth the $300. There are a few good programs between this free one and the $300 one, but for the price, Cam Studio is a great tool for simple screen casts.

2. Thunderbird- Do you have free e-mail service through G-Mail, Yahoo Mail, or others. While they are great, you may at times wish you had an e-mail program that resides on your computer, but Outlook is out of the question. If so, then Thunderbird is an alternative worth looking at.

Thunderbird has the security and junk filters you want but it stays stays lean. It allows you to choose add-ons to help you pick the features you want rather than bloat the program by stuffing it with all the features you don't want. It also integrates with your online e-mail services, so you can feed them all into Thunderbird helping you to centralize your accounts for greater productivity. With a robust support and user forum, it's really worth checking out.

3. Gimp- Wish you had $700 or more to spend on Photoshop? If you're looking for a less costly solution, Gimp offers one for free. It's another open source program that is gaining in popularity and growing more savvy with each release. The user community is large enough to have you-tube videos showing you how to do just about anything you want to do with Gimp. If you're new to this type of program, the learning curve may still be steep, but it will be with Photoshop as well.

4. FreeMind- Here's one that I have not used, but was recommended highly by more than one person. It's a visual and graphic way to organize and and classify ideas. It's supposed to be a great way to create and organize a project or conduct brainstorming opportunities. I would love to hear from more people who have used this java based software. It sounds intriguing to me.

5. Google Desktop- Here's one I absolutely love. Imagine being able to find any e-mail, file, document, picture or anything stored on your computer by simply doing a Google search. Now you can. Google has taken it's web crawling technology and made it available for your computer. The program "crawls" your computer just like Google crawls the internet. Then, you enter your search terms and Google Desktop brings up the most likely results of files stored on your computer. You can filter your search by e-mails, file type, or even web history. You literally may never loose another file again, no matter how old it it or in what obscure folder you placed it in.

6. The Literary Machine- Here's a concept mapping program aimed at authors (particularity novelists or anyone doing research). It's a way to organize your thoughts and seems to run along the same line as the Free Mind program listed above. If you really get into organizing, exploring and manipulating creative data, then this may be the download for you.

7. Jer's Novel Writer- Here's one for the Mac users. This program is a simple word processor for authors that contain the following features:

Margin Notes, Automatic Outline, Database, Full Screen Mode, Bookmarks Separate formatting options for print and screen, A panel for general notes lets you keep track of story issues and ideas, Word count, More accurate page count estimates

(Above taken from website)

From what I read on other sites, this looks like something that Mac Authors may want to look into.

8. Coffee Cup Free Zip Wizard- Has your WinZip expired? Want a free alternative that does a great job at zipping and unzipping files? Then check out Coffee Cup's Free Zip Wizard. As they say, "Zipping and Un-Zipping has never been easier!" While on the site, check out their other free tools.

I hope you find a program or two that you can use. If you find others that you think authors should know about, feel free to share them in the comments field. Remember to check out Free Toys and Downloads For Authors for other free goodies for authors.

Holiday Wishes From Marketing Tips For Authors

I wanted to post a quick note to wish everyone a wonderful Holiday week. I will be spending the rest of the week with family, so this will be the last post for me until next Monday. To lead you into the holidays, I wanted to give you the top 15 visited posts from this blog. I hope you enjoy them!

Other than the posts announcing the contests I ran, the top visited post ever on this blog is from a guest blogger:

What You Should Know About Web Design for Books- Yael Miller


Here are the remaining top 15 visited posts of the year:

BookBuzzr: How to Market Your Book on Facebook, MySpace and Other Social Networks By Vikram Narayan

8 Tips on Creating An Army Of People To Market Your Book

7 Book Marketing Lessons from Virgin's Richard Branson- By Joanna Penn

Misconceptions and the Truth about Book Marketing on Twitter By Phyllis Zimbler Miller

Developing a Platform For Nonfiction Writers- By Robert Rummel-Hudson

Promote Your Book with a Facebook Group by Dana Lynn Smith

15 Commandments for Getting FREE Publicity By Carolyn Howard-Johnson

Automatically Format Your Book Professionally In Word

Top Ten Ways Authors Can Use Twitter: Dana Lynn Smith

Running Effective Twitter Contests To Increase Followers

6 Reasons to Blog Your Book- Edwin Crozier

Free Toys and Downloads For Authors

Golden Nugget: Collect E-Mail Addresses

Finding Endorsements And Testimonials For Your Book


And here's one last gift for you this holiday season. Enjoy reading my action/adventure novel, The Samson Effect, for free by clicking on the BookBuzzr image below. This is the book that New York Times best selling author Clive Cussler called a "first rate thriller brimming with intrigue and adventure" and one that's on its way to Hollywood.




Happy Holidays, everyone!

Tony Eldridge

Creating a Winning Workshop Part 1- The Write Subject: By Dr. Glen B. Earl

**NOTE** Dr. Earl's post on Part 2, The Right Format, is now out.

I am thrilled to introduce you to this week's guest author, Dr. Glen B. Earl. Glen is an author and experienced speaker. In today's post, he blogs on how to create winning workshops. Workshops and seminars are popular ways that many authors use as a marketing tool for their books as well as additional revenue streams for them. Today, we read part 1 of his post. Next Tuesday, we will finish with part 2 of his workshop post.

Before we get to his post, I want to offer you a holiday gift! Below, you will see the BookBuzzr image of my book, The Samson Effect. I have fully released The Samson Effect on BookBuzzr, allowing you to read it now for free. This is the book that New York Times best selling author, Clive Cussler, called a "first rate thriller brimming with intrigue and adventure." It has also been acquired by a major Hollywood film producer who is currently in talks with studios to adapt the story to the silver screen. I hope you enjoy the book!







Now, on to Dr. Earl's post...


The Write Stuff: Creating a Winning Workshop
Part 1: The Write Subject
By Dr. Glen B. Earl

It matters not if you are a non-fiction writer or a novelist, getting the word out about you and your book is a one of the most important activities you can do. This guest blog post is designed for all authors, as a means to make additional income, and/or to promote, market and sell your book and yourself, as an expert. Creating and presenting a speech and/or workshop is a powerful, yet under used means to your end goal.

The perfect presentation (speech or workshop) subject matter for you is the intersection of (a) what you love and (b) what others want. As an example I have two presentations, one is about Emotional Intelligence and the other is about Your Money Relationship.

The audience for both is small business owners. The one about Emotional Intelligence (EI) has a 100 percent YES rate, meaning every time I offer to present it, the host organization says yes. On the other hand, the presentation about Your Money Relationship (YMR) has a 100 percent NO rate, meaning every time I offer to present it, the host organization says no.

While I love both topics and am well prepared to present both, the EI topic is fully developed, having a 1 hour speech, a two hour presentation and a 4 hour workshop. The YMR topic stays a single paragraph, yet to be developed. One lesson learned is; pick a topic you love and what others want; this intersection will garner much success. Another lesson is, do not spend valuable resources (time, energy and money) on something you are passionate about, but no one else wants.

When selecting a topic the WRONG presentation subject, for everyone, is your book. The "rule of thumb" is for non-fiction authors to generalize, for fiction authors the key is to specialize. As an example, I am writing a book about President Obama, so my general presentation topic is politics. Another book I am writing is about raising emotionally healthy children, so the general topic is successful parenting

I have a colleague who lives in the high desert of California. He wrote a murder-mystery novel set in his home town. Part of the story depicts the geology of the region and Native American pictographs. So he created two very successful presentations. One was about flowers of the high desert and the other about Indian pictographs of the Mohave Desert.

He used those two topical presentations as a means of "getting the word out" about himself and his book. What people came to hear about were wild flowers and historical pictographs. What the audience walked away with was a copy of his book. Other examples for novelist are, (1) History of the era; i.e., What it was like to live in the 1920’s, and (2) Geography; i.e. what is life like in he American Southwest.

For both fiction and non-fiction authors, creating presentations about the writing and publishing processes is very popular. Remember, research tells us the over 80 percent of people want to write a book. There are three levels of How-to-writing presentations; the first is General – the writing process, the second is Specific – The specifics of writing in a particular genre (romance, fiction, fantasy) and (3) Very Specific – Developing characters, plot, etc. Developing a presentation (speech and/or workshop) tailored to one of these target audiences will put you on the map as an expert.

---
Be sure to check in next Tuesday to read Part 2 from Dr. Glen Earl's post on Creating Winning workshops.

Non Legal Spam Can Be Just As Devastating As Legal Spam

On December 17th, I published a post entitled, Sending E-Mail? Understand How The CAN-SPAM Act Applies To You. In it, I gave a brief summary of the CAN-SPAM Act and what you needed to be aware of if you sent e-mail.

The next day, a colleague of mine forwarded me a string of e-mails sent from her URL shortening service saying that the underlying URL domain being shortened had been flagged because of an unsolicited message violation. In fact, she sent 7 violation messages in all.

Why did she send them to me? Because the underlying URLs were from my MarketingTipsForAuthors.com domain. I was immediately puzzled for a number or reasons, but I didn't panic. I knew I didn't send any unsolicited e-mails. In fact, I use 1ShoppingCart.com, a service that has stringent guidelines in place to prevent spam.

First, I checked the status of my domain with the link provided by the URL shortening service that flagged my domain. My domain showed no issues. I then contacted the URL shortening service that had issued the flags against my URL. They sent the following message to me today:

We apologize for this issue. The service that we use to update us regarding possible spam links had an issue and began flagging {URL Shortening Service} links incorrectly. The flag has been removed from your links and all click traffic should be flowing as expected.

If you have any other issues, please let us know. Our apologies for any inconvenience.

Thank You,

Though I didn't panic, I was relieved to get this message. All is now good in my corner of the Internet. The truth is, being blacklisted can deliver a devastating blow to a company who has a significant portion of their business on the net. Careless indiscretions now can pay stiff penalties in the future.

As I said in the CAN-SPAM post, staying legal should not be your only concern. You need to make sure that you treat your subscribers as royalty. Even if you are not blacklisted, a simple unsubscribe click of the mouse can have the same effect on you.

Every list will have people continuously opting out, so that alone should not worry you as a list owner, but you should not act in a way that encourages people to opt out.

• Keep on topic- If people signed up for a marketing newsletter, make sure you are delivering marketing value to them.
  
  
• Keep ads in perspective- Most people will tolerate some ads coming from you, but they generally don't want to be on a list that sends out primarily ads. They are looking for the value they assumed they were signing up for when they joined the list.
  
  
• Diversify your messages- There are only so many ways of saying that Twitter is a good service to use. If you keep saying the same thing over and over, you will eventually limit your value to your subscribers.
  
  
• Interact- As much as possible, interact with your subscribers. Encourage them to e-mail you with questions/comments or set up a post that encourages open comments.
  

There are many other great suggestions that can help you treat your subscribers like loyalty and most of them are founded in plain old common sense. Treat others the way you would want to be treated. Do this and you will be well on your way to creating meaningful relationships that will last.

Tony Eldridge

Marketing Tips Around The Net: December 18th

It's actually a little past that time where we take a trip around the net to look at some of the best book marketing tips this week. Sorry for posting a day late. My Indianapolis Colts played football Thursday night to stay undefeated at 14-0 and then I had an unexpected and rare opportunity to spend the day on Friday with my wife and 3 year old twin boys. But never fear, here are the weekly tips around the net that normally appear right here, each Friday!

1. Publishers Delay eBooks- To get us started today, Angela Wilson keeps us up-to-date on the publishing industry by discussing news about major publishers pushing back the release of e-book titles.

2. Reality Test for Authors- Shel Horowitz shares advice on how authors can be one of the few who can turn their trade into a lucrative living.

3. Give a Holiday Gift to Writers Who Help Other Writers- Carolyn Howard-Johnson discusses how you can nominate your favorite writing site to Writer's Digests lists of 101 Best Website For Writers: 2010. My sincerest thanks for her nod to my site, but she also displays all the information you need to nominate your favorite site as well.

4. Announcing a contest for whose Twitter profile needs the most help- Phyllis Zimbler Miller is announcing a new contest that you can enter today. It's easy to enter, so check it out today!

5. Web marketing tips for authors from Peter Bowerman, the Well Fed Writer- Roger C. Parker looks at Peter Bowerman's website and shares great lessons we can use for our own website.

(Make sure to check out Roger's live call on Tuesday, December 22nd, 4:00 PM EST. The topic will be: Author Guide to Evaluating Your Online Presence. The details can be found here: http://tinyurl.com/yz4cyyt)

6. Podcast: Writing Family Humour and Fulfilling Your Dreams With Jane Grieve- Joanna Penn interviews author Jane Grieve about the writing and marketing of her book. She employed a unique marketing/distribution channel that's worth your time to check out.

7. Promote a Book with Video - How to Get Started - MaAnna Stephenson is the guest on Dana Lynn Smith's site discussing how to use video in your book marketing efforts.

8. Is Your Newsletter Compelling Enough?- Patti Stafford shares some great tips on creating newsletters that people really want to read. How does your newsletter stack up?

9. Best Tweets for Writers- I am a huge fan of Jane Friedman's blog, especially her regular "Best Tweets For Writers" section. Her blog is packed with great stuff, and is worth subscribing to for this segment alone.

10. 6 Lessons I Learned in Two Years of Blogging- Aseem Kishore shares his wisdom with bloggers after his two years of blogging.

That's it for this week's trip around the net. I wish the warmest holiday wishes to all who honor me each week by reading and sharing this blog with others. It's the greatest gift you have given me and I you have my sincerest thanks. I'll see you next week.

Sending E-Mail? Understand How The CAN-SPAM Act Applies To You

If you engage in e-mail correspondence, then you need to understand the law surrounding the CAN-SPAM act of 2003. Penalties for not complying can include fines of up to $16,000 for each e-mail sent that was in violations and more than one person can be held responsible for each violation. Additional fines have been set in place by the FTC for gross criminal behavior.

Here is a simple list of rules you must adhere to under the CAN-SPAM act of 2003. Please note that I am not a lawyer and this is not intended to be an exhaustive list of all considerations under the CAN-SPAM act. The FTC has a simple to understand Compliance Guide For Businesses, which is the primary source for this post.

Here are the main points under the law:

1. Must contain accurate header info: When you send e-mail, you must use accurate information in the To: From: and Reply To: routing information. The e-mail must be from who it claims to be from.
   
   
2. Subject lines must be accurate: You can not use misleading subject lines that have nothing to do with the content of the e-mail
   
   
3. Identify message as an ad if it is one: If the message is an advertisement, it must be marked clearly and conspicuously as an advertisement.
   
   
4. Must contain a physical address: It can be a post office box or your physical address. (Note, some Email Service Providers will only send your e-mail if it contain a physical street address).
   
   
5. Make opt-out method available: Each message must include clear instructions on how the reader may opt-out of future messages from you.
   
   
6. Honor opt-outs requests promptly: The law gives you 10 days to honor opt-out requests.
   
   
7. Know what others are doing for you: If you hire a company to handle your e-mail communications, you can still be held legally responsible for messages sent on your behalf.
   

A note on Commercial vs Relationship/Transactional e-mail. The CAN-SPAM Act specifically applies to commercial e-mails. However, sometimes you have transactional e-mails (i.e., confirmation of a purchase) or relationship e-mails (i.e., current customer who receives notices of warranty changes on a purchased product) that you need to send. The CAN-SPAM act does not cover transactional/relationship e-mails. However, it's common for company to mix the two. For example, while sending an update on changes in user agreement, the company may also advertise a new product. If you send a mixed message, the deciding factor on whether it applies to the CAN-SPAM act is the primary purpose of the message. This is determined by looking at the subject line and what content is primary in the message body. Another factor is which message leads off the e-mail. Final Thoughts
It's important that you understand the law surrounding the CAN-SPAM act. People receiving e-mail are actively encouraged to report violations to the law. Most Email Service Providers (the company you use to send e-mails) can be held responsible for your messages, so they tend to have rules that are more stringent than the law requires. They will most likely aggressively enforce their own requirements.

Why do ESPs care? Because SPAM not only has a legal element to it, but a bothersome element to it as well. If you send too many e-mails or unwanted messages, the recipient can mark your messages as SPAM (not legal spam). Too many spam messages coming from an ESP can get all of their messages banned (blacklisted) by domains (like Yahoo, MSN, GMail). Since this can cripple their business, most ESPs will enact strict guidance on the messages you send out.

But if you don't use an ESP, the responsibility is solely on your shoulders. Make sure you understand all the laws surrounding the messages you send out. A quick Google search can lead you to more information from the FTC surrounding your responsibilities. But remember, your goal should not be to simple stay out of trouble. It should be to provide relevant, useful and needed information to people who have trusted you to give it. Betraying that trust can do more harm than breaking any law.

Tony Eldridge

Using Cross Promotions To Save Money And Sell Books By Jessica James

Today, I am thrilled to introduce you to Jessica James, the author of the Shades of Gray: A Novel of the Civil War in Virginia, which has twice pushed Gone with the Wind out of the #1 spot on Amazon in the romance/historical/U.S. category. Jessica will be talking to us today about the power of cross promoting your book with other marketers.

Before we get to Jessica's post, I just want to take a quick moment to ask you to sign up for my free video tips for authors newsletter. You can sign up and even check out a sample video tip before you start your subscription.

Now, on to Jessica's post...


Using Cross Promotions To Save Money And Sell Books
By Jessica James


Most of us who are trying to market books are on very tight budgets these days so it’s imperative to find ways to get the word out without spending big bucks.

Cross promotions are one way I’ve found to reach new audiences with a commitment of a little time and quite often, no cost.

But just what is cross promotion and how can it work for your book you ask? Well, here are some of the basics and two examples that will perhaps get your creative juices flowing.

Cross promotion is a specific marketing tactic in which two businesses or people team up to promote each other’s products. The most important aspect is that you know your target audience and that you find someone with a similar audience or an audience with a related interest.

Examples:

Back when my historical fiction novel was new, I wanted to reach equine enthusiasts as a secondary market because a horse owned by the main character plays a major part in the plotline. After contacting the Equine Art Guild, I received a handful of responses from artists willing to do a cross promotion with me. I picked Kristen Queen, who specializes in equine and animal portraiture. Kristen already had a piece of art that resembled the equine character in my book (named Justus) - and I really liked her style.

In addition to placing information on her website about my book (and me doing the same for her), Kristen also created an entire Justus store on Cafepress which helps get the word out about her art and helps me by showcasing a character in my book. We also incorporated each other's contact information on all our promotional material, including "Justus" greeting cards that I had printed to give out at book signings.

The great thing about cross promotion is it doesn't have to cost anything to reach a new audience. Kristen's art is now being seen at the festivals and book signings I attend, and my book is being seen at art shows and horse events she attends. There was no money involved or exchanged. We simply worked together to promote each other’s products.

My latest cross-promotional project involves the trailer for my Civil War novel Shades of Gray. Since authentic-looking Civil War stock art is a little hard to come by, I requested permission to use the artwork of renowned Civil War artist Dale Gallon. Mr. Gallon not only gave me permission, he promotes the video on his blog and links his main website to mine, helping me to reach a whole new audience of Civil War enthusiasts.

No author has the time or money to reach all of their book’s potential audiences. Concentrate your energy on a small, defined group, and then think of ways to reach secondary and related audiences without expending a lot of time – or money.

Jessica James is an award-winning historical fiction author whose Civil War novel Shades of Gray: A Novel of the Civil War in Virginia has twice hit #1 on the Amazon best-seller list in the romance/historical/U.S. category, temporarily overtaking Gone with the Wind.


















 -------- 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.

The Essential Don Murray: Lessons from America's Greatest Writing Teacher- Book Review

It's not often that someone has the pleasure of sitting at the feet of a genius; not just any genius, but someone who can arguably be considered the best at what they do. Pulitzer prize winner Don Murray is one of those people. Though he has passed away from life, Thomas Newkirk and Lisa C. Miller have gone through Don Murray's writings, essays, and even his daybook to create a collection that represents his fundamental views on the process of writing in the book, The Essential Don Murray: Lessons from America's Greatest Writing Teacher.

Part of the charm of this book is at the beginning when the two editors share insights on Don's life. For those of us who did not have the pleasure of knowing this man, they help us understand a little more about him. Then, as you read his compiled essays on writings, you can read them almost as if you are sitting at Don's feet.

For those who want a fresh look at the writing process, The Essential Don Murray offers a warm, unique look that can only be offered by someone who truly understands the process. In fact, Don was not confined to traditional academic beliefs. He often shared his teachings in spite of current beliefs on writing. As a professor at the University of New Hampshire, he had ample opportunity to influence students who sat at his feet.

As you get into the essays in the book, you will learn far more than just the "how-to's" of writing. You get a glimpse into the fundamental process of writing itself. The attitude that a writer must have for the writing process itself. You learn to start to see writing as almost an independent entity that will help you with the process if you learn to listen to it. Sprinkled throughout the book, the writer learns to let the process itself guide him or her through the writing process.

One of the most eye-opening parts of the book for me is the realization that the writing process starts long before a writer puts pen to paper; it begins perhaps months or even years before as the seed is created and starts to germinate in the mind. To Don, this part of the process is just as vital as every other part. I'll have to fight the temptation to share Don's nuggets on writing, but let me tell you that they are found on just about every page of his essays.

Some of the most intimate chapters in the book is in reading images taken directly from his daybook. You can read Don's work in his own handwriting. In fact, by the time you are done with The Essential Don Murray, you will have a new, fresh look on the writing process. It is delivered by a man who not only knows his craft, but understands it intimately, perhaps more that most experts. And his essays help share this intimate understanding with all of us.

After reading The Essential Don Murray: Lessons from America's Greatest Writing Teacher, I walked away with a much better appreciation and understanding of the writing process. But perhaps even more important for me, I walked away with the sincere gratitude of being introduced to one of the best writing teachers in our century.

Tony Eldridge

Marketing Tips Around The Net: December 11th

We have a great line-up today, including a nice list of podcasts and webinars coming up next week. As a reminder, if you want your podcast, teleseminar, video or webinar featured in my Friday's Tips Around The Net, follow the submission directions in my post entitled, Find Great Free Audio and Video Marketing Content From Experts All Over The World.

Also, don't forget to sign up for my free video tips newsletters to get my free videos e-mailed right to you. Sign up and check out the free sample now.

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

1. Writer Benefits at SquidLog- To kick us off this week, Yvonne Perry invites guest Jennfer Akers to look at a new social networking site that can cater to authors' needs.

2. Book Video Trailers Work for Print Communicators, Too!- Carolyn Howard Johnson hosts guest Reno Lovison, book video trailer producer and author, to discuss promotional opportunities for videos about your book.

3. How to Make Your Tweets Appear on LinkedIn- Dana Lynn Smith shares some great info on how to integrate your Twitter account with your LinkedIn account.

4. How Can I Help You in 2010? Win Book Package- The Creative Penn is 1 year old! Happy Birthday!!! To celebrate, founder Joanna Penn is launching a contest. But hurry, you have only a few days to enter.

5. Don't Call Them Competitors--Call Them PARTNERS!- Shel Horowitz invites Jim Daniels to share a powerful networking opportunity for authors. By working together, marketers can create opportunities where everyone wins!

6. What does it mean to give value in order to create Internet business relationships?- Phyllis Zimbler Miller discusses how to create value for your prospective customers. With information so easily available to prospective customers, this is a must-read for marketers.

7. Web marketing tips for authors, William Reed's new site- How better to learn elements of great web design for authors than to examine one together? Roger C. Parker will guide you through a great website evaluation of an existing site to teach design elements for your own site.

8. 12 Effective Tips to Increase Your Blog Traffic- Beth Hodgson gives some great tips on how to keep the traffic coming to your blog.

9. Every Author Needs Professional Headshots- Fellow Hoosier and Writer's Digest Editor Jane Friedman gives some great pointers on getting the perfect headshot for your book, website and other marketing collateral.

10. 20 Simple Ways To Get Massive Traffic To Your Web Site- Penny Sansevieri gives some great, simple tips on how to drive a lot of traffic to your blog or web site.


New Audio/Videos for next week:

1. Who is hosting: Jacquie Rogers
Title of the show: First Turning Point
Dates and Time: December 16 from 9 to 10 p.m. eastern standard time
Link for people to learn more about attending: http://internetvoicesradio.com


2. Who is hosting: Janet E. Smith
Title of the show: Marketing for Fun & Profit
Dates and Time: Tuesday, December 15th at 4:30 pm Eastern Standard Time
Link for people to learn more about attending: http://internetvoicesradio.com/


3. Who is hosting: Yvonne Perry
Guest: Allison Maslan, author of Blast Off! The Surefire Success Plan To Launch Your Dreams Into Reality.
Title of the show: Writers in the Sky Podcast and Blog
Dates and Time: Friday, December 18th (posted for on-demand listening)
Link for people to learn more about attending: http://writersinthesky.com/writing-podcast.html


4. Who is hosting: MaAnna Stephenson of Just the FAQs
Who is the guest: The Savvy Book Marketer, Dana Lynn Smith
Title of the show: Creating Compelling Content and Adding Sidebar Features to Your Blog (Part 2 from the How to Create a New Blog or Upgrade Your Existing Blog" series)
Dates and Time: Thursday, Dec. 10 at 8:00am CT
Link for people to learn more about attending: http://www.justthefaqs.net/podcast.shtml


5. Who is hosting: MaAnna Stephenson of Just the FAQs
Who is the guest: The Savvy Book Marketer, Dana Lynn Smith
Title of the show: Promoting Your Blog and Profiting From It (Part 3 from the How to Create a New Blog or Upgrade Your Existing Blog" series)
Dates and Time: Thursday, Dec. 17 at 8:00am CT
Link for people to learn more about attending: http://www.justthefaqs.net/podcast.shtml


6. Who is hosting: Roger C. Parker
Title of the show: Author Guide to Choosing Graphic Designers
Dates and Time: Tuesday, Dec. 15, 4:00 PM EST
Link for people to learn more about attending: http://tinyurl.com/yle85e3


7. Who is hosting: Brian Jud
Title of the show: Creative Marketing Strategies to Sell More Books In 2010
Dates and Time: Tuesday, December 15, 6:00 - 7:30 pm Eastern time
Link for people to learn more about attending: Sign up at https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/954435105


8. Who is hosting: Brian Jud
Title of the show: The Best of the Best - My Top 50
Book- Marketing Tips of 2009
Dates and Time: Thursday, December 17, 6:00 - 7:00 pm Eastern time
Link for people to learn more about attending: Sign up at https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/370278248

4 Tips On Making Your Book Available To Book Clubs/Reading Groups

Book clubs are wonderful reader organizations that get together, usually once a month, to discuss a book that every member has read. The discussion is usually deeper than the kind you would find two friends having over a latte.

For fiction, members may discuss what role setting plays in the story, themes that run through the book, how characters evolve through the story or maybe what societal challenges presented themselves in the story.

For nonfiction, the members may discuss questions about how the information was presented: was is biased or fair, did the author adequately present the information in the book or were there unanswered questions, did the book change the readers opinion on the book's subject.

As an author, there are few opportunities better than getting your book before a book club. Not only will members of the club read the book, but they are usually great "word-of-mouth" marketers for books they enjoy. Here are some tips at making your book "club friendly."

• Prepare a list of discussion questions- By preparing a list of discussion questions and posting them on your website, you can help spark interest in your book while providing a resource specifically tailored to clubs.
  
  
• Offer to hold a Q&A for the club- What a wonderful time to be an author! You can literally visit book clubs around the world from the comfort of your home. Teleconferences and webinars are commonplace technologies that require almost no tech skills to use. It's a real treat for book clubs to be able to speak to the actual author of the book they are reading.
  
  
• Get your publisher involved- Many publishers will set up a resource page for book clubs on their site that includes anything from PDF discussion questions to special discounts for club members. If your publisher does not currently offer that resource, bring it up to them. If they believe it will help sell books, you may be surprised what they will do for you.
  
  
• Contact book clubs directly- Prepare an e-mail to the club contact introducing yourself, including a link to your book club resource page, and your willingness to make yourself available to address the club or to hold a Q&A session. Start with Google to find a list of clubs or go to MeetUp.com for local groups. It returned over 10,000 results for the term Book Club.
  

Once you get in the book club scene, you can have a blast. It can be one of the most enjoyable ways to market your book. Be sure to check out Book-Clubs-Resource.com for more resources on book clubs. This site will help you prepare by learning how most clubs are organized.

Also, as you are checking things out, remember that "reading groups" are often used interchangeably for "book clubs", but "book clubs" can also refer to the buyers clubs that people join where they purchase 6 books over 3 years (ie, Oprah's Book Club, Double Day Book Club, etc...)

Tony Eldridge

Pre-Publication Book Marketing Activities By Rick Chesler

I'm thrilled to have Rick Chesler as our guest author today. Rick is the author of the soon to be released novel, Wired Kingdom. His book is scheduled for release in May of 2010. I have actually asked Rick to write a two-part post for this blog:

1. This one focusing on his pre-publication marketing for his book
2. Another focusing on his marketing activities after his book is out (The post-publication post is now out!)

I am a firm believer that watching people do something is a great way to learn. Rick has been kind enough to take us on this journey with him. He has also opened himself to questions that anyone may have from them.

Before we get to Rick's post, I just want to take a quick moment to ask you to sign up for my free video tips for authors newsletter. You can sign up and even check out a sample video tip before you start your subscription.

Now, on to Rick's post...


Pre-Publication Book Marketing Activities
By Rick Chesler

First off, allow me to thank Mr. Eldridge, author of The Samson Effect, for this, my first ever guest blog opportunity. Thanks, Tony!

I'm here to discuss pre-publication promotional efforts for my upcoming debut thriller, WIRED KINGDOM, scheduled for a May 2010 release from Variance Publishing / Breakneck Books. I'll start by giving a brief description of the book:

When a blue whale tagged with a web-cam as part of a television nature program broadcasts a brutal murder at sea, an FBI agent with a fear of water finds herself in a deadly race to reach the animal before an unknown killer can destroy the digital evidence it carries.

I sold this novel to Variance at the end of 2008 for publication by their mass market paperback imprint, Breakneck Books, originally founded by KRONOS author Jeremy Robinson.

Keep in mind that the publicity efforts I will describe have yet to have their worth proven by cold, hard book sales. That being said, as an avid reader myself I have reason to believe that any publicity effort is better than none (although writing the best possible book you can should always be priority #1), and while publicizing your novel is no guarantee of higher sales, it's not likely to hurt. I do make a point to keep the amount of time spent on promotion to a reasonable level, meaning that I'm getting the word out about the first book while still leaving enough time to work on the second book. Because for me, it's all about the stories. So I began with low expectations: just get the word out. No pressure, book doesn't come out for months and months.

I wasn't one of those writers who already had a web presence prior to selling their first book, nor did I have any kind of "platform." Up until the sale, I'd been putting all of my efforts into the writing of the novel itself. I had no blog, no website, no social network activity whatsoever. As soon as the ink had dried on my contract, however, I set to work, knowing that in the next year or so, in between editing the novel, writing the next one, and working my actual job, I still had time to let people know that there would be a thriller for sale called WIRED KINGDOM.

The first thing I did was to admit that my pre-publication marketing efforts would have to be a) low budget and b) web-based. Now, I know I said earlier I had no web presence. That is not to say, however, that I wasn't familiar with the web and how to create for it. Fortunately, my past "day job" experiences working as a web developer now came into play.

My first action was to register my domain name. This was also my first major marketing decision—do I want my address to be my book title or author name? (This also goes for the social network custom URLs). Other than my time, this was one of the few expenses in my entire promotional effort. I decided to go with my name, since I hope to publish additional novels and want to avoid confusing my readers as to which website they should visit.

After breathing a sigh of relief that my real name was available as a URL and was now owned by me, my next step was to create the web site. To save time and ensure a top-notch job, I hired the web design expertise of the fine folks over at Find the Axis to do the initial setup work for my site. Once that was in place, I added some further customization and fine-tuning, and now I handle my own routine updates.

At that point I had a working website that not many people knew about. How to let people—and not just any people, mind you, but potential readers—know about it? Enter the social networks.

I decided to establish and maintain an active presence on the three largest sites: Facebook, Twitter and MySpace. In addition, I established accounts at several smaller sites with a "set-it-and-forget-it" approach, meaning that I don't check in at them often, they just sit there with links to my website and/or pages on the Big 3. Any reputable place that will let me open an account and post permanent content online is good for this purpose. Also, since this whole endeavor is about books, I maintain an active account at Goodreads.

After I had spent a few months building up a network of friends and followers, as well as it being a little closer to WIRED KINGDOM's release date, I decided to add a Facebook fan page. At this point I was also able to add Twitter and Fb fan page widgets onto my own website, further integrating my online presence while making my site a bit more interactive.

So, to recap my early steps:

1. author website
   
   
2. social nets, all linked together and pointing to my website
   
   
3. add friends / followers
   

Up to this point we've covered the WHERE online, and the basic HOW, but what about the WHAT, as in what the heck am I gonna keep putting on these sites, content-wise, to keep tens of thousands of people interested? You can't just hit people over the head with, "Buy my book," (particularly when it isn't even available yet!)—that gets old real quick. You have to provide some value, something of interest that makes readers want to interact.

Some writers do this with blogs. I'm not much of a blogger. Any time I have to write I prefer to spend writing novels, editing my novels, or outlining new novel ideas. That, after all, is what got me into this in the first place. Besides, you probably don't want to hear about what I had for dinner or that I wrote x number of words today.

However, there are many fascinating people, places and things in this world (and other worlds)—which is what led me to write in the first place--and thanks to Web 2.0, I can share these things with others.

Some books have obvious subject matter from which to draw parallels in real life, such as WIRED KINGDOM: it features a whale, and lucky for me, people love whales and there is no shortage of whale and ocean-related news items online. These make nice discussion points until some major development for my book comes along (e.g. release date, the cover, pre-order date, film rights sold, etc.).

I can hear some writers saying already, "But my book doesn't have whales in it, or any cute, likable animals for that matter." That may be true, but all books have a setting. Say you have a romance set in the American west. You can link to articles about restored ghost towns, or a bed & breakfast similar to one in your story. If you've written a space thriller, there's no shortage of space info and news online to share and discuss.

The point should not be to market to other writers, although writers do tend to be active readers, but to make sure that you're doing what you can to reach YOUR READERS, outside of the publishing community. That way, by the time your book comes out you will have established a group of people who at the very least are interested in the subject matter of your book, if not the story itself. After discussing various items with you over the months, they are likely to listen one day when you say, "Check this out."

So for me, it's really been about a slow buildup of trust between myself and potential readers--potential customers. It's about being able to say, when the book is finally ready to buy, "We've had some fun discussions talking about all kinds of things the last few months, and now I'm asking you to take a look at something I wrote. There's a sample chapter for free, and if you like that it'll cost you the price of a mass market paperback." As a writer who enjoys speculating on nature and technology issues, I like engaging in this kind of conversation. It can even help gauge public response to particular topics, which may come in handy when selecting future story ideas to write.

That's about it. I know many of you have questions regarding how to increase followings on the social networks (because I get asked these frequently), as well as technical how-to questions, especially with Twitter. While these details are beyond the scope of this post, feel free to ask any questions you like in the Comments section of this blog and I'll respond as best I can. I have agreed with Tony to make another appearance on this blog after WIRED KINGDOM is released to discuss my post-publication marketing efforts. So, I'll see you on the other side.

Thanks for reading,

Rick Chesler




















 -------- 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.

Should Newspaper Editors Answer To Sales Directors?

In a memo dated Wednesday, December 2nd, The Dallas Morning News informed company employees that section editors will now report to sales managers. This is a radical departure from the separation of news employees and sales management that has existed forever in the news industry. The Dallas Observer reported the news and printed a copy of the memo.

I have experience working in the sales department of the Dallas Morning News (one of the largest newspapers in the country) and I have worked as a reporter for a small city newspaper, so I have a unique perspective that many don't have. The bottom line for me is that this is troublesome for the future of news.

I understand that smaller newspapers may not have the luxury of separating sales and news. Often, the publisher himself fills both roles. But the Dallas Morning News is not a small newspaper. The reason they stated in the memo of realigning editors under sales directors is "To better align with our clients' needs..."

The separation of news and sales has long been the recipe to allow editors to report the news with no fear of reprisal or censorship from the sales department who may fear that bad press or investigative reporting would damage revenue from advertisers. While the sales department has always been concerned with meeting the needs of "clients", editors have always been concerned with meeting the needs of "readers."

It is my belief that this radical departure from the way newspapers are organized will do more harm than good. Dallas Morning News management contends that they are aware of the issues that people may have with this arrangement, but they are committed to making sure that news is not compromised. That sounds noble now, but with the economy the way that it is, advertisers now have a huge sword to hold over the necks of the sales directors. They can demand that the paper withhold a newsworthy story about their company or threaten to move millions of dollars of revenue elsewhere. Now that the same person is in charge of sales and news, the decision to allow news to go to the public may not be as easy as it currently seems.

Right now, the debate is in all purposes an academic one. But the time is coming when principles will be put to the test and shareholders will elevated above clients and readers. It has to happen. It's common sense that this will be a nasty issue at some point. When that happens, The Dallas Morning News will sacrifice their reputation perhaps beyond repair. This, in my opinion, is one of the most short-sighted decisions that a company could make. It's still hard for me to believe that they actually did it.

Where I stand on this should be evident. I would appreciate hearing the other side.

Tony Eldridge

Marketing Tips Around The Net: December 4th

December is finally here! This week, I actually got to see my 3 year old twins play outside while it was snowing... in the Dallas, Texas area. Well, hopefully the lineup of tips I have collected around the net will be enough to keep us all warm, no matter where we live. And remember to check out the new audio/videos coming out next week. I have them listed after the tips. If you have radio programs, podcasts, videos, or teleseminars coming out, let me know about them and I will list them in next week's tip about the net. Check out my submission post for instructions on how to get free publicity for your events.

Also, make sure you take a moment to sign up for free video tips. Not only will you get access to the current tip, I will give you access to over 45 minutes of great tips just for signing up. You can also view a sample video tip before you sign up for the video tips newsletter, so you have nothing to lose for checking it out.

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

1. Have you overlooked Internet business opportunities of your own?- Phyllis Zimbler Miller gives some great advice on looking into other business opportunities for you that may be right under your nose.

2. Guest Blogger: How To Make a Blog Tour Work Better- Carolyn Howard-Johnson shares a letter that author Yvonne Perry sent to help prepare for her blog tour. There's good advice in here.

3. The Golden Rules of Social Networking- Dana Lynn Smith shares her expertise when it comes to using social networks in your marketing efforts.

4. How To Feature On The Most Influential Websites In The World- Joanna Penn talks about how to get on some of the most influential sites on the net.

5. High-impact, minimalist website design at its best- Roger C. Parker breaks down elements for great web page design.

6. Build Credibility by Reviewing Your Professional Development Reading- Shel Horowitz invites Ian Cook to share his perspective on how to build credibility by review books.

7. The 3 Self-Publishing Paths You Should Understand- Jane Friedman, Publisher and Editorial Director, Writer's Digest, lays out an excellent description of the ways authors can self-publish.

8. Is Your Special Event Relevant to What You Do?- Sandra Beckwith discusses the importance of making sure your events are relevant to your business.

9. 7 Questions to Ask On Your Blog to Get More Reader Engagement- Darren Rowse gives you the 7 questions you need to be asking to get more blog readers.

10. Top 5 Blogging Misconceptions- Bob Bessette shares 5 common misconceptions that new bloggers have when the get started.


New Audio/Videos for next week:

1.
Who is hosting: Environmental journalist Diane Tegarden
Who is the guest: Shel Horowitz
Title of the show: Renewable Energy Radio Show: Painless Green on the consumer side and Guerrilla Marketing Goes Green on the business side..
Dates and Time: December 8, 1 pm ET/10 a.m. PT
Call-In Info: Listen in: 712-338-8710,
PIN number 618#

2.
Who is hosting: Janet E. Smith
Title of the show: Marketing for Fun & Profit
Dates and Time: Tuesday, December 8th at 4:30 pm Eastern Standard Time
Link for people to learn more about attending: http://internetvoicesradio.com/

3.
Who is hosting: Sarah Moore
Who is the guest: Dawn Menge, Children's book author of Queen Vernita Visits the Blue Ice Mountains
Title of the show: Writers in the Sky Podcast and Blog
Dates and Time: Friday, December 11th (posted for on-demand listening)
Link for people to learn more about attending: http://writersinthesky.com/writing-podcast.html

That's it for this this week's trip around the net. I hope you all enjoy this first weekend in December. Remember, check out the link at the top of the post if you would like me to promote your upcoming audio/visual events. I will see you on Monday!

Tony Eldridge

What Authors Need To Always Have On Hand To Market Their Books

We spend a lot of time talking about online strategies for marketing your book, and for good reason. You can get a large audience (international) with relatively little monetary investment. But we also want to make sure we don't neglect the offline marketing opportunities that come our way, especially the ones that fall into our laps.

In this post, we will talk about how to plan for the unplanned opportunities. When you are in your car, running errands and chores, always make sure you have a few copies of your book on hand along with your author business cards and/or bookmarks. Make it your goal each day to mention your book at least 10 times a day (that you don't plan; i.e., a seminar) and personally hand out 10 bookmarks. I like to sign my bookmarks.

Your books can serve two purposes. You can pull them out as a visual to impress upon someone that you are an author. Talking about being an author can be impressive; showing a book with your name on it can really "Wow!" people. Having books can also give you a chance to make that spur of the moment sale or if the situation warrants, give your book away with the promise of spreading the word about your book.

I just had my teeth cleaned yesterday and I shared my experience as an author with my hygienist. It stemmed from the simple question, "What do yo do for a living?" When we are out, we need to be looking for opportunities to mention that we wrote a book. Sometimes, we can gently encourage the conversation down that direction without sounding too self-promotional. Here are some things to listen for:

• What do you do for a living?- This is a layup.
  
  
• The weather has been {insert condition: Rainy, cold, windy, etc..)- To which you can respond, "I've been staying out of the snow working on the draft of my next book.)
  
  
• Enlist someone's help- As you're paying your grocery bill, ask the cashier if he or she knows anyone who likes your genre. Hand a couple of bookmarks to them and ask if they could pass them on to that friend who like action/adventure novels.
  
  
• Exchange Cards/bookmarks- When you take someone's business card, it's the perfect opportunity to give yours away as well. Never take someone's card without exchanging yours as well. Your card/bookmark can be a conversation starter for greater things.
  
  
• Put the book in someone's hand- When you get to the point you are talking about your book, pull out a copy and place it into the hands of the person you are talking to. The act of holding a physical book can instill a more intimate connection between them and your book. Sometimes it will lead to a sale, but it will always strengthen their connection and help them share that experience to others.
  
  
• Crown your "stack of stuff" with your book- Do you carry a briefcase, purse, papers, or anything else? If so, find a way to make sure your book is placed cover-up on top of your items when you set them down on a counter. The visual of your book can lead into great conversations.
  

Once you get into the swing of things, you will become a natural at making sure your book has every opportunity to slip into each conversation you have throughout the day. Unlike many products, people are usually fascinated by talking to a real author with a real book, so these conversations can be fun ones for everyone. It won't take long before you realize that you have talked to hundreds of people, all of whom have your bookmark or business card. And each will have a cool encounter with a real author that they can share with their friends and neighbors.

Tony Eldridge

Marketing 101 for a Niche Message by Saundra Goodman

Our guest blogger today is Saundra Goodman, author of Got Teeth? A Survivor's Guide "How to keep your teeth or live without them." Saundra also operates the blog, Got Teeth? A Survivor's Guide. She is a great example of how to take a niche subject and market it. In fact, she will be sharing her marketing skills with us in a post entitled, Marketing 101 for a Niche Message.

Before we get to Saundra's post, 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 Saundra's post...


Marketing 101 for a Niche Message
By Saundra Goodman

Thank you for inviting me to be a guest blogger, Tony. I love your marketing tips because I learn so much from them.

Here's how I created a platform for my book without knowing what I was doing.

I had a negative experience in my life (tooth loss and denture gain) at a time when there was no information and nobody to talk to to help me or others go through this experience. I followed my heart and wrote a non-fiction book about my experience, a subject I am passionate about, without knowing anything about Internet marketing, websites, or blogging. I just wanted to help people get this information and I knew my book would help them get through the same experience I had with humor and hope.

I needed to learn what to do, so I signed up for ezines and teleseminars and read and listened until I found someone I connected with who taught me the basics about websites, blogs, autoresponders, and building book sales. I still didn't know enough.

With a limited budget and the help of a friend of a friend, I hired a webmaster to create a my website, a press release was issued, and I did three radio interviews. I made sure I got the MP3s from the radio stations to post on my website. I also gathered book reviews from dental professionals and regular people to put on my site.

I learned to blog on Blogger. It took a while, but I was getting some great comments on my blog, selling some books, and I knew I was helping people. I thought I reached my goal.

After blogging for over one year, I was invited to be a featured blogger on Wellsphere.com in the dental community. My writing was recognized as useful and helpful and I was recognized as a Patient Expert. That was thrilling and it gave me a larger audience. That's how I learned I had more goals.

I realized that my website was a static site and my blog was active. I had all of this great information in two separate places and I needed a site that would combine everything. So I read more and listened to more people and found another person I connected with. This year I took an on line class and learned how to build my own WordPress site that combines all of the information from my static site and my blog.

Here's a few tips I learned along the way:

1. Be persistent in your content and your passion.
   
   
2. Use numbers and bullets in your blog posts.
   
   
3. Share free information about your subject in blogs, tips, and reports.
   
   
4. Use an autoresponder to get people on your mailing list.
   
   
5. Write articles and submit them to www.ezinearticles.com with a link back to your website. (Somehow I got locked out of ezine articles and am trying to find my way back in.)
   
   
6. Stay on message in your niche.
   
   
7. Libraries will buy non-fiction Print-On-Demand books that are researched and offer great information.
   
   
8. Enter contests related to your subject (there are none in my subject).
   
   
9. Don't get stuck spending all of your time in your email account. It's okay to unsubscribe from some of the ezines you signed up for. (I'm overwhelmed again and have to clean mine up.)
   

I'm still learning how to improve my WordPress site and I don't use video yet, but I can use Youtube in my blogs. I want to break my book down into two ebooks targeting more specific niches in my subject. I'll have to build a new site with squeeze pages and shopping carts on both sites. (I'm gonna to need more classes.)

Really, I had no idea what I was doing or what would be involved when I began my journey. I discovered the Internet late in life. I had passion, an idea, and information (both experienced and researched) and I continue to research for my blogs. I consider myself a non-techie and I'm struggling to learn more. I have to if I want to help people, so I just hired a marketing coach. You can't do it alone. Since I began my journey, the market has grown exponentially. I am the only woman who had the experience who is writing about it and that helps me stand out. And I know what they don't tell you in that little piece of paper with your home-care instructions.

I write about oral health, the mouth/body connection, periodontal disease, jawbone loss, tooth loss, and gaining a denture – basically, keeping your teeth or learning to live with replacement teeth. Over 75% of the population has some form of periodontal disease and many don't even know they have it until they go to a periodontist. Gum disease is the #1 cause of tooth loss. I promise you that if you begin to lose your teeth, nothing will be as important as the time and money you spend trying to keep them. Make your dental appointment now.

Please visit my website at www.gotteethguide.com Leave me a comment and tell me how I'm doing. If you like my blog, please vote for it in the 2nd annual Peoples Health Blogger Awards. It's on my site. What I know for sure is that it's all connected. Saundra Goodman Got Teeth? A Survivor's Guide How to keep your teeth or live without them. www.gotteethguide.com