It is easier than ever to publish a book, but many authors find out too late about the actual work-the book marketing-that needs to be done to achieve sizable book sales. Instead of embracing the opportunities to promote their books, authors are intimidated and shut down. Those days are over. This is the book authors MUST HAVE to give their books the best chance to be seen and sold.
In this essential, easy-to-read, and easy-to-understand guide, the
author will work through the graphs, examples, and exercises in the book and
learn:
- The fundamentals of book
marketing: Message, Audience, and Hook
- How the book marketing fundamentals
effortlessly feed into every aspect of book marketing
- The breadth of book marketing
options and how book marketing works, with examples
- How book distribution IS a crucial
part of book marketing
- To develop an elevator pitch and a
formal pitch to media contacts
- To develop with a doable book
marketing plan
- To develop media kit items for
their book publicity efforts: Press Release, Author Bio, etc.
- The types of book reviews and how
to get them
- To create a list of media contacts
and how to use them
- To organize their new
entrepreneurial business as book marketer/author
- Ideas to “shake their tree” to
develop unique book marketing opportunities
- To examine the best social media
channels to promote their books
- Where to put their book promotion
dollars
- Most importantly, authors will
learn something priceless...the correct starting point!
Authors, You CAN do right by your book! Go on and reach the book buyers that
you had in mind when wrote your treasured manuscript and Get Your Book Seen
and Sold today. Purchase your copy
on Amazon, Bookshop.org, or Barnes
and Noble. Make sure you add
it to your GoodReads list
too.
Media Contacts and How To Use Them
What is a media contact?
A “media contact” is any entity or person from tv, radio,
podcasting, newspaper, magazine, or online outlet whom an author decides to
pitch. For example, the editor of Writers Digest is a media
contact.
What will you do with a media contact?
1. Create a pitch and then,
2. Send the pitch with selected media kit items,
i.e., a press release
What do you want from the pitch?
You are pitching a media contact for a review, interview or
mention
o Review: a book review, of course!
o Interview: an interview of you about your book or
the subject of your book
o Mention: the media contact simply writes about you and your book
or your message without a formal interview. It’s simply a mention!
How to Pitch to Media Contacts
The first step is to take the time to identify media contacts. Internet
searches are the best way to come up with media contact names. There are also books that collect media
contact names by industry. One book, Writer’s
Market, is one such resource. Another great website to find publications by
industry or genre is webwire.com.
Finally, you can simply pick up a magazine and look at the masthead for
the names of the editors. The next step after you have done your research for
media contact names and emails is to come up with a pitch to send to them.
Finally, you need to send your pitch via email or snail mail, follow up, and
hopefully provide what the media contact desires for a review, mention or
interview.
One Media Contact at a Time
One: Keep your goal in mind. When you pitch
to a media contact you are hoping for a book review, an interview about your
topic, or a mention of your book. Those three things are always your
goal.
Two: Mass emailing equals mass
rejection. I know it is tempting to write a generic pitch and to send it
through Mail Chimp, et al or to a string of every email in your contact list
but this is idea is bad form for a couple of reasons. First, putting
media contacts in a constant contact database is a no-no. You technically
have to have the permission of the contact to add it to Constant Contact, et
al. Second, media contacts can spot a blanket
pitch from a mile
away and they will ignore it.
Three: You will be pitching your book for years to come.
Take a minute and a deep breath. I acknowledge that the pitch process is
overwhelming. When I was promoting my first book and pitching to media
contacts, I can remember panicking at the sight of the grocery store magazine
racks. Every magazine was a potential
media contact…how was I going to pitch to them all? The answer is: one
media contact at a time.
Tips to Pitch to Your Media Contact
1.
Be sincere! Take the time to read the media contact’s website to get to
know them a bit before you put them on your list and pitch to them.
Sincerity ALWAYS wins the day. Every successful hit I have ever had has
included a sincere and well-considered pitch. The key when pitching to a
media contact is quality over quantity.
2.
Write a pitch that makes it easy for the media contact to say
yes to a review, interview or mention.
3.
Gently follow-up with the media
contact.
When you take the time to create a list of media contacts as
well as creative, thoughtful pitches you give your book the best chance to be
seen and sold.
About the Author
Claudine Wolk and Julie Murkette are experienced in sharing their knowledge of the publishing industry to give books the BEST chance to be sold. Julie is the long-time owner of Satya House Publications, which published and marketed the award-winning I See the Sun series of books, among others. Claudine Wolk is a published author, journalist, podcast host and book marketing consultant. You can find her writing in her weekly newsletter on Substack: Get Your Book Seen and Sold. Her book, It Gets Easier and Other Lies We Tell New Mothers, (Harper Collins) is translated into three languages and was released as an audiobook (Nov. 2022).
Find
Claudine online at:
Substack:
https://ClaudineWolk.Substack.com
Website:
ClaudineWolk.com
Instagram:
@ClaudineWolk
Facebook:
Facebook.com/ClaudineWolk
Twitter:
@help4newmoms
No comments:
Post a Comment