a word about media - part 1

--  Book Marketing Guide -- 

 Some of you may recall that Dave and I have a published book marketing guide available that discusses virtually every aspect of marketing and promotion, offers tips, ways to save time and money, avoid mishaps and a myriad of resources and quotes from people in the industry to help writers feel less alone and comforted when stressed. I'm going to share a brief 2-part excerpt here today (August 11th) and the 2nd part on August 13th.

Purple Snowflake Marketing - How to make your book stand out in a crowd

A Word About The Media - Part 1:

Publicity through the media is actually the most affordable and a fairly effective marketing endeavor. "Media" can come in the form of print publications (magazines, newspapers, newsletters), online publications (e-newsletters, blogs, e-zines), and audio/visual (radio, TV, you-tube). 

Newspapers usually have various columns that discuss websites, businesses, press releases, events and book reviews. Editorial coverage can add an additional level of credibility to your book. Newsletters, including those online, may be small but effective markets for your work; on average, audiences can range in size from 1000-150,000 readers per month. E-zines typically reach more than 5000 viewers. With this in mind, if you gain print space in a few e-zines in one month then you are reaching a wide audience!

With any media, there are no guarantees that the review, article or interview will be used, or it may not appear in the publication for many months. Generally, the author has little control over the timing of the release or the content of the article that is written by a staff member. Of course if you are writing the piece, it can be tweaked to tie into an upcoming event, movie, theater production, holiday season and so on. The benefit to online media exposure is that the article might be archived online for many years. a print publication might linger in living rooms, dentist offices, libraries, staff lunchrooms and the like for months or even years; however they are more often than not sent to a recycling bin shortly after their release (especially newspapers). 

Interviews cost little more than your time and perhaps a long distance phone call and are a great way of getting media exposure. Getting book reviews requires submitting a review copy or sample of the book and can involve additional costs like shipping and handling. Offering free filler material is another way to get print space with little cost other than your time and talent. Letters to the editor are another unique way to gain exposure, however they do not allow a by-line or blatant promotional content. Therefore authors that choose this avenue need to include the key information in the body of the piece in a subtle manner. 

To be continued...
 

  Find Dave and Lillian Brummet, excerpts from their books, their radio program, blog, and more at: http://brummet.ca * Support the Brummets by telling your friends, clicking those social networking buttons, or visiting the Brummet's Store - and help raise funds for charity as well!