Breaking Through a Marketing Plateau

You know when you start a new diet, and the first 5 or 10 pounds come off in a snap, and then a few more pounds come, and then, without you changing anything, it just stops? You've hit a wall or a plateau, where one pound feels like a life or death struggle.

Well, I think the same thing happens with marketing. You start a blog, write often, comment on others, use Twitter to bring in readers, everything you know you're supposed to do. And it really does work, you can get some pretty good growth that way. But then after a while it almost starts feeling like your little market is saturated. You're doing the same things as before, but numbers start flat-lining. Not nearly as many new followers, not as many comments. When this trend happens too often or too severely in something like book sales, it can be deadly.

So what can you do? I'll give you some suggestions of what I think might work, but mostly I want to hear your ideas. Those of you who have been in this game for a while, how do you keep things growing, keep the life blood flowing?

First of all, keep going. It's definitely not going to go anywhere if you stop moving. Keep writing, commenting, tweeting, touring, networking, everything. Sometimes, fingers crossed, all you need is time before your next spurt.

Find new places. If your main tributary starts drying, look for new ones. Find websites that you're not already using and give them a try. No need to stress about it either, just add one at a time and see if they give results. Maybe get business cards, or look for local opportunities doing readings, signings, panels, lectures, that kind of thing. Go to conferences and network. Of course those things are more time and money intensive, but they may be worth it.

Change something up. Add something to your blog design or change the time of your posts. Try writing about something a little out of the norm. Try tweeting more often or You might catch the attention of people you wouldn't have otherwise.

Then of course there is always the publicity stunt type stuff. Plan a book drive, organize an event at your kids school, do a blog contest, something like that, and get the news to come if possible. Again, intensive, with potentially little pay-off, but who knows.

So what are your guys' ideas? Even just using your online presence, how do you revitalize it when it seems like the normal methods are slowing down? How do you keep finding new people, and keep them coming back?

Sarah Allen

Where do you discover the books you buy?

Yesterday at The Kill Zone, Michelle Gagnon told us the best and worst writing advice she's ever gotten. There were some great tips here, some I've heard before and some I haven't. I definitely think keeping ones day-job is a good idea, for both financial and social reasons, and I've heard several people warn against spending too much on a publicist.

One thing that I'll admit surprised me was the statistic Michelle gave about social networks. She said that only 4% of book sales come from Facebook and Twitter, and probably even less from writer-centered sites like GoodReads and Shelfari. 4% is tiny, insignificant, minuscule, particularly compared to the percent of marketing effort most writers put into these sites.

Assuming that these statistics are correct, here's my question: what other/better options do we poor writers have? If Facebook, Twitter and GoodReads only give marginal results, where are more useful places to put our limited resources? Social networks take a lot of time, but cost nothing and therefore seem like a good choice. I still plan on using them as best as I can, but I want to put my money and time where it will really pay off, so I need some ideas.

I'll admit, I'm not the best at the discovering books from relatively obscure sources thing. This is absolutely something I hope to fix in the future (with the help of my new kindle...eeeeh :), but the majority of my reading picks come from classic lists (Dostoevsky, Austen, Brontes, Dickens, Hugo, etc.) best-seller and critically acclaimed lists (Steven King, Rowling, Kaye Gibbons, Tea Obreht) and recommended from friends and family (Connie Willis, Joan Bauer, Sharon Creech, Louis Sachar). There are many, many fantastic mid-list and indie authors with incredible books just waiting to be discovered. And you have to be discovered before you can become a classic, be put on lists, or be talked about around the dinner table. Since I'm just beginning to dip into this whole new pool of writers, and since for us beginning, un-listed, not-yet-classics, less-talked-about writers doing our own marketing is absolutely crucial, I'm coming to you guys: where do you discover the books you buy? If not Facebook and Twitter, then where?

My two ideas about this are that the most basic thing success in this field requires is great writing, and the second is that as far as marketing goes, blogs have big potential. I'm pretty sure the first idea is correct. I don't think you can really get that far on bad writing, though there are a few exceptions. But what about the second idea? Do blogs really do that much? It seems like Amanda Hocking used blogs and blog tours more than anything else to promote her books, and look where she is now. Of course I could be wrong, but I'm looking for ideas here. I bet a lot of people find books the same way I do, via lists and word of mouth, but what course of action does that leave for us writers, especially if social networking sites don't really help that much? What are the best places and ways to help us get to that listed and talked about point?

Thanks for your ideas, and happy writing!
Sarah Allen

Best Marketing/Networking Sites for Writers

There are a lot of good websites out there. Tons that can help writers spread the word about their work. I've come up with a list of what I think are the most useful marketing and networking websites writers have at their disposal. But before I give you the list I want to say this: there are so many sites out there, and yes, it can be very intimidating, but the time, effort and strategy you put into it is completely up to you. My advice is to take it one site at a time, experiment, see what works, and don't let it get you too stressed. Really, all you need is five minutes here and there on a lot of these sites, but those five minutes can be very worth it. Its all up to you, so don't let this list intimidate you. My personal strategy is to focus my efforts on a few of the best ones, do a little on some others, and add a site at a time as I feel like I've got a handle on things. Do it your way and on your time, but I do think doing some is important, and can be very helpful.

A couple other disclaimers: First, I've said this before but I recommend all of these sites to be used along with a website or a blog that all these other sites point towards. That way you have a sort of home base. Second, I'm not by any means experienced or even familiar with many of these sites, so find which ones work best for you, and if you are someone who does have successful experience with any of these sites, I'd LOVE to hear about it and what has worked for you.

The Big Five:
Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
YouTube
Flickr

Reference Sites (non-writer specific, but still could be useful):
Squidoo
StumbleUpon
Delicious
Digg
Reddit

Writer/reader communities:
GoodReads
LibraryThing
Authonomy
WriterFace
Shelfari
WritersBeat
BookTalk.org
RedRoom

Online portfolio sites, where you actually are supposed to contribute writing. (These are a great resource, but obviously take more work, and I'm trying to find a way to use them while saving the majority of my writing for other places. Ideas would be great).
DeviantART
Writing.com
AuthorsDen.com
WritersCafe.org
Fanstory.com
FanFiction.net
WritingForums.com
WritingForums.org
AbsoluteWrite
Scribd
EveryAuthor

Misc. Other community sites that may come in handy
SecondLife
Etsy or Ebay
Outbrain
Zynga

Well there you have it. Like I said, I'm not familiar with a lot of these, so be wise and safe, check them out and see what you think. If I'm missing any that have worked for you, or you have experience or advice with any of these sites, I seriously would love to hear it. I don't intend this list as something to stress you out. Your marketing campaign is in your hands, and this list is just to help you with that. Be strategic in your time and efforts and it will pay off.

Sarah Allen

Where the Kids Are: Marketing Online

We all know that an online presence has become an expected part of our author obligations. Our job does not stop with writing a good book anymore.  I found this interesting article from Publisher's Weekly talking about how the big publishing houses have shifted their approach in the last few years to accommodate and capitalize on an increased online market and thought I'd share what they're doing.

"As recently as three years ago, online was a small piece of what children's marketers did, and it consisted primarily of creating a Web site or a Facebook page, or perhaps allowing for authors to interact with fans on MySpace. But today there is no longer a question whether "to screen or not to screen"; in fact, online efforts are now an essential—at times predominant—part of a publisher's marketing toolkit.

For teen books especially, the majority of marketing has moved online. "Over the last few years we've been forced to adapt more quickly, because teen magazines like Elle Girl and Teen People have gone away. So we need to find creative ways to reach them," says Linda Leonard, director of new media marketing for Random House Children's Group. Her mantra, like that of many of her colleagues, is to find and engage young customers where they are, which is increasingly online."


Indeed, both Random House and Simon & Schuster have built their own teen communities. Last May, Random relaunched RandomBuzzers.com first introduced in 2007.

Teens can chat with authors, see new book videos (or trailers), preview cover designs, and win Buzz Bucks that can be redeemed for ARCs or signed copies.

Simon & Schuster started Pulse It as a physical book program/advisory board for teens between the ages of 14 and 18 in June 2009. Then in July 2009 it moved online. Since then Pulse It has grown from 3,000 to 26,000 members.

One of the most extensive online campaigns for a single title this year was developed for the third book in Maggie Stiefvater's Wolves of Mercy Falls series, Forever (Scholastic, July 12 laydown). But as Rachel Coun, Scholastic executive director of trade marketing, points out, even with all the bells and whistles, it still centers around the physical book. "Always in marketing it's important to do the traditional and keep up with the times," she says. Very few online campaigns rely on a single book trailer anymore.

"Our goals haven't changed that much with an online campaign," John Mendelson of Candlewick notes. "It's about building buzz, whether it happens on Facebook and Twitter or on a school bus." Finding kids and getting them excited about books has always been what children's publishing is all about. There are just new ways to do it now, onscreen and off.  You can read the entire article here.

Where do you think an author should focus their online marketing efforts?

~Kiki

Creative Writing and the Olympics

With the Olympics going on, I was thinking about the chasm between the world of athletics and the world of literature/art and how it maybe it doesn't need to be as big of a gap as it is right now. There are definitely things we writers can learn from the world of athletics, the Olympics in particular.

Inspiration. Sports can provide direct creative material, like if you wrote a story about an Olympian or a wannabe pro athlete. Maybe you know an athlete and their stories and characters can inspire your next piece.

Determination. Think of how much time and effort these Olympians have put into their sport. Basically their entire life. Thats the only way they have gotten where they are, and if we want to be the "olympians" of literature, we should expect to have to do the same thing. Of course they are different things, and I'm not saying we need to train for ten hours every day. But we need to be doing something every day, and thinking of new and creative ways to expand our career, and hone our craft, and everything else writers have to do.

Marketing. This one is a little more complex, and I would love to hear your ideas on it. But what I mean is that maybe we can take marketing and promotion lessons from the NFL, NBA, etc. Commercials, target audience, stuff like that. Look at what they do and see how you could creatively apply it to marketing your work. I mean, Golf has a huge, almost cult following. Why? How? Is it because its a game that tons of people play, so tons of people can relate? If so, find a way to apply this to your writing career: create something everyone can feel a part of. Remember baseball cards? Yeah, something like that. I can't get very specific here, because this is very dependent on your individual work and personality. Be creative and find what works for you. And think about this: Does Tiger Woods have a cult following because he's a golfing heavyweight, or is he a golf heavyweight because he has a cult following? The answer is probably yes...but learn from it.

What are your thoughts? Do you think writers have anything to learn from athletes? Hope this helps, and enjoy the Olympics!

Sarah Allen

Creative Writer's Guide to Twitter

Twitter is not only one of the biggest online phenomenons of the past year, but it is one of the best marketing tools any writer has. I'm a relative new comer to twitter, but I've been using it for a few months now and here are some things I've learned that may help you writers in your twittering.

Networking: From what I've found, there are two kinds of connections that writers can make on Twitter. 1) Potential readers and word-spreaders. 2) Other writers. Basically anyone on Twitter can end up being a positive, beneficial contact. You may form great connections within the publishing community, and just by forming lots of mutually beneficial relationships on twitter you'll have a bigger network of people ready to support you when you need it. Who knows, you may find your agent or next writing gig using Twitter.

Inspiration: An entertaining tweet may be the basis for you next short story. The tweets of one follower may inspire you in character development. Not only that, but the writer friends you make on twitter can inspire you to get more writing done. You'll have a writerly community to support you, and won't feel as much like your in it alone.

Promotion: Its obvious that Twitter is a great tool for getting out the word about your newest publications, blog posts, etc. However, there are two things to keep in mind. First, nobody wants to be your friend if all you're doing is trying to sell them something. Be involved, honest, and natural. Be sincere in your virtual relationships. Second, I think posting stuff like "here's my book" or "here's my blog" may not be the best way of going about it. One idea I read somewhere that I think is a good one is this: tweet an intriguing line or bit of information from whatever you're trying to direct followers to. So, instead of saying, "Buy my book here," say something more like, "It was raining for the third day in a row, and only Truman knew how significant that really was." You've worked really hard on hooking in your readers. Use that hook on your Twitter followers.

Here's my twitter profile and here's a list of helpful, knowledgeable writers that I follow. What has helped you in your use of Twitter?

Happy Tweeting!
Sarah Allen

Meeting your local booksellers

One idea I've heard lately, and I think its a good one, is that writers should meet the employees at local bookstores. To me this makes total sense. If these people are going to be responsible for selling or not selling your book, you want them on your team, right? This is especially true for independent book stores.

So go to all the bookstores in your area and introduce yourself. Come frequently, and buying a book every once in a while couldn't hurt. Make friends with the people behind the register. Talk to them, ask them what there favorite books are. You may even consider giving them a copy of your book for free. It may be well worth it.

You can use sites like Facebook and LinkedIn to see if you already know anyone who works at a bookstore. That may be incredibly useful, by giving you an extra in. Take your bookseller friends and their coworkers out to lunch, and invite them to a release party of your book. Be creative in how you do it, but the more bookseller friends you have the more people you'll have on your team, pushing your product. That could end up being the biggest support you have.

Sarah Allen

Swine Flue Marketing for Artists

I've heard a little about this idea lately, and I think its something good for all kinds of artists to keep in mind in terms of getting publicity for their work.

The idea is that you take advantage of big news concerns, like the swine flu, and use it to get the word out about your product or business. Now, this sounds sort of cynical, but the idea isn't to manipulate people; its to show involvement and concern for society, and people want to get to know you more when they feel that you care about what they care about.

This has mostly been a small business thing, from what I can see, but I think it can apply to writers and artists just as well. Here are some ways you can use the swine flu 'viral' marketing system to market your creative writing:

-Write about it directly. For example, write a poem, personal essay or short story about swine flu, or whatever the big news item is. You can send it to any of the normal literary magazines you submit to, but you might try looking in to different types of publications, like news magazines or publications that address your topic specifically.

-Apply the news to previous work. You may not have a book about swine flu specifically, but you may have a scifi book about epidemics, or a mainstream book about living with illness. Blog about it, tell your friends about it, and people who may not have noticed your book before may notice it.

-Apply it to your personal life. If the big news applies to you or a loved on personally, use the internet, local news and whatever else you can think of to not just draw attention to you and your work, but to the issue itself, and maybe do some good while your at it. Win/win situation for everyone.

***Even if the big news doesn't affect you personally, still be involved, and address it in your social networking, blogging, local news, or whatever. Its good to convey to your audience that you are socially concerned and aware.

-Target Audience. Target the people the news sources that the big news affects most of all, and see if you can use those outlets to get the news out about your work. Obviously you don't want to spam the news sources and bug people, because that backfires. But as a member of the community and an intelligent person with something interesting to say, this can be another means of social networking, and that is always a good thing.

So use the news to your advantage and get your work out there!
Sarah Allen

Creative Writing Marketing

No matter if your writing the next best thing in the English language, without good marketing strategies, no one will know. I'm just beginning to find my way in the marketing world, and look forward to better, more advanced suggestions, but here are the basics of what I've found so far.

Duotrope

This is a great site for just plain old publishing your work. It is a searchable listing of thousands of places for you to be published. Find hundreds of publications that are looking for the kind of thing you write, and keep submitting until

Craigslist

This is an obvious one, but a very good one. Craigslist provides a listing of local writing opportunities, and you never know what gems of experience you'll find. Keep track of what writing opportunities are happening in your own town, and help build your local following. This is one to check regularly.

Twitter

This is also an obvious one, but a very good way of spreading news to hundreds of people at once. This is an incredibly useful supplement to your blog. Keep your followers aware of publication dates, readings, signings, etc.

GoodReads

You want people to find your book. This site is about people finding the next thing on their reading list. Its a perfect match.

YouTube

This is one I'm still trying to figure out. Obviously its for video, not text, but it is also one of the most popular sites in the world right now, and any creative ways of marketing your writing using this site will, I'm sure, be of great help. Perhaps video of readings, home-made book trailers, interviews, etc.

Flickr

This is in the same vein as YouTube, in that its for photos, not text. But again, its a hugely popular site, so any way of marketing through photo on this site has the potential of reaching tons of people. Here's another site similar to Flickr that can be used similarly: deviantART

Gaming Sites

Ok, so this one is a little weird, but there are lots of people on gaming sites that could potentially be turned in to readers if you can reach them. Besides, its fun! Just don't let gaming get in the way of writing. Here are a few big sites: Zynga, Neopets.

Social Networking sites

One of most necessary and useful online marketing tools. Here's a short list of the top ones:
Squidoo
Facebook
Myspace
Ning
LinkedIn

Random Interest

Look for local or national groups that may not have to do with writing specifically, but still are applicable to you. Make friends with people who love dogs, theater, medicine, or whatever it is your interested in, and you will have expanded and diversified your readership.

So there's the basics of what I know about reaching people and finding new opportunities. I hope these ideas are things you can use.
Sarah Allen

p.s. Here's a list of the top sites in the world, and any of them that you can use to market your creative writing will definitely help: Alexa