5
Mar/100
Mar/100
Marketing!
Here at Do Life Right, Inc. (DLR), we believe in the power of online marketing. Without marketing, books cannot reach their intended readers.
Our authors all receive the following marketing help (at a bare minimum):
- At least one virtual book blog tour — blogs to approach will be 1/2 up to the author and 1/2 up to DLR. Tours will consist of at least 50 blogs over a one week period (books to be printed and mailed at DLR’s expense, but author will be asked to physically do this). Author will be responsible for answering interview questions, etc. and posting the tour sites on his/her website(s).
- Promotional postcards and/or bookmarks based off of the cover art will be made up and given to the author to mail out or give away (at author’s expense). Promotional tattoos, balloons, and other items might be made, depending on the content of the book itself. Authors will always be encouraged to come up with ideas for this. DLR will pay for promotional items on a case-by-case basis.
- DLR will require all of its authors to have a website. DLR will help with set up of the website (if necessary) and will require it to be updated at least once monthly (via blog or new game or *some* sort of new material provided by the author). Further help on this will be a case-by-case basis with the author, depending on the needs of the promotion.
- DLR will help with author and book accounts on amazon, Facebook, twitter, etc. on a case-by-case basis. We feel as though online marketing provides the best bang for the buck and we’ll require each author to have a strong online presence. We realize this is new to some authors, and thus, we’ll give help as needed. Don’t let this part stress you out!
- DLR will send out press releases about each new title to: (a) author’s hometown newspaper, (b) author’s current town’s newspaper(s), (c) several radio shows. All additional press releases are up to the author to send at DLR’s encouragement.
- We’ll give author’s a 50% discount on buying their own books, so they can sell them at book signings, etc. on their own.
- DLR will have a presence at various conferences, fairs, etc., where our authors will be encouraged to share the booth to promote books about homeschoolers. Authors will make higher royalties at the events they attend.
- We’ll also be making sure that all titles are available through Ingram, Baker & Taylor, Amazon, etc., but that is more of a distribution issue rather than a marketing one. All titles will be available in paperback and Kindle, at a minimum. Select titles will be made available in other electronic forms, as well as audio versions.
- DLR will help with the making of book trailers.
7
Jul/090
Jul/090
Initial steps to decide if indie publishing is for you
- How long have you been writing? If you are new to writing as a craft, then you need to give yourself time to master the craft.
- Do you have a critique group and/or a professional editor? (Is your writing truly the best it can be? Do you listen to the comments you receive?)
- Are you willing to put your money where your mouth is? It’s true that it often takes money to make money. You need to be willing to invest both time and money into yourself. Even with big publishing companies, you’ll be responsible for all your prepublished expenses such as how-to-write books, writing conferences, and meetings. After publication, you’ll most likely be responsible for most of your website maintenance, travel expenses, and promotional activities. With self publishing, you’ll be responsible for 100% of these expenses. With most independent publishing companies and traditional publishing companies, you’ll be responsible for all of these expenses. [Do Life Right, Inc. will help authors learn how to market their books with more bang for their buck, while also investing in its authors.]
- Have you spent a year or longer regularly submitting your work to literary agents and publishers? Have you received feedback as to why you received rejections? If it had to do with the quality of your writing, consider taking a writing course and/or attending writer’s group meetings before submitting again.
- Are you current in your knowledge of the marketplace? Do you know who your market is and how to reach them? All publishers today will expect you to have this knowledge.
- Do you have the time, money, and energy required to make your book a full-time job as long as necessary in order to succeed?
Remember, these are just a few of the many initial questions you must ask yourself as you begin your publishing journey.