Archive for Promote
Book launch success: the how
Posted by: | Comments
Please indulge me a little as I share the secrets to the success of the recent launch of the book Women on Top, which I have project managed for authors Sally Healey and Terri M Cooper (left). We had over 170 very happy guests, so we were thrilled with the event! Judging by the buzz on Facebook over the last week, we know our guests were too.
I have blogged previously that we have Lois P Frankel in the pages of the book – a fabulous addition for women reading the book for its business advice and strategies. We were also able to coordinate the launch event for the book with Dr Frankel’s visit to Australia and so began the task of bringing together an event that was professional yet warm and fun for our guests.
Book launches can take many forms so it is a matter of deciding what will work best for you. You might run various small events in various locations, or a larger event where you carry the cost.
You might invite a group of industry peers or influential people to gather for lunch or a high tea and gift them a book, as you speak on a topic relevant to your book content and their industry. You could do something similar across several cities over a series of months.
There is no set ‘book launch’ formula – be creative and come up with a concept that suits you, your book and your intended readers.
Because Dr Frankel (left) was available as a guest speaker, we decided to create a sit-down launch event around the key messages in her books, which marry beautifully with the theme of our book, ‘women on top, against the odds’. We charged $97 per head, and were aware that some people would not attend because of that price point. We also knew the people we hoped would attend would see that as an indication of value, which we made sure we delivered.
We gifted all guests with a copy of ‘Women on Top’ and Dr Frankel’s latest book, ‘Nice Girls Just Don’t Get It’, and we were confident our guests would go home knowing they had received great value.
We also ensured there was plenty of time for drinks, food and networking prior to the formal part of the evening – and we had follow-up ‘thank yous’ from people who had made new and strong contacts.
The event took place on 14 June, so we started organising the event several months before that date, once Dr Frankel had confirmed her availability.
I then sourced a venue – The Pavilion in Breakfast Creek – with an events manager who was delightful to work with.
In order to promote the event we put the following in place: a website page, a pdf of the invitation for email use, online payment systems, and a facebook presence. We did not do a lot of paid advertising, and sought some media coverage in the weeks before the event. Contributors to the book were also asked to invite their own special VIP guests, so it became a real celebration and an opportunity for all of us to extend our networks.
We began inviting guest four weeks prior to the event, and received several bookings immediately, always a great sign that the event is hitting the mark. Bookings came in until the final hour, but one week prior we knew we had a great event on our hands.
The not-for-profit, Bravehearts Inc, organised and ran a fund-raising raffle on the night, which was very well supported. Founder, Hetty Johnston, is also a contributor to Women on Top, and tells the story behind its foundation.
As a result of the launch and the buzz about it, several opportunities for media coverage have already arisen, with much more to come. The launch is just that – a beginning: the next phase of the journey is underway.
Women on Top is available HERE.
Author Websites
Posted by: | Comments
Every author should have their own website – even if they haven’t published their first book yet!
Your website is your online business card, your most important marketing tool and your bookshop. Even if you sell your books on Amazon and not on your own site, your readers should be visiting your site prior to or after buying your book.
What are the main components of an author’s site?
Essentials:
- Bio - Your ‘about you’ is essential. Your readers want to connect with you, identify with you, feel like they know you, so share some information about yourself. Make sure you include at least one image of you – the ‘portrait of the author’ you use on your book/s or another shot.
- Book/s - A page specifically for your book (or books). You need to include an image of your book cover, the blurb for the book and information about where to buy the book – ideally a link to the online bookshop or your sales processing page. If you have a sales sheet, include this as a downloadable PDF as well.
- Contact - Include a contact form if you wish to accept direct contact through your site (to avoid spam don’t display your email address on the site). Include your agent’s contact info or your speaking agency as well as, or instead of, a contact form.
Optional:
- News / Events - Publish a calendar or listing of your past and upcoming book signings, speaking engagements, interviews, etc.
- Reviews / Testimonials - Publish reviews of your books, both professional and from your readers.
- Excerpts - Include an excerpt from your book, either published on the site directly or as a downloadable PDF, or provide both options.
- Speaking - If you are available for speaking engagements have a separate page for this. Include a link to your contact page for booking enquiries or info for contacting your speaking agency.
- Book Trailer – If you have a video book trailer for your latest book make sure you feature it prominently on your site. Book trailers for other books can be on a separate page but the latest book trailer should be on the home page.
- Blog - Some authors choose to blog, some don’t. Blogs can help your audience connect with you on a more personal level, keep them coming back to the site to read your fresh content, and enable them to interact directly with you via comments on your posts / articles.
Marketing tools:
- Social Media – If you are using social media marketing feature your chosen platform icons on the site so people can easily click on them and ‘connect’ with you.
- Sharing Tools – Tools like Add This or Retweet can be easily added to your site to encourage visitors to share your content.
- Newsletter Subscription – A sign-up form for a newsletter can help you build up a database list of people interested in your books. When you write your next book you already have a list of people interested in your topic or your style of writing that you can pre-sell your book to.
- Sell Sheet – A one page sales sheet is generally designed for book distributors, however, it can also be a great marketing tool.
- Media - A media kit can include the key information and files that a journalist could use to write an article on you or your book, or as background information for an interview. This could include: a sell sheet for your book, print quality portrait image and book cover image and an extract from your book in one easily downloadable zip file.
Other key points to remember
- Your site should be well laid out, with clear and easy navigation.
- It should be attractively designed with a modern look (no 80′s scrolling text, animated clipart gifs).
- You should be able to access and update your own website.
My recommendations
As a huge WordPress fan I am going to recommend using WordPress for your author site as you might have guessed. WordPress empowers authors (and everyone else too!) to manage their own website enabling them to update it, change it and add to it at any time, from anywhere you have internet access. Once you have the technical and design aspects out of the way it can be as easy as editing a Word document!
You don’t have to incorporate a blog into your site, your can use WorpPress to manage your website ‘pages’ only; or you can use blog posts as well; or you can easily start blogging later if you wish.
About the author
Jeannie Barker is a writer, web and graphic designer. Through her website www.jeanniebarker.com she offers a range of services including WordPress blog / website setup and customisation.
Three independent publishers
Posted by: | CommentsThe Women’s Publishing Network June Writer’s Group special guests were members who have recently self-published non-fiction. They shared their background stories and lessons learned through publishing, speaking and marketing their own books.
Jane Grieve, author of ‘Slippin on the Lino’, a collection of short stories around the theme of motherhood, loss of career and identity, and the observations, frustrations and delights of raising children.
Diane Carter, author of ‘Dare to Live’, an inspiring autobiographical tale of life in Africa, recovery from a near-fatal hyena attack, and the courage to go on against all odds.
Lori Cartanega, author of ‘The Heartbreak Option’, the autobiographical story of her colourful life and the recent reunion with her son who she gave up for adoption many years ago.
Some of their recommended resources:
Printers: McPhersons Printing Group; Palmer Higgs; Griffin Press
Distribution & Sales: Palmer Higgs; Dennis Jones; Amazon; Fishpond; Lulu; Mary Ryan bookstores; Angus and Robertson; Dymocks…
When Jane was completing her book last year she received a lot of support from professional contacts she had made through her varied career: many endorsed her book and one such contact enabled her to sell her book through Pillow Talk stores when it was first released.
Lori and Jane have both opened up their own distribution into bookstores by being persistent and approaching stores directly. Jane approached the ABC stores by contacting the state manager and her distinctly Aussie book is on their shelves.
Jane has also recorded her stories in audio-book format in a professional studio in her home town of Warwick, and most recently contributed to the new publication ‘The Modern Women’s Anthology 2010′.
Diane’s focus is to use the book to promote her speaking career and is successfully selling books through her speaking engagements and online. She is also raising money through her book sales to support cancer charities.
……………………………
Speaking for profit group commences
Posted by: | CommentsFriday 4 June: the inagural ‘Step up – Speak out’ monthly workshop went very well, with us all learning how to stand still and silent in front of a group. Not easy – and a great lesson in stillness and connecting without words. Loved that exercise! (If the thought of doing that terrifies you, you really should think about coming along.)
Debra Jarvis, speaking trainer
Naveen, Helena, Debra, Lisle
Alie, Lisle, Jean
Pam and MaryAnn
Some feedback:
I have been public speaking for several years now to potential clients, but was always anxious about delivering enough quality material to make my presentations worthwhile to my audience. After just one session at the speakers group with Debra, I have learned that I do not have to deliver a word perfect speech to provide a quality experience but rather I can deliver my message in a more personal way and get through to the people who have come to hear me speak in a way that will leave a lasting impression.
I know that this will help me enormously in my future presentations and I am looking forward to coming along to many future speaker group meeting. Thank you!
Pam Stellema, Principal Coach
SalonSavy Specialist Coaching. www.pamstellema.com.au
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
Thanks Bev and Debra for a fun and inspiring morning. I appreciated learning how to connect with my audience more strongly from the heart.
Jean McDonald-Smith, Eco-Homes, www.eco-homes.net.au
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
A very informative morning in a warm & supportive environment.
Helena Lloyd, artist and gallery owner, www.helenalloydart.com.au
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
Thank you for offering this course today. I gained so much helpful information and learned new skills.
Naveen Light
