My boyfriend and I are going to sit down to our first marketing meeting this evening. We're going to make it an official thing with coffee and all that jazz.
It sounds silly, but I'm excited!
And scared. 0___0
Marketing is something I've actually ALWAYS thought about. While all you lovely people are marking your books and coming up with awesome ideas, I'm sitting here taking it all in and I honestly must THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH for the expertise you unwittingly share on a daily basis!
I think my biggest focus with my first book will be how many pre-release reviews I can get. The only bad part is that I'm self-published, therefore, the reviews can only go on GoodReads and not on the Amazon account.
Still, pre-rerelease reviews mean people are seeing my book, the cover--basically, the brand of CUTLASS. They're going to know that image...and they might like it enough to say, "Hey! I'm gonna buy that on April 23, 2014." *cough* cough* which would make my birthday AWESOME!! *cough* *cough*
In relation to my reviews in general, I've set a goal of having 100 by July 23, 2014 (three months after my publication date).
I read this article by Mike Lowndes which was helpful.
And he linked this article by Jeanette Vaughan which gave me a lot to consider, too.
One thing she suggested, and that I had already planned on doing, was to create an imprint. Aladdin has been working on the logo! I will reveal that to you all when we get everything settled with that!
What was the scariest thing on your publication journey?
That reminds me...I've got to start planning my FB party. Good luck with your release, Ashley!
ReplyDeleteYAY FB party!! Thanks, Amy!!
DeleteI haven't gotten anyway near that far yet. Amazing. I'm vicariously excited for you. I hope the marketing meeting is productive!
ReplyDeleteThanks, JE!! It was very productive, but also...very overwhelming! Lots and lots to do!
DeleteGood luck! Although I would pick a goal that's achievable -- getting reviews is ultimately beyond your control. But you are in control of how many people you reach out to, and how much you market. Anyway, good luck!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Aaron! Oh, I definitely intend on reaching out to tons! I have an incentive plan for reviews. :D
DeleteI don't understand why you can't have reviews on Amazon? Or is it because you're not self-pubbing via Amazon? That would make sense I guess. Will your book only appear on Amazon after you're published?
ReplyDeleteI haven't published anything yet, but hope to self-pub sometime soonish. A novella, at least, to start with. But I feel a long way off from being ready for it. I was meant to be ready by year's end, but... nah. :P
Yeah...I've been reading about it, and your book doesn't appear on Amazon until it's published. So, to get pre-published reviews on Amazon would be impossible. However, I think I could probably ask sites to post them once it's up on April 23rd.
DeleteWell, I'll be waiting for your novella! Whenever you're ready! :) It's good to not rush. There's so much to put into it!
How neat! I hope you guys have a fun time w/your coffee and marketing strategies. =)
ReplyDeleteThanks, Leandra!! It was fun! And the coffee was great, though I do think I love tea more.
DeleteYou are going about this way smarter than I did! I'll be learning from you...wittingly!
ReplyDeleteLOL. Thanks, Elizabeth! I sure hope I'm going about this in the best way! I just keep finding ideas. I think it's overwhelming sometimes.
DeleteThat's awesome! It's so fun to be thinking and planning all these great ways to support your book. I bookmarked those links too.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Nicole! And I'll be sure and share as many things as I can! It has been so fun to find all this information and figure out how it will work into my own marketing plan!
DeleteI'd do a review for a free book. *Cough* *cough.*
ReplyDeleteBlerg self-marketing! There's only a week and a half before my book comes out, and yet I'm doing NaNoWriMo, too? I must be a glutton for punishment.
LOL. I'll put you on my list!!
DeleteUh, yes--I think you are! I've never done NaNoWriMo just because I've been in school FOREVER. I hopped over to your blog and saw your awesome cover!! Can't wait for the book!
Love how you're going about this. Remember, you've got a window of about three days to push those stats when you launch. And check out how Amazon ranks books--there are two lists, one with Friday Freebies jammed in and the other with just paid downloads.
ReplyDeleteOoohh!! Thank you, Kittie!! You're insight is so awesome!
DeleteI wish you the best of luck, Ashley!
ReplyDeleteThanks so much, Cathrina!
DeleteSounds like a great plan! Honest book reviews to a lot to boost sales, even if they're not all five-stars. (If they are all five-stars, people will probably think they're biased.) Much luck on that and on the imprint, and let me know if you need help finding reviewers.
ReplyDeleteRight now the scariest thing about the publishing journey is whether or not my agent will like my edits. XD But overall... I'd say when an agent actually requests pages, because it gets your hopes up so high, but then you're terrified they'll just come crashing back down. :O
Thank you, Charlie! And thank you!!
DeleteI hope your agent likes your edits! I'm sure he/she will!
And yes...that is a tough one. LOL. We can all relate to that!
Um, I stink at marketing. It's my least favorite part of writing! Lol. It's very necessary, though.
ReplyDeleteI think you do very well, Rachel! It is necessary. I figure I might as well try and be decent at it...even if I have a hard time (currently) keeping up with my social media. THERE'S JUST SO MUCH!
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