Heather Hart's Blog, page 28

Energize Your Marketing

“Without passion, you don't have energy; without energy, you have nothing. Nothing great in the world has been accomplished without passion.”~ Donald Trump

Have you ever noticed that you have more energy to do the things you enjoy than you do to for the things you don’t like? If you like ice skating, chances are that even if you’re too tired for a trip to the mall, you’d still be up for hitting the pond. If you like shopping, you probably have more energy for shopping than you do for watching...

Peek-A-Boo

“Bring the best of your authentic self to every opportunity.”~ John Jantsch
It’s never good to hide who you are. Your readers want to read books by real people. Showing your imperfections won’t turn people away, it will help them to realize that they aren't alone. As humans, we long to know that we aren't the only ones that fail. We need to know that those we admire make mistakes too. As an author, our readers look up to us. Showing them that we’re real is one of the best t...

Make Your Dreams Come True

“Don't dream it be it.”~ Rocky Horror Picture Show

If dreams really do come true, at some point your dream is your life.  Are you living your dream? If not, write down the steps it will take to get you there. Tangible steps that you need to go through to get where you want to be.
Your dreams can come true – as long as you have a plan to get there.
Marketing prompt:
Sign up for Book Fun – The Book Club Network Inc (aka: Book Fun), is a site where you can add blog posts, events and videos to...

Chin Up

“Never let your head hang down. Never give up and sit and grieve. Find another way.”~ Beatrix Potter
Failure is a fact of life. Not everything we will do will be successful and not every reader will love our work. Don’t let the failures keep you down. Keep your chin up and keep moving forward.
Marketing prompt:
Host a book giveaway at your local library – be sure to notify the local media.
Days to go: 219

Who Are You And Why Are You Reading This?

Day 145

“The aim of marketing is to know and understand the customer so well the product or service fits him and sells itself.”~ Peter Drucker
A good author knows their readers. They know who would like to read their books and what would make them buy them. Once you know your reader – really know them – marketing becomes easier. If you think like them, you can start writing stuff that would get your own attention. Design book covers that will attract the people you want to buy your book. Title...

Me Inc.

“We are CEOs of our own companies: Me Inc. To be in business today, our most important job is to be head marketer for the brand called You.”~ Tom Peters
I absolutely love today’s quote. So much so, that I’m considering getting a plaque of it to hang by my desk. We are in business – the business of writing. No one will read our writing if we don’t market it, so if we want to stay in the writing business, we have to get out and market our books and ourselves – AKA our brand.
Marketing prompt:
Do...

Believe In Yourself

“Believe in Yourself”~Origin Unknown
Do you believe in yourself as an author? Do you believe that your book is worth buying? If you don’t believe it, why should someone else? I don’t know why it’s easy for us as humans to think that we aren't qualified to do what we love doing, but we do. Don’t let yourself get convinced that you don’t have what it takes to be a successful author.
Marketing prompt:
Consider auctioning your books on eBay. If you published through a POD printer such as C...

Glorious

“A little more persistence, a little more effort, and what seemed hopeless failure may turn to glorious success.”~ Elbert Hubbard
Glorious success. We all like those words. Persistence and effort… well, we like those a little less – but that’s what it takes. Persistence and effort can make almost anything successful. Whether you’re in the process of writing and editing your book, or are solely focusing on book marketing, persistence and effort is what you need to get where you want to be – suc...

Connections Are Everything

“Companies need connections to their markets to create long–term loyalty.”~ Charlene Li and Josh Bernoff
Connections are everything in the marketing world - whether it’s your connection with readers, other authors in your niche, or even affiliates or freelance workers. You can know everything there is to know about marketing and still never sell a book if you don’t work on building your connections.
Marketing prompt:
Spend today networking. Introduce yourself to high profile people in your niche...

Rinse and Repeat

“Repetition is a key to gaining audience recognition.”~Shelley Hitz
As I've been writing this book, I kind of feel like I’m repeating a few of the same things constantly, but that’s how you successfully market your book. You say something, you say it again, you change your wording and say it yet again.
Repetition helps people remember things – myself included.
Marketing prompt:
Find a few websites that allow you to register your book for free and do so. You can find a whole slew of su...