The New Method of Marketing: Having Conversations By Jody Hedlund
I'm thrilled to introduce you to our guest author today. Jody Hedlund is the award winning author of The Preacher's Bride and the upcoming novel, The Doctor's Lady. She is also the creator of a blog where she chronicles her journey to publication and gives advice on the craft and business of writing. In today's post, Jody will discuss the heart of what social networking is all about: Having great conversations with our readers.
Before we get to Jody's post, I have one quick announcement. The workshop Marketing Your Book And You, that was scheduled for this Saturday, March 26th in Richardson, TX, has been rescheduled for Saturday, April 30th. I will give the link to the new registration page on the Writer's Guild Of Texas site when the information for the new date is updated.
Now, on to Jody's post...
The New Method of Marketing: Having Conversations
By Jody Hedlund
Social media is defined as "people having conversations online."
Conversations.
As writers, if we're using social media as a marketing tool, then it stands to reason we need to join in having online conversations.
However, in my experience, I see too many authors who are online having monologues rather than dialogues. They're promoting themselves and their books with the old, antiquated marketing method of SHOW & TELL. And what they're finding out is that no one is LOOKING or LISTENING.
No one really cares about an author who tosses out posts and tweets that showcase them and their books. In fact, many (myself included) find it downright annoying when authors only use social media sites as billboards for their latest news. That's not to say we can't ever talk about our books, but too many authors make it their main focus.
If authors hope to have success with online marketing, then we have to abandon the old marketing mind-set of having a monologue. And we have to embrace the new method of having dialogues.
Conversations.
One of my blog readers recently said: "One of the reasons I bought your book was because... you respond to your readers through your blog and Facebook, which makes you seem more real, down-to- earth, and genuine, and I like that. It makes me want to get to know you and the type of stories you write."
Yes, readers want to connect with us in real, down-to-earth, genuine ways. In order to make those kinds of online connections, we need to ask ourselves 2 questions:
What are some specific ways we can engage with our readers?
Listen: Pay attention to what they're saying on our blogs, Facebook, and twitter. Make sure we answer personal emails and messages. Try to respond to questions left within the comments of blog posts. Thank people who review our books on their blogs. Answer handwritten notes from readers with cards of our own.
Participate: Don't stand on the sidelines. Instead jump into social media conversations. Ask questions on Facebook or Twitter. Find out what people think or how they feel about issues. End blog posts with questions that will entice readers to want to respond. And then once the conversation is going, join in from time to time.
How can we get readers talking about us and our books with each other?
Give them a quality product: First, we have to give them something to talk about. As writers, that means we have to write a book worthy of promotion. Take the time to study writing techniques. Learn all we can. Then practice what we're learning. Like any other profession, developing our writing skills takes times and effort. There are no short-cuts to success.
Offer resources that can facilitate conversations: Provide free discussion questions about our books and have them readily available. Make sure we have "reader" pages on our websites, a place devoted to them, where they can find fun links or games. Invite them to share pictures of themselves and post them on our websites. Offer to Skype with book groups.
My Summary: There are a thousand different creative ways we can use social media to market by having dialogues rather than monologues. Ultimately, we need to throw off the old ways of thinking about marketing online and we need to embrace the new.
It's all about conversations.
Questions For You: Which authors are more appealing to you—the ones using social media as a billboard or the authors who use social media to relate? Which do you think is more effective? What other creative ideas do you have for engaging in conversations with readers?
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Jody Hedlund is a historical romance novelist who was a double finalist in the 2009 ACFW Genesis Contest. She received a bachelor's degree from Taylor University and a master's from the University of Wisconsin, both in Social Work. Currently she makes her home in Midland, Michigan, with her husband and five busy children.
She's represented by agent Rachelle Gardner and her debut book, The Preacher's Bride, released in Oct. 2010 and is available online and in most bookstores. Stop by her blog, Author, Jody Hedlund, where she chronicles her journey to publication and dispenses more of her two-cent writing wisdom. You can connect with her on Facebook and Twitter.
--------
Tony Eldridge is the author of The Samson Effect , an action/adventure novel that Clive Cussler calls a "first rate thriller brimming with intrigue and adventure." He is also the author of the Twitter marketing book, Conducting Effective Twitter Contests .
Before we get to Jody's post, I have one quick announcement. The workshop Marketing Your Book And You, that was scheduled for this Saturday, March 26th in Richardson, TX, has been rescheduled for Saturday, April 30th. I will give the link to the new registration page on the Writer's Guild Of Texas site when the information for the new date is updated.
Now, on to Jody's post...
The New Method of Marketing: Having Conversations
By Jody Hedlund
Social media is defined as "people having conversations online."
Conversations.
As writers, if we're using social media as a marketing tool, then it stands to reason we need to join in having online conversations.
However, in my experience, I see too many authors who are online having monologues rather than dialogues. They're promoting themselves and their books with the old, antiquated marketing method of SHOW & TELL. And what they're finding out is that no one is LOOKING or LISTENING.
No one really cares about an author who tosses out posts and tweets that showcase them and their books. In fact, many (myself included) find it downright annoying when authors only use social media sites as billboards for their latest news. That's not to say we can't ever talk about our books, but too many authors make it their main focus.
If authors hope to have success with online marketing, then we have to abandon the old marketing mind-set of having a monologue. And we have to embrace the new method of having dialogues.
Conversations.
One of my blog readers recently said: "One of the reasons I bought your book was because... you respond to your readers through your blog and Facebook, which makes you seem more real, down-to- earth, and genuine, and I like that. It makes me want to get to know you and the type of stories you write."
Yes, readers want to connect with us in real, down-to-earth, genuine ways. In order to make those kinds of online connections, we need to ask ourselves 2 questions:
What are some specific ways we can engage with our readers?
Listen: Pay attention to what they're saying on our blogs, Facebook, and twitter. Make sure we answer personal emails and messages. Try to respond to questions left within the comments of blog posts. Thank people who review our books on their blogs. Answer handwritten notes from readers with cards of our own.
Participate: Don't stand on the sidelines. Instead jump into social media conversations. Ask questions on Facebook or Twitter. Find out what people think or how they feel about issues. End blog posts with questions that will entice readers to want to respond. And then once the conversation is going, join in from time to time.
How can we get readers talking about us and our books with each other?
Give them a quality product: First, we have to give them something to talk about. As writers, that means we have to write a book worthy of promotion. Take the time to study writing techniques. Learn all we can. Then practice what we're learning. Like any other profession, developing our writing skills takes times and effort. There are no short-cuts to success.
Offer resources that can facilitate conversations: Provide free discussion questions about our books and have them readily available. Make sure we have "reader" pages on our websites, a place devoted to them, where they can find fun links or games. Invite them to share pictures of themselves and post them on our websites. Offer to Skype with book groups.
My Summary: There are a thousand different creative ways we can use social media to market by having dialogues rather than monologues. Ultimately, we need to throw off the old ways of thinking about marketing online and we need to embrace the new.
It's all about conversations.
Questions For You: Which authors are more appealing to you—the ones using social media as a billboard or the authors who use social media to relate? Which do you think is more effective? What other creative ideas do you have for engaging in conversations with readers?
--------
Jody Hedlund is a historical romance novelist who was a double finalist in the 2009 ACFW Genesis Contest. She received a bachelor's degree from Taylor University and a master's from the University of Wisconsin, both in Social Work. Currently she makes her home in Midland, Michigan, with her husband and five busy children.She's represented by agent Rachelle Gardner and her debut book, The Preacher's Bride, released in Oct. 2010 and is available online and in most bookstores. Stop by her blog, Author, Jody Hedlund, where she chronicles her journey to publication and dispenses more of her two-cent writing wisdom. You can connect with her on Facebook and Twitter.
--------
Tony Eldridge is the author of The Samson Effect , an action/adventure novel that Clive Cussler calls a "first rate thriller brimming with intrigue and adventure." He is also the author of the Twitter marketing book, Conducting Effective Twitter Contests .
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