Wednesday, June 17, 2009

Strategize for the scatter

Everybody's online, huh? You might be hearing that from your publicist, publisher and friends.

Certainly, the range of options seem so vast as to start hitting anything that moves.

Moving the cane to the tip of his boot, Mr. Obie Joe would remind you to not chase, but to strategize. Perhaps your book, or your personality, would not match a Twitter campaign. There are authors who work with "only" a web site. Think through your choices, and then commit fierce. Few things are as disappointing as a blog with no entries. Or a web site with just a landing page. Or a Facebook page with no friends.

A few steps at the dance:
• Familiarize yourself with all tools.
• Determine the typical time commitments for each tool. Twitter is daily, blog tour is intermittent, and so on.
• Use tools to track your progress: how many hits, your search engine position, direct feedback/comments on your sit, etc.
• Coordinate original content. Use you Author Q&A for a blog tour; send a blog essay for a press release; and so on.

Online publicity changes the game from traditional marketing is that you, handsome you, chase the consumer in a way that engages them over the long-term. Not for the one-time product buy. Many of Mr. Obie Joe's people work with us not just to sell their book, but to to build their career so their next book sells, too.

No comments: