marketing – Heart Banter by David Gittlin

Comparatively speaking, writing a novel is the fun, easy, first step of the self-publishing process. The second step, creating an attention-getting book cover, offers its own unique set of challenges. However, the most intimidating and difficult undertaking, to most authors, is the third step—Online Marketing. These words strike terror in many authors’ sensitive little hearts because they want as little to do with the outside world as possible.

The most intimidating marketing question is: “Where do I begin?” In this blog, I’ll let you in on some of the advertising methods I’ve tried and the results I’ve had. I’ll save you time and money. I’ll guide you through the marketing process from the completion of your manuscript to the final strokes of your marketing plan.

Before we begin, bear in mind that more than a million books are published every year. Therefore, we have to be good at marketing. Damn good!

After completing your final rewrite and the inevitable tweaks that come afterwards, it’s finally time to upload your book to online retailers. Next, you announce it on your blog, your author website, your Facebook page, and your YouTube channel (optional).

Now what? Gulp…

This is the seriously hard part—driving people to these outposts in cyberspace.

Let’s take a look at what has worked for me and what hasn’t.

Book Covers

The first step in marketing your book online or ANYWHERE is to create a relatable, attention-getting cover. We’re taught not to judge a book by its cover. Ironically, this principle doesn’t apply to actual books.

I’ve read that the cover of a book needs to be genre specific. By this I mean your reader can quickly identify the subject matter inside, whether it be Romance, Action/Suspense/Adventure/ Thriller, Espionage, Science Fiction, Fantasy, and so on. The trick is to make your book genre specific without making it look like every other book in the space. The idea is to stand out from the crowd, not get lost in it. If you are an accomplished graphic artist, go ahead and do it yourself. Just be sure that you follow the specifications of your print on demand supplier. If you are not a great graphic artist, like me, go ahead and shop for an artist who can turn your cover vision into a commercially viable package.

Please choose an artist with a specialization in book cover design. This person can have other specialties, but they must also be fully versed in the art of book cover design. If you are creating the book cover, make sure to research the subject. There are many pitfalls, just as there are with writing a book.

I used three different artists to create the covers for the three novels I published. Besides the fact that I get bored easily, there may have been a method to my madness. Each of my novels is in a different genre. Some artists have genre preferences and do better work in those genres. There is no set rule. Some artists are good in any genre. They may be more talented and expensive than others, but you won’t have to go through the angst of breaking in new ones. And you may get a better overall result. Or not. Choose carefully.

If you have an idea of what you want in your book cover, great. If you don’t, that’s okay. Just be sure you choose a capable artist who you can communicate with. Don’t be guided solely by cost. Choose someone who knows what they are doing; who inspires your confidence, and “gets you.

Blogging

Blogging is a great way to get yourself and your work “out there.” It’s not hard to create a blog, even for graphically challenged people like me. WordPress and Wix are two of the most popular sites now. You don’t have to be an expert at coding to make a nice looking blog. You can also choose an upgrade plan that will give you more customizing options. I believe the upgrade plans are worth it. WordPress has a premium plan for only $99 per year.

Once your blog is created, don’t let it just sit in Cyberspace. Take a little time each day to read and comment on blogs by folks who write about subjects that interest you. Those people will then read and follow your blog if your content is good.

Take note of how other people promote their work on their blogs. I’ve found that the subtle approach is the best way to do it. Keep in mind that content is king. What you have to say and how you express it will ultimately determine your degree of success. And, make sure the template you use to create your blog is Smart Phone Friendly. I finally woke up to the fact that most people read blogs on their phones. Duh. I dumped my old templates and replaced them with new, easy to read, phone-friendly ones. Now, I’m attracting more followers than ever before, and I’m making many new friends.

Facebook Ads

I’ve experimented with ads on Facebook. I’ve racked up tons of likes and very few sales. In my humble opinion, paying for ads on Facebook is a total waste of time and money for self-published authors. I have an author friend who is running great ads on Facebook, but he’s not selling any books. I’m not saying ads in general don’t work on Facebook. They do. But you are an up-and-coming author struggling to find an audience. You aren’t Macy’s. You aren’t selling specialty items currently in demand like face masks. See what I mean?

Facebook Pages

A Facebook page isn’t essential, but I strongly suggest that you put some time and effort into making a good one. If nothing else, FB pages add credibility and overall impact to your marketing campaign. And they are FREE. You might even sell some books from your page using the SHOP NOW button. Pick a glowing book review and pin it at the top of your posts column. This little maneuver has increased views and engagements on all three of my Facebook pages.

Instagram

Upload a JPEG of your book cover with a link to your Facebook page. If you have lots of friends who spend half of their lives on Instagram, you might get lucky. I don’t use Instagram. Don’t ask me why.

Press Releases

I’ve created and distributed press releases on PR Web with a target audience of 30,000 journalists and bloggers. The idea is to drive traffic to your websites and generate publicity on major news sites and search engines. You can participate at various cost levels starting at $99. The more you spend, the bigger the audience. I participated at the second highest level at a cost of $289 per release. (The highest level currently costs $389). To add interest to the releases, I created a book trailer video. (A simple book trailer without actors will cost anywhere from $250 to $300 from a reputable company).

Bottom line: I could not relate any book sales to my press release adventures. Save your money.

Book Trailers

Book trailers are nice to have but they aren’t essential to your marketing campaign. When I first started marketing my books twelve years ago, the pundits all said that you were dead in the water if you didn’t have a book trailer. As it turns out, this is baloney. Book trailers are a nice addition to your marketing package, but they aren’t powerful generators of sales. I made trailers for my first novel, Three Days to Darkness, and my second one, Scarlet Ambrosia–Blood is the Nectar of Life. I had fun making them and they didn’t cost too much. Recently, I used the first trailer I made as the cover photo on my Facebook page. (Note: The video has to be two minutes or less to be uploaded to the cover section). To my amazement it worked. More than a thousand people visited my Three Days to Darkness page in the span of two weeks. I made some book sales at the rate of two percent of the visits. I’m still getting views. But here’s the thing: if you have a limited budget, use it where it will do the most good. I’m getting to that. Stay with me.

Audio Books

If you can swing the cost, make an audio version of your book. As you are no doubt aware, people don’t read as many books as they used to. Audio books are getting more popular every day. I used ACX to make the audio book for my third novel, Micromium: Clean Energy from Mars. I liked using ACX and they are part of Amazon. I signed an exclusive agreement with them, which means I get a bigger royalty (70%) on each audio book sale. With this agreement, your book is automatically uploaded to Amazon, Audible, and iTunes. The downside is, you don’t get exposure on sites like Hoopla, Overdrive, and Bibliotheca, which serve libraries. If you don’t go exclusive, ACX offers a non-exclusive agreement wherein you can distribute to any platform and get a 25% royalty.

If you hire a narrator for your audio book, which you can do through ACX, a good one will probably cost you between $100 and $150 per finished hour. Your narrator does the narration and all of the production work. You direct them and approve the finished product. I had a great time making my audio book with an amazing woman who did a fabulous job. I’ve done reasonably well with my audio book. I’ve noticed that having an audio version available has increased my overall book sales.

Paid Reviews

When you launch your book, you want to have a sufficient number of positive reader and editorial reviews available on retail sites and Goodreads to convert browsers into buyers. Unless you have twenty friends and a handful of book critics ready, willing, and able to post glowing reviews, it makes sense to purchase a few of these.

There are a number of sites available for these services. I have found the best and most reliable site for reader and editorial reviews to be indiereader.com. Check out their website. I bought reader reviews and an editorial review from them. I’m 100% satisfied with their service, reliability, and results. I’ve also used midwestbookreview.com for fair, reliable, and less expensive editorial reviews. Readers Favorite is an excellent site for FREE reviews. Check it out.

Amazon Advertising

Sponsored ads on Amazon.com are the most effective marketing tool I’ve used so far. If you have a limited budget, this is where to spend it. The ads are easy to create. You set your daily budget, write your copy, set your campaign dates, and off you go. If the ad doesn’t work, you can scrap it and try different keywords. You can see which keywords are working and which are not and adjust accordingly. Best of all, you can see how many books you’ve sold and how much it has cost you to sell those books. There’s no baloney and no guesswork. And, let’s face it, most of the books people buy are sold on Amazon. To create a campaign, sign in to your KDP account, select the book you want to advertise, click on the three dots to the far right of the book, and select promote and advertise.

I hope you will find these tips helpful. I wish you all the success in the world, and keep writing.

David Gittlin has written three feature length screenplays, produced two short films, and published three novels. Before quitting his day job, he spent more than thirty years as a marketing director building expertise in advertising, copy writing, corporate communications, collateral sales materials, website content/design and online marketing. For more information, please visit www.davidgittlin.com

Advice from Indie Approved Author David Gittlin: “Learn the basics of creating conflict, memorable characters, and compelling plots from professional authors.”

Micromium: Clean Energy from Mars received a 4+ star review, making it an IndieReader Approved title.

Following find an interview with author David Gittlin.

What is the name of the book and when was it published?

Micromium: Clean Energy from Mars. The book was published March 6, 2018.

What’s the book’s first line?

“This is trial eighteen,” Kate Blackstone announced. “Testing five one hundredths kilogram of enriched X435.”

What’s the book about? Give us the “pitch”.

The year is 2038. Earth’s biosphere is on the brink of destruction from the effects of global warming and pollution. The World Energy Council has awarded a lucrative contract to a major US corporation to mine a precious ore discovered by the first manned mission to land on Mars. One kilo of Micromium can power a large city for a year without environmental side effects. A few grains of the ore can fuel a car for a year or longer. Micromium promises to provide clean energy to a thirsty planet far into the future.

When two people die in a mining accident on Mars, the World Energy Council sends Commander Logan Marchant and a crack team of astronaut specialists to investigate.

Confronted with a lack of cooperation from the mining colonists, the investigation is further complicated by Logan’s growing attraction to the team’s beautiful and brainy geologist. While tensions and tempers rise, Logan and the audit team make one shocking discovery after another, until the investigation leads them into mortal danger, and ultimately, to a surprising conclusion.

What inspired you to write the book? A particular person? An event?

Micromium started with a dream I had of a glowing chunk of ore discovered by astronauts exploring a comet. The idea of a pure, miraculous new energy source excited me. I am somewhat surprised by the story that eventually developed from the idea.

What’s the main reason someone should really read this book?

I wrote the book for someone like you. I want you to have a good time and I want to inform you. It’s a good book. You’ll like it. Trust me.

What’s the most distinctive thing about the main character? Who-real or fictional-would you say the character reminds you of?

Commander Logan Marchant has survived the tragic loss of his beloved mother in early childhood and an emotionally abusive relationship with his father. Despite these hardships, he has ascended to high rank in the Air Force and the NASA space program. When Logan meets Kate Blackstone, a brilliant and talented member of his audit team, he is forced to confront the deadly pit of darkness and emptiness that has threatened to consume him for as long as he can remember.

Logan reminds me of a number of successful people, Hollywood “A” list actors in particular, who suffer and often self-destruct as a result of a bottomless pit of loneliness, insecurity, hopelessness and despair. Their suffering usually stems from the trauma of abuse and/or inadequate childhood nurturing.

If they made your book into a movie, who would you like to see play the main character(s)?

I’d like to see Chris Evans play Logan Marchant and Kate Beckinsale play Kate Blackstone.

When did you first decide to become an author?

I began writing short stories in my early forties. I decided to become an author of long fiction when I turned fifty years old. I figured (and still do) fiction writing was something I could do for the rest of my life. My writing “arc” started with copy writing and all manner of marketing communications, to short stories, screenplays, and eventually novels.

Is this the first book you’ve written?

No. My first novel, “Three Days to Darkness,” is a science fantasy. My second novel, “Scarlet Ambrosia“, is a paranormal romance/thriller.

What do you do for work when you’re not writing?

Writing is my work. I don’t have a real job anymore (thank God!).

How much time do you generally spend on your writing?

Two to four hours per day depending upon outside distractions and daily responsibilities.

What’s the best and the hardest part of being an indie?

The best part of being an Indie Author is not having a commercial publisher breathing down my neck with deadlines and suggestions as to what I should write next or rejecting a book proposal that I am enthusiastic about writing. The hardest part is the difficulty of getting books in stores and making my books “discoverable.”

What’s a great piece of advice that you can share with fellow indie authors?

Learn the basics of creating compelling characters and plots from established, professional writers. Learn how to create scenes packed with conflict and drama that move the story forward while capturing your reader’s attention.

Would you go traditional if a publisher came calling? If so, why?

It would depend upon the publisher which came calling. If a major publisher came forward, I’d have to go with them because I want my books to reach as many people as possible. Also, having a traditional publisher helps enormously with media placement and reviews in widely read newspapers and magazines.

Is there something in particular that motivates you?

It’s fun to create and live in imaginary worlds populated by characters that become like a family to me. Above and beyond this, I want to communicate a central theme that I am passionate about that I feel will have universal appeal.

Which book do you wish you could have written?

Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury.