THE BOOK MARKETING EXPERT NEWSLETTER!
A newsletter all about SUCCESSFUL publishing and POWERFUL promotion.
June 25, 2009 Issue #198
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in this issue
-- Note From The Editor
-- Marketing Lessons Learned in Line at Your Local Grocery store
-- Featured Article - 20 Simple Ways to Drive Massive Traffic to Your Web Site
-- Saveur Magazine
-- AME-University: Book Marketing, Publishing, and Internet Marketing classes
-- Are you using Networked Blogs?
-- Book Bits and Bites
-- Ready for a Tweetup?
-- What Producers Really Look for in a Guest
-- Facebook Frenzy
-- Why Limiting Choices is a Good Thing
-- Check in With The Publishing Insiders
-- See What One of Our Experts Had to Say
-- Promote Your Book NOW
-- Twitter Trend
-- Ways to Buzz Your Book!
-- Twitter Tip: Twidentify
-- Twitter Tip: Hashtags
-- Reader Tip!
-- WHO ARE WE
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Penny C. Sansevieri, Editor
penny@amarketingexpert.comWelcome to a new issue of THE BOOK MARKETING EXPERT NEWSLETTER.
You are receiving this newsletter compliments of Author Marketing Experts, Inc. To opt out, please scroll down to the bottom of this newsletter.
Note From The Editor
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Welcome to another issue of the Book Marketing Expert Newsletter!
Dear Author,
Welcome back! We've got another packed issue and we're glad you're here! So, what if you build a web site and no one shows up? This week we're looking at some great ways to get traffic to your web site.
This week we're also looking at more Twitter tips, Facebook ideas, and a great profile of Saveur magazine. We hope you enjoy this issue and be on the lookout for the latest edition of Red Hot Internet Publicity, coming soon!
Wishing you continued publishing success,
Penny, Paula, Susan, Alex, Nancy and everyone at Author Marketing Experts, Inc.
Follow me on Twitter:
http://twitter.com/Bookgal.
P.S. Have you been wanting to dip your toe in Internet marketing but aren't sure where to get started? We have just launched a series of effective, innovative, and super-affordable marketing programs. Send an email to:
bookmarketingonabudget@getresponse.com to find out more!
P.P.S. Check out our blog!
We offer great tips and insights, such as: 'Blogging: What On Earth Do I Talk About?:'
http://amarketingexpert.com/ameblog/?p=878Marketing Lessons Learned in Line at Your Local Grocery store
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When was the last time you looked at the magazines in your grocery line? I mean really looked at them, not just scanned them for Brangelina references? Magazines are a great marketing tool and a great way to get some ideas for your own campaign. So how would you use this information? Well, you can use it in web copy, book cover copy, and any marketing materials. Think about all the places you use words to draw the reader in, that's what you should be focusing on. The next time you're in line at your grocery store, take a close look at magazines, you'll find pieces of the following list in just about all of them:
Solve a problem: this is a big one and the #1 attractor to any magazine out there. Magazines know that if they're not solving a problem for you, you're not likely to buy them. A recent issue of Ladies Home Journal for example talked about how to use social networking to keep friendships strong. Why is this huge? Because social media is a buzz word now and staying connected to people is the primary source and use for social networking. You'll also see a lot of money-related topics (living well on less, etc). Solve a problem, preferably a current one.
Tell stories: people love stories and remember more about what you're selling when there's a story attached to it. So weave your advice into a story or anecdotal piece. Magazines always use stories and do so very well.
Speak directly to the reader: if you look at women's magazines (in particular) you'll find lots of words like: you, our, I and we. This is done intentionally and helps personalize the experience and draw the reader in. Also, you'll notice that magazines never use complicated words that aren't "layperson language;" this again is intentional, don't talk over your reader.
There are many more things that magazines focus on, but these are the major areas and should get you a good head start on any copy you're writing for your campaign. Remember, it's all about your reader and not about you. Get your reader engaged in your message and you're more likely to make a sale.
Featured Article - 20 Simple Ways to Drive Massive Traffic to Your Web Site
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Embarking on an Internet marketing campaign doesn't have to be difficult, tricky, or complicated. Here are a few simple tips (twenty in fact) that you can easily implement to get tons of traffic to your site right now!
1) Write articles: believe it or not this is an incredible tool for driving traffic. Writing good, well-written, relevant articles can net you quite a bit of activity to your web site. Don't forget to add your URL in your byline. Articles should be 500 to 2,000 words in length. You can send articles to sites like: articlecity.com, goarticles.com, submityourarticles.com and ezinearticles.com.
2) Social bookmark *everything* - and I do mean everything, you can bookmark each page of your site and each blog entry you post. While this might seem tedious it's worth it. You'll see a strong increase in traffic if you social bookmark each page on your site and each of your blog entries.
3) List yourself in the best directories - you'll have to pay for this but since most people don't do this (since everyone's looking for a freebie) you could really enhance your traffic by getting a listing:
http://dir.yahoo.com,
www.business.org, botw.org.
4) Get yourself listed at: DMOZ.org - it's not easy to get listed there but worth the effort.
5) Review: if you can review hot new products or books within your market, head on over to Amazon.com and start positioning yourself as an expert. In order to do this effectively you'll want to create an Amazon profile and make sure and sign each review with a reference to your URL (your web site). You can also go to epionions.com and revoo.com to review products as well.
6) Offer a freebie on Craig's List: you'll be amazed at how much traffic you get from a single Craig's List ad. They key here is to send people to a page on your site and make sure they have to sign up for something (like your email newsletter) before they can grab their freebie. That way you're not just getting traffic, you're also building your list.
7) Create a "recommended by" list on your Del.icio.us page - you can do this by logging on and creating an account at del.icio.us and then tagging articles, blogs and other content you think is important to your readership. Then offer this page as a resource site. You can add a link to this page in your email signature line or on your web site.
And speaking of your email signature line - do you have one? If you don't, create one. Believe it or not people do follow these links. You'll be amazed how many folks read email signature lines. I have one and change it several times a year depending on what we're doing or promoting or what books I have coming out.
9) Lend a helping hand: you can be an answer person at Yahoo Answers,
http://answers.yahoo.com/ - you don't have to spend hours on there but maybe a few minutes a week. Make sure and include a link back to your site by your answers.
10) Set up a social networking site using Facebook.com, Linkedin.com, or Squidoo. It's free and easy to do, just don't forget the all-important link back to your site!
11) Make sure your blog has an RSS feed so if you capture a reader you don't lose them if they forget to bookmark your site or blog
12) Join relevant groups at Yahoo groups,
http://groups.yahoo.com/. You'll find everything from groups on growing your small business, writing books, finding your passion, even underwater basket weaving. I dare you to find one that isn't right for what you're promoting. When you do find the right group, join and participate as you can!
13) Podcasting is another great way to drive traffic. Start a podcast by going to AudioAcrobat,
http://bookmkr.audioacrobat.com/ - yes, this is our affiliate link. There are other programs you can use, but I love AudioAcrobat. You can record the podcast over the phone quickly and easily and then hit the "send" button on your computer once it's recorded and the system will syndicate it to 27 podcast directories including iTunes. It's a great way to let people know about you and your web site!
14) Start a blog and then once you do, start commenting on other people's blogs, linking to them from your site or adding them to your blogroll.
15) Inbound links: don't squander your time (or a perfectly good link) on smaller low-traffic sites. Instead spend your time going after high traffic, high quality sites. Good sites should have a PR (page ranking) of 4-6 depending on the market. You can find out what a site's page ranking is by downloading the Google toolbar which comes with a PR feature built in.
16) Start an email newsletter: while it may not seem like a newsletter that you email can drive traffic to your site you'd be surprised at the effectiveness of this type of promotion. If your newsletter (like your articles) is interesting and relevant to your audience you'll find that it has a huge pass-through factor. Meaning that it is passed from one email subscriber to another. Also, if you have an email newsletter you should never, ever go to a single event without your handy signup sheet. Yes, you can even use offline events to drive traffic to your web site.
17) And speaking of offline efforts: if you're ever quoted in a magazine or other publication, make sure and mention your URL as it's appropriate to the topic. Don't be too pushy about this but do not forget to tell folks you have a web site that may be a great resource for the topic of your interview.
18) If you have products to sell why not get a store on eBay? This site gets a tremendous amount of traffic and on your sales page you're allowed to list your URL. Another great way to get an inbound link and a way for people to find you.
19) Load a video on YouTube and 57 other video sites - if you don't have a video or don't know how to create one contact us and we'll refer you to our fabulous book video people!
20) While this isn't a tip per se it's still important. If you're going to go through all the trouble of getting traffic to your site, make sure your site is converting this traffic into something. Get folks to sign up for something, your newsletter, the RSS feed on your blog. Whatever it is, getting their email address will help you remarket to them when the time is right. Studies show that visitors landing on a site often don't buy the first time. That's ok! You want to get them into your marketing funnel so you can market to them again and again - not in a way that's obtrusive, offensive or downright annoying but in a way that is helping them with their own mission. An example of this might be an email newsletter. A helpful, informative newsletter is a fantastic funnel. A blog is another great way to keep people in your marketing loop without bombarding them with "please buy my stuff" email messages. Also, make sure you know what your traffic numbers are before you launch into any Internet marketing campaign. By traffic numbers I mean how many people are visiting your site. You want to know this so you can gauge a before and after view of your marketing efforts.
Saveur Magazine
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Saveur looks for stories from all over the world that focus on culture, tradition and people - through food. As the magazine notes, cooking is one of the most universal - and beautiful - means of human expression. The magazine is published 9 times a year and has a readership of 1.6 million.
Regular departments include Fare - news, developments and trends in food; Kitchenwise - a look at kitchens from all over; Memories - chronicles of formative culinary experiences from acclaimed writers; Drink - which spotlights wines, beers or spirits; Cellar - a wine showcase. In addition, the magazine offers enterprising journalism, ordering information for food-related products, a celebration of classic dishes, recipes, tips and more.
Saveur has a website, with forums, articles, an e-newsletter and more.
Editorial calendar:
August/September: Great American Burgers
October: Lamb Around the World
November: American Thanksgiving; Unlocking the Mysteries of Korean Cuisine; Germany's Most Legendary Winemakers; Timeless Meals in Jerusalem; The Beauty of Heirloom Apples
December: Christmas in Northern Italy; The Comforts of Winter Squash; Toasting the New Year in Ireland; Japan's Best Sushi; Amazing Italian Sparkling Wine
Saveur Magazine
Bonnier Corporation
460 N. Orlando Ave., Suite 200
Winter Park, FL 32789
Email form:
http://www.saveur.com/contact_us.jspWebsite:
http://www.saveur.com/AME-University: Book Marketing, Publishing, and Internet Marketing classes
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These free teleclasses from AME-University may be just the thing to get your book marketing savvy ramped up! A new class list is coming soon so be sure to check it out!
Going up? Crafting an Exceptional Elevator Pitch
When: Thursday, July 9, 4:00 pm - 4:30 pm
Description: Do you know that you have 3 seconds to get someone's attention when pitching your book? If you haven't crafted an expert elevator pitch, you will love this class! We'll take a look at elevator pitches, tips to crafting perfect ones and the biggest mistakes to avoid. BONUS: everyone on the call will get personal elevator pitch advice, so bring your pitches! (all authors wanting to work on their elevator pitch need to submit their 2-3 sentence elevator pitch 24 hours prior to the class, don't worry if it's not perfect - that's what we'll work on in class!)
How to join in:
To sign up or learn more about these classes send an email to
author@amarketingexpert.com.
The AME website has a complete class listing for handy reference:
http://www.amarketingexpert.com/iclasses.html.
Missed a class? Here's an easy way to catch up on past classes, just visit the AME-University All Access Pass.
Are you using Networked Blogs?
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Do you have a blog? A Facebook account? Then you will love the Networked Blogs application at Facebook.
NetworkedBlogs is a Facebook application.
Think of it as a social network for bloggers inside Facebook.
Add a visual blogroll on your profile, and show off your blogs and blogs you like.
NetworkedBlogs also aggregates the RSS/ATOM feeds from thousands of blogs and allows you to read the latest news selected by users like you.
It's one more place where you can connect; and, you can actually rank for keywords in Google based on the topics you choose here.
Want to see an example in action?
Login to your Facebook profile, then click on:
http://apps.facebook.com/blognetworks/blog/susan_gilbert_americas_focus_expert/Notice you can Follow me (please do). Networked blogs used to say join, but now use the term Follow. I believe this is to maintain continuity with Twitter users.
Here is the application link to get started:
http://apps.facebook.com/blognetworks/index.phpTip offered by Susan Gilbert, AME's Search Engine Marketing Expert and Web 2.0 company owner,
http://www.JoomlaJump.com, which provides Social Networking websites and services.
Book Bits and Bites
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The Author as Performer: Here's a real twist on traditional book signings/events to showier, more theatrical performances as noted in Financial Times:
http://foxyurl.com/76t.
Sales to Salivate Over: Galleycat examined bestselling author Nora Roberts by the numbers - 27 books sold every minute (outselling John Grisham and Stephen King):
http://foxyurl.com/70E.
Coming Soon, Something to Tweet About: "Twitterature" - the world's greatest literature presented in 20 tweets or less, to be published by Penguin:
http://foxyurl.com/717.
Excuses, Excuses: Among the reasons given for late library books? An alien abduction said one scofflaw, who finally returned an overdue library book to the San Francisco Public Library, according to Bay Area News,
http://foxyurl.com/6XZ.
Ready for a Tweetup?
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Ready to create a Tweetup (where you invite your Twitter followers to an event or gathering)? Then try Twtvite at
http://twtvite.com. The site was designed for Twitter users who want to organize a tweetup, but you can use it to attract anybody to your event, even if they aren't on Twitter.
What Producers Really Look for in a Guest
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As a talk show producer, there are 5 very important elements that I look for in a guest, topic or interview. Follow these simple rules and you will be a hit every time!
1. Timely topic or great idea
2. Passion and enthusiasm
3. Quality information relevant to the audience
4. Good conversation - not just questions and answers
5. Punctuality
Make sure your topic is something people are really interested in or talking about. Watch other programs, read the paper, check out the news, talk to friends or coworkers, etc. for ideas. If the economy is bad, tell me how to take a great trip on a budget, not about the latest five-star hotels that I can't afford.
I love a guest with enthusiasm and passion about their topic. If you're excited chances are I will be too. I don't care what you're discussing - as long as the interview entertains or "informs with enthusiasm" it will be a success. Dazzle me!
Make sure your information is correct and relevant to your audience. Tell them why your information is important to them and why they will benefit from spending the next few minutes watching this program. Viewers always want and need good solid information that entertains and informs!
Remember, it's a conversation not just question and answer time. Imagine you are relaxing in a friend's living room chatting over a glass of wine. It's about the give and take, not 20 questions.
PUNCTUALITY is huge and could be a deal breaker for this producer!!!! Never, ever be late and if you see that you will be, call me. Nothing is worse when you are live than to wonder what's keeping a guest. So don't do it!
Remember Topicality, Enthusiasm, Good Conversation, Relevant Information and Punctuality makes for a happy producer!
For more information or to schedule a coaching session go to
www.myhattricktv.com or call (602) 509-6468.
~Tip offered by Media Veteran Laura Holka, who is the producer of the Pat McMahon Show & a Media Consultant. She can be reached at
www.myhattricktv.com.
Facebook Frenzy
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Are you on Facebook yet? No? Why not? Or maybe you're on Facebook and not sure what to do now that you're there. Well, check out these recent stats (courtesy of Marketingsavant.com):
* As of 2/14/09 Facebook has 175,000,000 active users
* Facebook grows by well over 600,000 users per day
* If Facebook were a country it would now be the 6th most populated country in the world
* The fastest growing segment are women over 55 (up 175% according to this report)
* Women dominate Facebook (meaning there are more women than men on Facebook)
Tips for an effective Facebook page:
· Update frequently. Facebook is not the field of dreams, just because you built it doesn't mean people will beat a path to your door
· Use it to post events, updates on your book, product or message - keep your followers current about what's going on in your world. Don't tell us you just washed the dog.
· Facebook is not a way to push a message, but rather communicate *with* your market.
· Make sure your picture is current, don't use a logo - I tend to think that doesn't personalize your page enough. People want to see you, let them get to know who you are.
Why Limiting Choices is a Good Thing
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When you walk into a store these days, it seems the choices overwhelm you. There seem to be nine different kinds of everything. How to you pick the right one? How do you know which one is the best choice for you? Regardless of what you're getting, whether it's a new Blackberry or the choice of cereal, the options seem endless.
Options are great, we certainly want to know that we don't have to stick with one brand or item if we don't want to, but in the web world, too many choices can be a bad thing. The reality is this: the average author has at least a half a dozen links on their home page. A new reader landing on this site is wondering where to go first, out of frustration they may not go anywhere, become confused and leave. Haven't you ever done this? You think to yourself, "oh, I'll be back when I have time," but you never are.
How can you avoid this? Well, a couple of things. First off, this is why a sign-up for a free newsletter or mailing list is so important. Also, that ethical bribe I am always referring to (give them something to get something). There's also the idea of sending folks to a "free stuff" page. We have that on the AME site. But guess what? The free stuff page won't give you your free stuff unless you give us your email address. So why is an email address so important? Because studies show that less than 14% of surfers actually buy the first time they land on a site (frankly I think that number should be much lower). If you're going to get them back, you'll need to be able to market to them again.
Giving your web visitors too many options can be a fatal flaw in your marketing. Go to your home page right now and count the links you have. When I've done this in a class setting authors are often surprised how many different places they are trying to send people. Limiting choices can increase your conversion, and in the end, isn't that what you want your web site to do?
Check in With The Publishing Insiders
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Be in the know and hear what the publishing insiders: Penny Sansevieri, CEO of Author Marketing Experts, Inc. - and her guests - have to offer in terms of tips and insights into the industry! Listen here.
Publishing Insiders is also available on iTunes, so you can keep up with the show wherever you go!
See What One of Our Experts Had to Say
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AME is fortunate to work with Attorney/legal expert Peter Haven, who was recently featured on MTV when the show did a segment on the Chris Brown-Rihanna assault case:
http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1614470/20090622/brown__chris__18_.jhtml.
Promote Your Book NOW
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Looking for inexpensive ways to promote your book? We've just developed and launched an exciting series of budget-friendly programs that still pack a powerful punch! Think you can't market your book in a tough economy? Think again - we've got the answer! Email us for more details:
info@amarketingexpert.com.
Twitter Trend
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Think Twitter isn't worth considering? Think again. In September the number of Twitter users passed the 3 million mark.
Ways to Buzz Your Book!
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We've designed our products with your success in mind! Regardless of where you are in your publishing journey, we've got a product that will suit your needs. Check out our books, special reports, and our audio programs, all designed to help you reach publishing success!
http://amarketingexpert.com/store/Twitter Tip: Twidentify
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Twidentify:
http://www.twidentify.com. Ready to find some Twitter trends or influential Twitterers? Twidentify can help!
Twitter Tip: Hashtags
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HashTags:
http://www.hashtags.org. Did you know that by using the # (hashtag) sign before a word, you can tag your tweets? This site tracks the most popular hashtags.
Reader Tip!
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If you've got a Reader Tip you'd like to share, please send it to
penny@amarketingexpert.com with the subject line "reader tip." Submissions should be 75 words or less.
WHO ARE WE
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Author Marketing Experts, Inc. is a full-service book marketing, promotion, and publicity company. We serve authors at all stages of marketing and promotion. We offer a full range of packages and services to choose from.
To see a price list or schedule a free consultation, send your e-mail to
penny@amarketingexpert.com with the subject line "Author Services Info." You can also visit our Web site at
www.amarketingexpert.com.
Reprint permission
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Reprinted from "The Book Marketing Expert newsletter," a free ezine offering book promotion and publicity tips and techniques.
http://www.amarketingexpert.com------------------------------------------------------------
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