I’ve shared the story, many times, of my naivety when I wrote my first book. Like many authors, I thought all I needed to do was write a book and the rest would take care of itself.
Sales on my first books were minimal. Frustrated, I asked some very successful authors why I wasn’t selling any books. The question they inevitably asked was, “What are you doing to market your book? What kind of visibility do you have?”
My blank stare and a, “Uhhh, haven’t done much of anything to market the book,” gave them all the information they needed to determine why I had not sold more than a handful of books.
Ironically, I’d been in marketing for years, but had a disconnect when it came to marketing my books.
I erroneously believed the, “Build it and they will come,” myth.
Today, I look at the success of a book with a completely different lens.

Today I say….

Build it. Do all you can to let people know you built it. Be willing to sell it.
Interpretation… Write it. Market it. Sell it.

You MUST Be Visible

Authors need visibility… as do their books, IF they want to maximize their opportunities.
The more visible you are, the more books you’ll sell. Yet, many authors continue to shy away from the spotlight.
Shying away from the spotlight means hiding out from potential readers. If your books are designed to help readers improve some aspect of their life, if you’re not doing all you can to be visible, you’re actually depriving people from tapping into your brilliance.
The first step to successful book sales is to accept you must become visible. One of the best ways to do this is commit to doing something every day for 30-days, without fail.

Getting Through the Clutter

In the past, gaining visibility was a lot tougher than it is today. Yet, today there is more noise and competition to contend with.
Even though it’s easy to gain visibility, avoid a haphazard approach. This is the greatest benefit of a 30-day challenge.
I’ve participated in various types of challenges including health, nutrition, blogging, marketing and in a few days, I’m starting two video challenges.
I must admit, years ago when I participated in my first blogging challenge, I was all over the place with what I blogged about. Even though I did the challenge, I didn’t get the results I got on my most recent 30-day Blogging Challenge.

Have a Plan

With the most recent blogging challenge, hosted by Paul Taubman and Danni Ackerman, I determined from Day One on a theme. I also decided what my long-term goal was with each post.
My primary focus was on book marketing. Not only was I clear on what I would blog about, I was also very, very clear that I would use the challenge as a way to build my subscriber list, get people in to my Power Up for Profits Facebook group and generate revenues.

Results

• Over $1,000 in sales from the time I started. Most of the sales were for $20 and $37.
• My list increased by a couple hundred
• My Facebook group increased by over 50 new members

Had I not had a clear plan of what I wanted my end result to be, I likely would have had results that didn’t come anywhere close what they are.

The Video Challenges

With both video challenges, I am very clear that again, I will focus on shooting video that teaches viewers about book marketing. I also know I can make a nice offer for something free that continues the training and dialogue on book marketing while building my subscriber list.
What I love about doing both challenges at the same time is how much it will stretch me. One challenge focuses on doing Facebook Live while the other is all about YouTube videos.

Facebook Live

Just like it sounds, Facebook Live is real time video. It’s a great way to interact with viewers real time. You can have an open Q&A to engage viewers. This allows you to know what’s on people’s minds. You can read comments from those on the live view.
What’s great is once the video is done, it can be posted on your Facebook wall or in a group you run for later viewing.
You may have only a few people on the live event, but after the fact you can have dozens, hundreds, even thousands of views.
Want to learn about FB Live and the 30 Day Challenge from Lou Bortone? Click here to check it out and join in. No cost to join.
Lou is making the opportunity irresistible. When you enroll before August 1st, Lou’s throwing in his Facebook Live 101 course as a free bonus! (A $97 value – Yours FREE!)
How cool is that?

Tube Ritual

With a different focus on video, Tube Ritual is the brainchild of Brian G. Johnson. During the 30 days, Brian will be sharing ideas, insights and tips on how to get more engagement with your YouTube videos.
Here’s the deal. This is not about using the same video for both platforms. Nope! It’s about learning each platform and committing to doing videos for each.
What I love about Brian’s challenge is this; if you are willing to make a minimal financial investment (under $20) you get a full YouTube training program with immediate access.
I’ve watched several of the training videos and am blown away by the information.

Go for the Gusto

If it were me, I’d register for both challenges. Oh! I did and I highly recommend you do too. Both Lou and Brian are masters at what they do. Each can teach you tons about video and video marketing.
If you’re serious about your marketing, seriously join both. IMHO

30-Day Challenge to Promote a Book

There’s nothing better the a good challenge to stay to course with your book marketing. However, it’s not just about saying, “Buy my book.”
Nope. It’s about using content from your book to come up with ideas.
Let’s say you have a book on dog training. List 30 things you could teach dog owners about how to train their dogs. On the list you could have things like:

• Unruly behavior
• Reward based training
• Digging
• Jumping
• Ball aggression
• Positive reinforcement
• Etc.

Map out how you want the information to unfold. Get a wall calendar and add a topic for each of the 30-days. Whether it be video or blogging, make a commitment that, no matter what, you get great content out to market for a 30-day period. No excuses!
Be sure to let people know where they can opt in for something like a checklist, report or a more in-depth video. When they opt-in, this is your opportunity to continue to create high value.
In your videos or blog posts you can include a link to your Amazon page. Or, you can send broadcast emails to those who opted in with a direct link to your book page on Amazon.

My Own Book Marketing

My memoir will be published at the end of 4th quarter this year. I plan to be very, very consistent with my marketing, both online and off. 30-day challenges offer me this opportunity.
Prior to that time, I’m using the challenges to build a community of potential book buyers. Yes, hopefully that’s you.
Soon I am going to start a 30-Day BOOK CHALLENGE for members of my Power Up for Profits Facebook group.
In the meantime, to create as much value to my group as possible, I will be posting live videos about marketing a book. Want to learn how to market your books? Click the Facebook image below.