By Maritza Martinez
Mejía
It sounds weird, but
rejection is my motivation. In April 2015 I submitted my books for reviews to
minor and major websites. Two of the minor websites accepted my books and gave
me a Five Stars Review. However, one major website rejected my Bilingual Children
Books because I did not have a good Marketing Plan. According to them, “It's extremely important
to take advantage of a wide variety of marketing tools and opportunities so
that your book can reach as many readers as possible. We've got some great
resources that can help you…”
Yes, they were generous to send me a
full package of free information, but what is a Marketing Plan?
I took in consideration some of
their tips and put them into action. By my surprise from zero sells during the
month of April (according to Amazon Author Central), I jumped to 11 sales in
three weeks. I realized if you do not have an agent, you have to create a
Marketing Plan.
First thing first, probably the most
effective way to reach readers is by building a strong web presence. To
effectively market your self-published books, it is important to have a window
to look at your books, accomplishments, reviews, awards, photos and any
opportunity to make your books excel.
I created a plan for a simple
website with the following tabs: mission, about me, reflections, books, poems,
interviews and how to contact me. I asked for help in my family and the
expertise in technology came to my rescue. I gave them the idea, they created
options to study, and in one month my website was ready.
Second
step is to use Social Media. I took a one day workshop in a local Community
College and they agreed that being
successful at social media means putting out great content and engaging with
readers. I have to agree that if you send a message or comment and wait for a
week without replied, it is not only rude, but also indicate your lack of
participation with your fans. They are the readers who are going to buy your
books. They are waiting for you to talk to them.
I dedicate myself an hour a day to
reply, post updates about my books, reviews and add photos of events I
participate to promote my titles. It is time consuming, but I jumped from 400
fans to 800 in one month.
Third step is to attend local Book
Fairs, Writers Conferences, School Visits and any exposition available in your
community to promote your books like Marketplace or Library events.
I booked myself into a
local Family Reading Festival, speaker for Young Author Event in a local School
and a Women Conference in a nearby County. The results were amazing; I sold out
my supply of books I had in mind to sell for the entire year.
Fourth step is to promote your books
with a Video, Podcast, Interviews or any audio material.
I worked hard to obtain and
interview online and with the generosity of one of my readers, I had a Podcast.
I am still waiting for an opportunity to have a video and audio material of my
books. It is not an easy task, but with the availably of technology this will
be my project for Fall 2015.
Enjoy your readings and have a
Marketing Plan in your Things to Do.
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