Archive for the ‘Marketing & Promotion’ Category

3 free and simple ideas for self-promotion

Monday, February 22nd, 2010

There is life “offline,” so I thought it would be nice to share some ideas for personal promotion. The foundation of your fan or readership base already includes your family, friends, along with your business and social contacts. You can build on that foundation by becoming an active and visible participant in your community.  By investing a few hours each month, you can begin to establish yourself as a local celebrity.  These self-promotion suggestions are simple, cost virtually nothing but your time, and are particularly suited to those of us who live in “small town” America.

Become an advocate
Can you help spearhead a local blood drive or fundraiser?  Are you interested in preserving an historic site or building? Do the sidewalks in your community need repair?  Adopt a “cause” and volunteer to be a local spokesperson.

Conduct a workshop or seminar at your local senior center 
Researching your family history? Explain why it’s important for older adults to share their experiences with their family members. Offer suggestions on how to do that effectively. If you’re a writer, you could offer tips and insights on writing a memoir.

Make a speech or presentation at your local library, community center or community college
Did you vacation in Spain? Do you train sled dogs? Are you just back from distributing food or medicine in Haiti? Share highlights and photos of your experiences.

People are always interested in interesting people. Be one.

Love A Zombie Month

Monday, October 5th, 2009

It’s October. The days are lengthening, the foliage in my corner of the world exquisite. And zombies are all the rage as we work our way toward All Hallows Eve. I’m declaring October as Love A Zombie Month.

Tn_ZombieCookbookFor moviegoers, a new horror comedy, Zombieland, debuted this weekend. CNN has consulted zombie experts to explain why we are so fascinated with the putrid living dead.

In addition, there’s a new book for zombie aficionados, The Zombie Cookbook.  Take the virtual book tour to learn more about this fun collection of poems, stories and recipes.

Writer promotion starts here

Thursday, October 26th, 2006

I’m trying to learn about writer promotion. It’s not as simple as standing in the middle of the street and waving a flag that says “I’m a writer” or “Buy my book.”  Well, first I have to actually write a novel before I can start hawking it. But that’s for another post.  Today I’m beginning the process of creating the “buzz” that will ultimately result in a fan base and lots of sales.  One of the first tools was to create my website. The next tool was to create my blog and keep it active by posting regularly.  So far I’m two for two. 

But how will anyone know that I exist here in cyberspace?  The secret to writer promotion on the Internet is the use of keywords and links. There’s all kinds of info around about search engine optimization, but frankly I’d rather be writing than researching at this point in time. So I asked a friend of mine who knows a lot about writer promotion what I could do, and she gave me some tips. Just having this kind of friend is beneficial – it’s called networking.     We’ll talk more about that in another post.

(Silly me – I thought I wouldn’t have enough ideas or topics to keep this blog going regularly, but I’m keeping a list of these “spin-off” topics. And thanks to inspiredauthor for the..well…inspiration!)