The Procrastinator’s Guide to Online Marketing

I’ve been presenting a talk for a few months now called “Social Media Marketing in 15 Minutes a Day.” It’s fun; I’d like to think it’s informative. People seem to like it. But there’s an interesting phenomena that happens every time I’ve presented. I get emails and phone calls from people saying, “I can’t make [...]

July 6, 2010 · Mary · No Comments
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Cool ways to promote on Facebook that’s not really promoting

I know a lot of authors on Facebook, but not too many are taking advantage of fan pages, where you can promote your business or service or book. One of the dilemmas of Facebook is deciding whether you want to focus on personal relationships – family and friends – or friend everyone you can who’s [...]

June 29, 2009 · Mary · No Comments
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What’s the buzz on Twitter?

Twitter is a social networking sites that allows you to answer that important question: What are you doing right now? You have 140 characters to answer. Sounds a bit silly? Well, yes and no. For those of us who scramble to find time to write at all, the idea of promoting 140 characters at a [...]

December 23, 2008 · Mary · No Comments
Tags: , ,  Â· Posted in: Uncategorized, internet, marketing

What does your email signature say about you?

New authors are always looking for ways to advertise their book. Here’s an easy one: include it in your email signature. It’s free advertising; every email you send has the ability to connect with a potential reader. It’s also a pretty good idea to have a separate email address for your publishing business or book. [...]

November 21, 2008 · Mary · No Comments
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8 easy ways to build your mailing list

When you set up a “sign up for my ezine” section on your website, did you initially believe that “if you build it, they will come?” And were you disappointed with the results? Well, you do need to help the process along. Here are 8 easy ways you can let people know about your ezine [...]

November 13, 2008 · Mary · No Comments
Tags: , ,  Â· Posted in: internet, self publishing

More on podcasting your novel

Ever since I wrote about serial podcasting I’ve seen references to the original story all over the web. (The original story was in the San Francisco Chronicle.) * One author added some great twists of his own: Author J.C. Hutchins got actors and directors to record promotional clips into his recordings. Director George Romero (of [...]

November 11, 2008 · Mary · No Comments
Tags: ,  Â· Posted in: internet, self publishing

The death of traditional book stores

Brick and mortar stores are losing to online bookstores. I’ve been seeing a lot of articles online on how many bookstores are closing their brick and mortar stores while keeping their online store. The internet, they say, has killed their traditional bookstore business. As self-publishers, their loss is your gain. You stand to make a [...]

November 7, 2008 · Mary · No Comments
Tags: , , ,  Â· Posted in: Amazon.com, self publishing

Why your website needs a press kit

As a published author, you should have information on your website for the press and others to learn about you and your book. Consider these questions: * Do you ever try to get free publicity for your book? The first place the press will check is your website. A website with no information – or [...]

October 13, 2008 · Mary · No Comments
Tags: , , ,  Â· Posted in: self publishing