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Category : Marketing and Platforms
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Continue Reading "Thursdays with Amanda: Social Media Critiques Part 4"Thursdays with Amanda: Social Media Critiques Part 4
Amanda Luedeke is a literary agent with MacGregor Literary. Every Thursday, she posts about growing your author platform. You can follow her on Twitter @amandaluedeke or join her Facebook group to stay current with her wheelings and dealings as an agent.
A few weeks ago, I offered free social media critiques to those who replied before the 14th. You see, social media is a specialty of mine. Before becoming an agent, I worked for some years as a social media marketer at a marketing agency outside of Chicago. I worked with clients such as Vera Bradley, Peg Perego, Benjamin Moore and more. A somewhat longer description of what I did can be found in the first critique post.
1. Back Porch Reflections is a blog by Jackie
- I don’t really know what this blog is trying to achieve. It seems like a sports or news blog with a mommy twist, but the title of the blog indicates it’s a personal journey type of thing. :/
- I also struggle with the goal behind each post. Clearly, you’re into sports. But jumping from a very journalistic post on 10/05 to what starts as a journalistic post but ends more like a food-for-thought post on 09/30 to another journalistic-type/info-sharing post on 09/19 to further down the page where you have very personal posts. Clearly, you need to identify both your writing style and your theme for the blog.
- Content aside, the design is a bit cluttered on the right nav, and the masthead is pretty lacking. Really be intentional about where you place things and how it looks (for example, in my browser there’s an Amazon ad that is kind of hanging in no-man’s land).
- Get rid of ads.
RECOMMENDATIONS: Choose a theme and a writing style to go along with that theme. Remember, if you go with a journalistic approach, you aren’t going to be followed for your
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Continue Reading "Thursdays with Amanda: Social Media Critiques Part 3"
Thursdays with Amanda: Social Media Critiques Part 3
A few weeks ago, I offered free social media critiques to those who replied before the 14th. You see, social media is a specialty of mine. Before becoming an agent, I worked for some years as a social media marketer at a marketing agency outside of Chicago. I worked with clients such as Vera Bradley, Peg Perego, Benjamin Moore and more. A somewhat longer description of what I did can be found in the first critique post.
1. The Messy Middle is a blog by Amy Young
- I’m not sure the aesthetics of the site complement the goal. When I first brought it up, I almost expected it to be a site on architecture or interior design. There’s just not much color, and so it has a very cold feel (lots of grays). Your font tries to warm things up, but the masthead is so overpowering with its stark image and cold color scheme that it just doesn’t feel like a place “where grace and truth reside”
- Your “about” page, though creative, is a bit too meandering. When faced with the issue noted above, I had to rely on this page to give me a clear picture of what I should expect from the blog. It took awhile to get that picture, and I’m afraid you’re going to lose potential readers as a result.
- You’ve tapped into a subject matter that could result in a good following (woman is transplanted into foreign culture; must make a way). But there’s a delicate balance between journaling your experience and making the reader feel as though they’re part of it. Because that’s why people read blogs like yours…they
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Continue Reading "Thursdays with Amanda: How to Create Your Own Masthead"
Thursdays with Amanda: How to Create Your Own Masthead
One of the things I’ve noticed when going through your blogs is that many of you rely solely on pre-made templates for your blog design. You may type a few words as a header, but for the most part, you’ve done nothing to customize the space and make it your own. I’m guessing this is because many of you don’t know how easy creating your own masthead can be! I mean, I CREATED MINE USING MICROSOFT PAINT, FOR CRYING OUT LOUD!
Here’s my personal blog, Swedish Pankakes. (Remember! My blog is NOT a shining example of what to do. I’m not trying to grow a platform with it or gain attention, so I don’t implement many of my own tips). If you visit my blog, you’ll see that it looks very personalized and maybe even a smidge professional. But I use a free template with very little customization options. So what makes it look so unique? My masthead!
This little doo-dad can make a world of difference in getting your blog to look more professional. And I’m going to show you how I did it.1. You must find a picture that not only fits your blog/website’s vibe, but one that is visually appealing, clean (you don’t want it too busy) and full of colors that you can build your site around. So, let’s say that I was going to create an agent blog. I’d select this picture I took that showcases the first four books I did as an agent:
2. Open the picture in whatever design program you have or know how to use. All I have is Microsoft Paint (this comes standard with any -
Continue Reading "Thursdays with Amanda: The Free Social Media Critiques Begin!"
Thursdays with Amanda: The Free Social Media Critiques Begin!
Wow! Lots and lots of takers on my offer last week to give free social media feedback. It’s going to take awhile to get through it all, but I’m up for the challenge.
Now, for some structure…I think I’m going to go with a 2-1-2 approach. I’ll give blog critiques for two weeks, then one will be spent doing a “normal” post. Two weeks again on critiques and so on until I’ve worked through the list. Sound good?
I also realize that I should provide some background on who I am and what qualifications I have to do this. So, a bit about me…
Before becoming an agent, I worked for some years at a marketing agency outside of Chicago. I was a social media marketer for two years, and then a copywriter for one. I quit the job to pursue agenting full time.
While in marketing, I worked with clients such as Vera Bradley, Peg Perego, Benjamin Moore and more. I scripted and directed Peg Perego USA’s 2011 collection product videos and was the primary visionary for their Facebook page and blog. For Vera Bradley, my primary achievement was writing sales, ad, descriptions, and store copy for their various 2010 and 2011 collections.
So that’s my background and why I tend to have a handle on this marketing thing. For me, it’s all about putting yourself in the consumer’s shoes. Giving them what they want. Not necessarily what you feel most like providing.
Alright now, without further adieu, here’s some feedback on 5 of your sites:
1. Let Me Write That Down is a blog by Ruth Stearns.
- My first thought is that you
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Continue Reading "Should an author blog?"Should an author blog?
I keep getting one question over and over again from authors — “Should I blog?” Technorati tells us they are already following more than 20 million blogs, so it ought to be clear that adding one more generic blog to the world of cyberspace isn’t necessarily going to get you a lot of attention. If you decide to blog, it ought to be because you think you can create something different, that will speak to a need and gather readers. May I make some quick suggestions?
First, make it easy to read. Too many blogs are indecipherable. That means the font and the overall design of the page should be easy on the eyes. It also means the reader should see some text right away, not have to scroll down to find something valuable.
Second, have a theme. You may balk at this a bit, thinking that people are there getting to know YOU, and not focused on your topic. To a certain extent, that’s true. But just as your books help create a “brand” in the minds of consumers, so your blog helps solidify your brand with readers.
Third, have a bio handy. Remember that new readers will sometimes stumble upon your site, or they’ll read about it in one of your books. That means every day you could conceivably garner a new reader — and he or she wants to know who you are. So have a short bio at the ready, in a place that’s easy to spot on your blog.
Fourth, give stuff away. I mean it. Give away good content. Give away books. Give away prizes or goodies or all kinds of stuff. Offer help to people. Sure, the blog is aimed at helping you market yourself, but remember that none of us purposefully go view advertising online. If your blog seems like nothing but a commercial, people won’t want to visit. Make your blog
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Continue Reading "Thursdays with Amanda: What I’ve Done to Grow My Platform"
Thursdays with Amanda: What I’ve Done to Grow My Platform
I’m heading to Chicon today…for those of you not in the know, Chicon (or WorldCon) is the 70th World Science Fiction Convention. Now an invitation to this event didn’t magically fall into my lap. I mean, MacGregor Literary hasn’t historically done much in the SF realm, so I’m sure we were far from making it on their “I hope they attend” list. Another interesting note, is that this event is pretty big and pulls REALLY big names (George R.R. Martin is the name I’ve been dropping right and left). So it wasn’t like getting an invite would be as easy as calling up a friend of a friend and then voila!
Nope, it was a bit more complex than that. And it involved aggressive Internet research, consistent follow up, and a willingness to do whatever, whenever.
The reason I’m explaining all of this is that agents have to build a platform, too. Or maybe it’s more of a rapport (?). But either way, we need to get our name out there so that we meet authors, so we can sign those authors, so that we get to know editors, so that we do deals with those editors and then somewhere along the line…put food on the table.
So for this week, I thought I’d share a bit about what I’m doing to build my platform.
There are lots of literary agents in publishing. I mean LOTS. And not all of them are the real deal. Some are there to scam unsuspecting authors. And most will fizzle out in a few years. So when you’re new to the business, there’s all this suspicion surrounding you. Will she last? Will
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Continue Reading "What else will help my book sell?"
What else will help my book sell?
A few more thoughts that came out of my conversation with some marketing people at a recent conference…
4. Another step in selling your book, and one that relies almost completely on the author, is that there needs to be a successful and growing internet presence surrounding your title. Right now we’re seeing too many novelists visit the same 30 or 40 blogs, shilling their book (and, in my view, not selling many copies). But in a successful marketing campaign, the discussion of the book grows beyond that same chat-fest of blogs. The author seeks out new groups, who share an interest in her stories or topics, and finds ways to talk about the basic ideas in a wider setting. Let me offer an example: If a crime writer can get law enforcement sites to talk about his book, or can link into some networks where people discuss crime and culture, the book is much more apt to take off, and that allows the marketing people to reach more potential readers. For a nonfiction writer, I would venture a guess that your speaking and media platform is vitally important toward making this piece of the equation work. Again, this is an area that is almost the exclusive domain of the author, since publisher helps in this area have a tendency to be a bit flat. YOU know your book best, so YOU should be doing this. Doing regular work in creating an internet presence will require a significant investment of time and energy.
5. In discussing fiction marketing with this group, they came to the conclusion that space advertisements were an important piece, but ONLY if they reach a targeted audience.Here’s an example: If you’re doing a historical novel set in 17th Century Scotland, getting some ads into the magazines and websites subscribed to by those who love Scotland and its history is crucial. (Okay…I’ll admit that I subscribe
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Continue Reading "What has to happen to make my book sell?"
What has to happen to make my book sell?
I thought it would be interesting to tell you all about a conversation I had with some marketing types while at a conference recently. I was particularly interested in what they perceived as being the components of a healthy novel marketing campaign (and if you’re a nonfiction writer, keep in mind that I was talking with these folks specifically about fiction marketing). We brainstormed what works and what doesn’t, talked about about the various issues involved, and in the end came down to just a half-dozen important steps…
1. Most successful marketing campaigns are focused on a high concept book. That means the book isn’t just another familiar story, but a BIG story, a BIG idea. People hear about it and immediately understand what the story will be focused on, and that it’s a big, over-the-top idea. Not every book you write will be in this category, but it’s worth understanding that a high concept idea can help you succeed in today’s market.
2. The second step we noted is that successful marketing campaigns usually have a book with a great cover — which is important to remember when dealing with your publisher. You see, your editor is going to get a couple sample covers from the art director, and is expected to pitch you on them. (One of the little secrets of publishing is that everyone wants to save money on art costs, so they’ll sometimes try to twist your arm to accept whatever they’ve got. It’s cheaper that way.) It’s why sometimes a book will come out with a terrible cover, and everyone is wondering “why in the world didn’t the author complain?” The reason is usually because someone at the publishing house told the author it was great, and to trust them, since they know how to craft great covers, etc. I think this speaks to the importance of educating yourself about covers — what makes a
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Continue Reading "Should an author hire an outside publicist?"
Should an author hire an outside publicist?
I’ve had this question quite a bit, from authors who aren’t sure if they can do the required marketing themselves. I think the first thing authors need to do is to look into what marketing they can do on their own. The second thing they need to do is to work with the marketing department at their publishing house, to try and maximize that relationship. But third, authors can certainly check into hiring an outsider to bring special knowledge or skills to the plan, or to pick up some of the pieces the author is not able to do. Some things to keep in mind when hiring an outsider marketing specialistl…
1. Be very clear what the individual is going to do for you. Set up events? Send review copies? Set up radio interviews? Introduce you to magazines? If you’re talking to an outsider, make sure you know exactly what it is they’ll do for you. They should be willing to create a list (that you can later check). Learn to ask pointed questions, or have your agent ask pointed questions.
2. Be very clear what this individual has done in the past. There are a bunch of marketing types I know who, in my opinion, don’t bring any particular success with them. The fact that they’ve been hired by publishers to work on past books may merely mean that they turned in the cheapest bid, not that they did a good job. So ask — Who have you worked with? What did you do? What were some of the results?
3. Be very clear what the cost is. Marketing types can do a full-blown, multi-month campaign for your book — or they can do things piece by piece, with you paying them to do particular jobs. Think of it as a Chinese menu — you can order one from column A and one from column B, or you can
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Continue Reading "What is a “platform”?"
What is a “platform”?
I’ve had a couple people write to ask, “What is a platform?”
The simplest way to view this is to say that a platform is a NUMBER… the number of people who have contact with you and your writing. Let’s say that you speak at conferences — how many conferences? in what venues? to how many people? who gets to hear the recordings? All those folks who hear you speak over the course of the year add up to a number.Next, let’s assume you have a column in a newspaper, or maybe you do occasional feature articles. All those folks read your words, so the readership of that paper is another number.If you are regularly on a radio show, or perhaps host the occasional program on local radio or TV, the listenership or viewership has a number.Perhaps you’ve got a popular blog, or you post online articles on e-zines. That readership can easily be quantified. OR you’re heavily involved with social media, so that you spend a lot of time Facebooking or Twittering, checking in with LinkedIn or ShoutLife friends. All of those folks who have regular contact with you and your words via the web — another number.And yes, your previous books have a readership, and perhaps you’ve captured names and email addresses so that you can more easily re-connect with them. That’s another number.If you’re well-connected to an association, or you’re a member or leader of an organization, those folks all have contact with you. So your organization, your church, your city’s arts council, the college alumni association that interviewed you for their newsletter — all of those types of connections present a number of readers who are familiar to you.Add those numbers together. That’s your platform. Everybody who has a connection point to you.That’s a how a platform is built. You make friends and build an awareness of yourself and
