Buy. My. Book
Now, first of all, I have to admit something terrible:
I don’t have the key to successful marketing, either. I have no magic script, no sure-fire solution – and to be honest, I’m not good at it, either. Yet.
Because this is – once again – a mindset thing.
And I haven’t found my personal block just yet. I know it’s there, I know it can be dissolved – but I need to figure out what it is. And it’s much harder to help myself as it is to help someone else.
So even though I am definitely no marketing wizard (which is probably a limiting belief right there), there is one thing I can say, gleaned from a lot of studying of marketing methods:
Don’t do anything you’re not happy with. Or that makes you feel icky.
Because you’re establishing relationships with people.
And honestly, who wants to buy a book from someone who behaves like a terrible car salesman? Who posts nothing but “buy my book” on social media, possibly three times a day?
With the hundreds of thousands of self-publishers out there, readers can easily choose to buy stories they enjoy from an author they like vs one they dislike.
So be yourself, show off your stories – give readers a taste of what they’ll get – and most of all, let them see you as a fellow human being.
Because watching myself, I’m much more likely to buy from an author I can relate to. Maybe I’ve seen their dog, cat or horse, I’ve read about something they struggle with (most everyone struggles with something these days), or because I like something they do in addition to writing. Of course, the stories also have to be the kind I want to read, so there’s that.
I’d like to encourage you to play with marketing.
Maybe by experimenting with things you enjoy, you can find your own golden key to unlock a wave of readers. Maybe you reach that one person who makes your books go viral. Maybe you appeal to a book club. I’ve seen all of that happen to others.
Just remember: it won’t happen if you don’t tell people about your books. But it can happen if you make it interesting, natural and enjoyable for the others. So get out there and have fun with your not yet readers – and definitely with your already readers!
I’m sure that feels much better than playing bad car salesman. (Although… there’s an idea…)
So here’s some tapping for you to get started on that expedition into marketing land:
Even though it feels that effective marketing remains a mystery to me, I’m totally okay the way I am, and I realize I only have to figure out what works for me.
Even though I’m scared of marketing my books because I’m afraid I would annoy the very people I want to reach, I’m totally okay the way I am, and I now choose to discover what makes my potential readers happy to interact with me and read my stories.
Even though I think marketing is horrible and I won’t ever be able to do it effectively, I’m totally okay the way I am, and I can be open to the possibility that it’s simply about telling friends about my stories.
Your Turn:
How do you feel about marketing?
What have you tried to sell your books?
What happened while you were tapping?
And finally – what are you creating right now?
Please share in a comment.
Image Source: F. Moebius
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