If an author or publisher were looking for an expert in Search Engine & Social Media Marketing for Publications, Kai Blum would be at the top of their list. With over 10 years experience in search marketing and management, his clients have included some highly recognizable corporate names. He also has over 5 years experience in search and social based book marketing. He is a published author of 3 successful books as well.
All of his expertise was apparent in his thorough step by step presentation to LA2M on September 14th. He pointed out that online marketing and publishing levels the playing field for new and niche authors in competition with large scale publishers.
Blum encouraged authors to treat their book project as a business. According to Blum, authors need to know if there is a demand for their prospective topic, who will want to read the book, if the book will be part of a series and what their marketing budget and strategies will be.
Blum encouraged authors to treat their book project as a business. According to Blum, authors need to know if there is a demand for their prospective topic, who will want to read the book, if the book will be part of a series and what their marketing budget and strategies will be.
He recommended using the keyword tool in Google AdWords to research interest in the planned book topic. Blum also suggested looking on Amazon for existing books on that topic. To improve search position, it’s also important to include keywords in book titles and subtitles.
Blum believes that book marketing is the job of the author and not the publisher. Publishers tend to focus on their latest publication. To keep interest going, authors need to take and active hand in promoting their book. Blum recommends authors begin marketing for their book about a year before publication.
Some successful strategies he suggested are blogging or creating website content on the book topic, participating in message boards on the topic, creating a Facebook page about the author which deals with the topic. Blum noted that these should be ways to promote the author’s expertise and not the book. He explained that people can be turned off by blatant advertising in social media.
He suggested following and commenting on Facebook pages and blogs on the same topic to build an online relationship. He also recommended reading reviews of similar books and contacting reviewers directly to offer free copies of the new book for review.
The same can be done with message board contacts, Facebook fans, blog followers and fellow bloggers. The cost to the authors is a few books and a time commitment. An option for paid marketing he suggested was bidding on keyword phrases with Google AdWords.
The same can be done with message board contacts, Facebook fans, blog followers and fellow bloggers. The cost to the authors is a few books and a time commitment. An option for paid marketing he suggested was bidding on keyword phrases with Google AdWords.
Blum’s presentation was interesting and comprehensive. If you missed it and would like to learn more about the wealth of information provided, check out the LA2M Events archive to view the video.
No comments:
Post a Comment