The Pros and Cons of Hiring One-Stop Shops vs. Multiple Specialists for Book Publicity

There are many different services that publicity firms and individual publicity consultants offer to authors looking to promote their books. These services can include any combination of the following:

• Helping you identify your personal brand, your target audience, and your potential reach as an author

• Creating media kits (press releases, fact sheets, Q&As, etc.), distributing press releases on the newswire services, and creating sales pitches targeted to specific markets

• Working with you to fine-tune your website and create the best possible web promotion for your book

• Scheduling book signing and reading events

• Contacting local and national television and radio station producers to set up interviews

• Working with local and national print and online editors to obtain feature coverage

• Setting up speaking engagements at targeted venues

• Placing articles you’ve written in targeted print and online publications

• Helping you identify your strengths as a blogger, so you can capitalize on the blogging community

• Working with you to develop an integrated social media brand image on Facebook, Twitter, Goodreads, and other social media sites

• Setting up blog tours and online author interview opportunities

• Providing guidance on the creation of promotional items (bookstore posters, bookmarks, postcards, tear sheets, business cards, etc.)

• Acting as a sounding board for ideas, helping to answer general questions, and providing guidance on promotional issues

Most publicists feel comfortable doing the majority of the items listed here. Some, however, may specialize in one or more these tasks – there are those, for example, who work only with authors and books in specific content areas; others specialize in scheduling feature interviews with national media; some mainly offer blog tours or set up social media pages, while others specialize in magazine article placement. 

What any publicist does specifically for a client will vary depending on the book’s subject matter, whether the book is fiction or nonfiction, the amount and types of publicity the author is looking for, the author’s platform, and the author’s budget.

So, what should authors consider before hiring a publicist? I suggest thinking about 1) the scope of promotional work you’re looking for, 2) the budget and timeframe for the work, and 3) whether or not you want to hire one publicist to handle everything, or use a number of specialists to handle different aspects of your publicity.

Which brings me to the main question: Which is better, the one-stop shop (hiring one publicist to handle all of the work), or farming out different parts of the publicity work to multiple consultants?

Here are the pros and cons (from a publicist’s point of view) for each option:

The Pros of the One-Stop Shop

-       You get one unified, focused perspective and source of guidance to work with (rather than possibly having to deal with conflicting information and points of view from numerous consultants)

-       You have one contact point for your publicity, which makes it easier for media, speaking venues, readers, etc., to reach you or your publicity contact

-       The person handling your publicity will be able to easily integrate all the aspects of the book’s promotion because s/he is the only one doing so

-       Your branding and all of the publicity information put out about you is consistent, because it comes from one place

-       You may be able to save time on your projects because just one person is handling all of them (rather than having to wait for different people to coordinate/adjust their schedules)

-       You may be able to save on costs by hiring one person whose rates, style, and availability fit your budget and needs

The Cons of the One-Stop Shop

-       The publicist you choose may not handle all of the types of publicity you want to use in your promotional campaign

-       The publicist may not be able to accommodate the timing you want for some of your promotional projects

-       You might want more perspective than just one person’s on your promotional campaign

The Pros of Hiring Multiple/Specialized Publicity Consultants or Firms

-       You can spread out the expertise you need depending on what each publicist/promotional expert offers

-       You can bounce ideas off of multiple experts to see what fits/suites you best

-       If all of your consultants are on the same page, you can use them as a kind of marketing team that works together to help you promote your book

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The Cons of Hiring Multiple/Specialized Publicity Consultants or Firms

-       You can get conflicting information and/or opinions from different PR consultants, which can result in confusion, misunderstandings, and/or discord in your working relationships

-       You can have problems establishing boundaries, especially if some or all of the consultants are used to doing the same thing

-       People looking to contact you or your publicist may have a hard time deciding how to best reach you if there are multiple individuals promoting your work at the same time

-       Your brand may be difficult to manage as a unified image if multiple people are presenting you to the public, or if your consultants aren’t all on the same page

-       You may find it time-consuming to juggle the intricacies of having all the consultants work together efficiently

-       You may be tempted to play one expert off another in the hopes of finding a champion when you don’t agree with one of your consultants, which can result in a breach of trust

-       Your projects may take more time if there are any scheduling conflicts or miscommunication/confusion/misunderstandings among the consultants.

-       It may cost more to hire multiple consultants or firms

There is no right or wrong answer as to whether you should hire just one person for all your publicity needs, or consider using a number of different people with expertise in certain areas. Personally, I prefer to handle all of my client’s publicity – doing so makes it easier to be responsive, provide guidance, and maintain a consistent promotional and brand image. But, I have, on many occasions, worked with other consultants on client projects, and I’ve enjoyed those interactions.

Whichever way you decide to go, it’s crucial to be up-front from the beginning about what you want the individuals you’re hiring to do (rather than spring it on the publicist or team after the work gets going). If more than one consultant or firm will be involved, it’s especially important to be clear on individual assignments, so that each consultant knows what his boundaries are and how his work fits in with that of the other consultants you’re using.  

What Your First Conversation with a Publicist Might Look Like

For those who've never spoken with a publicist and wonder what the initial conversation might be like, I've compiled the list below of the items we typically discuss when authors contact me about their books (note: these will vary depending on the type of book and the individual needs of the author). I always ask for a copy of the book to read first, so we usually won’t have this conversation until after I’ve finished reading.

1) Editing and Cover Art
I'm a stickler for books that have been professionally edited, and even though I specify that on my website, I'm often sent books that contain typos and grammatical mistakes or suffer from general writing problems. These are often easy fixes in the hands of professional editors, but many authors choose to skip this step in the publishing process. More often than not, authors will swear that their books have been edited (by multiple people, as one author recently claimed). But in most cases, authors assume that having a few beta readers (i.e., friends and relatives) review the book is enough to fix any editing errors the book might contain. Sadly, these are books I usually have to turn down, mainly because I cannot send them to reviewers, booksellers, bloggers, news editors, or reporters - the grammatical or typographical errors would not get past these folks, whose business is correct writing.

Similarly, the cover art is so crucial to selling indie books these days, that I will usually urge the client to consider a re-do if the cover seems overly homespun or inappropriate for its audience. If either the cover or the editing seems lacking, I'll discuss options for getting those issues taken care of before moving forward with publicity for the book.

2) Platform
I like to find out as much as I can about potential clients, so if the client's book is ready for publication, we’ll usually discuss platform first, including education, work experience, publications, awards, teaching experience, celebrity status, or anything else that can help me know how to best position the author and his book to the media, reviewers, booksellers, readers, etc. We’ll also discuss personal branding strategies and any other marketing efforts that an author has made that might be relevant to the selling of the book.

3) Genre/Audience
I also like to discuss genre, if relevant, and possible target audiences for the book, including different types of readers, tangential or secondary audiences, and content or themes that might be newsworthy or resonate with different groups.

4) Outreach/Appearances
We’ll discuss what areas are possible options for promoting the book, including book launches, outreach to bloggers and blog tours, personal appearances (bookstores/libraries/professional venues, etc.), conference appearances, university and corporate speaking engagements, general media, and targeted media, including written articles, social media, web and blog sites, etc.

5) Social Media
I like to go over the various social media outlets out there and discuss which might be best for authors to target so that they have a social media presence to tap into once the book is released. For those who are new to social media, I usually recommend working on building a presence on Twitter, Facebook, and Goodreads as soon as possible, and also suggest that they consider developing relationships with readers via regular blog posts on their websites and blogs.

6) Beta Readers/Giveaways
It’s important to think about generating reviews both before a book launches and immediately afterward, so I’ll usually recommend reaching out to beta readers and using the giveaway features offered on sites like Goodreads and those who host blog tours.

7) Contests and Reviews
Entering contests and submitting the book to review sites is an important part of publicity, because winning awards and receiving reviews are good reasons to issue press releases once a book is launched. There is also some initial PR to consider, such as creating a general press release to be used for media and blogger queries, and getting that release up on the newswires. I’ll usually discuss how this might affect the book’s release date, along with the timing for certain PR activities (including pre-release activities, such as getting the press release written, getting a Q&A sheet formatted, gathering book cover and author photos, etc.).

8) Publicity Budget
I usually discuss my fees and what the potential client has in mind for a budget, along with items like initial deposits, how invoicing works, the duration of the publicity campaign, and what to expect for the amount of work the client is interested in having me do for his book.

9) Other Items to Include in Budget
I usually suggest that in addition to all the options listed above, authors should also be sure to budget for the following:
- cover design
- professional editing
- formatting (mobi/ebook files and pdf/print files)
- uploading to distribution sites like Amazon, Createspace, Smashwords, Draft to Digital, etc. (for those not familiar with the process or those who prefer to have someone else do it)
- printed copies of the book (for giveaways, contests, reviewers, book signings, appearances, etc.)
- promotional giveaway tools (bookmarks, posters, etc. – Vista Print is an inexpensive way to go for these items)
- postage (for mailing print copies to reviewers, giveaway recipients, contests, etc.)
- travel (if appearances are part of the author’s promotional plans)

11) Schedule
I also recommend deciding on a publicity budget and then prioritizing what the client would like me to do. If he wants a book tour, I’ll suggest making a list of dates, times, cities, etc., so I know where/when to focus those efforts. Also, I’ll ask clients to list any times when they will not be available for interviews, travel, and/or email communication.

12) Photos, Bio, and Book Cover Art
When we’re ready to get started, I’ll ask for jpgs of the author’s headshot (hopefully shot by a professional photographer) and the book front cover art, along with any biographical info the author can provide. Also, if he has any other descriptive text he can share (back cover copy with book description, blurbs, etc.), those are helpful for me to have on file.

As the Publishing Industry Changes, So Does the Way We Promote Books

As a PR professional who’s been working in the book publicity business for a number of years, I’ve watched the industry go through some major changes. And as the industry has changed, so has the way we market books.

But what's different now? Well, for one thing, authors who self-publish their work must hire professionals, particularly cover designers, editors, and formatting specialists, to help ensure that what they put out is a quality product. Some authors choose to perform these tasks themselves, but doing so is risky. Unless they’re experts in all these arenas (which is rare), the end product may be viewed by readers as low quality, and sales may suffer.

Even our concept of platform has changed. Where in the past, platform was dictated by the size of the audience an author could bring to his work based on celebrity status, experience, or expertise, now it is heavily influenced by the number of books an author has published and the size of his online presence.

Authors are finding that certain genres, including erotica and fantasy, seem to have an easier time finding an audience, while others, like traditional and literary fiction, sometimes struggle. Manipulating pricing is crucial, as authors lower and raise price points to help move online sales rankings, and new methods of packaging books, including bundling and box sets, have become commonplace. Authors are learning that they must continue to write new books in order to be known, and consumer familiarity with technology is opening the door to concepts like interactive books, apps, and online access for readers.

As the industry has changed, so have the channels for distribution. Brick and mortar stores have been replaced by online brokers, making the Internet the primary book sales and event channel. Authors are replacing book signings with blog tours and partnering with other authors online to bundle their work and cross-promote.

Finding readers has become one of the biggest challenges, as the sheer numbers of authors, along with the noise that readers face, makes it difficult for authors to create an audience. Many authors have found themselves relying less on traditional media and more on social media and word-of-mouth promotion, as access to readers becomes more relationship-oriented.

If the industry is changing, does that mean that the way we promote books has changed, as well? Absolutely. As authors create more books, they realize that being able to build their own brand, connect with readers, and get the word out about their work is all-important, and sometimes more difficult, than ever.

And what are publicists doing now for their authors given the industry changes? Well, in my own practice, I’m seeing changes in the services I offer authors. In addition to writing press releases and getting them on the newswires, I’m helping my clients find bloggers who are willing to feature their books in the form of interviews or reviews on their blog sites. I’m doing a lot of work with online media outlets to create buzz and helping with branding and identity by pinpointing what is unique about an author’s work. I’m also helping my clients to reach their target audiences by identifying niche markets and working to create exposure opportunities, including submitting written articles to targeted print and online publications, booking presentations, and setting up appearances at select venues and events.

For some of my clients, especially those who feel that exposure via traditional media is less important, I’m working to help them to reach out to readers via review sites, blog sites, social media, and online reader sites. Even so, I still feel it’s important for authors to connect with their readers in as many ways as possible, and that includes face-to-face meetings at book signings, launch events, private readings, presentations, and other author appearances.

The bottom line is that even though the publishing environment has changed, there are now more promotional options than ever for authors who wish to connect with readers. And the more of these options that authors are willing to explore, the more likely it is that they will be successful in finding an audience for their work.

What are you doing to get the word out about your book?

6 Great Video Resources to Help You Market Your Books

In addition to my work as a book publicist, I also teach classes on business communications, marketing, and publicity at some of our local community colleges here in San Diego.

One of the best resources I've found for helping students understand marketing and publicity concepts is video. I show a lot of videos in my classes because a) there are so many good ones out there with great information, b) they're interesting and fun to watch c) my students love them (also, I think they give the students a break from hearing me speak in class).

Here are six of my favorite videos on marketing and promotion. The speakers in these videos offer strategies and tips that are good not only for students and business owners, but also for authors who are looking for ideas on how to promote themselves and their books.

1) 22 Brilliant Social Media Marketing Tips by Ryan Moore
This is a great overview of ways to use social media to sell products and ideas. I like the way Ryan presents his concepts in an easy and memorable format. An example of a great tip from this video: Give people what they want, by providing a simple answer to a simple question. Brilliant!

2) Ask Jay: 10 Tips Every Marketer Should Know by Jay Adelson and Nigel Dessau
I love entrepreneur Jay Adelson's video series on how to start a business, and I use many of his videos in both my Marketing and Intro to Business classes. Jay's advice is honest and useful, mainly because it's based on his own experience as a successful start-up business owner. In this video, Jay brings in his company's marketing guru, Nigel Dessau, to share advice on how to market products and services. My favorite tip from Nigel: Don't do it all at once. (One caveat: there are sponsor ads in Jay's videos, so be prepared to either sit through them or move your cursor forward when they appear.)

3) The Power of Words by Andrea Gardner
I use this poignant and moving video/fable in my Business Communications classes to illustrate how much more powerful our messages are when we use words that touch human emotions.

4) How Do You Get Free Publicity for Your Business? by Kiyla Fennell
I like the straightforward and accurate information business expert Kiyla Fennell shares in this six step video. The ideas she lists (like defining what you're an expert on and using customer testimonials), are simple, but effective.

5) Selling Your Idea, Not Just Your Product by Aaron Ross
This short video provides some good food for thought for authors. Customers (in an author's case, readers) want to learn from us, so Aaron asks us to focus on defining and sharing the ideas we're selling, rather than the product itself.

6) How to Create a Brand & Find Your Voice by Marie Forleo
Viewers love Marie's high-energy and entertaining videos on how to market and sell just about anything. In this video, she provides four strategies on how to be original in your promotional message, including challenging yourself to state one idea five different ways and telling your own stories.

Book Promotion and the Spirit of Giving

Your work is to discover your world and then, with all your heart, give yourself to it.
- Buddha

As a publicist and an author who is in the process of publishing three books of my own this year, I understand the dilemma writers face when it comes to finding the time and energy to promote their work. Marketing and promotion can be especially difficult for authors because many of us (and, yes, I include myself here) don’t feel comfortable blowing our own horns. The act of writing is oftentimes a very personal and private one, which can make promoting the resulting work something of an anomaly – we spend months, and even years, alone, focused on the act of creating, and then we have to switch gears and become megaphones for the words we’ve produced.

For many writers, that switch can be jarring. I field calls from authors every day who want to get their books noticed, but have trouble facing the idea of being center stage. Many authors chose to forgo promotion altogether, oftentimes because of time commitments and costs, but also because it’s difficult to be suddenly focused on themselves (which an author platform requires) in a public way.
I try to help authors adjust to the idea of being more public with their work through my book publicity services, but also through guiding them to accept that the only way their books will be read is if readers know about them. Authors understand this concept, but it isn’t always an easy idea to embrace, especially for those who are introverted or truly shy.

One suggestion I have for clients who resist being in the public eye is to consider the process of promoting as more of an experience of giving, rather than one of blatant self-promotion. If we authors can view promotional activities as opportunities to share our ideas, our beliefs, and our writing, then we are no longer self-promoting; we’re giving, in the truest sense of the word.

This ability to give can be difficult for some – in our culture, giving is often not easy. Many of us see ourselves as wanting or not having enough and, therefore, not in a position to give to others. But I believe that we always have something to offer others, and authors are especially blessed with much to share. We have our words, our books, our thoughts, our experiences as writers, and even our experiences as promoters, to provide to the world. And having so much to share is an indication of how lucky we are to not only write, but to give back to others -- in the form of stories and nonfiction writing -- our sense of what it means to experience life.

And the funny thing is that the more we give, the more we seem to have. There is something magical in the act of giving; true generosity can bring about great feelings of openness, along with the satisfaction that comes from witnessing the resulting happiness others feel as recipients of our gifts. And the more we share, the more others – readers – know about us, which benefits us in ways that are monetary, yes, but also personally fulfilling.

So, I recommend to any writer out there who cringes at the thought of doing book signings and blog tours, giving media interviews, or pursuing relationships via social networking, to think about it in a different way. If we approach the process of publicity as one where we are sharing our thoughts, our books, and, yes, ourselves, with others, we do so in the spirit of giving. And when we willingly share with others, we often find that the true benefactors of our generosity are ourselves.

Straight Talk for Authors: What to Consider Before Hiring a Publicist

Ah, publicity.

As soon as a book is published (or sometimes sooner), many authors -- especially first-timers -- believe that hiring a publicist is the first step on the promotional to-do list.

But is it? Should all authors hire publicists?

You’d think, since I’m a publicist, I’d be the first to say yes. But before you hire a publicist, please consider the following:

1. Public relations, or publicity, is just one aspect of promoting a book.
Many authors assume that in addition to promoting the author and his book to the media, publicists will also issue daily Tweets, upload Facebook and blog posts, take care of marketing the book on social cataloging websites, handle distribution issues, create and place paid advertisements, send in contest entries, mail out copies to reviewers, set up blog tours, schedule signing events, etc. While many publicists have branched out and do handle some of these tasks, a number of them don’t.

Traditionally, publicists create press releases and media kits, handle media inquiries, and pitch their clients’ work (or the client himself) to print, radio, television, and Internet media representatives, including producers, editors, and reporters. Publicists also assist their clients with interviews and event appearances and (in the case of celebrities or better known authors) can help with damage control when public images become tarnished.

Some publicists have become adept at doing more than just media work and offer additional services, such as booking speaking engagements or setting up blog tours. But the majority of the publicists out there are focused on media relations. For this reason, authors shouldn’t assume that a publicist is trained or interested in handling all aspects of marketing. Publicity is just one part of marketing, and many publicists specialize in media work and nothing else.

2. Not every author has a platform or book that is promotable.
Many readers will shudder at the audacity of item 2 here, but it’s necessary to speak this truth. Not all authors have developed their platforms enough (in fact, some have no platform at all) to be worthy of attention from the media. And not all books (brace yourself here) are written or edited well enough to merit media coverage.

In order to be of interest to the media, an author or his book must be newsworthy; i.e., the author must have some specialty or area of expertise that is interesting to a news producer or editor, or the book must cover a topic that is relevant and newsworthy to a media audience. Before rushing out to hire publicists, authors need to first do a little honest soul-searching and ask themselves, “Do I have specialized expertise or some type of compelling experience that is news? Does my book cover a topic that is in the news right now? Am I or my book (or a combination of both) truly newsworthy?” If an author can answer yes to any of these questions, then the next question (and this one can be much harder to answer) is: “How so?”

If an author can’t answer these questions (or isn’t sure that the media outlets he’d like to approach would consider him or his book news), then perhaps it isn’t time to hire a publicist. This is often the case with first-time authors, who haven’t yet developed a track record with readers or haven’t created a unique and memorable brand for themselves.

Instead, those who need to develop a platform should probably work on that first. How? By creating and maintaining meaningful social networks, developing a following of dedicated readers (which might mean writing more than one book), creating a brand or image within a specific genre, developing a reputation as an expert through teaching, speaking, or writing articles, etc. Then, once there is something of interest to offer media outlets, consider finding someone to help with exposure.

3. Even with a compelling platform and/or a book that is somehow newsworthy, there is no guarantee that a publicist will be able to obtain media exposure.
This fact might be surprising to some, but here’s the honest truth: hiring a publicist does not automatically guarantee coverage in the media. An author can have a compelling background, and her book can touch on a topic that the author and her publicist consider a hot news item. But authors need to remember that producers and editors (along with book bloggers, book reviewers, and contest judges) are inundated with queries about authors and their books every day. So, even if you have a newsworthy story, and your publicist does a good job of pitching it, there is no guarantee that a media representative will be interested, or that she hasn’t seen/heard that story before. It may be a good story, but timing, saturation, deadlines, space issues, and a host of other reasons can cause even a good pitch to be ignored or refused.

Being passed over by a producer or editor doesn’t mean that the author hasn’t written a good book or doesn’t have a great platform (or that the publicist isn’t doing her job). What it means is that coverage in the news is a tricky – and sometimes serendipitous – business. A publicist cannot force a media representative to like a pitch about an author or his book. The reporter, producer, or editor who hears the pitch has to decide if it’s a story that a) he can use, b) will interest his audience, and c) hasn’t been covered already by that particular (or any other) media outlet. Of course, there is no way to know if an editor will to say yes to feature coverage, but authors should realize that even if their platforms and stories are good, they will sometimes (more often than not, in some cases) hear a no.

4. Publicity sounds good, until the first interview.
I can’t tell you the number of clients (okay, I can, but I won’t) who have hired me to handle publicity for them, and then panic as soon as the interview requests come rolling in. If you hire a publicist, then you have to expect that you’re going to be in the public eye, which may include speaking engagements and interviews. If you’re uncomfortable in front of a camera, a microphone, or a live audience, then hiring a publicist could be problematic. Yes, you can ask your publicist to only to obtain online or print interviews for you, but that might limit how much exposure you allow yourself. In general, you can bank on the fact that, if you and your book are newsworthy, a publicist is going to help you to be seen in the public eye – and that usually includes public appearances and radio and television interviews.

5. Publicity costs money that you may not have budgeted.
Many authors become so wrapped up in the aspects of writing and publishing their books that they forget that marketing the book will require some capital. Generally, most publicists charge a monthly retainer or, like me, work on an hourly basis. It’s a good idea to shop around and see what agencies and individual book publicists are charging, so that you have a clear idea of what a publicity campaign might cost. It’s also important to know what kind of publicity you’re looking for and how much you’d like to spend on that aspect of your marketing budget before you contact a publicist, so that you can ensure that there is a good fit between you and the professional you’d like to hire.

So, now that I’ve discussed caveats to consider before hiring a publicist, when is it safe to do so?

The best time to hire a publicist is when:

a) You have a well-written, professionally designed and edited book and its contents are somehow newsworthy.

b) Your book is set up for distribution in both online and print versions.

c) You have a platform that is newsworthy.

d) You have a clearly distinguishable brand image for you and/or your book.

e) You have a clearly defined genre and audience (your book may fit into more than one category and appeal to more than one audience; if so, that’s good – just be sure you can articulate it/them to your publicist when you’re ready to hire her).

f) You are comfortable with being in the public eye and are committed to making appearances once they’re booked.

g) You have a budget for publicity.

h) You are willing to trust your publicist’s expertise and let her do her job.

Once you feel you and your book are ready, pay attention to what your potential publicist requests from you in the way of information. Most will want to read the book first and discuss with you what you’re looking for in the way of publicity, so be ready to provide that info. Network with other authors for recommendations on publicists they’ve worked with who might be a good fit for you and your book, and always ask for references before you hire.

Book Marketing 101 (and How Publicity Fits Into the Picture)

This article appeared in the May 2013 issue of Author Magazine: http://www.authormagazine.org/articles/2013_05_margulies.html

When it comes time to market a book, many authors believe that certain aspects of promotion are more important than others. Some feel that Internet marketing is the answer to sagging sales, while others think that simply hiring a publicist will address their sales problems. Some focus mainly on items like book videos or blog tours, while others rely on repeated pleas to their social networking followers in the hopes of encouraging them to buy.

But savvy authors know that it takes an integrated marketing approach to succeed in today’s crowded book market. And, although many authors don’t want to hear it, the traditional rules of marketing apply to selling books, just as they do for other products.

So, what are the rules of marketing? Authors who have studied the subject (most likely in college) will recall that a marketing mix is made up of two components: a target audience and a marketing strategy.

Defining an author’s target audience is not too complicated. Authors can look at the books they’ve written and ask themselves: who would read this? Women? Men? Young adults? Children? Authors can also break down those broad audience categories by genre (mystery readers, fantasy readers, fiction readers, nonfiction readers etc.) and demographics/psychographics, including age, sex, religious and political preferences, economic status, etc., to help identify more precisely the different audiences to whom their books might appeal.

The marketing strategy, however, is the more involved part of the marketing mix. Those who’ve studied traditional marketing will remember that a marketing strategy is made up of what we call the Four P’s: Product, Promotion, Price, and Place. Let’s take a look at each of them in terms that are helpful to authors.

Product – In traditional marketing, we define a product as either a physical object or a service that one person might sell to another person. In the realm of writing, an author’s primary product is the book itself.

But that’s not all an author is selling; in addition to the book, the author is going to be selling himself (his expertise, background, character, etc.). This is what we call the author’s platform, and it’s something that publicists and other marketing professionals consider part of the product package, along with the book.

In addition to the book itself and the author’s platform, the author can also sell or promote what I refer to as add-ons. These include events, appearances, signings, written articles, Internet and blog posts, and other items that the author creates to promote his book. These events or written items can be used as promotional collateral to pitch to media or other agencies that are looking for content for their websites, publication, and media programs.

As a publicist, I can’t emphasize how important having a good product is to the marketing effort. The book itself, and its ability to engage its audience, is the number-one factor in the entire marketing plan. Without a good book, there is no hope of success – a book must be well-written and professionally edited and designed in order for it to sell. The author must also have a platform; without it, the publicist (or the author herself) is left with only the book to sell. If an author is willing to writing articles and make public appearances, then that completes the product picture that she and/or her publicist will have to sell or promote to media.

Promotion – The traditional definition of promotion encompasses a number of techniques that help an author’s audience become aware of the book and motivate that audience to purchase it. These techniques include (but are not limited to) advertising, publicity, social media and Internet marketing (including the creation of websites and blogs, blog tours, book videos, podcasts, etc.), personal selling, direct marketing (via postcards, flyers, etc.), giveaways and tie-ins, etc.

The important thing for authors to note about promotion is that publicity is just one part of the promotional mix. I often get messages from authors insisting that they can’t hire me because they are going to hire a social media expert instead. I agree that authors should hire social media experts, especially if they feel they need help with setting up blogs and Facebook and Twitter pages, tweeting, blogging, etc. But that doesn’t mean that they also can’t hire a publicist (who, by the way, may use some of those social media tools to publicize the author’s work). The two are not mutually exclusive.

Publicity is just one part of an author’s promotional plan. Its purpose is to create awareness about the book and the author among the book’s target readers. A publicity plan usually includes creating a media kit (which contains items like the author’s photo, the book cover art, a press release, an author bio, and other items that describe the book and the author to the media), putting press releases on the newswires and relevant social media sites, setting up book tours and author appearances, scheduling online, print, radio, and television interviews, setting up blog tours, and creating other exposure opportunities for an author and his book.

Publicity is different from paid advertising in that it cannot be commissioned for a fee – a publicist can call and ask the media for an interview, but unless the author and the book are somehow newsworthy, there is no guarantee that an editor or producer will say yes. With a paid ad, an author is guaranteed that the ad will run in whatever publication or media it is placed. A feature that is obtained through publicity efforts, however, is not paid (aside from what the author might pay a publicist to pitch the idea to a media producer). Instead, a publicity feature in a newspaper, online news site, blog, or radio or television program is one that the editor or producer has chosen to produce because she feels the topic is of interest to her audience.

Price – Much has been written about the importance of correct pricing for books, especially now that the ebook market has changed the game for how readers buy. For hardback and paperback books, price is an important consideration in terms of the current economy and what an author’s target audience can afford (or is willing to spend) on a paper version of a book. Those booksellers that are still around generally advise authors to take care with the pricing of paperback books – if the price points are too high (generally over $16), booksellers will often refuse to shelve them in their stores.

Similar trends have developed in the ebook market, where the growing numbers of self-published authors have pushed the amount of offerings to a staggering collection of over three million titles. Competition to sell ebooks is now so fierce that authors and ebook-selling entities like Amazon, are offering them for free (with the hopes that the free books will help build awareness about the author by encouraging readers to promote via reviews or word-of-mouth).

The ebook market appears to be an elastic one (meaning that when the price is lowered, sales volume increases), making the .99 – 2.99 range the general rule-of-thumb for most self-published ebooks.

Place – Before the ebook explosion, distribution was a key element to making a book available to booksellers. Because booksellers prefer to do their ordering from one wholesale source, making a book available via distribution entities like Ingram and Baker & Taylor was an important consideration for publishers and authors. The traditional publishing houses with multiple titles would set up relationships with distributors for all the books they printed, and booksellers would then buy books from a number of publishers by going through one or two distribution companies.

Now that many authors are self-publishing their books, distribution has become a tricky issue. Because self-published authors typically only have a few books to sell, they’ve found that they have to locate distributors willing to work with individuals. There are companies out there that will do distribution for individual authors and help them place their books with those booksellers who still exist, but many authors have not thought about placement and distribution, and thus are often surprised that they have to address this aspect of marketing.

The advent of print-on-demand publishing (POD) has also changed distribution. Before POD publishing, traditional publishers printed large runs of books (called offset printing) and stored them in warehouses. These offset runs made ordering easier for wholesalers, who could immediately fulfill booksellers’ orders via a publisher’s warehoused stock.

With the advent of POD, especially among self-published authors, books are no longer warehoused; instead, they are printed in specified quantities as the books are ordered. For booksellers who prefer to buy from distributors, POD books present a problem – they are not always immediately available, and therefore (in the minds of booksellers), cannot be easily ordered through the sellers’ preferred distributors. Self-published authors will often find that booksellers turn down their requests to stock their books simply because the books are POD and/or unavailable through the sellers’ preferred distribution channels.

This situation can make self-published books less available to readers, especially those who have not yet purchased an ereader or who to prefer to read paper books. While the ebook market is growing exponentially, it still represents a small percentage (approximately 20-30%) of the reading market. This means that if self-published authors don’t have distribution for their books, they can be relegated to selling mainly via the Internet, and thus must compete for fewer readers in a channel that has a huge number of titles available. Competition and availability are key components of the Place element in the author’s promotional plan, and therefore, it’s not one to ignore or take lightly.

The bottom-line here is that authors, and especially self-published authors, must take all of this – audience, product, promotion, price, and place – into careful consideration when they’re ready to market a book. Some fight it, and/or deny that certain of these elements aren’t important (or worth addressing) But those who do pay attention to each aspect of the marketing mix are the most likely to achieve success.