Can You Still Drive To Book Sales City?

As I prepare for the summer vacation-driving season I started looking intensely at projected gas prices, my car's MPG (miles per gallon) and the distance I'd have to cover to get to my desired fun-time vacation destination. While the numbers didn't look too painful for the time spent on the open road, my MPG estimates could not include the unforeseen. For example, I couldn't calculate properly for 1) road construction, 2) traffic jams, 3) detours and 4) breakdowns and repairs. My budget could get me there in years past, but sooner or later my favorite vacation spot would move out of driving range. Then I started comparing this scenario with one that many authors face in promoting their books.

Let me explain.

About 750,000 books last year were self published and 250,000 books were traditionally published (that's 1 million books, at least). When I read this, my initial reaction felt the same as it might had I run into a 25-mile-long traffic jam on I-75S heading from Atlanta to Orlando at 1 mile per hour … bumper to bumper. There goes my MPG and my budget for my annual trip. Good bye fun-time vacation destination. In the case of authors spending marketing dollars to generate book sales, say good bye to Book Sales City!

Imagine an authors' book promotional budget akin to a tank of gas. Before the Internet (circa 1995) if you wanted to drive to Book Sales City the roads and freeways (a.k.a.., traditional book promotion paths) could handle the traffic (a.k.a.., authors / publishers) and allow you to travel the distance at the necessary speed (a.k.a., publicity / exposure) so your gas tank and car's MPG could get you reliably to Book Sales City. Then the Internet really hit in force. Access to the superhighway appeared to be the perfect way to travel to Book Sales City. No speed limits, broad exposure, and banner ads for your books everywhere and coming out your ears. Best of all, "you've got mail" from your readers!

That was then; this is now. Fast forward to today. It's 2011 and the world has changed. On one hand, the combination of digital media devices (i.e., Kindle, Nook, iPad and others), Amazon, WalMart and discount bookstores, and access to self-publishing has brought unprecedented choice to the reader. On the other hand, the sheer volume of content has created an unprecedented traffic jam for the author's road trip to Book Sales City. While bestselling authors may get to the promised land using the HOV lanes (mostly provided by the big six publishing houses) do the rest have enough budget to fill the promotional gas tank? Most likely NOT.

There are too many stories out there of authors (and small press publishers) that have spent $10k, $50k even $100k+ to mass market their book(s) with little return. While factors like poor writing and poor reader appeal for the story may play a role in some books, I have to believe that the real factors affecting poor book sales numbers are attributed to the realities of the immense competitive volume of titles on the flooding the market, the increasing access to "free books" and piracy.

Can today's author still get to Book Sales City? I'm happy to say yes, but you'll have to stick out your thumb and hitch a ride on smart yet simple strategies based around the concepts of social media and the power of relationships.

What comes next here is not news to you, but you need to hear it once again. Use social media sites like Facebook, Twitter, MySpace (yes, I said MySpace, because it still remains an excellent outreach mechanism), Goodreads, Ning, Spruz and others to make a friends along the way to help you get to your destination. Let your friends help you down the road apiece. Jump into the back of their truck... er' I mean their social media pages... and let them talk about you. Or share on their pages about what you are doing that is of interest to readers and visitors. That is not to say throw your book at them as they pass. When you overtly talk about your book and ASK for sales, it's much like throwing your book at drivers speeding by. They probably won't look, and if you hit their windshield, they'll be upset. If you strike up friendly conversations, however, if you actually take the time to build relationships with these kind strangers, you'll see that not only are they willing to open their car doors (social media pages) to you, but they can take you a long way down the road to your destination.

Sure the trip time to Book Sales City may be longer but you'll find it more enjoyable and you won't run out of gas.

Questions? Contact us.

Send author a comment on this post