Sometimes, it pays to know what your audience wants.

I have a friend named Jen Nipps who hosts a blog called CONFESSIONS OF A FAT CHICK.  This morning, she posted about how her blog isn’t set up for weight stories, etc…but it was just a title she gave for her blog which would talk more or less about her life and not necessarily concentrating on anything weight-oriented. 

I know Jen, and I figured the reason why she posted this post this morning.  She’s probably getting a lot of people who have found her in the search engines because of the title of her blog.

This frustrates Jen because none of her blog posts are about losing weight, but if you really look at the total picture, she could tap onto this audience by providing them what they have come to her blog for and pick up some readers, thus adding to her fan base.

I did an experiment on one of my blogs called Over the Hill Boomer Chick some time ago.  I wanted to play around with tags and see if I could get more visitors.  I had to think of a topic that a lot of people search for and my decision to try “sex” turned up about a hundred more hits than normal for that day. 

While sex is not discussed on my blog at all, I thought it would be funny to see if I could get more hits by using the word as a guinea pig and it worked.  Of course, in my post, I had to explain what I was doing…just can’t trust those perverts out there.

Back to Jen, though, even though it was frustrating her, what’s the harm in posting what these people who came to her blog to find wants?  If they are looking for something on weight loss, why not post something occasionally about something regarding that subject? 

Of course, I won’t be discussing sex on my blog, but that’s an entirely different thing and totally not related.  Even though Jen is frustrated and feels that’s not what her blog is intended for, I feel she should grab that audience by the horns and take advantage of it so they will come back.

Blogs are the most incredible vehicle authors have.  If you play around with today’s popular search words, you can increase hits.  All you have to do is apply them to the theme of your blog.

If you want to find out what the most popular searches are today, you can go to www.yahoo.com, for instance, and look at the bottom of the page.  Today, the most popular searches are:

Barry Bonds Baseball

Blackwater
USA

Robert Jordan

Deal or No Deal TV Show

Jesse James Movie

Talk Like a Pirate Day

Rachel Griffiths

Heather Mitts

Nightmares

New York Islanders

Now, I have just given you the top 10 searches for September 19, 2007.  Come back and I’ll let you know if those top ten searches helped me in any way of gaining more hits just by including them in my blog post and in my tags.

Interesting the ways you can get more blog hits.  I wouldn’t suggest fooling people by adding those words as bait, though.  This is just an experiment in SEO.  But, you can take the above search words and use them as a blog post and see if it works for you.  If it does, come back here and let us know. 

Oh, I’m wondering why O.J. Simpson isn’t up there?  Why not…I’ll include him, too.

It all goes back to taking something newsworthy and relating it to your book.  Be creative and your ears perked for popular search words that would pertain to your book and blog about it. 

Tags: book marketing buzz, online book promotion, lessons in SEO, Barry Bonds Baseball, Blackwater USA, Robert Jordan, Deal or No Deal TV Show, Jesse James movie, Talk Like a Pirate Day, Rachel Griffiths, Heather Mitts, nightmares, New York Islanders, O.J. Simpson

I had an interesting conversation with one of my clients this morning about creating pre-buzz for his virtual book tour.  He had done everything he could think to do and wanted to know how else he could get some pre-publicity pointers.

The problem was, as he was new to online book promotion when he signed up for his tour, he missed out on the incredible benefits of pre-buzz networking.

It’s not enough to put up a website and a blog and expect people to come.  What you need to do before you even think about a virtual book tour is to create a fan base and you can do this through social networking.

Social networking isn’t new; yet, I’m finding until recently, authors don’t realize how much the potential is there to create a steady flow of interested parties who might eventually buy your book.

But, social networking is good for something else, too.  It creates that online presence you will need for those who aren’t in your social network because if you use your search words efficiently and appropriately, you’ll end up in the search engines and that’s where people will find you long after your tour is over.

Of course, MySpace is the ruler of social networks, but there are others who I much prefer to use to send out promo. 

The three I use the most frequently are www.bookmarket.ning.com, http://morganmandelbooks.ning.com/ and www.communati.com.  All allow you to maintain a blog in which you can announce your virtual book tour, keep everyone posted as far as your daily stops go and post promo for your book as well.

I highly recommend joining those networking sites, but I’m sure there are plenty more you can join.

If you are new to internet marketing, the first thing you need to do is build that fan base.  Go to www.yahoogroups.com and put your genre in the search box and join groups that are geared toward your book.  Feel the group out and see if they allow promo; but, if not, go in and introduce yourself.  But, the key thing to remember is, don’t be a flyby.  People catch on to that real quick.  Make friends.  If someone comments in the group, comment back.  Participate.  Although this takes time, it’ll pay off for you because people will get to know the author behind the book and just might want to buy something you have written.

Even if you don’t have a book out yet, start searching for those groups that might be of interest to you for when it does come out. 

I maintain three writing and promoting groups:  The Writer’s Life (www.yahoogroups.com/groups/thewriterslife/), Pump Up Your Book Promotion (www.yahoogroups.com/groups/pumpupyourbookpromotion/) and TWLAuthorTalks (www.yahoogroups.com/groups/twlauthortalks/).  All three allow promo, but participation will get you brownie points.  If someone comes in and starts promoting and not participating in the discussions, I know the only reason they joined was to sell their books and everyone else will know that, too.

Whether you are virtual book touring or trying to create pre-buzz for your book or even if you don’t have a book published yet and want to start gaining a fan base, do it early in the game so that when it is time for you to announce your events, you’ll already have people who know you for who you really are and not because you have a book you want to sell to them.

Tags: book marketing buzz, online book promotion, virtual book tours, social networking

I truly believe that if someone took every author in the world and divided them into two groups, those groups would be–the dreamers and the realists, with no fine line in between.

Think of an author friend you know. You can pretty well figure out which category they would fall in. On the one side, you have those who believe that their book is so damn good, it’s right up there with Oprah’s Book Club. The other side? They’re shaking their heads and laughing at the dreamers side.

Of the two groups, I would fall into the realist group. I know that just because I believe I have the next best thing, it’s really not. To me, it’s the best book written; but of course, reality kicks in and I know I’m just one little ant in a world full of anteaters.

That doesn’t prevent me from telling the world about my next best thing book, but it does prevent me from believing it’s Oprah material. Unfortunately, I’m in the minority. The realist side has but too few members and the dreamers side? They’re starting to gain in popularity to match the population of China.

It’s okay to dream, but as a realist, I think the road to bottoming out will come all too quickly for them. As a realist, I know I just keep on keeping on, but the dreamers take things way too seriously.

It’s like American Idol. Most of them are dreamers because only one can become American Idol. There might be a realist or two in the group, but because by now they have let the title consume them to the point where they actually believe they ARE going to be the next American Idol, there’s going to be a lot of bottoming out when the winner is announced.

Oh, they’ll go on, most of them, and sing for other contests or take to the road with this musical gift because they are, after all, dreamers. The ones who don’t make it and who aren’t in the dreamers’ group, will actually fare better because they knew going in that if they make it, they make it, if they don’t, well, they go on and pursue other things such as begging for that 9-5 job they lost because they had to appear on the show in the first place.

Authors are no different. We all have dreams, and even though most authors have the same dreams–getting that NY contract or even just getting published any which way they can–some authors believe from the get go that they are Oprah material even with the odds stacked in front of them so high, they couldn’t see the forest for the trees.

Ah, such a realistic opinion on my part, but that’s the realist coming out of me.

So, what’s my point?

I was over at the Big Bad Book Blog and they have a quiz you can take to see if you are Oprah material. I bet you can guess how I scored. Not very well. But, I took it pretty well, being the realist I am. Go over there and see if you’re Oprah material and come back here and let us know how you did.

Tags: Oprah, American Idol, Oprah’s Book Club, Big Bad Book Blog

As part of Pump Up Your Book Promotion, I send out authors on virtual book tours, touring blogs and websites, giving interviews, making guest posts and getting reviews.

It’s interesting the things you learn about the process, things even I have learned by reading these interviews and guest posts that my authors send out to these blog hosts.

One of my clients, Nick Oliva, author of ONLY MOMENTS, was interviewed on my newest blog, Beyond the Books, today.  You will have to go read this interview because it’s one of the best interviews I have read in my entire life.

When authors fill out these interview forms, they must remember that it’s not just an online interview; it’s something that’s going out into cyberspace with their name on it.  It’s going to tell the reader lots of things like how this particular author writes for example.  But, the main thing I think that makes more of an impact on people is if the author can convey some sort of message to the reader and bring that reader into their world.

Nick does this perfectly.

As I was reading the interview myself before posting to the blog, I was totally drawn into his words.  If his book is anything like his interview, I’m surprised a NY publisher didn’t pick it up.

When you are being interviewed, you have to let the words flow.  Loosen up and go for the gut.  Don’t be afraid to show the human side of you and forget trying to sell your book.

I have read a lot of interviews in my lifetime.  The one thing that irks me more is, here you have a chance to make a statement and all you end up with is one or two words. 

Balderdash. 

Boooring. 

The next time you are interviewed, think of that.  This is my opinion as well as your readers.  If the interviewer asks to tell something about yourself, don’t just put up a bio that’s appearing on every website or blog in the universe; make yours unique and go for the gut.

I applaud you, Mr. Oliva.  More authors could pick up a pointer or two from you.

You’re all writers.  Prove it through your interviews and one day, people are going to be sending all their friends to your interview because you went for the gut.  Don’t let your reader down.

Tag: book marketing buzz, author interview

I hate booksignings.  As an author, I’ll tell you that they are an inevitable part of every author’s book promotion campaign.  For the newbie, they are the best thing since chopped liver; but, for the veteran author who has been down this road many times before, they become more or less a chore like having to take the dog out or cleaning up last night’s dishes.  You know it has to be done, but who has the time?

Now there is help for the frazzled author in the name of virtual book tours.

Virtual book tours are popping up all over the Internet.  Authors are now realizing the potential in making those book sales without leaving the comfort of their home and, in most cases, you don’t even have to show up.  Your blog host does all the work for you.

But, don’t think it’s going to be all games and no work on your part.  In order for your tour to become successful, you must put your all into it.

A virtual book tour in most cases involves one or more of the following:

1.  Interviews in which the blog host asks you questions which will appear on their blog on a given day.  If you have 20 stops on your tour and all of your blog hosts want an interview, that’s twenty sets of questions that you must answer promptly. 

2.  Guest posts in which you write of your experiences as an author which will appear on their blog on a given day.  I would suggest to write up as many of these as you can.  On any given book tour, I would suggest to have at least three written ahead of time.  They can be of how you got the idea to write your book, your take on the publishing industry, or tips and hints for other authors looking for ways to become published.  It’s a free for all, really, so use your imagination!  If you’re stumped, ask the blog host what their readers would enjoy. 

3.  Reviews that the blog host posts on a certain day.  This is essentially the easiest.  You send a book to the blog host and they post your review on a given day.  You might want to pop in and ask the blog host readers if they have any questions which they can leave in the comment section.

Sound like something you’d like to do to promote your book?

If you are an author and would like to set up your own virtual book tour, here are a few tips that might help:

1.  Keep in mind that just because this isn’t a physical book tour, there is still a lot of hard work involved.  In fact, the more you are involved, the better your chances at success. 

2.  Aim for high-profile blogs first, then work your way down.  A high profile blog is one in which receives a substantial amount of visitors each day.  Even if there are no comments, it doesn’t mean it isn’t a high profile blog.  In fact, I’ve seen many blogs that receive no comments, and yet they get thousands of visitors a day.

3.  Have copies of your book on hand.  Since starting my virtual book tour business, Pump Up Your Book Promotion Virtual Book Tours, I have found that in order to get on the high profile blogs, offering a copy of your book is a big incentive and makes a difference whether they will host you or not.  Many of these bloggers would like to read the book before offering you interview questions and many of them will also give you a review, too!  If you can’t get your hands on physical copies, sometimes offering a PDF version will convince them.  It doesn’t hurt to ask!

4.  To get people to participate, end your interview/guest post with a comment asking if anyone has any questions.  I’ve noticed this encourages the visitor to not just stop and read, but to become involved. 

5.  It’s a must for anyone on a virtual book tour to have a blog.  You would be amazed at how many do not, or didn’t think it was necessary.  It is very necessary because what you will be doing is blogging about your stops as they appear.  This will give you an edge in the search engines and will encourage your visitors to visit your blog stops.  There are many free ones out there, but I would recommend www.blogger.com or www.wordpress.com. 

6.  Have your book and name set up in google alerts.  This way you can see how well your tour is going.  Another hint is to have “virtual book tours” set up in google alerts, as well.  If you are not appearing in the alerts when that particular phrase comes up, you are doing something wrong.  Use that particular phrase in as many blog posts as you can for it to appear.

7.  Have a professional author photo handy.  Most of us already have one, but you’d be amazed at how many do not.  Blog hosts might want to post your photo, so be prepared ahead of time.

8.  Have a handy location to where blog hosts can grab your author/book information.  When I set up tours for authors, I have a tour page to direct potential blog hosts with the author’s information including bio and photo, along with their book information.

9.  If you’re not sending books to these blog hosts, at least provide a place where they can read an excerpt.  This helps them come up with questions geared toward your book.

10.  Be organized.  Throughout your tour, make sure the blog hosts are reminded of their obligation.  You’d be amazed at how many forget.  Even blog hosts are busy and this helps to remind them!  I find that keeping spreadsheets with this information, including where and when you will appear, helps tremendously!

My final words of advice would be to start early (preferable a month or more ahead of time) and thank your blog hosts after the tour.  You never know when you might call on them again!

Dorothy Thompson is the CEO/Founder of Pump Up Your Book Promotion, a full service public relations firm specializing in online book promotion.  You can visit their website at www.pumpupyourbookpromotion.com.

Tags: book marketing, online book promotion, pump up your book promotion, virtual book tours, book publicity

Welcome to Book Marketing Buzz!  As this is our first posting, let me tell you what we’re all about.

We will be posting book marketing tips, of course, but along with that will be author interviews and guest posts from authors from time to time.

Most of these authors will be the clients from our company, Pump Up Your Book Promotion, which you can find at www.pumpupyourbookpromotion.com. 

However, we will be posting interviews and guest posts from other book marketing specialists in the field of book promotion. 

Thank you for visiting and please come back to learn more about the latest buzz in book marketing!