I’m sick to death of the parade of authors who hit me with sales pitches to buy their books on Amazon.com on such-and-such a day. And I absolutely refuse to pester the 30,000 people on my email list and let them know about these Amazon campaigns. Full disclosure: When these campaigns were all the rage a few years ago,… Read More
Online Marketing
Bad book or music review? Here’s how to recover from it
I was a guest on yesterday’s National Public Radio show “Talk of the Nation,” and the topic was “The Web and the Rise of Rotten Reviews” and how to recover from them, whether you’re a restaurant, an author, a band or anyone who is reviewed by anybody. One of the callers was Debra Fine, author of… Read More
Publicity tips needed for website about personal safety
Treg Stark of Delaware, Ohio writes: “For the past 14 years. I have worked locally with parents and kids, teaching them about personal safety (stranger danger). The character I created, Professor Safety, is featured in a DVD and companion CD for parents and day care centers. “While those who have purchased my safety program rave… Read More
YouTube videos build buzz for raunchy book for men
What’s a publisher to do when the content of a new book is so racy and offensive that newspapers and magazines won’t touch it? Build the buzz online by spending only $10,000 to create three short, risque, sexist videos about the risque, sexist book. Then post them at sites such as YouTube and watch as word spreads to other popular social networking sites… Read More
How to promote an online gift registry for single women
Felicia Coley of Rochester, New York writes: “Over the holidays, I launched The Well-Heeled Society. It’s the first online gift registry that’s exclusively for single women. “With us being the ‘it girls’ thanks to the backlash of The New York Times quoting the U.S. Census, which clumps 15 year-olds and up into our ‘eligible single status’,… Read More
Online publicity tip: How to become a guest blogger
I just finished my first gig as a guest blogger. Brian DeSpain invited me to write about my best PR tips for start-up businesses, or new businesses that are online. You can read my tips at his Thalasar Ventures blog. Here’s how I got the invitation. Pay attention because this is powerful stuff, and you can use this same strategy to… Read More
Gift Guide Show June 13 in New York City
If you sell consumer products in one of seven areas, you can meet journalists who want to know about your products by attending the Holiday Gift Guide Show June 13 at the Marriott Marquis in New York City. It’s sponsored by Stark & Associates. The show will feature 50 non-competing exhibitors in the health, home,… Read More
YouTube: Perfect place to sponsor a contest
Sponsor a contest on whatever it is you’re promoting, and let the amateur videographers over at YouTube participate. That’s what the nonprofit SmartPower has done. Its national non-profit marketing campaign, which promotes the use of clean renewable energy from sources such as wind, solar and water, is sponsoring a contest at YouTube.com for the most creative… Read More
Book marketing: Pitch high-traffic, niched websites
Here’s a great success story on how authors can get exposure at high-traffic websites by writing a regular column. Mike Archer of Firebomber Publications emailed it to me and I’m reprinting it here. My ‘Firebombers Incorporated’ novels relate the adventures (and misadventures) of a high-tech wildland firefighting outfit that employs a high percentage of ex-military personnel.… Read More
Video press releases alive and well
Will somebody please tell the folks over at ClickZ that video press releases are alive and well? A post yesterday indicated the writer wasn’t aware of how often video is being used successfully in press releases. A link to an audio or video clip can be incredibly powerful. Readers simply click on the video link and watch a short video of you… Read More