I saw a commercial for maxi pads and their slogan was up to 100% leak free! What? Up to one hundred percent? What does that even mean? It made me wonder, could I use a similar line to market my books? Maybe I could say up to 100% entertainment when you read my book? Or up to 100% inspiration guaranteed by reading my spicy romance? What a ridiculous claim to make. It reminded me of something my dad used to say. I can sell anything for the cheapest price if I’m sold out. We were talking about gas prices at the time. Picture seeing regular gas for $2 a gallon, there’d be a line around the block, right? But then you see the pumps have plastic bags over the handles, they’re sold out. Did they really have regular gas for $2 a gallon? Or did they just get you to buy their premium gas because now you think they must sell it for the cheapest price?
Speaking of the cheapest price, I did the dumbest thing and I’m so annoyed with myself about it. I had the brilliant idea to get a QR code linking to my social media. Then I had it printed on my business cards and some other materials. I thought it was such a great idea. When I purchased the QR code, it was $29. I thought it was $29 a year which I was fine with, that’s a reasonable amount. Then I got a bill for $29 the next month. Yep, it’s $29 a month. I’ve just printed it all over my new marketing materials and it’s going to cost me $29 a month for as long as I need it to be active on them!! I need to print new cards, and I need to cancel that QR code. Now that’s a brilliant scheme. Trick people into getting stuck paying you a fee forever if they don’t want to redo all of their printed materials. So frustrating! My advice to you, if you want to print your QR code on your marketing materials, use your Instagram QR code, or make sure its really free. I wouldn’t even use my TikTok QR code right now because it’s future is currently unknown. At my age I know how to read the small print and I guess I missed it. Or maybe they’re such scam artists, they don’t tell you up front. I’m not sure, but I won’t fall for that one again. Please learn from my bonehead mistake!
I use Canva to make my cards, which is free unless you purchase their premium product. I do pay for the premium product because I use them all the time to make graphics for my social media. I use Vistaprint to print my cards. They have great bargains and discounts regularly making it very affordable. When I get an offer for a good deal on the product I want, I purchase it. I’m waiting for a business card deal so I can get cards without my way too expensive QR code on them. You need to be careful though, Vistaprint uses a hard sell while you’re checking out, offering great deals on other products. Plan ahead and only purchase what you planned in advance.
I’ve recently started using the AI assistant for my graphics on Canva for social media and advertising. There’s a huge stigma with using AI as a writer or an artist. I see that argument all the time in Facebook author groups. Even KDP has a box you need to check when publishing there, to disclose if any of your work is generated by AI. There’s a lot of discussion about what constitutes AI generated writing. So far, it’s generally agreed you haven’t used AI to write your book if none of your actual words were generated by AI. Meaning it’s acceptable to use AI for research, as long as the words you write in your book are your own. Many people say they use AI to generate ideas or names. I think this practice is fine as long as AI isn’t writing the paragraphs for them. Apparently, some authors are writing mostly AI generated materials and they’re churning out books at an alarming rate making fast money off of the volume of their writing. That seems wrong if it's not disclosed. The same with artists, if the art is AI generated how can an artist claim credit? I’ve often compared writing and art, they’re both products of a creative mind. I don’t think an author, or an artist should claim credit for someone else’s work, even if it’s a computer. I’m not saying there’s no place for AI, it’s a huge time saver for work projects. When you need to make a presentation for work, or an author with no artistic talent needs to make graphics for marketing, it’s a tool to help reach those goals. We all use AI every day whenever we Google something, we’d probably find it difficult to live without it. But if you’re using it to create works of art, claim credit, and make money, that’s dishonest in my book. The joy of being an author is writing the story and finishing it. Why would you want to let a computer write it for you?
I had planned to do an author takeover this week, but I requested to reschedule it. The original plan was to include my author friends, Louise Glass (Dream Lover) and Miranda Page (Soren). After checking out the FB group Louise felt it wasn’t her audience, which I completely respect. She declined to participate which was no issue at all. However, with all of my recent medical problems I’m not really prepared with a raffle prize or graphics. I can throw something together, but that seems wrong. I was willing to do it, but then Miranda’s mother became ill and she’s out of town sitting in an ICU taking care of her mom. I’m waiting to hear back from the group if they’re willing to let us reschedule or not. Hopefully we'll have the opportunity to do it another day. Author takeovers are a great way to reach readers. If you’re not familiar, you, as the author, gain control of the group for a specific amount of time. During that time, you post graphics about your book, something that will generate interaction, and a drawing with a prize is a great way to gain followers. When I did a takeover on New Years, I offered a gift card drawing for everyone who subscribed to my newsletter. I had a bunch of visitors to my website and a huge number of new subscribers to my newsletter. It was great, I interacted with everyone who posted a comment on my posts which lasted for a few days. It was a big boost to my followers, friends, and visits to my website. I also got a sale from it. I highly recommend author takeovers, if you have the opportunity, don’t be scared, just do it!
Now, sending out a newsletter is a horse of another color. I still haven’t sent out a single newsletter. I don’t want to send one just to send it. I’ve been waiting for something interesting to send out. Like the announcement of the release of Force Majeure. I still have no clue when that will be. But I can do a cover reveal, I’m thinking about using that as the topic for a newsletter. It seems pointless without a release date to connect with it though. I may start working on it now and fill in the dates before I send it out. I’ve been paying attention to newsletters from other authors and I’m making a list of important things to include. I’ll write a list for a future blog once I have it completely nailed down. But I definitely think it needs to be carefully planned, have a purpose, share valuable information, and have connections to your socials, book links, and website. You want to connect in ways that lead to more connections and a book sale would be ideal.
So far, the most successful marketing I’ve seen is what my friend, and fellow author, Louise Glass does. She posts her graphics and links on dozens upon dozens of sites every single day. She always has lots of sales, she has over two-hundred reviews, and she is a powerhouse of marketing. I’m not capable of her level of dedication. If you can do it, I’ve seen her success, it’s worth it. I caution you though, you must have a well edited and professional level book and marketing materials. Louise has dedicated a lot of time and effort to her book and her marketing materials. All of her posts are very polished and professional. She has a fantastic film trailer that she posts as well, it’s top notch. She’s also an award-winning author. If you want to see what professional looks like visit her website and check out her book. https://www.louiseglassauthor.com
As always thanks for reading! I hope you have a fantastic weekend!
**Quick update, the group was understanding and kind about my request to reschedule. I’ll keep you posted. I have agreed to a virtual book signing on June 22nd, in the meantime. I’ll post details in a future blog and newsletter!