Most authors today sign with a pay-to-publish (or self-publishing) company. These companies have various options for authors, including the publication of a book in paperback and extra services for a fee, such as, editing, and various promotions packages. Some of those extras coming from these companies can be expensive and worth little or nothing.
I’ve talked to authors who said the editing services they paid for through their self-publishing company was nothing more than a mechanical spellcheck. Likewise, the promotions packages might consist of a generic press release sent to a generic list. Without a personal touch and without efforts to target the specific audience for a particular book, your marketing efforts can easily go astray. Turn this vital task over to a company whose primary purpose is to produce books, not market them, and you’re in for a huge disappointment.
So how much should you pay for a promotions package from your pay-to-publish company? Nothing. Marketing is not their business. If you want to pay for these services, hire a publicist, sign up with a book marketing company, hire someone you know who is a Cracker Jack promotions person, or manage this aspect of your business yourself (preferred).
I’ve spent a good portion of my career teaching and writing about how to promote a book without spending a lot of money. You might be interested in my most recent book on the topic, “Promote Your Book, Over 250 Proven, Low-Cost Tips and Techniques for the Enterprising Author.” I maintain that the best marketing agent for your book is you and that you don’t have to spend a lot of money in order to promote a book.
Here are the basics:
- Know who your audience is and where they are.
- Write the book for your intended audience.
- Discover the best way to approach this particular audience.
- Put your book in front of them often.
- Make it easy for them to purchase your book.
In looking over this list, I can see that each of them could be developed into stand-alone articles. Those of you who have been following this blog series and who have been studying the publishing industry know what these points mean. Authors new to publishing may not. Let me know if you’d like me to flesh each of these topics out in future blog posts.
So what is the message I want you to walk away with today? If you want to become a published author, I urge you to take full responsibility for your book, including the marketing aspect. If you are clueless, read my book, “Promote Your Book,” available in print here: http://www.matilijapress.com/PromoteYourBook.html. Also at Amazon in print, audio and for your Kindle. It’s $19.95.