If you Like me, what's the point?

My memoir book cover photo by Madison Poulter

There is a thread going on, on LinkedIn that goes like this: I’ll like your fan page and Amazon book page if you like mine. So I’ve been responding to a lot of those requests,  and now I'm up over twenty-five new likes in just the last week. 

But, I wonder what’s the point? Do these new likes translate into book sales? So far, I don’t think so. A few people that I've met through my social networks have said my book is on their list, but I haven’t seen a bump in my Amazon rankings as a result.

So with all this social media networking – over 900 Facebook friends, over 400 Facebook fans, almost 250 LinkedIn connections, and a constantly growing list of Twitter followers, I wonder where it is all getting me. And I find that keeping up all the connections is a lot of work.

Okay, I won’t be so down about it all. I’m only into this marketing game about six months. I’ve got to give it more time. Plus the fact that my book is a hard sell – like my son just said, hard to read but beautiful and powerful. I have to hang on to that beautiful and powerful comment and hopefully lots more people will agree.

Also, someone on LinkedIn just answered my what's the point? question that if he gets just one sale from all the exposure – that’s what it really is, exposure – he’ll feel it’s worth the effort. Okay I can go with that. I won’t be greedy. One sale is sure better than none.

By the way, if you care to Like my Facebook author page, click on the link.

So how's the marketing going?

Since my book launch and signing just after my memoir, Leaving the Hall Light On, was released in early May, I’ve spent the month of June on a blog tour, coordinated and managed by WOW-Women on Writing. I decided to embark on this tour because I had hosted two other WOW blog tour authors in the last couple of years, and it seemed like a great idea.

I’m sure I’ve said before that I’m a me-too kind of person, so there I was again, letting the WOW folks know that I wanted a tour too when my book came out.

And actually making that happen was quite easy. All it took was a decision about dates, blog post ideas that included the subject-matter of my book and general writing-related subjects, and $350.00, to cover their advice and counsel about post topics and their picking out and communicating (almost continually) with the blog owners where I would guest post.  The big bucks kind of took my by surprise, but very quickly I decided it would be worth it.

Also in June, my publisher and I shared the expense of a part-time publicist, one of my dear friends with a great background in PR who worked way more than she was paid. And she has worked out tremendously. She has scheduled two radio interviews during July and a review just posted on the "100 Memoirs" website. She also got a commitment to have me be the over 60 expert on a popular health and fitness website. She is continually pitching. Hopefully we can come to an agreement continue her services for another month, at least.

Because our budget is so limited I have had to jump in as well, and now that I’ve finished writing blog posts to fulfill my WOW blog tour commitments I have plenty of time.

First thing every morning I post all over Facebook – my friend and fan pages and other groups that are of interest – about what’s going on with my book. Then like now, I write a blog post, or a poem, or a journal entry. I must keep up with my writing or everything will fall apart, including me. 

Also, since the book came out, I’ve arranged to participate in two book signings as part of the Greater Los Angeles Writer’s Society, I’ve gotten friends to post reviews on the Amazon and Barnes and Noble sites that sell my book, I’ve submitted a book for review to the American Foundation of Suicide Prevention in hopes that they’ll add my book to its bibliography, and I’ve given permission to a woman who is presenting a workshop on resources available for grieving parents and other family members at this summer’s national The Compassionate Friends convention to list my book as a resource and pass out information. 

That’s another thing. I’ve gotten bookmarks, flyers, and posters made. Everywhere I go from now on, I need to have something to give away.

Okay, then, has all this effort and not a small amount of money sold any books? Since there haven’t been a lot of comments on my guest posts, I have little indication that people who visit the blogs on my tour are interested in buying my book. And though I see great online rank fluctuations daily, my publisher thinks my online book sales are excellent. I just wish there was a place I could go everyday to find out the number sold everywhere.   Of course the evidence is the total of money I’ve earned. So far my expenses are way ahead of sales. But, it’s not even two months yet. I have a long way to go – at least that’s what I keep telling myself.

My first book fair event - Saturday June 25

I participated in the Leimert Park Book Fair on Saturday, June 25, and it went a lot better than I expected. As a member of the Greater Los Angeles Writer's Society [http://www.glaws.org/html/mainmenu.html] I was in one of their two booths. Elizabeth, my friend and publicist came along to help - a definite necessity.

The traffic getting there was terrible and once we arrived we had to circle around for about a half hour to get a parking space in the supposedly author's parking area. That was both a good and bad sign - good that the fair was well-populated and bad for authors needing to be at our assigned booths at our alloted time. I was due to be there between 3 and 5:30 pm, and I just made it.

When we arrived, Elizabeth and I put up my three posters: of the book title, the flyer and Paul's Putting a Face on Suicide. (GLAWS already had a copy of my book and a promo card on a shelf at the back of the booth that I had provided in advance.) And while I was arranging books on the table - I brought eighteen along in a rolling suitcase - Elizabeth stood in front of the table and began passing out bookmarks. Once I finished setting up, I went out in front of the table too. Both of us stood for the entire time giving out bookmarks and talking to passers by.

And it was a lot of fun. Everyone was easy to talk to. And I even made a sale. Others seemed interested so I gave them information about buying the book on Amazon or Barnes and Noble. One young woman, who is bipolar, said she’d like to read the book and get a mother’s point of view, and an older woman told me about her bipolar daughter. Another young women told me almost in tears that she had mental illness in her family. As always I am struck by how many people are affected by mental illness and suicide in their lives. 

However. I learned a huge lesson on Saturday. I have to have a pitch that doesn’t come across in a negative way. The author next to me was selling romance novels and she, as she passed out her bookmarks, asked, "you like to read romance novels, right?" And she was off and running.

Here are a few other lessons: have lots of bookmarks, flyers, and brochures. People love giveaways. They never refuse what's offered. Be prepared to stand. Sitting behing a table inside the booth won't attract anyone. Also, if you have posters, bring tape for hanging them. I only brought binder clips and stick pins and they didn't work on the canvas booth sides. And of course have a very positive pitch. 

However, I got what I wanted out of my first book fair experience: a little networking with my GLAWS colleagues, lots of contact with passers by, one sale, a list of stuff I need to do better next time, and many laughs with Elizabeth. Will I go back to Leimert Park again? Maybe not. In fact Tony, the GLAWS president, said all around sales were poor, so maybe GLAWS will opt out next year as well. (The woman with the positive pitch next to me only sold four books total - and she had three romance books to sell.)