by C. Patrick Schulze
Listen to a PODCAST of this Article.
The world of writing is about to roll over in the grave it doesn’t know it’s in yet. The writing industry is on fire and undergoing cataclysmic alterations to its landscape due to the advancement of technology. And everyone involved with writing, agents, publishers, book stores, readers and those who do the writing, are caught up in this technological conflagration. It is my opinion the landscape that emerges from this titanic struggle will look very different than the one with which we are now familiar. The industry will survive, no doubt, but in a vastly altered state from the one we see today. As to those who do the writing, I believe they will become business people who write, rather than writers who do business. In fact, this alteration has already begun in earnest as even traditionally published authors are now required to do their own marketing.
With this in mind, it becomes evident writers should embrace this technology if they wish to enhance their marketing efforts. Here’s some thoughts I garnered on how to do that.
As a writer, you should consider using podcasting and videocasting to promote your novel. Even Simon and Schuster said this was necessary. Here’s why.
First and foremost, people spend a lot of their time on the Internet which is already transportable. Even more, the future of the Internet is video. In fact, video search is growing in popularity at an astonishing speed.
If you’ve paid attention to how to market books in today’s environment, you know the new attitude toward sales is all about the human connection. This link builds trust between people and trust is a critical element in marketing. With this in mind, video is about as personal as we can get without being there.
The best aspect of video is it’s demographics. From Elites TV, you’ll find video demographics are “53% male/47% female. 55% urban with median income of $74K. Nearly 70 percent are college educated, 47% are married, median age is 33, 71 percent are employed.” Pretty strong marketing core, wouldn’t you say? And best of all, these are the people who buy the books.
Would you like one more reason to get into video casting? Few authors do it. That leaves you with a larger piece of that pie. Keep in mind as the younger writers among us come up, they’ll use video and leave those who don’t in the dust.
How do you get involved with videocasting? It’s simple, really. Pick up a video camera at your favorite electronics outlet then talk into it and upload it to YouTube. After that, promote the hell out of it. Check out Gideon Shalwick’s article GetYourVideoOnline.com for more information.
An offshoot to video is a book trailer. Joanna Penn of TheCreativePenn.com has a nice article on how to create your book trailer at BOOK TRAILERS: 11 steps to make your own.
Next, you should consider podcasting as a marketing tool. Podcasting is about as easy a thing as there is to do. You download FREE RECORDING SOFTWARE from Audacity, pick up a microphone and start talking.
Why podcast? Well, with the advent of the IPod and its multitude of copycats, your audience can take you with them anywhere they go. It’s free and the spoken word has a great deal of impact. However, one of its most important features is it makes you read your work aloud. This technique has magnificent powers of influence over your writing. I can almost guarantee your writing will improve by the simple act of podcasting. To get an idea of how this translates into real life, check out BlogTalkRadio.
I have one last comment for you on book marketing in this gilded age of the Internet. Check out THIS INFORMATION from Joanna Penn for even more help. After all, much of my research for this article came from her.
Oops, I have one more one last comment. Fortune favors the bold, my friends. Be bold and embrace the technologies of writing and your writing career has a better chance for success. Until we meet again, I wish for you only best-sellers.
C. Patrick Schulze
Author of the emerging novel, “Born to be Brothers.”
