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Post by writeway on Mar 15, 2019 15:33:51 GMT
Sigh. I was in awe of all the authors going crazy the other day when FB went out. Many said they couldn't promote their books and their new release launches had been ruined. Really? Well, uh, if you depend only on FB for your marketing you're not doing any meaningful marketing at all. What is with so many indies having the mindframe that they can successfully build brands using one company? You CANNOT depend on one company to build your brand. You need to build your brand yourself. You should never depend on ONE platform for your promotion. You should be marketing your books in a variety of ways. Maybe it's because I'm wide so I don't get the "sticking with just one company" mindset. It's very dangerous because just like FB went out the other day and ruined so many authors' launches, it can happen again.
Work smarter, not harder. You need to be building your brand in a variety of ways and you need to have a way to where if something goes wrong with one tool, you have options to get the word out about your books. Facebook is a tool to use and it can be effective but it should not be your only means of promotion, no.
I wish as a whole so many indies would stop being so dependable on things to the point where they have no backup plans whatsoever. It's irresponsible because you can't control Facebook or any other site. This is why you should have a mailing list and if not that at least other places where you spread the word where people know where to go to see about your books.
Next time FB could go out for days or even a week and then what? Do you want to be in a position where you are helpless every time something happens or do you wanna be able to say you've looked out for your brand the best you could?
I hate to say it but some of this comes down to laziness. It's "easier" just to stick with FB and not have to build a presence elsewhere but that kind of thinking gets you in trouble. Most times easy is not the best option.
I hope the outage woke up people and they are more prepared. Some authors said they lost a lot of money on launches on Facebook due to the outage because they decided to "stick with only one thing." I don't get it. We are building brands people. You can't build brands depending on one company. I don't care who it is.
Not trying to scold anyone. This is coming from a place of concern in hopes authors who do this realize they can do better. We can all improve and that's what we should strive to do. We should always wanna branch out, improve and do better. We're more powerful that way.
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Post by K'Sennia Visitor on Mar 15, 2019 23:52:36 GMT
Well said!!! I agree with every word. The truth is humans are lazy. That's the way our brains naturally work. If we weren't lazy no one would have invented tools to help us do things faster. So on the one hand, laziness is good, but on the other it can be detrimental, like you said. Authors need to learn to be resilient and flexible. Expect the unexpected and be ready to pivot on a dime. Facebook could completely shut down one day. There was a time when peeps were making millions from Squidoo. Now Squidoo is no more. All romance books? Gone. That other new one that was really good and everyone loved - gone. Amazon itself could one day vanish. I think this is why so many writers want to stick with the old way because they think it's more dependable and is less work. The people who will always do well no matter what are the scammers and the marketers. Those folks have no attachments. They know how to squeeze money from a turnip. Once that turnip is dry, they chuck it and start again. Non-scammy authors need to learn to adapt quicker, stick to the fundamentals of writing and selling, and don't get too attached to any one platform. But peeps are lazy and tend to assume that bad stuff will never happen to them. We can warn all we want, but most will not listen. Doesn't mean we can't try though.
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Post by writeway on Mar 17, 2019 0:15:15 GMT
Exactly, K! If you are building a brand, you can't be lazy. Also, too many indies have been trained (by Amazon and these so-called indie scammers and marketers) to expect instant success and that everything should be easy so they just do the least they can do then complain when it doesn't work. How is that a way to run a business? It will definitely hurt you in the end and I was really shocked to see so many authors who depended solely on FB. Many who were squawking about the outage didn't have mailing lists either. Building a mailing list has never been my favorite thing but I realize it is important and that outage proved it. For example, if that had been on my release day, I have so many other places outside FB to promote and FB is probably not even 5% of my promotion these days. I don't use FB ads and I have a PA who promotes my books on there but beyond that, that's my extent of promoting on FB. The rest of the time I am there I am just hanging out in author groups, etc. A platform I've been concentrating on is Bookbub because it's very powerful with building a brand. I've been concentrating on building my followers and finally made it past 1,000 so I can now do pre-order alerts with them. That is huge because they send the alert to all of your followers for you. I've gained a lot of new fans from Bookbub too. I also use other things but no, I don't depend on one thing. Authors should be using various tools.
I recently did a survey of my mailing list subscribers and mostly ALL of them said they find out about my books from ME through my mailing list. I think authors underestimate how many readers are not on FB or social media. Many people aren't so we have to find a way to reach those people. If you don't have a mailing list, how would you find these people? You can't. These are people who find our books on retailers, enjoy them and sign up for our lists. While there are a lot of readers on social networks, there are a lot that aren't. That survey I ran opened my eyes big time and I will never underestimate the power of a mailing list again.
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Post by K'Sennia Visitor on Mar 17, 2019 22:30:54 GMT
That is a powerful testimonial in favor of email marketing, thanks for sharing. I love email and once I get all my ducks in a row I will definitely start setting them up, and I will always be as wide as I can. Depression is awful cos it makes you not want to do anything, but there are so many things we an indies can do to improve our discoverability and to let peeps know who we are and what we're about. And the best thing with email is that your subscribers are YOUR people. And the more you can do to cultivate their trust and relationship build and make them really, really like you the better. Reader surveys are a great way to get to know your base and it can enable you to create special content just for them. If I had a Patreon one thing that might be fun is if peeps donate a certain amount you'll let them name a character, or you host like a "choose your own adventure" type story just for your subscribers and let them choose how the story goes. You could write it a chapter at a time, end each one on a cliffhanger and have a vote to see what happens next. *teehee* I think something like that could be fun.
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Post by writeway on Mar 18, 2019 2:54:04 GMT
That is a powerful testimonial in favor of email marketing, thanks for sharing. I love email and once I get all my ducks in a row I will definitely start setting them up, and I will always be as wide as I can. Depression is awful cos it makes you not want to do anything, but there are so many things we an indies can do to improve our discoverability and to let peeps know who we are and what we're about. And the best thing with email is that your subscribers are YOUR people. And the more you can do to cultivate their trust and relationship build and make them really, really like you the better. Reader surveys are a great way to get to know your base and it can enable you to create special content just for them. If I had a Patreon one thing that might be fun is if peeps donate a certain amount you'll let them name a character, or you host like a "choose your own adventure" type story just for your subscribers and let them choose how the story goes. You could write it a chapter at a time, end each one on a cliffhanger and have a vote to see what happens next. *teehee* I think something like that could be fun. I understand about your depression. I have anxiety disorder (it's little sister) so I completely understand how it is to juggle your mental stability with things you need to do. Writing is what keeps me sane (and meds, LOL!) but seriously, if wasn't a writer I'd go crazy. I can lose myself in my books and not be worrying or anxious constantly. It takes me out of reality and allows me to breathe. My list is small. I build it organically but it means more to me that way because I KNOW for a fact the people signed up because they like my work and not because of some gift or another incentive. With that you never can be sure if they support you. I have started offering one of my books free once people sign up for the list but they have to sign up first and I don't even mention the book until they do. I was staying away from the free book thing but then I read Newsletter Ninja and the author gave a great tip about rewarding your subscribers and I get that. I do think it's important to show them you value their support but don't get carried away on freebies because that can lead to you having nothing but freeloaders. The book they get when they sign up to my list is the only freebie I'll give them. I'll run discounts and give them promo codes but I won't be handing out free books. I haven't done that in all this time and won't start now. Other than permafree, people have to pay for my work, subscribers or not. LOL! If you haven't already, you might want to check out Newsletter Ninja to help you craft a successful list.
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Post by davidvandyke on Mar 18, 2019 16:16:02 GMT
I go back to the great book (okay, a great half a book, because the last half is just filler) "Who Moved My Cheese." I recommend it for any author or businessperson.
Everything changes. If you're lucky, it won't change too much in the course of your career, but those days are probably over. Now, especially with digital, things are changing all the time. One of your main defenses should be diversification, as is said above. Use multiple vendors, platforms, advertising methods, marketing methods, communication methods, even payment methods. I myself have money from multiple sources going to multiple accounts: KDP, ACX, Kobo, B&N, GP, Draft2Digital, Smashwords, several trade publishers or agencies, my military retirement: distributed into two different bank accounts and PayPal. I then move some of it into five more separate accounts at various institutions, for investments or savings. And this isn't because I'm particularly wealthy--I just don't like to be dependent on any on institution.
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Post by K'Sennia Visitor on Mar 18, 2019 16:27:22 GMT
I understand about your depression. I have anxiety disorder (it's little sister) so I completely understand how it is to juggle your mental stability with things you need to do. Writing is what keeps me sane (and meds, LOL!) but seriously, if wasn't a writer I'd go crazy. I can lose myself in my books and not be worrying or anxious constantly. It takes me out of reality and allows me to breathe. My list is small. I build it organically but it means more to me that way because I KNOW for a fact the people signed up because they like my work and not because of some gift or another incentive. With that you never can be sure if they support you. I have started offering one of my books free once people sign up for the list but they have to sign up first and I don't even mention the book until they do. I was staying away from the free book thing but then I read Newsletter Ninja and the author gave a great tip about rewarding your subscribers and I get that. I do think it's important to show them you value their support but don't get carried away on freebies because that can lead to you having nothing but freeloaders. The book they get when they sign up to my list is the only freebie I'll give them. I'll run discounts and give them promo codes but I won't be handing out free books. I haven't done that in all this time and won't start now. Other than permafree, people have to pay for my work, subscribers or not. LOL! If you haven't already, you might want to check out Newsletter Ninja to help you craft a successful list. Thanks for the rec. Yeah, I have an anxiety disorder, too, plus a social phobia, and the folks keep inviting people over to stay with us and that pushes my anxiety sky high, but I'm trying to learn to deal with it. I don't really like having a broken brain. It isn't helpful. But ooh that gives me an idea for a new character anyway.
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Post by writeway on Mar 19, 2019 5:39:35 GMT
K, wow. Are we twins? I don't have depression but I have two anxiety orders. I have generalized anxiety and social phobia as well. I have many triggers. I don't drive because it's a HUGE trigger. I can't stand to even talk on the phone and not comfortable around people at all. I'm fine online but that's about it. When I have to, I fake it but I mainly stay in the house. I'm also a natural introvert which makes me even more reclusive. Sometimes it's like living in prison and I don't have the funds to go to therapy so I just use medication and deal with it. I've had it all my life so I don't expect it to change. I'm nervous constantly but the meds I take help with the worrying. The only other thing that helps me is exercise and writing. Exercise really helps keep my mind straight.
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Post by writeway on Mar 19, 2019 5:40:03 GMT
I go back to the great book (okay, a great half a book, because the last half is just filler) "Who Moved My Cheese." I recommend it for any author or businessperson. Everything changes. If you're lucky, it won't change too much in the course of your career, but those days are probably over. Now, especially with digital, things are changing all the time. One of your main defenses should be diversification, as is said above. Use multiple vendors, platforms, advertising methods, marketing methods, communication methods, even payment methods. I myself have money from multiple sources going to multiple accounts: KDP, ACX, Kobo, B&N, GP, Draft2Digital, Smashwords, several trade publishers or agencies, my military retirement: distributed into two different bank accounts and PayPal. I then move some of it into five more separate accounts at various institutions, for investments or savings. And this isn't because I'm particularly wealthy--I just don't like to be dependent on any on institution. David, you're my hero!
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Post by K'Sennia Visitor on Mar 19, 2019 19:39:55 GMT
K, wow. Are we twins? I don't have depression but I have two anxiety orders. I have generalized anxiety and social phobia as well. I have many triggers. I don't drive because it's a HUGE trigger. I can't stand to even talk on the phone and not comfortable around people at all. I'm fine online but that's about it. When I have to, I fake it but I mainly stay in the house. I'm also a natural introvert which makes me even more reclusive. Sometimes it's like living in prison and I don't have the funds to go to therapy so I just use medication and deal with it. I've had it all my life so I don't expect it to change. I'm nervous constantly but the meds I take help with the worrying. The only other thing that helps me is exercise and writing. Exercise really helps keep my mind straight. *teehee* we might be twins! I don't drive, either, although, for me it's mostly due to my eyesight. I almost hit someone during my last time through drivers ed and I never even saw the car. But truthfully I don't feel comfortable being in control of something so massive and freeways are terrifying, so it was just as well. I hate, hate, hate talking on the phone which is one of the reasons I don't have one! I live in my room and really only leave the house to go to shit study, which is across the parking lot, and on shopping day. That's it. I don't like leaving more than that. I'm not very good at faking social skills. I can when I'm feeling confident and in control. But I don't feel either of those things very often anymore. I hate when people ask me questions. Those are the worst cos I never know how to answer, and I worry that the landlords will get mad at me for whatever I do say. Worry for me is normal. It's a constant 24/7 cycle. I am either worried or excited. If I'm not either of those things I am numb, empty, nothing. Worry gives me something to attach to as does excitement. But I lose attachment easily. I think I am somewhere on the borderline personality disorder spectrum, as well. And I probably have internal ADD. Or it might just be a malfunction with the part of the brain that helps you make decisions and order things in your head. There's a word for it but I can never remember, but a lot of female aspies have it, and I'm a female aspie. I actually got tested for that one when I was doing job rehab, or whatever they call it. I got a half and half for ADD. And scored extremely high with anxiety, of course. The folks don't believe in mental healthcare. My preacher dad thinks mental illness is demonic influence, so you just have to repent and pray yourself through it, so getting medication or therapy or anything like that is out of the question until I'm free. So I just muddle through and try to be my own therapist.
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Post by davidvandyke on Mar 21, 2019 21:10:00 GMT
You guys could be twins to my wife, though.
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Post by K'Sennia Visitor on Mar 22, 2019 3:30:52 GMT
You guys could be twins to my wife, though. Triplets!
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Post by thatwritergal on Mar 28, 2019 20:15:07 GMT
Quadruplets? :-)
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Post by possiblyderanged on Mar 30, 2019 19:36:42 GMT
I'm seriously introverted. I've gotten better over the years at talking to people, but working around people makes me crazy. I get so stressed out, and I don't handle it well. There's likely something else going on, but at this point it's probably not worth worrying over (at least until I qualify for Medicare, four years from now). So, I fake it and then I need to be alone without people bothering me so I can recover.
But to the point of the thread, yes, people are lazy. And they've likely fallen into the trap of believing some shyster who tells them it's easy to make millions from Kindle, with no work and no worry. Heck, they're so lazy they don't even bother to learn how to write fiction, they just ask questions and expect people to give them a class in less than 100 words, bullet points optional.
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