~ Publicity From Thirty Thousand Feet

 

We all know that marketing a book is a process. But sometimes the process takes longer than wed anticipated. Thats why its nice every now and again to hop aboard the publicity jet and get a look-see at what youve been doing from the thirty-thousand foot level. Why? Well, first off this birds-eye view will reveal to you areas you might be overlooking or other options for marketing you hadnt considered.

To accomplish this bird-eye view youll want to get yourself a big white board, or something else big enough to chart your flight plan on. Then, once youve gotten that start charting the course youve taken so far. Dont leave a single thing out; it doesnt matter what it is. What you want to end up with is a serious list of everything youve done from the time you held your first proof book in your hands.

One of the things this type of a project will do is give you a new perspective on what youre doing. It will show you areas that youve possibly been spending too much time on or potential holes in your campaign. Sketching out your marketing campaign will also give you a chance to see whats been leveraging you results and what hasnt. Keep in mind that some things like bulk sales and national media might take longer than other items so youll want to keep putting forth effort toward those long-term goals. But lets say youve been spending tons of time doing radio but nothing really seems to be happening in that area. You then look over to your speaking engagement section and realize you havent done a lot with that recently. Perhaps its time to pull back on radio and start pushing speaking events.

Once youve spent a good long time in this birds-eye view mode, start developing a to-do list of items or add to an existing list to help reinvigorate your campaign. One of the many things youll learn from doing this thirty-thousand foot perspective is that we often become myopic in our campaigns, focusing too hard in one area and not hard enough in another. Stepping back from your work will allow you the breathing room you need to regroup and reset your goals. Then you can focus in on particular areas or tasks that might need a boost.

Its been said that a plane flying from Hawaii to Los Angeles is always off by three percent. If left to fly without any adjustments to the course, however slight, the plane would land up in Seattle instead (a difference of almost 1,200 miles!). But through corrections and readjustments the pilot eventually reaches his destination. As you pilot your own campaign, remember: dont leave your marketing on autopilot. Realign, readjust, and refocus and eventually you too will reach your destination, wherever that might be.

Happy flying!