5 Innovative and Proven Marketing Strategies

By Karen Cioffi

This is an exciting week at Writers on the Move and I get to kick it off. The whole week we’re focusing on marketing innovations and proven strategies to help you write publish, and market your book. We wanted to do something special to thank you for taking the time out of your busy days to read what we write.

Starting off the week, I wanted to give an overview of some 2013 marketing strategies. While researching the topic for my post, I came across some very interesting information. Here are some of the highlights:

5 Innovative and Proven Marketing Strategies

1. Marketing is ever-changing.

This is especially true of inbound marketing. The changes are so fast, that it’s tough to be the first or even get on the wagon of a new strategy before it’s old-hat.

Because of this, it’s wise to stick to the marketing strategies that are working for you. Stay true to what works.

This is not to say you can’t venture out and try new tools and strategies, just be aware that they may not be here tomorrow, or they may not be as effective as the ‘marketer’ is purporting them to be.

2. Innovation doesn’t always mean ‘new.’

In an article at Marketing and Innovation, Yann Gourvennec noted that, “innovation isn’t always about disruption, it is often about making things better.”(1) In other words, it’s not always about creating something new. A revised or renewed product or service can be innovative. It might be in making a product or service better, or adding something to it.

3. Inbound marketing is still one of the top strategies.

In a recent survey conducted by HubSpot and MIT, the results showed that “92 percent of HubSpot’s customers increased traffic.” Seventy-five percent of those customers saw a 75 percent and more traffic increase. (2)

This proves that inbound marketing works effectively.

4. Co-branding can be a profitable marketing strategy.

The source article of this topic dealt with offline business. It gave the example of a local restaurant teaming up with a local movie theater to offer discounted tickets if the customer spent a certain amount on dinner. (3) But, this strategy can be translated into book marketing.

As an example I’ll use my children’s bedtime picture book, Day’s End Lullaby. I could research infant and baby bedroom and bedding stores to see if there is any interest in co-branding. Buy a bed set and get a bedtime story free or for a minimal fee.

The perk to the store is offering something more to its customers, helping to make that personal connection. The benefit to the author (me) would be the store buying the book at a discounted rate.

5. Gaining discoverability through Freebies.

The source article for this topic discussed the innovative marketing strategy that NAL/Penquin used for “You Knew Me When” by Emily Liebert. The publishing house sent “advance galleys with a three-bottle set of nail polish.” The book is about a successful cosmetics executive. This particular author and publisher took it to a new level – the source article is worth the read, see reference #4 below.

Stayed tuned tomorrow for a post by Annie Duguid.

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References:

(1) http://visionarymarketing.fr/en/blog/2013/05/innovation-what-new-really-means-the-data-center-robotics-example/
(2) http://www.shebangdesign.com/7-innovative-marketing-ideas-to-get-the-roi-rolling/#.UnVvKBAljW4
(3) http://www.shebangdesign.com/8-great-marketing-ideas/#.UnVtfhAljW4
(4) http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/style-blog/wp/2013/08/09/a-polished-book-marketing-plan-nails-it/

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Oh, I did have Part 3 of the three-part series on Small Business Marketing scheduled for today, but because of our special marketing week, I'm moving that post to December 30th.

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P.S. To keep up with writing and marketing information, along with Free webinars, join us in The Writing World (top right top sidebar).

Karen Cioffi
Award-Winning Author, Freelancer/Ghostwriter, Author/Writer Online Platform Instructor
http://karencioffi.com

Innovative and Proven Writing and Marketing Strategies WEEK with Writers on the Move

Beginning tomorrow, December 1st, Writers on the Move is featuring a full week of innovative and proven writing and marketing strategies. It will kick off with "5 Innovative and Proven Marketing Strategies" by Karen Cioffi (me :)) and end with "Writing and Book Marketing – Crafting a Pitch (Part 2)" by Carolyn Howard-Johnson.

This is the beginning of a writing and marketing information packed December as a thank you to YOU.

WE APPRECIATE YOU!

And, to further show our appreciation, we have an ebook of Quotes that the WOTM members compiled to inspire and motivate you . It's still in the works, but will be ready sometime mid-December.

So, be sure to stop by often and let us know what you think about the posts. And, please don't forget to share them with the social icons we have at the bottom of each post.

Talk to you soon,
Karen

Keep a Personal Account of Your Progress

Dottie Enderlie displays her original Writing Wreath on her blog

Do you keep track of the number of words, pages, hours you spend each day on writing? Since last month's post on organization, I've experimented with another means to gain more productivity: keeping track of my progress. Before closing in on a method, I took a look at what other writers do. The results were helpful and inspiring.                                                                             
                                                                                       
Functional to Sublime

If you are interested in keeping track by using programs online, an excellent article, "Tracking my writing goals with Scrivener, Evernote and Google Spreadsheets," was posted by Jamie Todd Rubin, science fiction writer, blogger, Evernote paperless lifestyle ambassador; on his blog post, January 13, 2012. Rubin uses a combination of three tools to help him reach his writing goals each day.

• Scrivener - One of Rubin's rules of thumb is to write in full-screen mode to avoid distractions. Oh my, this is a lesson in itself, for I keep my cell phone near my PC so I can hear the bleeps and bloops every time I receive a new email or text message. Then I drop whatever I'm doing and hastily check to see, "Who could that be? Whoever wants/needs to talk to moi?" I never suspected that my second lesson in becoming more productive (my first lesson appeared in last month's post on October 28th about getting more organized), would be to close my office door, turn off all my devices, and NEVER, NEVER stop to check my email! Not until my writing goal is reached. Ah, but I digress. Back to the fact that Rubin sets a 500 word/session target. He doesn't stop writing until Growl pops up and tells him he's met his goal.
• Evernote - Rubin keeps a notebook in Evernote called "Daily Fiction Writing." He copies and pastes each day's offering into this notebook so he can go back on any given day and see what he wrote. This is done only for first drafts. Note to self: This is an excellent way to keep track of that great idea that got lost during editing. My past printed first drafts of my current WIP sit in a box; much of my computer-generated edits replaced original drafts, therefore got lost in the editing process. So I particularly would like to try this method.
• Google Spreadsheet - First drafts go into a Google Spreadsheet, which keep track of what Rubin worked on each day and how much he wrote.

Rubin gives detailed descriptions of his tracking system and includes diagrams of his actual spreadsheets, all very helpful. If you are interested, please visit http://www.jamierubin.net/2012/01/13/tracking-my-writing-goals-with-scrivener-evernote-and-google-spreadsheets/ to read his full post.



• The article, "Task-Based Logs: The Most Useful Method of Record Keeping," by Laurie Lewis, a freelance medical writer and editor, describes a system that keeps track of each phase of a freelancer's work, by the task. Lewis contends that keeping a task-oriented log helps the freelancer make appropriate decisions regarding what the client expects and a breakdown on how she meets those expectations, while keeping track of how much to charge per hour. Table 1, as it appears in the article, is a simple log for typing a 25-page paper:

                      Look over material, decide on style  1/4 hour
                      Type (25 double-spaced pages)        2-1/2 hours
                      Proof                                                  2 hours
                      Make corrections                               3/4 hour
                      Total                                                  5-1/2 hours

The article continues to describe how to create a task-based log for more complicated projects, and includes another table to illustrate. To read Lewis' entire article, please visit http://www.writing-world.com/tech/charge.shtml. Her book, What to Charge: Pricing Strategies for Freelancers and Consultants, might also be helpful in creating your own log system.

Dotti Enderle's Original and Creative Writing Wreath

A most delightful and innovative approach to keeping track of words-a-day is the Writing Wreath that children's author Dotti Enderle created. Dottie's award-winning historical novel, Crosswire, was included in the list of "Books that Rise Above," in the Highlights Foundation workshop I attended last October. I ordered a copy and was so intrigued by it I ordered, Severed (A tale of Sleepy Hollow), out just this month, that Dotti wrote under the psyeudonym Dax Varley--a fun, fun read. She is the author of dozens of other children's books. I became acquainted with Dotti on Facebook and discovered her Writing Wreath when I visited her blog, http://www.dottienderle.com/news.html.

Dotti created her Writing Wreath to track her writing progress. Here are the rules she set up for herself:

• Only add a ribbon for 650 or more words a day.
• Only add a ribbon for current novel. Blogging doesn't count. :)
• Only add a ribbon for fresh work. Not revision.

Dottie didn't inlcude her contract work for Ghost Detectors, only her original works. I think her rules are great. They are a strict indicator of accomplished new material. Visit Dotti's blog if you would like to see the photos she has posted of her progress in creating the wreath and details about how she made it.

The Great Experiment

To begin keeping track of my own efforts, I took a simple course of action. I created an excel spreadsheet, with the headings:

• Date
• Project
• Time In/Time Out
• No. of Pgs Completed
• Type of Work/First draft/Editing
• Good Day/Bad Day
• Tomorrow's Goal

In my tracking system, I have included all of my writing projects, which are currently self-generated and include short stories and articles, children's fiction books, and blog posts. My main purpose, as I've discussed, is to become as productive as possible. So far, I've managed to rewrite an outline of a short story that was languishing, rejected, in my drawer (along with many of its cousins). I've begun research and begun creating the outline for my next book, and I've continued to edit my current WIP. For me, this is productive. Work prior to this effort consisted of only one project at a time. I really wanted to branch out from that and get more projects done simultaneously.

What I have Learned: How distracted I've been, mainly by social media and emails. Keeping a record of my actual writing time was an eye-opener. The time spent wasn't as much as I originally thought. So, I've sectioned off times during the day when it's okay to "do email." When it's okay to take time for everything else. And when it's okay NOT to work. The rest of the time is happily spent writing.

Only time will tell if I've met my goal of becoming more productive. Once that goal is met, who knows, perhaps I will be that much closer to my final goal, which is what we all strive for: To find an audience so that we can entertain our readers with our works and make a contribution to their lives.

Next month: My #2 Pencil

Linda Wilson, a former elementary teacher and ICL graduate, has published over 40 articles for children and adults, six short stories for children, and is in the final editing stages of her first book, a mystery story for 7-9 year olds. Publishing credits include seven biosketches for the library journal, Biography Today, which include Troy Aikman, Stephen King, and William Shatner; Highlights for Children; Pockets; Hopscotch; and true stories told to her by police officers about children in distress receiving teddy bears, which she fictionalized for her column, "Teddy Bear Corner," for the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office Crime Prevention Newsletter, Dayton, Ohio. Follow Linda on Facebook. 

 

Gratitude Can Help Make You a Better Writer

It's early evening. I'm sitting here in my favorite brown sweater. It's long enough to wrap around me when I'm cold, it has a hood that is perfect for dodging snowflakes, and a belt (which I never tie) that has been known to get caught in the car door. It's the one I always reach for this time of year. And it's the one I paid less than $5 for on the J.C. Penney clearance rack 8 years ago!

I'm thankful for my sweater. Sometimes it's the little things that give us the most comfort. 

We live in a very busy, rushed world. When I slow down, my mind follows suit. And even if I am thinking over the events of the day, thinking through a problem, or just day dreaming, I have learned to take the time to be thankful. 

Research has shown that gratitude is beneficial for health and well being. Being thankful puts things in perspective.  In my experience, counting my blessings makes me a better person, and therefore, a better writer. It helps bring balance from the concerns, worries, and difficulties we all face. It's a healthy practice and should be regularly scheduled into our lives. 

What better way than to write down what we are thankful for? It may just turn into an article or book to help others.

Need a jump-start? Here are some ideas:

• Nature. We are surrounded by wonderful sights, sounds, and smells that help us pause and be thankful for the beautiful world we live in. Nature has a calming affect. I write about these things to help my readers to be encouraged. 

• Family and Friends. Taking the time to remember the people in your life is especially important, especially if they are challenging relationships. Find something about that person you can be thankful for and focus on it. If there is just one person you can be thankful for you are blessed. Don't forget the kindness of strangers!

• Provision. Do you have a car? A home? Food? All things to be thankful for. One time I was driving my car in the winter and the heat wasn't working. I turned to my son in the front seat and said, "At least we have a car!" Even if you don't have the nicest car, a home too small for your family, or only bread, milk, and eggs on your table - be thankful. It will make you happier!

As you practice gratitude, many things you didn't notice before will soon become important and valued. In turn, your outlook will positively affect your writing business and everything else you do.

How about you? Is there one thing you can be thankful for? Please feel free to leave a comment!

Foter.com / Public Domain Mark 1.0

Happy Thanksgiving!

~~~

Kathy Moulton is a published freelance writer. You can find her passion to bring encouragement and hope to people of all ages at When It Hurts -http://kathleenmoulton.com

Writing Software.

Tree Sheets

Despite the title, this month's free software choices are not simply for writers. But they are worth mentioning because they can potentially save money and time. I admit being prone to play with new gadgets and ideas. My time savers can soon become time wasters, if I'm not careful. So when I read the recent reviews for Tree Sheets--another planning/ list making/to do tool, I was skeptical. Nothing the matter with my "to do" lists in Word, I decided. But I couldn't resist taking a look--and I love it.

It took a little time reading through the interactive manual which teaches you the system as you go. Even using it in its simplest form, I have found it fun to use, it saves me time and I am whipping through my lists of work to be done much faster than I would normally. This, I suspect, is because it is more than a list maker. It allows me to plan as I go and so speeds the writing process.

To do list with Tree Sheets

You can create grids of any size. The squares expand to  fit text and you can insert new grids inside the squares, add photos, and organize your ideas in an order to suit you. I find it far more flexible and faster to use than Excel or other spreadsheets and think it will be excellent for planning not only daily tasks but also book outlines.

It creates a tree-like mind mapping structure for your thoughts.
You can download it from the site above or from sites like Softpedia or Cnet.

Office Solutions

For writers disillusioned with the ubiquitous Microsoft Office, there are several free office suites constantly updating and improving and coming closer and closer to challenging the MS programs.

Open Office has had recent upgrades and the newer Libre Office is well worth looking at. Both are compatible with and can save docs in Word formats. Libre Office, I believe, may work better with the Word Track Changes function beloved by e-book editors. I have downloaded it, like the new templates for its presentations, and joy of joys, it is not clashing with anything else on my computer.

Worth a look especially if money is tight. 

Create an Online Comic

This might be another way to plan a book or picture book. Comix I/O is an online cartoon generator which is a great way to get to grips with learning html -- very useful to know when it comes to building your own websites.

It looks a bit daunting but try Geek Gurl Diaries #17 on You Tube, a quick six minute video on how to do it. I'll add my comic clips once I've practiced a bit more lol

My browser settings are not compatible with the editor feature but I can work around by copying the html into Notepad, changing the text there and then saving the new version with the html suffix--i.e. I save as mycomic.html in the new title box. Remember to keep a .txt version too to be able to change the text again.

Any problems, let me know.

But please leave the links to your creations in the comments below and share your opinions on any low-cost or no-cost software you find particularly useful.

 Anne Duguid is a freelance content editor with MuseItUp Publishing and she tries to pass on helpful writing,editing and publishing tips at Slow and Steady Writers 

November Challenges Part Two

Last month, I wrote about two November writing challenges that I planned to participate in: PiBoIdMo and NaNoWriMo. I am currently working on both. For me, PiBoIdMo is going better than NaNoWriMo. Hmmm. Does that mean I will be better at writing picture books than novels? Or perhaps it’s more realistic to plan to do only one of these during the month of November.  J

What I am doing this month seems insignificant compared to the challenges that many in my home state of Illinois are facing. On Sunday, November 17, several tornadoes hit parts of northern, central and southern Illinois. There were several deaths, along with many injured. Tornadoes also struck other Midwestern states – Missouri, Kentucky, Indiana and Ohio.

If you wish to help those in Illinois affected by Sunday’s tornadoes, there is a list of businesses and organizations accepting donations at the website below.

http://wgntv.com/2013/11/20/how-to-help-victims-of-illinois-tornados/

I don’t know who is collecting donations in the other states, but I recommend giving to the
American Red Cross or the Salvation Army if you would like to help.

I will be back to my regular monthly blog post in December. Thanks for reading!

Debbie A. Byrne has a B.S. in Mass Communication with a minor in History. She is a member of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI) and is working on her first children’s book.

Reaching Your Writing Goals 15 Minutes at a Time

A number of my writing friends are participating NaNoWriMo this month with a goal of writing a 50,000 word first draft in November.  It’s a challenge designed to push writers forward through extended, dedicated writing time. 

And then, there are those who just can’t find the time for even 1,000 words—50,000 might as well be a million words.

It’s easy to get caught up in the belief that you don’t have the time you would like to dedicate to your writing. Unfortunately, this belief can derail your writing dreams.  So how do you pursue your writing goals when you are short on time?  

Jennifer Lawler, author of the Dojo Wisdom series, discusses how a martial artist trains each day, even when old and disabled.  The martial artist accommodates life around his art.  One of my critique partners is a lawyer with a full time job, two active young children, a wife, soccer games…the list goes on. Yet he still manages to write one to two hours a day.  How does he do it?  He gets up at 5 a.m. each morning.  He puts in the effort to accommodate his life to his art.

So how can you accommodate your days for your writing life?  Commit to 15 minutes of writing a day.  Even 15 minutes a day will begin the process of transformation.  Why?  Through those daily 15 minutes, you are informing your subconscious that you are committed to your goal.  You will be amazed after a week of allotting only 15 minutes a day, how much you can accomplish and how easy it can be.  Build it into your routine (e.g. shower, coffee, 15 minutes of writing).  If you are ready to change your life and pursue your writing goals, you will find the time.

So this week start with a daily routine of even just 15 minutes.  This small action oriented goal will help you create the habit of pursing your writing dreams.  Maybe that finished manuscript will be done sooner than you ever thought possible.

Mary Jo Guglielmo is writer and intuitive life strategist. For more information check out:

http://theadvantagepoint.wordpress.com

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