Monday Morning Marketing Tip - August 30, 2010

This week's focus:
We live in a visually-oriented society, and you need to consider the lowest common denominator of your audience. Thus, it's important to consider ways to make your message memorable. For example, using visual aids and word pictures makes it easier for everyone to understand the benefits of your book. One of my clients, Johnny Parker, uses a metaphor about blueprints and home construction to describe how his message can help couples build stronger marriages. Then, he cleverly gives away a Home Depot gift card to people as a prize. As you can imagine, listeners find it easy to remember his message and expertise.

Take a moment right now to consider a creative way that you could build similar connections with your readers, listeners, and customers.


Chew on this:
"A negative image or brand will usually be the default position. You must proactively and aggressively establish a positive and leading-edge brand."
Alan Weiss - author of How to Establish a Unique Brand in the Consulting Profession

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© Rob Eagar 2010. All rights reserved.

Monday Morning Marketing Tip - August 23, 2010

This week's focus:
If you're a speaker, remember that you're audience is never captive. Even if they're sitting right in front of you, they don't have to listen if they don't feel like it. They can ignore you, pay attention to something more interesting, or simply let their mind wander. It is your responsibility to keep an audience riveted on your message. Content is king, but useless if you can't keep your listeners engaged.

If you're an author, remember that you can't force people to finish your book. Readers can daydream, skip to the conclusion, leave your book on their never-ending "I'll finish it someday" pile, or try to sell it used on Ebay. Thus, challenge yourself to write a book that deeply inspires or profoundly instructs the reader from beginning to end. This is how you sow the seeds for word-of-mouth.


Chew on this:
"He nurtured life instead of destroying it, and was sensitive to the beauty of this continent, and did something to create here a civilization. Johnny Appleseed stands for ourselves at our best."
- Writer Charles Smart on the legacy of Johnny Appleseed (speaking of sowing seeds)

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© Rob Eagar 2010. All rights reserved.

Monday Morning Marketing Tip - August 16, 2010

This week's focus:
There's a silent financial killer plaguing the author community called "trinkets." Trinkets are those inane little products that you see some writers trying to sell, such as T-shirts, mugs, pens, figurines, jewelry, etc. There's nothing wrong these items on their own. The problem is they can kill your cash flow when you don't sell them quickly. I know several authors who bought too much inventory and now their garage is filled with useless trinkets and they're struggling financially.

Unless you can turn inventory on a frequent basis and maintain a high profit margin, avoid trinkets altogether. Stick to the essential author products that expand your message, such as books, audio CD's, DVD videos, ebooks, workbooks, study guides, etc. Leave trinkets to the retail professionals, and keep your business running lean and mean.


Chew on this:
"Financial peace isn't the acquisition of stuff. It's learning to live on less than you make, so you can give money back and have money to invest. You can't win until you do this."
Dave Ramsey, bestselling author of The Total Money Makeover

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© Rob Eagar 2010. All rights reserved.

Monday Morning Marketing Tip - August 9, 2010

This week's focus:
If you want the world to treat you like a professional author or speaker, then you've got to act and appear professional. Yet, I'm surprised by how many of you shoot yourself in the foot by presenting a homemade image that damages your credibility. Here's a few tips to help influential people take you more seriously:

● Use a professional email address to communicate with your audience. If you're still using an old AOL.com email, it means you're an "Amateur On Line." The same goes for Gmail / Yahoo / Hotmail and similar email services. You're email should be your first name followed by @yourwebsitename.com

● Don't try to save money by getting a family member to build your website on the cheap or using a free blog service. Get serious and hire a legitimate graphic artist and website designer to create your website and marketing materials. The saying is true, "You've got to spend money to make money." If you don't want to spend money to be a professional author, you're in the wrong business.

● If you're dissatisfied with your book sales or lack of speaking engagements, invest in your professional growth. You can't grow if your skills remain stagnant. Take a class, join a critique group, read insightful books, attend a writers conference, hire an expert consultant, etc. Spending money to make yourself better is never an expense - it's an investment, which creates long-term benefits.

● Don't title yourself: "Jane Doe - Author, Speaker, Consultant, Mother, whatever..." Nobody cares. People want to know how you can improve their lives. Instead, create a personal brand that showcases your expertise, such as Jane Doe - "The Stress Buster," "Seatbelt Suspense," or "Leading Women in the Adventure of Faith."

If I sound harsh it's because your success is at stake, and I've got your best interests in mind. Some of you reading this tip need to get serious about being an author or find another line of work. Life is too short...why waste your gift when you can maximize it?


Chew on this:
"The master replied, 'Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things.'" - Matthew 25:23

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© Rob Eagar 2010. All rights reserved.

Great joke about Facebook

"Facebook announced that it now has more than 500 million users...which may help explain why unemployment is around 10 percent."

- Jimmy Kimmel

Monday Morning Marketing Tip - August 2, 2010

Rob Eagar's Monday Morning Marketing Tip is written to help authors, publishers, and organizations spread their message like wildfire.

This week's focus:

My wife and I are huge fans of Bobby Flay's show on the Food Network called, "Throwdown." Bobby is a top-level "Iron Chef" who challenges unsuspecting local chefs that he can top their best dish. On a recent episode, he battled the Vermont Brownie Company in a chocolate-lover's brownie fest. However, he lost to the local chefs who had the best brownies I've ever seen. In fact, they were so good that I ordered a half-dozen from their website to satisfy my craving...which brings me to marketing.

When I received the package of brownies, there was a business card in the box with the typical company information on the front side. However, on the back side, there was a coupon code to use on your next purchase. I wondered to myself, "Why don't authors and other organizations do the same thing?" For example, create a business card with your contact information and book cover or product photo on one side. But, on the back side, put cool information, such as:

· Special discount code or coupon towards a purchase
· Link to a hidden part of your website for exclusive content
· List helpful tips for the reader in a concise, bulleted format

Anyone could use these promotional cards as a viral giveaway tool for speaking events, book signings, order package stuffers, etc. Pass them out and encourage people to give them to friends. Word of mouth won't spread unless you give it a reason to spread. So, what are you doing to generate buzz for your message? Now, back to my brownies...

Chew on this:

"You will get more word of mouth from making people happy than anything else you do."

Andy Sernovitz, author of Word of Mouth Marketing

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© Rob Eagar 2010. All rights reserved.