Search Results: marketing platform

*It’s All About the Numbers* When we (agents) submit proposals to publishers, we pay special attention to the part of the proposal that explains who the author is and what makes up their platform. And what publishers want to see is your platform expressed in numbers. So from the beginning, you as an author should…

Whether or not you have a book to sell right now, you probably have reason to build a platform and gather a “tribe.” Last week we discussed blogging as one possible avenue for this, and I also gave you a list of several other ways to use the Internet to connect with people. But this is…

I seem to receive more questions about platform than anything else, so I’m answering some basics today. What is a platform? There are various kinds of platforms. A train platform is the area from which you board the train. A diving platform is a structure from which you careen your body into a pool of…

I’m always talking with authors about marketing their books and growing their platforms. It’s a challenge for most writers, who are constantly trying to figure out the formula for gathering more fans (i.e. potential book-buyers). While writers typically don’t love the idea of marketing their books, ironically they’re more suited to it than many other kinds…

I was talking with a friend about a new consulting firm being built by a small group of professionals. I learned that, in creating their business model, they made a decision: a prerequisite to being a partner in the firm is that each individual must be building and maintaining a solid platform. The method is up…

I hear a lot of writers complaining about their book promotion, bemoaning how their publisher didn’t do enough marketing or PR for their book. They say things like “publishers don’t market books anymore.” But I’ve been in publishing since 1995, and this has been the single most common writer complaint for as long as I…

1. Definition of a platform? It’s the way you, the author, will get your name and your book in front of potential consumers. It’s the way you will bring sales to the table. It’s a group of people who are likely to buy your book, if you should ever publish one, because they already know…

A client recently wrote me: I’ve finished my book and delivered it to the publisher. What should I be focusing on right now?That’s a good question. At this point, a writer should be thinking about two things: marketing this book (building your platform), and beginning work on your next book, whether or not it’s contracted.…

Last week at the Write-To-Publish conference, the one topic that kept coming up in conversations, panels, and workshops was AUTHOR PLATFORM. Yes, the hated p-word! I explained again and again that publishing just ain’t what it used to be. Gone are the days when publishers were solely responsible for the marketing of a book. Today’s…

Yesterday we talked about how it can be difficult to get an agent or traditional publisher if you had a self-pub book that didn’t sell. But that begs the question: What if you have a traditionally published book (or multiple books) that didn’t sell very well? Will that cause problems selling future books? Absolutely. In…