Tuesday 17 January 2012

A Few Words About Marketing

I dislike marketing!!... and that is all.

But seriously I'm not a fan of marketing, and I will explain why.

I think the root of my dislike comes from the fact I have been raised to be very polite and considerate towards others. I have been raised not to be intrusive, or get in peoples faces. However a problem occurs when marketing, because in some form or another, this is what marketing requires you to do. You have to get what you are trying to sell in front of people, and I find this very difficult because it feels like I'm being intrusive.

So why do I market?

Well because I love my stories and books!! I believe a lot of people will enjoy them and love them the way I do so I try and tell people about them. This is easy to do with friends because they have been so supportive and know me and know my intentions are good. Sometimes I think I have bored them to death with all my talk of my stories, so if I have I apologise to them, but I am thankful to them for their patience and it will never be forgotten.

The difficult part is marketing to strangers. This is the main focus because, as I said, I have asked a lot of my friends. They have always helped me, but I know I need to back off from book stuff with them.

As for strangers, the goal thus: Get my website link, where the book is free, to as many people as I can, with out coming across as intrusive.

I really hope I am achieving this. As mentioned in a previous blog update I have been leafleting and I think putting them through doors is probably the best way of doing this. I kind of enjoy leafleting because I feel like the work and effort I have to put in makes it okay (having done it in freezing conditions and very very wet conditions I feel it has been character building if nothing else). There is also the fact that for some reason I get really nervous when doing it, and have nearly had a couple of panic attacks when doing it, I don't know why this sets them off, but it does. However once I'm finished a leafleting run I feel really happy because I feel like I've achieved something and pushed myself, and faced a fear almost.

Another aspect to my marketing has been using Facebook and putting links to the webpage on Facebook pages that are things that I 'like,' such as bands, films etc. This one has felt like I'm spamming, but has been pretty  productive so about once a week I put a link upon various pages and whoever happens to be on that page at that time, somewhere in the world, get's to see it. Despite it feeling like I'm spamming I know it is effective, and not really that intrusive a way of pointing people to my book.

There are a few other marketing methods in the pipeline and these will reach a lot of people, and hopefully people will go see my website and read the free book. When these new methods happen I'm sure I will mention them in a following update.

Ultimately all I'm trying to do is share something I love with people in the politest way possible, and I hope I am achieving this. I guess only time will tell.

Oh and marketing requires creativity too, so I do like it for that reason.

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