A Smart Conversation with Yvonne DiVita and Penny Sansevieri
There is a LOT to go over here, so read this whole post and watch the video. The marketing insight Penny shares is more valuable than anything else you’re doing right now. Turn of your phone and forget social media for a bit. Watch and listen to this book marketing expert.
I rushed getting this video up because the content in it is timely. It’s about gift guides and book clubs and how to get your book included. While we’re already pushing the edge to being noticed for Christmas and other December/January holidays, there is still hope. If you act NOW!
First, here’s bit of background on Penny. It doesn’t include our friendship which goes back to BlogHer days. That would be around 2005, folks. I’ve known her and respected her and admired her for that long. She’s been a superstar in my book from day one.
Penny C. Sansevieri, Founder and CEO of Author Marketing Experts, Inc., is a bestselling author and internationally recognized book marketing and media relations expert. And that is why she was on the Smart Conversations show.
Our talk begins with book clubs because I watched a podcast Penny did that talked about how to get your book into books clubs. I was curious about how to get my author’s books into book clubs – because yes, they are that good. Understand that you need to have a quality book to be accepted into a book club.
Here are some of the resources Penny mentioned: Alignable. Meetup. Your local library. Your local bookstore. Watch and learn how to approach them. She gives away so much here!
I’m not kidding. The advice this woman gives away freely will change your life, if you pay attention. You want to learn from her. Take a lot of notes! You can contact her at info@amarketingexpert.com .
At 22 minutes in, Penny reveals a FANTASTIC marketing idea. You have to hear her tell the story. Could you do it?
Understand this, your book has to fit the book club or gift guide. You can’t just think you should be included in any gift guide or that any book club will be happy to read your book. Remember, your book is not for everybody. Stop saying that. It’s for a select group of people – and yes, probably a very large select group of people. Hundreds. Thousands. Tens of thousands. But you can’t reach them if you don’t understand who they are and why they would read your book.
Fun fact Penny shared: Amazon Author Central Pages get 2 BILLION hits a year! How does your author page stand up? One of the key parts is your book description. Do you understand your logline? In other words, can you describe your book in one sentence? A little advice, from me and Penny, study movie loglines. They know how to create tension and excitement.
Don’t forget that your audiobook and eBook – these alternative ways to consume content could be used in gift guides, too. Especially for those last minute shoppers!
But I’m not done talking yet. Penny even works with Indie authors. If your book is produced to the quality that we offer at Master Book Builders, Penny wants to work with you. And if that’s not enough, here’s even more info on her and more reason to contact her for your book marketing needs:
She is an Adjunct Professor teaching Self-Publishing for NYU. She was named one of the top influencers of 2019 by New York Metropolitan Magazine. Her company is one of the leaders in the publishing industry and has developed some of the most innovative Amazon visibility campaigns as well offering national media pitching, online book marketing, author events, and other strategies designed to build the author/book visibility.
She is the author of 18 books, including “How to Sell Your Books by the Truckload on Amazon,” “Revise and Re-Release Your Book”, “5-Minute Book Marketing for Authors,” and the newly-released “From Book to Bestseller” AME has had dozens of books on top bestseller lists, including those of the New York Times, USA Today, and Wall Street Journal. (get your copy of these books today! Start with this one.)
To learn more about Penny’s books or her promotional services, visit www.amarketingexpert.com. And read her blog – learn from the marketing content shared there – not just how to market your book but how to write your own blog! You know, the one we keep pushing you to write in.
Enjoy the video!
P.S. How about offering a signed copy of your book? Penny says people love autographed copies of books! gift wrap yours and send it off! yes, it might cost a few pennies, or you could include shipping costs in the price – which is MORE than the general public pays, BTW, cause, after all, it’s an autographed copy. BE CREATIVE! Isn’t that what I told you in my newsletter? You are signed up for it, right?
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