Wednesday

K is for Knowledge

Yesterday, I talked about increasing blog traffic and building a voice of authority through your writing. What do you know that sets you apart from other bloggers, something that might attract a very narrow, but perhaps large group of readers?

What brings people to this blog is information about blog book tours. So that narrows my readership to authors who want to promote their new titles on the Internet.

In the past five years, I’ve become something of a sage (I hesitate to say "authority figure" as it sounds so unfriendly) about blog book tours, and it all started as research for my own book promotion. I didn't invent the idea by any means (it goes back at least 20 years to author, M.J. Rose). After many years of promoting a business with related traveling, hotel conferences, and other “face-time”, I knew I didn’t want to do any of that to promote my own book. It was too expensive, too time-consuming, too strenuous at my age, and an environmental nightmare. It was this last issue that decided my interest in online promotion, and it was a short jump to the blogging platform and it’s obvious potential, that led me to researching and planning online tours.

Five years later, I still think blogs, blog book tours, and other Internet platforms like YouTube and podcasting, are powerful book promotion tools, which have changed the publishing game, and tilted it in favor of the author. If you’re interested in a quick how-to be sure to read my Quickest Blog Book Tour Guide Ever and then consider taking a class to plan your own tour. Not only will you pay less out-of-pocket to plan your own tour, you’ll have a better one. Because nobody knows your book as well as you do, and nobody cares more about its success. Sign up for the next class here, and acquire the knowledge you need to build your own blog book tour.

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

Great advice. There is not one thing that works, but you have to do several things, as you mentioned, to come together as a package.

http://www.ManOfLaBook.com

MJRose said...

THanks for giving me credit - it was 1999 - and our first stop was Salon.com - it was very cool.

Helen Ginger said...

Good advice, Dani. It seems to me that more and more authors are doing blog tours. Right now, it's THE way to get the word out about your book.

Anonymous said...

I've read Quickest Blog Tour Guide Ever a couple times. O could stand to read it again. After the A to Z Challenge of course. Man, this event is time consuming. But worth it.

Bob Sanchez said...

Hi Dani,
I'll be re-reading your guide again soon as I gear up for a blog book tour in May.

Thanks for all you do.

Maryannwrites said...

Dani, you forgot to mention that I dubbed you the Queen of Blogs. LOL

On a serious note, what is the advantage of a scheduled tour over just frequent appearances on blogs. Or is there an advantage? Might make a good post for BRP.

India said...

This is very good blog for tour and travel have so much information, Very Nice Blog and this is for those who are looking for India Tours and wsih to Visits India

Dani said...

Truly, Maryann... the only true advantage to a formal bbt is the day-after-day. And a schedule posted somewhere. It depends on author popularity. Hank Phillippi Ryan, for example, blogs everywhere all the time. Gets lots of visitors and comments. A tour would be redundant for her. A blog book tour works if you need a strong hit because you haven't been around enough and for a long time.