Mindset (noun): A way of thinking; an attitude or opinion, especially a habitual one.
Before writing this article, I sent out a research survey asking authors what stood in their way of marketing and promoting their book. Their responses fell into four major categories:
1. Lack of money to market the book
2. Lack of time due to other more pressing commitments
3. Lack of marketing and sales expertise
4. Lack of confidence due to fears and insecurities
Let’s address these four shortcomings one by one to invalidate them as real stumbling blocks to move you forward with your book and author marketing.
1. Lack of Money
Like most “authorpreneurs,” you probably don’t have an endless stream of money, let alone a healthy trust fund to access to finance your business venture.
Yes, you can always beg, borrow, or steal, none of which I recommend as a long-term financial strategy.
Instead, your currency of choice comprises the skills you possess: time, energy, imagination, and all the creativity you can muster.
There are multiple marketing strategies and tactics available for free, which should be music to your ears. However, if you’re serious about marketing your book, you’ll need to set aside a few hundred dollars initially to pay for essential services such as website hosting and email marketing.
Business standards suggest that you allocate between 5–10 percent of your budget to marketing opportunities.
As you make money with the sale of your books, and possibly speaking or coaching engagements, save 5–10% of those funds and put it towards your marketing efforts.
Start small, and as you grow, you can afford to invest more in your business marketing ventures.
2. Lack of Time
Let’s be honest, none of us have enough time in a day to get all the things done on our “to-do” list. Plain and simple, we never have enough time.
However, let me contradict that statement.
Have you ever found that when you’re truly passionate and absorbed in a project, such as a special hobby or cause, magically, as if out of nowhere, enough time appears?
What this really means is that if you really want to do something, I guarantee you’ll find the time. Using time as an excuse for not marketing your book is a copout. It’s just a feeble excuse with no legs to stand on. No apologies for my bluntness!
If you analyze the real reason for your time excuse, chances are that uncertainty of what to do and how to do it lies at the crux. It’s not your fault, because, without the fundamentals, you’re bound to feel uncertain, and perhaps even awkward. Almost everyone does when they’re faced with having to learn something new.
Whenever we’re faced with learning a new “something” be it a language, a sport, a skill, there are three essentials needed. These are the “What,” the “How,” and the “Why.”
What to do?
How to do it?
Why do you want to do it?
There are marketing books galore explaining what to do and how to do it. However, the third question is a personal one: “Why do you want to do it?”
The motive or impetus to implement “what to do” and “how to do it,” lays 100 percent on your shoulders.
It’s this “Why” that makes the difference between your success or failure.
Any of the experts can offer you the best tips, techniques, tools, and tactics, but if you lack the motivation to put them into practice, no magic wand or pixie dust does the trick.
It’s a strange phenomenon that you want to sell more books, and yet you can’t free up some time during the day to devote to marketing to tell the world about your book.
It’s a fact that you managed to find time and inspiration to write your book. So, why not take a few minutes every day to market it?
I’m telling you that if you really want to get your book into the hands of readers, you’re going to have to do something to help make that happen, without any “ifs,” “and” or “buts.”
To take control of your time commitment takes fortitude and willpower. What I’ve found is that if I don’t schedule time on my calendar for writing, marketing, and learning, then it won’t happen. How do I know this? I’ve failed to keep commitments with myself far too often.
Here’s a simple strategy that works:
Carve out 15, 30, 45, or 60 minutes every day to work on your marketing. If 60-minutes puts a strain on your schedule, whittle it down to an amount of time that’s comfortable. The key is to do something however small, on a daily basis to help your book succeed.
In Part 2, we’ll disintegrate Lack of Marketing Expertise and Lack of Confidence.
