More on successful marketing

Hello and happy Wednesday,

We've seen a significant bump in our readership and I checked my stats and learned that many of you are coming over from recent blog carnivals. So if this is your first time to my blog, welcome. I hope that you'll read through the archives and introduce yourselves in the comments section.

Today I'm going to continue talking a bit about my Multiple 6 Marketing.

Yesterday I said that this was more effective than a starfish strategy. To the best of my knowledge both of these are phrases I made up so don't run to your college textbooks and try to find them. Again, we're writers here [well, most of us are] and so I'm trying to create a picture in your mind.

As I described yesterday, Multiple 6 marketing is starting from the local area and gradually moving out. It is similar to viral marketing in that respect.

Starfish marketing is the explosive kind of ADVERTISING based marketing that most people associate with getting the word out. While the starfish does have a central area, it is going in many directions at once.

I'd like to encourage you to start with your sphere of influence and move in concentric circles. Gain credibility with your peers then continue to expand. That is why I focus so heavily on creating a platform even before you have a book. If you wait until your first publishing contract to start to build a platform you run the risk of getting overwhelmed.

If you'd like to know more about the importance of platform I have the Writing Career Coach Course product available for sale on my mentorship website. It is $15 but I think you'll find that it is worth FAR more. Click here to read a description.

Another reason I favor the multiple 6 model to the starfish model is because the starfish can get EXPENSIVE!! When you're starting out as a writer you don't have unlimited funds to buy advertising in 20 or 30 markets. However, with hometown connections and stories on you-there is more MEANINGFUL information shared which won't be shut out like a 30 second ad.

Consider the difference in your reaction to a pop up vs. a blog.

During the course of this blog I shared with you about my course that I sell but that is not the FOCUS of this blog. I simply offer it as a way to help people who want to know more, get information.

It is the same way with articles [the basis of multiple 6 marketing]. By giving others something meaningful and telling them where they can find out more if they'd like to you are PROVIDING A SERVICE, not just trying to sell a product.

I plan to put together a special report on this topic so if any of you have additional questions, please let me know [post them in the comments or email with subj: question on multiple 6]. I want to clear up any confusion.

Now, for those of you who are editors [or would like to be] I will be teaching a course designed just for you through the Christian PEN March 3-24. The deadline to register is Feb. 25. If you'd like more details click here.

I look forward to seeing all of you tomorrow. Tiff

Are you looking for a writing Mentor? You may have just found her. Find out more here.

Success with Multiple 6 Marketing

Happy Tuesday

Well I slept so much better last night knowing that my taxes were done. This weekend I had 4 or 5 blogs bouncing in my head. I wrote the titles and subject on a sheet of paper...and can't find it this morning. Laugh.

That's okay. I had this come to my mind as I was working on my other blog. I titled it Books as assets. This blog links well to that one [and vice versa].

Also, in my constant attempt to help you with your marketing I want you to notice the title. "Success with Multiple 6 Marketing". That title was very deliberate. First, it introduces a question. You wonder what in the world it is.

But also, my research has shown me that when I put Marketing or Market in my title...NO ONE COMES. Okay, that's not entirely true. You regulars still come for the most part but my blogrush click throughs drop through the floor.

However, when the word "Success"is in a title, the click-throughs jump. So let's see what happens with both. [Are you trying these kinds of marketing tests? If not, you should be. That way you know how to drive traffic to your site more effectively.]

Okay, so what is Multiple 6 Marketing and how will it help you successfully build your blog, book sales, and public speaking.

This is a term I invented to describe something like Viral Marketing.

I don't know how to draw on here or I'd make a picture for you. Since I can't I'll use the power of the writer's mind to help you SEE the picture. First envision a map of a 3 mile radius of where you live. Put your imaginary pencil on your town. Make the shape of a #6 [without closing the circle all the way]. DON'T lift your pencil. Instead, loop around so you now have a continuous line of growing circles. [Similar to still water when a rock is tossed in].

This is how you should envision your marketing plan. Create a local connection. "Local resident Mentors aspiring writers on new website." Could be the headline here in my town.

But I said MULTIPLE circles. So now take your mind to the map of other areas you have a connection to. I graduated from high school an hour from where I live but I was born and raised [except those last 3 years of high school] 3 hours south of here.

So how would those headlines look?
High school "Local Graduate Mentors Aspiring Writers on New Website."
Home town "Local Native Mentors Aspiring Writers on New Website."

Each of those places are the center of my "growing sixes". I can use those local connections in 3 different places as the basis of my marketing plan. And that is just the start.

Why focus on local? We'll talk later this week about why using a Multiple 6 Marketing strategy can be more effective than a Starfish strategy when it comes to Slow Money. [If you don't know what slow money is see the Feb 7 posting on my Writing Mentor blog. ]

Keeping it legal

This blog is posting late today...and there is a reason.

Today I finished my taxes. Yep, after only 15 hours and a TurboTax program I have finally given Uncle Sam his due.

I've been thinking about different business structures to set up my business. There is the Sole Proprietorship which is what most writers are. And then there are more complex structures.

Since I'm not a tax person I'm not going to make this about the differences in structures, my husband understands those much better than I do, but I am going to remind you to keep it legal.

By that I am not saying that I think you are cheating on your taxes or any such thing. What I'm saying is make sure you are documenting and keeping receipts on everything.

I use TurboTax but whether you use that, H and R block or some other tax preparer-find out what documentation you should be using to maximize your business deductions. Make sure you have the correct forms filled out, make sure you have every necessary receipt-and make sure you know where to get information if you need it.

I know taxes are not a fun topic for anyone [except those of you who work in tax prep. In that case this is a WONDERFUL time of year] but for everyone else, make sure you have someone who knows about tax laws as part of your business team. Keep records and keep it legal.

I'll see you tomorrow. Tiffany Colter

Avoiding the Mutual Admiration Society

I am a fan of blogs.

I truly believe they are not only a great way to build a platform but they are also a great way to learn as a new writer. Even as recently as 10 years ago blogs were unheard of. Today they're making an impact in everything from adoption to politics. Despite their benefits, there is one danger with blogs:

The Mutual Admiration Society

This is where a group of bloggers simply visit each other and there is no real growth. Every once in a while someone will stumble on a particular blog but for the most part it is a small group of people reading each other and going nowhere.

How do you avoid this?

I think by far the best way to avoid this is with content. If the purpose of your blog is simply to keep friends and family up to date on your progress [such as the process of adopting] then you don't need a wide readership. Content doesn't matter as much.

However, if your purpose is growing a platform and building a sphere of influence you must take the time to LEARN and then share your knowledge with your readers. You must become a place where people recognize you as a source of reliable information on specific topics.

To a certain extent this is a process of trial and error. In my early blog days I focused almost exclusively on author interviews to build my readership. Unfortunately this was very time consuming and it didn't result in much traffic other than the periodic bumps that came when the "Mutual Admiration Society" of specific writers came to my blog. There was no long term affect on my blog.

By contrast, when I started teaching people about how to build their writing business my readership increased dramatically. I focused less time on booking "big names" and spent more time adding value to the readership of my blog.

It really makes sense if you think about it. I stay up until 12:45 am to see Craig Ferguson give him monologue but as soon as the monologue is over I click off the TV and go to bed. I have no real interest in the guests he has [with rare exceptions]. I am a fan of the show because of his humor.

It was the same with my blog-when I consistently updated with what my "fans" wanted [information on how to make money as a writer] then they naturally began to tell others and my readership grew.

So figure out who your fans are and what they need and you won't get stuck in the mutual admiration society rut.

Have a GREAT weekend and I'll see all of you Monday.

Always learning

Hello,

I had an interesting thought today. For those of you who don't know, I teach SAT and ACT prep at a local business. I love working with high school student. They have their whole future ahead of them. They can be anything.

In my capacity as a teacher at this business I have one focus and goal: help them improve their scores. In a world where lack of specialization seems to be rewarded it seems almost odd. To think that someone would spend an entire month preparing for a single, four hour exam is almost to much to think about.

But as I drove home this evening I started thinking about what these students are doing. They are looking at a goal [the test], they are setting a target date [the exam date] and they are doing all they can to put their best foot forward.

I've shared before in my blogs that we can't assume one book will make or break us...but do we face our writing with the same focus as we did standardized tests? [those of us who took them].

For me, the answer is no. I scored in the 96th percentile on my ACT test [I was in the 99th percentile for English] but I missed a full ride scholarship by ONE COMPOSITE POINT. I didn't know the scholarship even existed so I decided 'good enough' was good enough. Now I am finishing up my TENTH year of paying student loans on my B.A. and I'm STILL not done!

What other opportunities do we miss because we don't take the time to find out what is available to us? Are you so focused on one aspect of your writing that you're in the 99th percentile there...but still one point away for reaching your goal because you don't know what it is that you don't know?

I've been in writer's conferences where groups of writers were singularly focused on contracting their first book. As if that were the goal.

It's not.

That book contract is the FIRST STEP in the adventure...but it is by no means the destination [ask any published author].

So where has your focus been? And are you missing opportunities that could exceed your expectations simply because you're letting 'good enough' be good enough.

I'm talking about slow money as part of your writing plan at my other blog. Maybe I'll see some of you over there.

Making money as a writer

Today we're going to start to talk about making money as a writer.

One of the reasons I focus so much on looking at Writing as a Business on my blogs and lessons is because that was the one idea that completely turned EVERYTHING around for me as a writer.

I hope it will do the same for you too.

To start out, let's brainstorm.

What are ways a writer makes money?

I'm sure the most obvious is by writing books. People look at famous writers and assume there is HUGE money in writing. It is true that a person can make a living as a writer, but it isn't simply a matter of reading a book. There is a great deal that goes in to the writing and, in truth, it is SLOW money.

I am not bashing books by any stretch, this is an important part to your overall plan as a writer, but it must be viewed as a piece of the writing puzzle. I will deal with this topic in depth starting tomorrow at my new Mentoring website. It is available as a free blog on the homepage. I hope you will go check it out.

Books should be looked at as a single piece of your overall plan to make money as a writer. This all comes down to streams of income. As a writer income is quite unpredictable and so you must have money coming from many directions to balance the feast and famine that comes with the writer's life.

There are other elements as well that work together that create a cohesive writing business that provides income consistently-and without working CONSTANTLY.

As I've said before, as a writer you want to be consistent, not constant. There need to be ways to earn repeat income. There also need to be ideas to spread the word about your books as they are published.

Consider how you will make money between books. Many writers I know work on the side as public speakers, teachers, editors or any number of other jobs. Most writers work a full-time job and write their stories on the weekends.

So consider your goals.

Also consider how much money you need to make. Chip MacGregor [a literary agent] had a great blog the end of September where he discussed his formula for success as a writer. If you haven't already, go read it.

What is the topic of your story? Who would like to read it?

From emails I've received I know some of you were born in one country then moved to another. I know some of you have overcome great adversity to get to where you are now. I also know that there are a number of you who have really funny experiences to share with others.

Take the things that make you unique and start to share them with other people. That is why I'm such a big fan of blogging after fighting for almost 3 years. I realize it is a great way to connect and dialog with people.

So how will these different things help you make money as a writer? I'll give you a quick example.

Let's say you are from the US and you currently live in France. You decide you're going to write a Romantic Suspense about a woman who travels to France with a tour group and gets separated in a remote area of France. While there she meets a handsome man. [there is the Romance part]. but he has someone trying to kill him [the suspense part].

This is an amazing book full of twists and turns and heart stopping action. Let's assume it sells and you are paid $7,000 cash advance on it. Before you jump on a plane with your 4 kids and 2 dogs to go to Disney World stop...that's not all your money.

You will need to take a good chunk of that to keep aside for marketing. That is why I post so many ideas on marketing on this blog. Read some of my archives to learn more about them.

Then you'll also need to establish a website if you don't already have one. Then you should put some of that money in savings to use in the lean months.

So what do you have left?? Not as much as you started with, for sure.

But you can start to earn that money back, while increasing your sales numbers.

First, you write a few articles. You write an article for a travel magazine about the remote French setting for your book [which is where you happen to have spent 3 summers]. You pitch it to the US as well as some of those great "In Flight Magazines".

Next, you write an article about being an American living abroad [with all of its unique challenges]. And you have this published back in the US.


Then you go visit the Mayor of the town in your book and tell him about this book featuring his town. You get an article put in the newspaper showing you autographing a copy of the book and handing it to a smiling Mayor. [When I was an exchange student I got to meet the mayor of the town I stayed it. It was really cool.]

So let's say the first two articles earned you $150 each plus a byline. You're doing pretty good. Now go blog about it. Tell all about meeting the Mayor and what that was like. Invite your readers to pre-order the book.

Then go online to see if there is a group of American's living abroad that you could go speak to. Take some of your books to sell and offer to autograph them there.

These are just a few ideas on one project [if you are marketing your own book now I'd love to work with you to help create a program to market your book. Click here for more details.] I use this example to show that you don't have to live in a particular location to market your book effectively.

I also want you to see that you can write on many topics from your central book, even if you write fiction. Finally, I want you to see how a multi-pronged approach can help you not only make more money with your book sales but create other streams of income.

We will continue to expand on this and, as I said, I'll deal with this topic in more depth on the blog on my mentoring website: www.WritingCoachAnswers.com If you haven't been over there to check it out, you should go over there. Many of you have taken advantage of the free download as well as checked out the new WritingCareerCoach product [a 37 page single-space report on Creating a Platform].

So I hope to see all of you at the new blog as well. See you tomorrow.

HIGH...the ongoing story

Well, this will be the last HIGH. There were so many new adventures that came once I attended that first conference. Suddenly people were seeking out my advice for writing, content editing, and marketing. It was a whirlwind of activity. I was teaching people how to market their writing, judging writing contests and entering others. In July I won the Daphne du Maurier award with my unpublished Manuscript "A Face in the Shadow". The contest is put on my the Kiss of Death Chapter of the Romance Writers of America. It was such a huge honor.

With writing each new honor opens a new door. I was beginning to see doors fly open fast and furious [and yes, some flew open right in to my face!!]

In my entire story of How I Got Here the one thing that I learned through it all is there is no such thing as FAILURE in the writing life...unless you quit. Each rejected manuscript helped me to improve my writing, each published article gave me another byline, Every small victory inspired me to try again.

If you've learned nothing else from the series of HIGH blogs I hope you will learn that you are on the right path!! Writing is as rewarding as it is frustrating. I've had articles assigned to me [for pay] on the same day a manuscript was rejected from an agent. I've had people scoff at my products the same day others wrote to tell me how their desire to continue writing was confirmed by something I said in my product.

This is a highly subjective business and in order to survive in this business you need to work on a few different things at once, and you must continue to fail forward [See my posting in 2007 with that title].

So to wrap up HIGH Find a mentor, learn the writing Craft, Believe in your ability to write, and realize to make money as a writer there must be a number of income streams. I'll see you all tomorrow here and hopefully at my other blog too.

What if you had to?

Writers, or people who would be writers, have one thing in common.

They face challenges.

I've had my share of problems in my life, as well as times with very little adversity, and what I've learned is I am more productive WHEN I HAD TO.

WHEN I HAD TO sell an article to pay a bill, I worked late in to the night. When I didn't have to I would often times watch a sitcom rerun instead.

WHEN I HAD TO finish a proposal to get it to a waiting editor I finished a book in three weeks. When I didn't have to I would pick at it here and there.

WHEN I HAD TO get something done I worked from 10am to 2am for weeks at a time to finish it. When I didn't have to, I didn't.

So do you HAVE to? Have you REALLY decided that writing is something that you WANT to accomplish or would you LIKE to write?

If you're published have you DECIDED you REALLY want to see better sales numbers, or would it "be nice" but not necessary.

Do you HAVE to write a book that is so good your reader can't put it down, or is it just enough to see your name on the cover?

Decide your goals and your motivations and go out and do what you HAVE TO DO.

For me, I HAVE TO be a writing Mentor. I am passionate about seeing people succeed.
For me, I HAVE TO always give people more than they expect.
For me, I HAVE TO make sacrifices now to have a better tomorrow.

I hope for many of you Writing will become something you HAVE TO do.

Regardless, if you are someone who knows you must write, or who thinks they might like to, please come to my Mentorship site and check out the free resources, fun and mentorship program. Sign up to have your project edited [even just the first few chapters] to help your writing improve. Maybe you'd like a second set of eyes to look over an article before you send it to a magazine.

Either way, come check us out. We'd love to see you there: www.WritingCoachAnswers.com
That is where you'll find a mentor and a community of writers to help you reach the next level.