The Marketing Question

"A marketing consultant?"  Sally Fields' character asks an audience member in the comedy club where she is performing improv. Her mentor cringes backstage...they never prepped for this! And then she pulls it out at the last second and brings up the horrible shopping carts with the bobbly wheel.

Okay, it was a terrible movie. But I've never forgotten that scene.

So Bam! I put my book up for sale, and then realized I couldn't just sit back on my laurels and wait. I had to MARKET my book!

But I'm not a marketing consultant, nor do I know any marketing consultants. I am related to an excellent salesman, but...

What I have found is the same thing that everyone else in this society has found: social media works.

What I'm struggling with is deciding how much time to devote to the marketing aspect. It's easy to spend 5, 6 or 10 hours on social media sites promoting my book. Oftentimes several hours will net one sale.

Mathematically it's not very efficient.

But I keep thinking that the dividends will be far greater. Eventually every reader counts toward total sales, and a percentage of those readers will review the book which will result in more sales.

But listen to me! Dividends? Sales? Marketing? Blech! This is all the kind of stuff I tried to avoid by marrying young and having a bunch of kids. I like creative stuff!

What's your opinion on the time a writer should devote toward promotion? It's a pickle for the self-publisher. Someone who was talented enough and patient enough to go through a publishing house will have a good deal more marketing included in the package deal.