Day #2 Blog Book Tours Class

Yesterday we covered the importance of having a hit counter (which tracks your blog visitors) on your blog and a bookmarking button.

I recommend that new bloggers begin with either Sitemeter.com or Statcounter.com because they are simple to install. If you like statistics, you might be happier using Google Analytics, too. Blogger doesn't have a built-in hit counter, so you'll have to add a third-party counter yourself. WordPress has this function built in to their blogging platform.

I prefer the counter to show the number of visitors as demonstrated at the Blood-Red Pencil blog and at the bottom of the page or bottom-most in the sidebar.

The bookmarking button most people like best is AddThis and that should be placed quite high in the sidebar where it is easily accessible to readers perusing your newest blog post. However, place it below your profile or other built-in sidebar feature, as third-party widgets tend to slow down blog loading. I like the AddThis button to be right where it is now to the right of this post. See it? It's very handy and makes it easy for you to share this post. :)

Next we'll discuss the all-important acts of regularly posting to the blog and building relevant blogrolls. The class is frantically at work getting their blogs in shape for the impending critiques scheduled to begin this weekend. When was the last time you posted something really good and well worth reading?

First Day of Class Review

We jumped right into making our blogs better using our usual list of criteria. Monday's prompts included these points for consideration:

Basic Design Attractiveness?
Title and URL cohesive?
Consistency and clarity of blog purpose?
Loading speed?

Let's discuss the second point. Is the URL consistent with the blog's title? Why does it matter? If you as an author plan to use your name in the http://yourname.blogspot. com then reinforcing this in your blog's title will make it easier for the reader to remember you. So your blog's header might read something like Your Name Talks About Writing. This is a simple form of branding that will serve you well in the long run. You should also try to stick to one name when setting up your accounts on other social networks. It's a lovely thing when a search for Your Name brings up six of your accounts in the first ten hits! So plan carefully early on.
 
Focus often on the blog's purpose. If you, as an author, use your name (and particularly if you have a pen name) in the blog URL and title, then it makes sense that your blogging will relate to your writing career, even though you may add personal notes to engage your readers. Periodically critique your blog to make sure it's sending the message you want to readers. If a major goal is promoting your books, then don't bury them in layers of unrelated material. This happens over time, especially as you add outside widgets and links. Housekeeping is important to keeping your blog crisp and on-task.
 
Everyone loves an attractive blog, but graphic templates can be so image-heavy, they take forever to load. Remember that your readers don't all have high-speed Internet, so don't try to get too fancy with your imagery. The best way to test your blog is to ask a few readers to comment about loading speed. Sometimes your blog header will take eons to load. Also be sure to keep third-party widgets a bit lower down in your sidebars, as they will tend to slow down blog-loading speeds.
 
Take a look at your blog today and assess how you stack up. Tomorrow we'll look at some widgets/gadgets that every blog should have.

Touring in a Virtual World

One of our favorite students, and certainly one of the most successful when it comes to promoting her books with blog book tours, is L. Diane Wolfe. Diane is a successful professional speaker and author of The Circle of Friends young adult fiction books. Here's what we cover in our classes, and what has worked well for Diane, in her own words:

Successful book promotion requires effort on the part of the publisher and even more so from the author. With the rising costs of a physical tour and the increase of Internet users, a virtual tour is an effective and inexpensive marketing tool.

For those not familiar with a virtual tour, it involves visiting a different site on the web every day for a set period of time. The sites range from websites and blogs to social sites and online radio. The author schedules a visit with the site’s host in advance and invites fans and friends to follow the appearances. This increases the author’s exposure online. The posts also add to search engine fodder for the author’s sites.

How difficult is it to set up a virtual tour? It’s not hard, but it will require time and planning. Here’s a step-by-step guideline to follow:

· Check with your publisher. Find out if they are setting up a tour and coordinate with their efforts. Ask if they’re willing to do giveaways. If they’ve no plans for online appearances, consider setting one up on your own. There is also the option of hiring a virtual tour service, but they charge an average of $150-$3000, so weigh your options.

· Determine your assets. Are you an active blogger? To what social sites do you belong? Do you have a website and email list and/or newsletter?

· Build a list of potential hosts. Always consider where your target audience goes online. Look for websites and blogs relevant to your book’s topic. Seek out book bloggers who cover your genre and author blogs that share your audience. Follow these blogs and comment where appropriate. Look for podcasts and online radio shows that reach your target audience. Select sites with large amounts of traffic.

· Grow familiar with these sites. Read their guidelines for articles, guest posts, and reviews. Determine your best approach to each individual site - article or guest post; interview; book review; giveaway; or announcement. Many of these venues book dates months in advance, so plan ahead!

· Send a polite inquiry to the blog owner, webmaster, or podcast show host. Let them know you’ve been following their site and ask if you can make an appearance during your virtual tour. Be prepared to provide suggestions for articles and guest posts. Always include your book information, bio, and links. Let the person know the date range of your virtual tour.

· Respond quickly to replies. Confirm dates and type of appearance or topic of guest post. If they request a review copy or want to do a giveaway, pass along the information to your publisher. Be willing to acquiesce to their requests!

· Keep a calendar handy. Book one stop a day - two at the most. Make a list of all articles and guest posts required.

· Two - four weeks before appearance, touch base with your host. Send them your complete information - book synopsis and details, links to purchase, a short bio, links to your sites, and a couple of reviews. Send your guest post or article as well, or completed interview. (If you’ve not received your interview, let the host know you are excited to see the questions.) Be sure to include a promotional photo and book cover art.

· Let your fan base know about your virtual tour. Post it on your website, blog, and include links in your newsletter.

· Before the tour begins, check with any unconfirmed hosts.

· The day of your appearance, visit the website or blog several times and respond to comments and questions. If it’s a live podcast, be prepared for questions.

· Send your host a thank you email when it’s all over!

A virtual tour is a win-win for guests and hosts, as both gain exposure to a new audience. The host presents the author to his or her readers and the author brings followers and fans to that site. Not only will this gain exposure, new fans, reviews, and sales for an author, it secures options for future tours. If you’ve been pleasant, professional, and punctual, hosts will be happy to invite you to visit again.

It requires a lot of work in advance, but the rewards of a virtual tour are well worth the effort!

The Next Blog Book Tours Class

We're having another one, and this one will include a few of my new blog book tours clients. Yes, I'm finally offering to arrange a few tours for authors. But more on the book genres I'm taking on later.

If you haven't taken a class on how to arrange your own blog book tour, now is the time to sign up. As always, it's without charge, and we start with critiquing and improving your own blogs which is where a good blog book tour begins. Sign up here:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/blogbooktours

You must give your name and book title so I know you're not a spammer - oh, gee, that would never happen in this world, right?

The doors open on July 3rd. Class starts July 5th. Be prepared to work hard!

First read The Quickest Blog Book Tour Guide Ever so you get a sense of what we'll be covering.

The Drill Sergeant is back!

Or maybe I'll just be a cheerleader... we'll see how I feel after the holiday. :)

Blog Tips to Consider

Recently, in a discussion on the BBT Cafe group, I made this comment and felt it was worth sharing here:

I've probably spent more time in the last four years following blog book tours than about anyone else I can think of for the simple reason that I needed to do it in order to teach the classes. I know what a good blog tour is and I know what it takes to complete the ones that are well-crafted and might actually sell some books in the long run.

Two weaknesses in thinking that continue to persist among authors and publishers:

1. That your friends and fellow author blogs are good hosts. Yes, they can be especially if many of your friends are popular authors, but make sure they get at least 100 hits a day. 1,000 would be better. This one issue causes more ire than anything in the entire concept of blog book tours. You have to think in
business terms about this. It is not true that three interested people reading the blog are better than none. When you factor in the time it takes to just craft good blog posts, you might well spend the time doing something else - like writing your next book.

2. That Twitter and Facebook will magically drive readers to your blog for added content about your books and you. Patter on Twitter and Facebook all day long (and if you want people to see you, once a day doesn't cut it), but unless you leave enticements and meaningful links and actually get friends and followers to click, you're not marketing your book well. Simple as that. Your blog is still one of your most powerful marketing tools, but people have to be reading it.

So if you don't have a great blog and your friends blogs are just okay... you might be better off just paying someone who has a collection of good blog hosts to sponsor you on a blog book tour. The tour may not be as personal as if the author crafts it, but it will get more interested readers who might buy your title.

That said, prices for professional tours are all over the map. Before you spend money to have someone else put together a blog book tour for you, follow the tours of at least three services, get their prices for various packages, and by all means, get private referrals from other authors. Shop and compare and ask yourself these questions:

If you're paying $500 for ten blog spots, what are you really getting for that? The same canned book review at each blog? Or are you able to write your own varied blog posts for each host? Will the tour service work with you to design the tour you want for your book? These are just some of the questions to consider and get answers to before you spend any money.

News from BEA and why you should blog

I've long proclaimed that blogs are one of the cheapest and most effective ways for writers to stay in regular contact with their readers. It's one of your best promotion platforms. More and more, book publishing specialists agree with that view. This comment is from a recent Writers Market eletter:

One thing that seemed obvious this year (at BEA) is that publishers don't think it's a big deal if potential authors have a blog, but they do think it's a big deal if potential authors do not have a blog or e-mail list or some other direct reach to their target audience. If you want to publish a book, you need a great hook or idea, but it's becoming increasingly important to also have an audience—before the book deal.

It's important to have a good blog. That means posting several times a week. The more you post relevant information, the more readership you'll build as is demonstrated by another blog I've been spending lots of time building, the Blood-Red Pencil. It's a group blog with daily posts, and the growth of readership has been excellent, thanks to the quality of the information provided by our blogging members.

Stay tuned for some tips and inspiration to keep you blogging over the summer, and by the time you're ready for your next book promotion, you'll have a blog that supports your efforts in a dynamic way.

Blog Critiques

Before you choose blog hosts for your tour, you need a good blog of your own. Do you have one?

Here's the list of criteria that we consider in judging a good blog:

Basic Design Attractiveness?
Title and url cohesive?
Consistency and clarity?
Loading speed?
Blogrolls?
Sitemeter?
Bookmarking in place?
Linking effective?
Quality of overall posts?
Comments section working?
Too many/too few gadgets?
What's great?
What can be improved?
Is it ready for a blog tour?

Look at your own blog with those aspects in mind. Is there anything on your blog that could use improvement?