Eva Pasco's Blog - Posts Tagged "results"
On Second Thought...
In hindsight I now have the foresight of harboring second thoughts to act upon them in my capacity as an Indie author.
1 – I have declined to rerun a paid promo ad for the third 6th-week cycle with The Fussy Librarian or any other former venues such as PeopleReads or eBookSoda. Why? Colonel Slade in ‘Scent of a Woman’ said it best—“I’m in the dark here!” Meaning, because I’m one of those hybrid self-published authors who engaged an independent publisher, I do not have access to daily sales reports at Amazon to gauge the efficiency of this marketing strategy. Instead, I receive my royalty statements on a monthly basis where the royalty earnings period on the statement is always two months behind the royalty processing date. Plus, my Kindle Edition retailing for $3.95 can’t compete with those featured for $.99 or Free.
2 – I am kicking myself for having paid the $35 fee to join a local author guild this past February. I chose to do so because I felt an organization of this scope would have more clout in procuring book signings on my turf. They do—to the tune of signing up for lottery drawings based on the number of available tables, and then paying $25 if your name is chosen. From past experience in having booked solo library author events on my own, as well as a group library signing without paying a fee—I’ve often left the premises without a single book sale. It’s cost prohibitive for me to sacrifice money and time on a gamble.
Nyuk, nyuk—I did indicate that I’m going to the upcoming 5th Annual Rhode Island Author Expo 2017 in December. Admission is free! On second thought, the annual fee might be worth it in the long run.
Regardless, I have second thoughts about attending the monthly meetings which are held late in the evening at a location requiring considerable travel in darkness through an area I’m not familiar with. I don’t go out on a limb to put myself in harm’s way.
There are days I have second thoughts, questioning my own sanity for biting off more than I can chew. Primarily, trying to achieve the noble goal of wading through my TBR pile to read/review books written by fellow Indies. So much temptation to acquire even more too!
On second thought, my life has been immensely enriched by all of the diverse Indie books I’ve read and have yet to open during the remains of the day. No doubt about it, whatsoever!
Hindsight with foresight pertaining to marketing strategies from the perspective of “been there, done that”!
1 – I have declined to rerun a paid promo ad for the third 6th-week cycle with The Fussy Librarian or any other former venues such as PeopleReads or eBookSoda. Why? Colonel Slade in ‘Scent of a Woman’ said it best—“I’m in the dark here!” Meaning, because I’m one of those hybrid self-published authors who engaged an independent publisher, I do not have access to daily sales reports at Amazon to gauge the efficiency of this marketing strategy. Instead, I receive my royalty statements on a monthly basis where the royalty earnings period on the statement is always two months behind the royalty processing date. Plus, my Kindle Edition retailing for $3.95 can’t compete with those featured for $.99 or Free.
2 – I am kicking myself for having paid the $35 fee to join a local author guild this past February. I chose to do so because I felt an organization of this scope would have more clout in procuring book signings on my turf. They do—to the tune of signing up for lottery drawings based on the number of available tables, and then paying $25 if your name is chosen. From past experience in having booked solo library author events on my own, as well as a group library signing without paying a fee—I’ve often left the premises without a single book sale. It’s cost prohibitive for me to sacrifice money and time on a gamble.
Nyuk, nyuk—I did indicate that I’m going to the upcoming 5th Annual Rhode Island Author Expo 2017 in December. Admission is free! On second thought, the annual fee might be worth it in the long run.
Regardless, I have second thoughts about attending the monthly meetings which are held late in the evening at a location requiring considerable travel in darkness through an area I’m not familiar with. I don’t go out on a limb to put myself in harm’s way.
There are days I have second thoughts, questioning my own sanity for biting off more than I can chew. Primarily, trying to achieve the noble goal of wading through my TBR pile to read/review books written by fellow Indies. So much temptation to acquire even more too!
On second thought, my life has been immensely enriched by all of the diverse Indie books I’ve read and have yet to open during the remains of the day. No doubt about it, whatsoever!
Hindsight with foresight pertaining to marketing strategies from the perspective of “been there, done that”!
The Hustle
Like snake oil salesmen, tin men (aluminum siding smooth talkers) and Avon sales reps, the Indie author hustles to sell books. While I may not knock on doors to peddle my wares, I’m tapping into social media. Prior to publication of my second Contemporary Women’s Fiction novel, ‘An Enlightening Quiche’ (September 20, 2016) and shortly thereafter, I’ve hustled with bustle:
Facebook author page launch party
Month-long blog tour with Pump Up Your Books
Facebook Author events
Paid ads on promotional sites that offer a subscription service for readers, providing recommendations for eBook purchases through advertising my book along with many others in its genre.
Seeing negligible results despite knocking myself out, I’m skeptical of most things in a market glutted with free and reduced to pennies-on-the-dollar book offers which only serve to deplete the author’s potential to sell eBooks retailing for under five bucks to begin with. Mine is priced at $3.95 for 361 pages—so that’s my bottom line!
Currently, my minimal hustling is reserved to posting five daily Facebook ads in various free promotional groups. It’s catch as catch can for grabbing someone’s attention to click on the link and take a leap of faith in purchasing the Kindle Edition. It’s too far a stretch to bank on signed paperback acquisitions even at a reasonable price of $19.95 for a print book containing 550 pages.
Ads are just one aspect of the hustle. Hustling for publicity is another. In that regard, I’ve lined up a guest spot for “Author of the Month” in September at ‘The Write Side’:
https://janetirvin.wordpress.com/
I’m also getting psyched for two upcoming live radio appearances:
OFF THE CHAIN with Author and Radio Host, Yvonne Mason – September 9th (8-9PM)
https://offthechainwithauthorandradio...
DIALOGUE: Between the Lines with Susan Wingate – September 16th (10 – 10:30 AM)
http://www.blogtalkradio.com/dialogue
As with most hustling endeavors, there are no guarantees for measurable success via sales, other than the certainty—“Nothing ventured, nothing gained!”
