July 2004
Authors & Experts Online the newsletter

***** How to Translate a Media Campaign into Book Sales *****

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Welcome to Authors and Experts Online
A FREE newsletter brought to you by Net Connect Publicity
Online Content Management and Placement Services
July 1, 2003

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Welcome to our newsletter for authors and experts who are interested in promoting their work through the powerful medium of the Internet. Given today’s technology, an online campaign can make all the difference between books that go unnoticed and ones that create an impact. An Internet presence offers some valuable features you can’t get in any other form of publicity and that’s why it works! We hope you enjoy this newsletter and find it valuable enough to pass on to your colleagues and friends.

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Sign up with us today as an expert! We have requests from prominent websites looking for experts and contributors. You might be just what they are looking for. Contact us at anne@netconnectpublicity.com to discuss your marketing needs and how an Internet campaign might work well for you.

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“Realize what you really want. It stops you from chasing butterflies and puts you to work digging for gold”
-- William Moulton Marston

The Internet is a powerful tool to help you realize your dreams. Any form of publicity can be effective. However the Internet is alive. Once you place an article with a prominent website it spreads through the online community and can be used by websites and organizations you have not approached. It works FOR you and makes your job easier. It isn’t enough today to be seen on a talk show or heard on the radio. There is just too much competition and not enough support from publishers to utilize traditional media to its fullest and get the results you need. Internet campaigns are quickly becoming a crucial element in a marketing campaign. Here are just a few of the benefits of what the Internet has to offer:

**Repeated exposure- Due to the ongoing content changes on prominent websites, there is a tremendous opportunity for repeat postings by an author, thereby getting their name out on a consistent basis. This is a crucial key to success.

**Articles and content are sought after – People go to the Net specifically to read and research topics of interest. By placing content on the proper sites, authors and experts have a much higher “contact rate” with their audience. Television and radio audiences are often not involved with the shows they have on.

**Expert status- The opportunity to become an expert is high with the Internet due to the vast numbers of sites available. This can help increase your credibility, exposure and provide content for further projects.

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Read USING CONTENT TO ESTABLISH A MARKETABLE PRESENCE ON THE INTERNET
By Anne Leedom
http://www.netconnectpublicity.com/articles/EstablishingYourPresence.html

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FEATURED AUTHOR

Every issue we feature one of our clients who is enjoying success through various channels, including Internet placements. This month we are cheering on Armin Brott, author of the recent book Father for Life. Hailed by Time Magazine as "the superdad’s superdad," Armin Brott has written or co-written five critically acclaimed, groundbreaking books on fatherhood. His articles have appeared in The New York Times Magazine, Newsweek, American Baby, Parenting, Child, Men’s Health, The Washington Post, and dozens of other major publications.

A nationally recognized parenting expert, Armin Brott is the author of Father for Life, The Expectant Father: Facts, Tips, and Advice for Dads-to-Be, A Dad’s Guide to the Toddler Years, and The Single Father: A Dad’s Guide to Parenting without a Partner. He has written on parenting and fatherhood for the New York Times Magazine, The Washington Post, Newsweek and dozens of other periodicals. He’s also the host of "Positive Parenting," a weekly radio program that airs live in the San Francisco Bay Area and is also available on the Web. Armin’s work can be seen on Myria.com, iParenting.com, Crosswalk.com and many other websites who value his content.

You can review Armin’s work at www.mrdad.com.

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WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW

I often hear authors express their ongoing frustration at having been the recipient of a successful and prestigious publicity campaign, and yet their books are not flying off the shelves as they hoped. What is the magic ingredient that leads to record breaking sales and worldwide notoriety? Well, clearly there are many factors that help create the awareness and demand most authors seek. All successful campaign appear to have the following as part of their tools that make the difference:

• First, they have a book with solid information that is packaged with a catchy and attractive cover
  
• Second, they run a traditional print, television and radio campaign
  
• Third, they utilize the Internet to promote their message
  

However, many authors have done these rather obvious steps and have not achieved the success they hoped for. Media campaigns are a crucial element, but let’s stop and review the basics of what makes any product sell. I believe there are three ingredients that are required to elevate a media campaign into successful book sales.

Create an identity that distinguishes you from all other authors in your genre. This can be done through your credentials, your personality or any other unique method to help get your message across. Dr. Laura and Dr. Phil have both used this strategy very successfully.

• Be personal. People buy from people. Regardless of how wonderful your work might be, people want to get a feeling they are reading about someone they might like to have over for dinner. By creating an emotional reaction in people it stimulates their desire to buy. Note that many best selling authors use a variety of emotions to connect with their audience, from Stephen King to Rush Limbaugh.
  
• Send a consistent press release campaign to the media, relating your work to a current event. Soon, media personnel will think of you when certain public events unfold and you will become their expert of choice.
  

Selling books is what publicity is all about. Don’t follow the yellow brick road unless it leads to success in sales, not simply media appearances. Use a strategy when choosing your methods to promote your book. The Internet is and will continue to be a valuable tool in your marketing kit due to the flexibility it offers.

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TIPS TO REMEMBER

** Offer your content as a teaser, but let the editors know up front you are interested in a long-term expert or ongoing contributor position. Single placements are not worth much unless they lead to a more permanent and therefore more promotable position within a site.

** Offer an entire series on one of your topics. Your work will be promoted longer and with more visibility. This will also help distinguish your expertise with that site.

** Offer links to other websites in your articles. When people click to those sites, you should be listed as a reference. This can be a great trick to get prominent colleagues to promote your work.

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WHAT WE OFFER

Our Internet services are a crucial component of any publicity campaign. We offer a wide variety of services allowing you to gain the results you need in one stop. We offer a complete package including:

*** Search engine optimization and submission for top rankings on all the major search engines
*** Web design and consultation
*** Article outreach campaigns
*** Linking campaigns
*** Book reviews on Amazon and B&N
*** General marketing support for external marketing campaigns.

These services can be provided as a complete package or they can be provided individually.
Our goal is to work with you on a long-term ongoing campaign, introducing and supplying your content on a consistent basis to strategic sites on your customized “wish list” we create with your input. Review our success stories at http://www.netconnectpublicity.com.

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"Net Connect Publicity has opened doors to me that would not have been available to me on my own. I have received great placements on the Internet and in conventional media through their hard work and professionalism. They worked with me closely to create a beautiful website and have helped me position myself as a credible and sought after expert in my field. I know it works...my Amazon ranking numbers are consistently great. This is directly related to the work Net Connect does on my behalf."
~Armin Brott, Author, Father for Life

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PARTNER WEBSITES
Here is a partial list of sites we supply content to on an ongoing basis:

iVillage.com
BeliefNet.com
iParenting.com
Crosswalk.com
Child.com
Parents-Talk.com
Womenof.com
BabyCenter.com
CandianParents.com
Sheknows.com
SmartPros.com
ModernMom.com

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To add new people to the subscriber list or provide any other feedback please go to http://www.netconnectpublicity.com or send an email to: anne@netconnectpublicity.com

Copyright 2003 by Anne Leedom

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Anne Leedom, editor, Authors and Experts Online newsletter
Founder, Net Connect Publicity and Parentingbookmark.com
916.939.8246
anne@netconnectpublicity.com
http://www.netconnectpublicity.com
http://www.parentingbookmark.com