Author: Dan Blank

Remember that time when you created something, and all of these strangers magically found it and just shouted about it to everyone they knew, and you went “viral,” and your success just grew and grew, like a runaway snowball cruising down a hill?

Me neither.

Recently, I have heard some successful authors such as Bella Andre and Barbara Freethy use this term: “street team.” Sounds cool, right? Well, today, let’s talk about what a street team is, and why it can be important to FINALLY building some momentum in helping to spread the word about whatever it is you are creating.

This topic has been brewing in my mind for awhile, but then the other day Johanna Harness shared this post on Facebook:

 

What immediately moved me about this was the admission that she couldn’t imagine who would support her, and how surprised she was to be proven wrong. At the time, her Street Team had a 9 members – more than enough to thrill Johanna. And now as I write this, she has 15 folks who joined.

I think that all too often, a number such as “9” sounds small, like a failure. But imagine this: NINE people showed up who actively want to support your work. Amazing, right? And then within a few days, she had a 60% growth rate to 15 people!

Then, a little while later, Kate Tilton shared this photo on Instagram:

 

So naturally, I reached out to Johanna, Kate, and the author she was working with, S.R. Johannes (otherwise known as Shelli.) I asked each about their motivation, fears, challenges, and value of trying to build a street team. And what they had to say will SHOCK you! (okay, no it won’t, but it is interesting stuff nonetheless.)
🙂

What is a Street Team?
Wikipedia describes it this way: “A street team is a term used in marketing to describe a group of people who ‘hit the streets’ promoting an event or a product.”

Shelli shared a great series of links from various folks talking about what street teams are, well worth checking out.

Johanna told me that she was wary of the thin line between organizing a group of fans who want to support someone’s work, and merely trading giveaways for favors, such as book reviews. So this is how she is framing her street team to ensure it has meaningful value to all involved:

“Most of the people joining my Facebook group are stepping forward and saying they’d like to read early copies of my book and help in any way they can. They already like my writing. I want to give these friends inclusion in the process, even to the point of being included in the final book. I want to give them insight into the process, what works and what hasn’t worked for me. I want to provide a place where we can speak with a little more candor. I’m hoping the process makes some brave enough to cast their own words into the world. Stories are awesome gifts. The best I could get back from the group would be the opportunity to see other unpublished works make their way into print.”

And here are some of the specific ways she hopes to engage folks:

• Opportunities to discuss the details of a book release and influence how things progress
• Answering questions about cover art
• Floating ideas about future blog posts and listening to responses
• Take part in a global book release party
• Giveaways
• Share advance reading copies
• Books for those who want to leave reviews

Shelli outlines specific value she is offering for her street team in this post, which includes:

• Quarterly group chats
• A physical welcome pack (seen in Kate’s post above), which includes a blog badge, bookmark, pen, signed bookplates, press kit, and more
• A free ebook with a chance to win more
• A Facebook members only group for an open discussions on the books, indie publishing, or marketing
• Monthly missions where members can win prizes
• Inside information on her books, writing process, and publishing journey
• ebooks and giveaways for members’ own blog readers
• A chance to hangout after author appearances
• Access to exclusive content such as character dossiers, character diaries, and more.

She said she had 30 folks sign up right away, and the street team is now up to 120 people.

Why I Love The Concept of Street Teams
When I consider the value of street teams for an author, artist, musician or other creative professional, these are the aspects I really appreciate:

• A feeling of inclusion for the folks who join the street team; and the ability for authors to put faces/names/relationships on their readership.
• For authors: it helps you engage with readers one-to-one, instead of this mysterious divide of “AUTHOR” and “AUDIENCE.”
• For readers, there is the joy of shared enthusiasm. I’m a big fan of the nerdfighter community that John and Hank Green have created, which is all about enthusiasm for things that matter most to them. This goes from the most silly things, to the deepest: raising money for charity.
• Shared journey – allows an author to have buddies in this process of publishing; it allows readers to feel a part of something, even if they aren’t writing and publishing books.
• Especially for already popular authors, street teams seem to be a great way to stay connected with passionate fans in a manageable way, on a daily basis.
• It allows an author to easily consider how they can scale their audience engagement efforts. For instance, they can have community managers who engage daily with the street team members, and the author can pop in when they aren’t writing. It isn’t so much a hierarchy as a way to create sustainability around engaging with readers.
• My gut is that being a part of a street team is a badge of pride for many readers, it becomes an identity for them. This can align to a narrative that they appreciate – that perhaps they haven’t written the novels the author has – but they can still be a part of that process.
• I love how vulnerability and enthusiasm seem to be core parts of this, two terms I have been thinking a lot about recently.

What Makes Me Concerned About Street Teams
Because I know street teams have becoming more and more popular, I don’t want to paint a picture that is all roses. Here are a some things that I think one must consider when deciding if a street team is right for them:

• It’s too easy to be seen as, “I’ll give you bonuses and attention if you will promote promote promote me me me!!!” Connecting on a human level has to be the core of this, and that is a serious responsibility for the folks organizing a street team.
• The flipside of organizing shared enthusiasm in this way: fans feeling as though the value isn’t equal. The author opens themselves up to judgement by sharing more of their process and of asking fans to do work for them. Ideally, trust is developed slowly, but too much enthusiasm for promotion too quickly could lead to crossing signals and miscommunication.
• Social stuff is complex: readers could feel too much pressure; cliques could form within a street team, and one could feel like a wallflower in especially popular street teams.
• It is INCREDIBLY DIFFICULT to properly manage a small community like this consistently over time. For instance, many authors will have loads of motivation to support the community around a book launch, but will they feel equal responsibility in the months/years between books?
• As more people develop their own street team, it will become a de facto tactic, where you are constantly being asked to be on street teams as a marketing tactic.

I remember when Michael Hyatt created a Launch Team for his book. He reported that 764 people applies to be on this team, and he selected 100. It’s fascinating for me to consider the value of a team like this from the viewpoint of both a wildly popular author, and from the standpoint of an author prepping the publication of their first book. Clearly, there is value in both cases.

Shelli indicated that running her street team is indeed time consuming, and that in the beginning, there is no clear payoff. She hasn’t gone with them through a book launch yet, that will happen a bit later in the year. But my gut is, it’s better to go through a book launch with 120 people who love your work, than with just you and your cat. It’s always more fun with a buddy.

Kate Tilton was nice enough to share her experience managing street teams with me; here is some of her advice:

• Authors find that many people who sign up are not as passionate as you hope they will be. Managing expectations on both sides is important.
• When using giveaways to get folks to join a street team, you may find that only a small portion remain an active fan base – those who will complete a “mission.” The rest were just interested in the initial chance to win something, and were not really interested in a larger investment of their time and energy.
• She mentioned Rachel Thompson as another example of having a street team, and mentioned that this was a great way to EXTEND connections with readers after you have already done so much else to develop that audience. I always love examples of how authors continue to find new ways to connect more deeply with readers, regardless of how many books they have already sold. (It’s also worth noting that Rachel’s street team is called “The Bad Redheads.”) Have clear guidelines governing expectations and behavior. You will hear stories of some street team members being a little too enthusiastic. Just like the metaphor the term comes from, you likely don’t want your fans “getting in people’s faces” on the street, but merely amplifying something they are excited about. Within reason.

• Kate said, “you don’t join a street team to get free stuff, you do it because you love the author.” It’s not a bribery system. There can be a fine balance.
• A street team should be more than just a one-off promotion, “a team collaborates together and works towards a goal.”

More from Kate on street teams here and here.

Are street teams right for you? That is for you to decide. But I do love how they focus very much on relationships and interactions with readers, and how they seem to have a mix of vulnerability and enthusiasm, that it requires a human investment to build a meaningful community.

Thanks.
-Dan

Too often, we create simple narratives to drive our actions, or our inaction. For writers and other creative professionals, these narratives could be:

1. It’s all about the story, I don’t need to know anything about publishing a book, marketing a book, or connecting with readers.
2. Writers back in the day didn’t worry about Tweeting, why should I?
3. My author-hero never did a book tour or media interviews, why should I?
4. There’s only one thing that sells books, and it’s _______ (insert simplistic view of how things happen)

In other words: we look for simple narratives that tell us things we already believe. This allows us to take actions we are already comfortable with, or avoid actions that make us feel uncomfortable.

I have sat in plenty of meetings where survey data and analytics are reviewed, and listen to the key things that are pulled out that:

1. Support the success of an existing strategy
2. Avoid confronting hard truths that folks have been avoiding
3. Avoid more work and behavior change due to what has been discovered
4. Avoid seeking out MORE data to prove if the “results” are indeed correct or directional

That, if you aren’t careful, you (intentional or not), filter out cues you don’t like, and seek out cues that align to the narrative you want to see in the world.

But when we break out of these pre-existing narratives, we uncover the potential for growth. Growth in worldview – accepting that things are often more complex than they seem; or in growing as a person, developing new skills and experiences, even those that are uncomfortable.

For example: let’s say you self-define as an introvert. Now, if this is you, I 100% accept that you are indeed introverted, and that this is something we need to honor and take into consideration. It’s important. So how can you the introvert still develop your career as a writer? By taking the next step beyond a definition. By not using it as a blanket excuse to avoid any action or situation that is even remotely social. Introversion is not just “yes” or “no,” it is multifaceted and there are lots of ways to respect the ways you are introverted, while still taking social actions. That, if you want, that simple definition and identify can be an excuse, or a starting point.

An author I am working with recently asked (and I’m paraphrasing) the following with regards to engaging with readers beyond his books:

“But Dan, I write fiction. Don’t readers simply want another story from me? That’s all I care about from the writers whose series I read. Why do I need to consider learning about and connecting with my readers beyond what sells a story to them?”

First of all, I agree with him: the STORY is the center. Period. Write. Write well. Write what feels right to you. Publish with a frequency that works for your work style. Engross readers in the worlds you create. Repeat.

Done. Right?

Well, that is where you as a writer have choices. That should be enough, right? Well, it depends on what narrative you are clinging to:

• The one that frees you from having to do any more “stuff” in the publishing process. The one where it seems right and just to only have to craft stories. That anything else about finding and connecting with readers is a magical process that others should have to worry about.
• The one that sees authors such as Bella Andre, Rebecca Skloot, Hugh Howey, and Eric Ries, and sees people who are taking so many actions IN ADDITION TO CRAFTING WONDERFUL STORIES to help ensure their work connects with readers.

Yes, this is all optional, as is your decision to even publish at all. I have said this before, but writing for the sake of writing alone is a worthwhile endeavor – not everything needs to be shared or published.

Many authors DO have expectations they would like to meet around book sales and the number of people who find and enjoy their work. Should you be happy that 10 people bought and loved your book? YES! Does that make you feel completely satisfied as a writer? Maybe. Maybe not. Maybe you were hoping for 20 devoted fans. Or 2,000. Or 200,000.

THE OLDEN DAYS ALWAYS FEEL SAFE; THE PRESENT ALWAYS SEEMS SCARY
Too many writers dream of the “perfect” world whereby they write something in solitude, and then the world magically discovers it and amplifies it. Success in this instance is “pure,” because the body of work was so powerful that it intoxicated anyone who came in contact with it.

We glamorize “the olden days” when everything was easier, and “marketing” didn’t corrupt the purity of creative work. But this is not reality, it is merely ignorance of the complexity of a different time. Everything seems simpler and more pure in retrospect. Sure, successful authors in the 1950s or 1970s didn’t have Twitter, but they definitely networked and failed or succeeded based not just on the quality of their work, but on who they knew, and how well they managed their careers as writers.

REALITY IS MORE COMPLEX THAT PERCEPTION
There is a compelling documentary that focuses on an interview with former US Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara. I have a deep and profound respect for the sacrifices that others have made in the wars of the 20th century. It’s almost beyond my comprehension, to be honest, the level of sacrifice and the scope of what happened.

Looking back on some of these historic events, it can be easy to fall into a simple narrative that makes us feel comfortable. That one side was acting on the side of justice, and they prevailed because they were “right” and the other side was “wrong.”

As Mr. McNamara reflected on his role in aspects in and around the Vietnam War, one thing he said just floored me:

“We – including myself – were acting like war criminals.”

Themes he kept touching upon showed the complexity of actions taken on both “sides” of a war, and he indicated how big the roles of LUCK and EMOTION were in the process. That rational people got us into these situations that literarily put the world on the brink of utter destruction.

Sometimes we look back on history and try to find simple ways to characterize complex scenarios. Our brains are desperate for simple narratives that embody what we want to believe – what we already believe. And to hear Mr. Mcnamara say that he and his colleagues acted like war criminals is a level of honesty that requires us to reframe simple narratives in light of complex realities that are neither black nor white.

DARKNESS ON THE EDGE OF TOWN
Too often, I think writers don’t adequately flesh out what their goals are. I wrote about this in a post titled “Being a Success, Without Being a Bestseller,” which used an example from Bruce Springsteen’s seemingly odd decisions around making his album “Darkness on the Edge of Town.” For someone whose previous work drew success from the hopefulness of the open road of possibilities, the message of Darkness was very different:

He released an album of understated songs that adhered to a theme: coping with the limits of adulthood. Of what happens when adolescent dreams of greatness and freedom turn to the challenges of adult relationships, work, and living within boundaries. The “darkness on the edge of town” is the feeling of something keeping you in. Of the horizon not being an open road that promises new dreams to come true. That we are not all immortal and destined for greatness as we all may have believed in high school.

The album is ultimately hopeful, finding empowerment in facing these limitations. About redefining what it means to be a person living by principles in a world that is full of limits and challenges. It is an adult view of the world that does not rely on vague promises of success.

This is where we move beyond vague goals such as “I want to be a bestseller!” and move into the less sexy but more realistic conversation of: “Let’s talk about other milestones that define success,” and the concept of finding satisfaction in them.

CREATING MOMENTUM
Someone said this to me recently in regards to an online project he had developed:

“I just wanted to create something, and then kind of step back.”

The implication was that he would create it, others would give it momentum, and he could then step away from it and let it continue to succeed on it’s own.

But that rarely happens. There are many things that help success happen (including LOADS of luck!), but another is intention around working through the times when there is zero momentum. I was recently reflecting on my experience attending the 99u Conference last year, and all the in-depth stories of success I heard. The prevailing theme was the serious work behind each.

We often romanticize success, but the real stories behind them show a different picture: often a long road filled with failures leading up to that success. This image from Joe Gebbia from Airbnb is a good example of what “overnight success” really looks like:

It is well worth listening to his presentation from that conference, as well as the video from Jane ni Dhulchaointigh, inventor and CEO of sugru, both now available for free via YouTube.

So no, things were not easier “back in the day.” If you feel they were, consider your motivation for that narrative: where does it let you off the hook from taking the difficult actions of what it means to create work you are proud of, and how you connect that work in meaningful ways to other people?

Lastly: consider the EFFECT your work has in their lives – that most likely, your legacy will not be measured in book sales, but in the hearts and minds of others: those you know, those who surround you each and every day, and those touched by the work you create.

-Dan