With all the talk of building an audience, of growing a platform, I wanted to reflect on the leap it is to go from asking someone to “Like me on Facebook,” to “Please buy my book.” That making a purchase is a big commitment for most people, and a multistage process of pulling out your credit card, etc.
I was speaking with the owner of a small press the other day who told me about the wonderful publicity they had received around one of their books, that multiple large websites mentioned it. And that unfortunately, this didn’t translate into huge sales numbers for the book.
That there is a difference between asking someone to pin something on Pinterest, vs actually shelling out cash to buy it.
When I saw Kevin Smokler and Richard Nash each speak at a conference the other week, they both made the point of how big of a commitment it is to not just buy a book, but actually read it. Kevin calls it a “third date.”
So in this video, I discuss taking that leap, and being aware of the difference between a Like and a sale.
Thanks!
-Dan
Two weeks ago I began vlogging. What is a vlog? They are video blogs: short video updates on a topic, just as you would expect from a text blog.
I have considered doing this for a long time, and have been obsessed with YouTube for awhile now. I spend my days talking to writers and publishers, and I found that there were lots of little insights being shared in these conversations – nuggets that kept rattling around in my brain. Sure, maybe some of them will eventually come out in a blog post, but too many of them are lost as I move on to the next thing in my day. So I figured that quick vlogs would be a great way to capture and share these insights.
What held me back? It wasn’t technology, the tech is easy. It was the human stuff, things I had to “get over,” including:
Background: my home office is rather small, and it contains my LEGO collection. What? That’s right, I have always had an affinity for LEGO. You can imagine that when I first met my wife and found out that she graduated college with a degree in toy design, it was a match made in heaven.
But still, I was concerned that having toys in the background would seem unprofessional, or would be “off brand,” for what I was creating with We Grow Media.
What I am wearing: I do not wake up everyday and iron my shirts. Maybe this is because I work from home. When I speak at events or meet with publishers, I wear a suit jacket and nice collared shirt. So there was concern that rumpled plaid shirts would make me seem unprofessional.
Hair and beard: Some days are just bad hair days. Some days I should trim up the stubble, but opt for other things. Do you know people who HATE having their photos taken? I am not one of those people, but like anyone, I can be self-critical about what is a good hair day, and what is a bad hair day. Truth be told, at 39, I am just thankful to have hair! 🙂
In the end, I just went for it, putting aside all of these little qualms that seemed important to no one but me. The reaction so far has been positive. The very things I was worried about are exactly the things people seem to appreciate – the unfiltered down to earth conversation that a vlog is meant to embody.
I will be sharing vlog updates nearly every day, sometimes twice a day. Please subscribe to me on YouTube if you have an account there. I will be cross posting many of the vlog updates here on this blog as well.
Here are some recent vlog updates to give you a sense of them:
When Everyone Has A Platform, Your Job Is To Create Meaning
With Greater Choice, You Have To Focus On High Quality
When your audience and customers have greater choice, you have to focus on differentiating yourself with higher quality.
I was reading a blog post by Jason Fry about his decision to no longer purchase comic books at his local store, and instead buy digital editions.
He makes good points about how much more competitive the marketplace is now for publishers and writers. And it aligns with attitudes that folks like Rachelle Gardner and Porter Anderson have been discussing.
With everyone jumping on social media, it can be very hard to stand out. Many people are concerned with appearing “active” on social media. So they research the best practices, and do the minimum expected of them. They also feel pressure to be present on a wide range of social networks, so they split their creative energy – 25% here, 25% there, etc.
What happens is that they do nothing 100%. They do nothing exceptionally well.
I would much rather see someone go 100% on one platform and really hit it out of the park, than lamely do 20% here, 10% there.
The goal here is to create meaning in the lives of others. That if you have something important to share, if you have ways you want to align with others who have a similar passion – then you have to go beyond the most basic expectations. You have to find small ways to delight and amaze people.
View the video above for more details.
Have a great day.
Thanks!
-Dan
I was just on a website trying to reach out to an author, using the “contact me” form they supplied. As I hit “submit,” it became obvious that the form was broken. No matter which web browser I used, or how I filled out the form, it wouldn’t submit.
Invariably, I find that “contact me” forms are the least reliable way to reach an author. So today, I want to explore this topic, and the potential negative effects of making it hard for others to reach you.
