I had never given matter much thought in past but after an experience I enjoyed lately, I am now rather of opinion that you can.It happened this way…
Coinciding with launch of my latest book ‘Your Retirement Masterplan’ (How To Books ISBN 1857039874) I participated in eleven 10/15 minute live interviews on local radio over a period of just five days.
These promotional interviews were arranged by my publisher’s media consultancy and I didn’t require to visit a single studio to take part; they were all conducted over telephone, sitting at my desk at home.
Towards end of first interview I was conscious of fact that I had yet to plug distribution channels for my book.
The presenter beat me to it: ‘In five seconds, where can listeners buy your book?’ Before I could reply he added, ‘Can they order it online?’
‘Yes,’ I said, ‘at Amazon.co.uk’
In ten subsequent interviews I made a point of ending my spiel with publisher’s name together with availability at bookstores but I always finished with, ‘…and online at Amazon.co.uk.’
Now here’s interesting part: after first five sessions I checked out Amazon.co.uk website to discover that this newly published title had jumped 35 places in bestseller list for its genre; I checked again after final interview and it had jumped again but this time by 329 places. In effect, in just a few days it had leapt from position 558 to 194 out of 3123 competing titles.
More than mere coincidence methinks…because books don’t climb bestseller lists on Amazon unless they are selling in quantity.
So what if you self-publish your output and you don’t have a publicist to arrange radio interviews? Does that mean you are excluded?
No way; I have self-published several books in past and managed my own promotion.
Here is what you do…
1.Wherever you live in world you’ll find that majority of local radio stations are banded together into a single group for cost-effectiveness;
2.Identify controlling group;