Blogging as a Marketing Tool
People want to deal with experts. When you purchase a product, especially something that you consider an investment, you want to buy from a person who knows what they are talking about.
When people purchase books, they are making a financial and an emotional investment. They want to know who they are 'dealing with.' This is especially true if they are purchasing a non-fiction book and/or a book for their child(ren).
A blog is one of the best ways there is to showcase your expertise. My good friend, Dee Malchow, is the perfect example. She is retired nurse who is an amputation specialist. Dee herself is an amputee. She just published an excellent book on the subject of amputation and recently started a blog on the subject. People from around the world read her writings with confidence as they know she is an expert and they will receive wise input.
As an Early Childhood Education expert, I could easily write blog posts because I know children and their issues. Parents and other experts could read my posts with confidence. (It is on my list to write that blog some day.)
It is acceptable to have more than one blog. At one point I considered having several blogs, one for children's issues, one for herbs and one for writing.
Some authors even have their fictional characters write a blog to showcase their expertise in their books' subjects. At one point Roger Rheinheimer and I even discussed having Ava (Troyer) Mathias, our heroine in the Amish Forever books, write a blog.
If Roger and I had gone ahead with the Ava blog, the readers would have learned more about our characters and they would have learned more about the Amish way of life. We would have included DIY projects, Amish cooking information and herbal remedies.
As you read the above paragraphs, it is possible that you murmured to yourself that you are not an expert. I beg to disagree. You have some area in which you have excelled, be it needlepoint or woodworking or golfing. Write about those things.
In one writing workshop I attended, the speaker said that no matter where or when you lived, there is always someone who wants to know about that time and place. Some examples are vinyl records, music of the '50s, and macramé. What about wheat-free meal planning, or handmade guitars, or hand-made jewelry?
There is always something you can blog about with expertise. For some of us the trick is to determine which area(s) to write about.
Once your readers are confident with your level of expertise, they will gladly buy your product, be it your first book or your fiftieth book, or any other product you have to sell!
Please note: There are many excellent resources that discuss 'how-to' blog. My focus in this section is on the 'why-to' write a blog.
Monetizing Your Blog:
While the topic of this book is marketing, not making money, I will share some ideas on how to make money with your blog since extra ways of making money is important to all of us. Consider this a 'bonus section'.
Last week I mentioned that I knew of four ways to make money with a blog. This week, while researching, I discovered there are at least 30 ways to make money blogging. Below is a partial list.
Advertise - corporations pay good money to bloggers who place their ads on their blog sites.
Affiliate Programs - companies pay bloggers a percentage for any business sent their way.
Consulting - use your blog to let readers know you are available for consulting.
Information/Products - sell you expertise and/or your product from your blog.
Membership programs - have a special blog with extra information that people are willing to pay for.
Speaking Opportunities - let your blog readers know you are available to come and speak for a fee.
Surveys/Polls - corporations pay bloggers to post surveys and polls for their readers to take about those companies.
Webinars - do an on-line seminar on your area(s) of expertise.
Write an e-book - on your area(s) of expertise and market it from your blog.
Build to sell - bloggers can establish a blog and then sell it off to other bloggers.
When people purchase books, they are making a financial and an emotional investment. They want to know who they are 'dealing with.' This is especially true if they are purchasing a non-fiction book and/or a book for their child(ren).
A blog is one of the best ways there is to showcase your expertise. My good friend, Dee Malchow, is the perfect example. She is retired nurse who is an amputation specialist. Dee herself is an amputee. She just published an excellent book on the subject of amputation and recently started a blog on the subject. People from around the world read her writings with confidence as they know she is an expert and they will receive wise input.
As an Early Childhood Education expert, I could easily write blog posts because I know children and their issues. Parents and other experts could read my posts with confidence. (It is on my list to write that blog some day.)
It is acceptable to have more than one blog. At one point I considered having several blogs, one for children's issues, one for herbs and one for writing.
Some authors even have their fictional characters write a blog to showcase their expertise in their books' subjects. At one point Roger Rheinheimer and I even discussed having Ava (Troyer) Mathias, our heroine in the Amish Forever books, write a blog.
If Roger and I had gone ahead with the Ava blog, the readers would have learned more about our characters and they would have learned more about the Amish way of life. We would have included DIY projects, Amish cooking information and herbal remedies.
As you read the above paragraphs, it is possible that you murmured to yourself that you are not an expert. I beg to disagree. You have some area in which you have excelled, be it needlepoint or woodworking or golfing. Write about those things.
In one writing workshop I attended, the speaker said that no matter where or when you lived, there is always someone who wants to know about that time and place. Some examples are vinyl records, music of the '50s, and macramé. What about wheat-free meal planning, or handmade guitars, or hand-made jewelry?
There is always something you can blog about with expertise. For some of us the trick is to determine which area(s) to write about.
Once your readers are confident with your level of expertise, they will gladly buy your product, be it your first book or your fiftieth book, or any other product you have to sell!
Please note: There are many excellent resources that discuss 'how-to' blog. My focus in this section is on the 'why-to' write a blog.
Monetizing Your Blog:
While the topic of this book is marketing, not making money, I will share some ideas on how to make money with your blog since extra ways of making money is important to all of us. Consider this a 'bonus section'.
Last week I mentioned that I knew of four ways to make money with a blog. This week, while researching, I discovered there are at least 30 ways to make money blogging. Below is a partial list.
Advertise - corporations pay good money to bloggers who place their ads on their blog sites.
Affiliate Programs - companies pay bloggers a percentage for any business sent their way.
Consulting - use your blog to let readers know you are available for consulting.
Information/Products - sell you expertise and/or your product from your blog.
Membership programs - have a special blog with extra information that people are willing to pay for.
Speaking Opportunities - let your blog readers know you are available to come and speak for a fee.
Surveys/Polls - corporations pay bloggers to post surveys and polls for their readers to take about those companies.
Webinars - do an on-line seminar on your area(s) of expertise.
Write an e-book - on your area(s) of expertise and market it from your blog.
Build to sell - bloggers can establish a blog and then sell it off to other bloggers.