These tips are from John Kremer, Bookmarket:
1 90% of marketing efforts are wasted. This is not a bad thing. Learn how to use this insight to set better priorities.
2 Book marketing is all about creating relationships. The only reason to hire a publicist is to hire them for their relationships. Ask, “Who do you know?” It’s all about creating friends.
3 You can’t do everything. Prioritize what you do best.
4 Packaging is important. If a book isn’t packaged well, it won’t sell. An instant judgment on your book is based on the packaging. Packaging not only includes the cover, but also the title, the contents, and the interior design.
5 Build a brand with your books. For example, consider the Dummies brand or Chicken Soup of the Soul.
6 We are in the business of creating and selling rights. Licensing rights can make the difference between a profitable publishing operation and a losing operation.
7 Remember that small presses can create bestsellers. In fact, they’ve created more than 400 bestsellers in the past 20 years. See http://www.bookmarket.com/bests.htm.
8 New standards are coming for submitting info to booksellers. You need ONIX compliant data. Get familiar with it. This information allows retailers to pull up information immediately about your book.
ONIX for Books is an XML format for storing and sharing bibliographic data pertaining to both traditional books and eBooks.
ONIX Users Directory: http://www.bisg.org/what-we-do-21-140-onix-users-directory.php
9 What was your strength can become your weakness. For example, New York publishers depend on chains and have almost lost touch with the independents.
10 Make no little plans, because they have no power to move the hearts of men and women. So many books are published that don’t come to their potential because the publisher didn’t have the confidence. Let your vision shine through. Don’t let the media sell you short.
Read more at:
http://www.bookmarket.com/bookpromotion.htm
