If You Want Word of Mouth to Work You Have to Teach Your Fans How

Word of mouth is the best marketing you can get—if, like free, it’s done right.

What are you doing to help your fans share your books? Do you teach them what to say, so they’re doing real marketing? If they’re just saying “This is a good book” that’s not marketing, it’s just talk. They need your guidance.

Craft a message simple enough for them to say repeat; something like my fans would say about my first mystery: “Joel’s book is like meeting someone you love for a laugh and a pint at the pub.” Folks hear that, and they’re hooked (or repelled, which is also fine.)

My fans won’t know to say that if I don’t teach them.

And they won’t say it if I don’t constantly remind them (staying well this side of pushy.)

Maybe you’re already giving your fans lots of information. Are you giving them one single sentence they can say? Less is better.

Hand someone a marketing sheet and a handful of business cards and they’ll take them to be polite, but don’t think they’ll really do anything with it. How much time do you spend handing out other people’s business cards for them?

Word of mouth works like this: we develop trust over time. You like my book, and you like me enough to talk about my book. I repeat the same phrase or sentence so often that it’s what comes to your mind when you talk about my book. I remind you once in a while that when you talk about my book, it’s the best thing possible for my life as an author.

If you’re not building trust first, then repeating that one sentence so your fans will memorize it simply by osmosis, you’re not generating word of mouth.

You’re simply trying to hire a free sales team.


This article was originally published at SomedayBox.com and reprinted here with permission. https://somedaybox.com/if-you-want-word-of-mouth-to-work-you-have-to-teach-your-fans-how/

Ilise Benun, Host of The Marketing Mentor Podcast

This entry is part 11 of 13 in the series Podcaster Interviews

I’ve known Ilise for a few years and read her blog. I’m honored she provided information about her podcast for our series.Ilise Benun

Tell us about your podcast

The Marketing Mentor Podcast is a friendly, practical and no-fluff conversation between me, Ilise Benun, and successful creative professionals about what’s working when it comes to the latest marketing tools and pricing strategies.

Why did you start this podcast?

It started as a promotional tool for one of my early books, The Designer’s Guide to Marketing & Pricing. The concept was to record one episode for each chapter – and it worked! From there it has evolved into an interview format, where I chat with clients and others who are practicing what I preach.

How long have you been podcasting?

Since 2008! Almost 400 episodes so far!

What do you look for in a guest?

I am looking for guests who are willing to reveal the details you don’t hear anywhere else about exactly how they market their business and the results they get.

How can listeners find you?

The home of the podcast is at MarketingMentorPodcast.com but it can also can be found on my web site, Marketing-Mentor.com, and on , Spotify and SoundCloud.com

Is there anything else you’d like to share?

I like to go behind the scenes to uncover real-world strategies for taking control of your business, ending the feast-or-famine syndrome, finding your niche, developing your own marketing style and cultivating relationships that will last.

Ilise Benun is the founder of Marketing-Mentor.com, the go-to online resource for creative professionals who want better projects with bigger budgets, through which she offers business coaching to small groups and 1:1. She is also a national speaker and author of 7 books, including “The Creative Professional’s Guide to Money,” and 3 online courses via CreativeLive – all tailored to the needs of creative professionals. Since 2008, she has hosted the Marketing Mentor Podcast and her newest project is her role as “Business Coach” for the Savannah College of Art & Design. Follow her @ilisebenun and get her Quick Tips at www.marketing-mentortips.com

Free Book Marketing Ideas

You don’t have to spend money for all your book marketing efforts. There are free ways to market your book. Here are just a few.

  • Interview an industry influencer who has read your book and write a blog post about what they found most useful in the book—or ask the influencer if they would be willing to write a guest post about your book.
  • Create a group from your Facebook author page. Share tips from your book and ask questions, encouraging engagement. Be sure to share information related to your topic from other sources as well.
  • Pitch to the media—podcasters, radio shows, etc. What is a current topic that you can tie in with your book’s topic? Create a pitch and reach out to the media.
  • Send a digital (Kindle or PDF) copy of your book as a gift to five people who are interested in your topic and ask them to consider reviewing it. Don’t say you’ll send a free copy if they’ll leave a positive review of your book. Just send the book and ask them to consider leaving an honest review.
    What other free book marketing ideas do you have? Please share them in the comments.

Tim Reid, Host of The Small Business Big Marketing Show Podcast [Interview]

This entry is part 8 of 13 in the series Podcaster Interviews

Tim, tell us about your podcast.Tim Reid

Called The Small Business Big Marketing Show, it’s reason for being is to help demystify marketing for small business owners. To help them embrace this important business-growing discipline to the point that they actually enjoy marketing themselves and their precious business. In fact, my dream is that marketing becomes a hobby for every business-owner listening – when something’s a hobby, you look forward to doing it, and will find the necessary resources to do it properly.

Why did you start this podcast?

I’ve been marketing all my life – but I especially love chatting and supporting the smaller end of town. Whilst they could afford to pay my coaching fees, they can afford the time it takes to listen to my free podcast made directly for them.

How long have you been podcasting?

Eleven years – my show was the first Australian business podcast aimed at small business owners.

What do you look for in a guest?

A successful business owner that has an interesting story of growth and who has used some form of marketing to get them there.

How can listeners find you?

More about Tim Reid

Tim is the founder and host of Australia’s #1 and longest running business marketing podcastThe Small Business Big Marketing Show, which can be found on the Apple iTunes store, Spotify as well as inflight on all Virgin Australia domestic and international flights.

His highly informative weekly show was awarded Australia’s Best Business & Marketing Podcast at the 2018 Australian Podcast Awards.

Each week, Tim shares marketing insights and tips to help you build that beautiful business of yours in to the empire it deserves to be.

Having launched his hit program ten years ago and with well over 490 episodes and three million downloads under his belt, it regularly ranks in iTunes above The Tim Ferris Show, Seth Godin’s Start Up School and and even outranks the Harvard Business School’s show, as Australia’s number one business marketing podcast.

Tim has built a global audience of motivated business owners in 110 countries, and is the author of The Boomerang Effect, a popular marketing text. He is also Australia’s most practical marketing keynote speaker.

Prior to this, he was the marketing manager for Flight Centre and spent ten years working in Australia’s largest advertising agency looking after the advertising needs of Gillette, AXA, Yellow Pages and Dulux.

Tim was instrumental in helping AFL legend Jim Stynes raise $1M dollars for youth charity, Reach.

He now travels the world showing business owners and marketers how to embrace modern marketing methods – gaining success and increasing profits, without spending a fortune.

Tim is also an engaging and entertaining emcee, having emceed the Telstra Business Awards around Australia, and is the emcee for the annual Australian Podcast Awards.

Freshen Up Your Publicity

This entry is part 4 of 8 in the series Book Publicity Mini-Course

You have a message you consistently share on social media platforms and in interviews.

Keep your publicity freshIs it getting stale?

Your audience will note if you share the same message over and over again. They will hear if you say the same thing on each interview.

Freshen up your publicity.

Look for new ways to share your message. Put your heart into it. Look for new motivation. Perhaps you can add new visuals to your social media or TV interview. There may be new statistics or information related to your topic you could tie in. Set up Google alerts for your topic and see what others are saying and doing around that topic and make sure you stay current in what you share in your publicity.

Make it fresh, and keep it fresh.