Internet Book Promotion Tip: Develop a Web Presence

Here's an excerpt from my new book, "55 Ways to Promote and Sell Your Book on the Internet," due out in spring 2009.

#2 - Develop a Web "Presence," Not Just a Web Site

When many novice promoters think of Internet marketing, they believe it's all about putting up a good web site and then driving traffic to it using banner ads or a Google AdWords campaign (more on these later).

Sure, that's one way to promote your books online. But it's one of the least effective, in my opinion.

Another line of faulty reasoning is thinking that online book promotion is about search engine optimization (SEO). If only you did well in search results, you're worries would be over. It's true that putting basic SEO principles into practice can be helpful. But it's still not the ultimate solution.

The best way to promote and sell your books online -- based on my many years of Internet experience -- is thinking outside your web site.

Make no mistake, you need an attractive and well-organized site (and I'll cover my top tips in that area soon). But to make a real impact as an author, you need much more than a good web site.

You Need a Web Presence!

But what do I mean by "presence"?

You have a strong presence online when a growing number of people who have an interest in your topic or genre keep finding you in the places where they spend time online.

Sure, doing well in Google searches for your ideal words and phrases is one important part of having an Internet presence. But there's so much more to it.

Having a Web presence also means having your articles and sample chapters appear on prominent sites that cater to your subject matter. It happens when your name keeps popping up on active discussion forums related to your topic.

You also expand your presence when people find you on Facebook, YouTube, MySpace, Twitter, and any number of other social networking sites. It grows when people who subscribe to your email newsletter forward your latest message to their friends.

You further establish your presence by starting your own blog, while also making comments on other people's blogs and podcasts -- and when you do text, audio and video interviews online.

In other words, you set yourself up for success by making sure you can be found in multiple places where your ideal reader, buyer and fan hangs out online.

That's what I mean by developing a Web presence. And that's exactly what this book will help you do.

-Bob

P.S. Again, this is a quick preview of my new book, "55 Ways to Promote and Sell Your Book on the Internet," due out in spring 2009.

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