Can You Be a Superstar? (Part One)

By Christine Louise Hohlbaum

The candidate enters the stage from the glitzy portal. Sparkling stairs, flashing lights, dazzling costume, and a perfect make-up job. The microphone quivers in the singer’s hand as he or she belts out a ballad or a recent pop hit. "American Idol," "Superstar," "Popstar"… call it what you will. We want our candidate to win.

Marketing your book is much like joining a group of candidates on stage. You obviously have talent, or your book wouldn’t have made it through the hurdles of publishing. But talent isn’t the only thing you need to be a successful book author. There is more to it than meets the eye.

Before I moved to Germany, I joined the ranks of millions to cheer on my favorite singer on the popular show, "American Idol" (she, incidentally, won). The premise of the show is to vote for your favorite singer each week with the help of comments from the hateful judges whose opinions often clash with those of the voting public.

Apart from leaving friends and family behind, I was sad to leave the United States for another reason. Would I ever see "American Idol" again? To my great delight, I discovered a German version of the show, "Deutschland sucht den Superstar." My pop star fever started all over again, much to my husband’s dismay.

What is it about such shows that make people tune in week after week? The format is predictable, but oftentimes the results are not. My favorite singer on the German version of "American Idol," for example, got voted off the show as the fourth candidate. I was stunned. He never once sang a false note. He looked the part of a pop star. He had a good attitude and, in my humble opinion, was by far the most talented of the bunch.

It got me to stop and think. Why do I like this show so much? Perhaps, it is because I identify with the quest for the publicity grail. The candidates’ desires are similar to mine. They are driven. They are talented. They want to entertain us, move us, make us think, and call us to action. Their agenda is weighty, and it takes more than talent to be a star. It takes smart marketing, too.

Benny, my favorite singer on the German show, had all those things, but perhaps his genuine nature wasn’t enough. I tell book authors who want to promote their work that the key to success is being genuine. There is more to it, however. Most often, book authors do not realize the power of branding themselves effectively. Benny did not brand himself. The final three candidates did: Denise, the ballad singer; Eli, the bisexual rock singer; and Philip the DJ-cum-rapper. They all identified themselves with a certain title. They became experts in their genre while showing the world they can offer even more than that. From Christmas jingles to 1970s crooners, they could do it all.

So who wins? By the final show, in which the last two candidates battle it out for the status of Superstar, the work has already been done. Fan clubs have been founded, branding has been built, talent has been proven… it now comes down to letting the audience decide who its favorite is that given evening. It is a toss of the coin as to who wins, really. The final decision is as random as the color of the shirt the show host is wearing. Or is it?

There are a lot of things within your control as a book author. In the following, I will show you two out of four steps to take you to the stars. Bring along your perseverance, and you cannot fail. Failure is merely the change you need to alter the course of your direction.

Identify Your Target Audience

Knowing whom you are addressing is as crucial as knowing your subject matter. About whom did you think as you penned your masterpiece? Ask yourself: Who would be helped, entertained, moved, informed, encouraged, enlightened, or exposed by reading my book? Once you have answered that question, you can move on to the next step.

Branding Yourself as an Expert

You think you aren’t an expert? You just wrote a book. It makes you an expert in something.

One way to contribute to your image as an expert is to write articles on your topic. There are many ways to go about doing this. I will suggest three ways.

First, write e-zine articles. The Internet is a rapidly growing medium with all kinds of possibilities for writers. Article databases such as IdeaMarketers.com or Ezine-writer.com.au are places to warehouse your well-written articles for e-zine publishers and newsletter editors to use on their websites. The more articles you write, the better your exposure is. Many times I have had publishers contact me directly for even more content. Building solid relationships with website owners whose target audience matches your own can make a significant different in your exposure as an expert.

Second, approach national magazines which cover your topic. If you are an expert in fly fishing, contact fishing magazines. Offer the editor an article on “Fly Fishing for Beginners.” Give them an excerpt of your book. Explain the benefits of telling their readership about it.

For instance, “In a recent issue of Fishing Today magazine, you highlighted Montana’s most well-known rivers. My book offers ten hot fishing places in the West no one knows about…” You have offered a hook and mentioned how your book can help the editor attract more readers. Always ask yourself: how will my article idea contribute to the publication’s success? If you can answer that question each time you send a query, you are well on your way to publishing your piece.

Third, daily newspapers often run feature articles by freelancers around holidays when fewer staff are available. Think about upcoming holidays and how they might tie into your topic. If you have written a parenting book, Mother’s Day or Father’s Day are great holidays to offer material. Newspapers like to have a regional connection so if you are from Ontario, Canada, it may not make sense to query the Daily Progress in Charlottesville, VA, unless your topic relates directly to the town. For a list of holidays for 2005, 2006, and 2007, visit ButlerWebs.com's holiday calendar

Another way to brand yourself as an expert is to join ProfNet. This web-based service offers the opportunity for experts in their field to register and be available for the press to contact. The more you are quoted in the media on any given topic, the more you will be seen as "the expert" to call on again and again. One tip: when responding to media queries about a particular topic, offer them the information as completely as possible in the first response. Do not start off with your credentials (that you have three PhDs does not interest me as much as the quote you will offer me for my article). Many journalists must meet deadline. Chances are they will pass you by if you do not offer helpful information up front.

Next week in part two of her article, Christine Louise Hohlbaum will offer advice to writers on marketing through radio and television.

Christine Louise Hohlbaum, author and PR consultant, has appeared in many national media outlets including NPR (eleven times), Woman’s Day, Parents, Boston Globe magazine, and Pregnancy magazine.  Her CD-Rom, The Author’s Companion: A Self-Guided Course on Book Promotion (Wyatt MacKenzie Publishing), is a turn-key marketing program for authors to jettison their book promotion efforts and improve sales. Visit her website for writers at AuthorsCompanion.com.

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