Like it or not, marketing/promotion is part of being an author. Last August, I rolled out my new custom web site design. Since then, marketing guru Poppy Dennison has worked with me to further refine my brand. I’m forever in her debt. Here’s an excerpt from my post about my brand and marketing from a year ago. More about my chats with Poppy follows the excerpt.
The multi-talented Charlie Cochet, goddess of m-m romance and a marketing genius, has patiently shown me the way. She’s rescued me a thousand times after I messed up my web site and couldn’t figure out how to make it work. She’s also pointed out the limitations of my setup, encouraged me to move to my own host, and showed me the value of developing a brand. I’m forever in her debt [too!]
Thanks a million to Sam at AngstyG for the beautiful design and the smooth transition. I have a hard time visualizing things. With no idea what I wanted, I sent her links to web sites I really liked with a note or two about what appealed to me, and did the same for sites I either liked something about or didn’t like at all. I loved her first mockup immediately.
The web sites I most liked, in addition to a clean and attractive design, featured elements the writer could use elsewhere. The mustache and goatee and other aspects of Sam’s design will look great on promotional items. Maybe I’ll even figure out how to create something interesting all by myself.
UPDATE:
Miss Poppy says your brand is what people say about you when you’re not in the room. We’ve been at several of the same events, and according to her, my brand is Charming Southern Gentleman. She patted me on the back for the way my web site complements my brand.
I’m Southern, for sure. I was born in North Carolina, grew up in Kentucky, did a brief stint in DC, and have lived in Georgia for nearly twenty years. The rest is debatable, but if people think I’m charming and a gentleman, who am I to argue?