# Email marketing



## NYXTaxiDriver (Jul 7, 2015)

Anyone ever tried to market a book via email or spam blasts to 100ks of people? did it work?


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## David Gordon Burke (Jul 7, 2015)

Even better, anyone know how to set up one of those email collecting apps or whatever on a blog so that people will sign up to a database of emails?  This is a mystery to me.  Not even sure what you call it.  Luddite.

David Gordon Burke


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## NYXTaxiDriver (Jul 7, 2015)

its not hard maybe ill try that too, but i do know there might be some legal issues if you spam somebody your site or book without their permissiions.


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## NYXTaxiDriver (Jul 7, 2015)

sometimes you can purchase email lists with like millions of names, but not sure how much $


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## aj47 (Jul 7, 2015)

David Gordon Burke said:


> Even better, anyone know how to set up one of those email collecting apps or whatever on a blog so that people will sign up to a database of emails?  This is a mystery to me.  Not even sure what you call it.  Luddite.
> 
> David Gordon Burke



What blog software do you use?  How to do it is platform-dependent.

EDIT:



NYXTaxiDriver said:


> its not hard maybe ill try that too, but i do know there might be some legal issues if you spam somebody your site or book without their permissiions.



If they sign up on your blog, they are granting you permission to contact them.  This is both legal and ethical.



NYXTaxiDriver said:


> sometimes you can purchase email lists with like millions of names, but not sure how much $



There are many problems with these lists. Including your ISP cancelling your account (speaking as a former ISP-owner).


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## LeeC (Jul 7, 2015)

A thought maybe to consider is that the effort in taking such a route is on balance more often counterproductive in alienating others. With everybody shoving their thing in everybody else's face, only the naïve look at such and then only till they grow weary. I, and many others I'm aware of, have resorted to black-white list filtering of email. 

It's just a personal perspective, but to me writing is first about developing one's storytelling skills and articulate conveyance. I also believe that if what one writes for is mostly fame and fortune, they commonly, at least at first, shortchange developing storytelling skills, but also recognize that one hat doesn't fit all. 

I'm sympathetic that even many interesting, well-written books never see the light of significant readership. Such being truer today in our sardine-can world with the sheer volume of written works and so many being poorly executed. 

Whatever the reason one writes, I believe than once one has done the best they can writing at their point in life, then they should change hats and try to sell/promote their efforts to those that really know how to market the work. That is the thousands of literary agents and hundreds of small presses that welcome submissions (those with the impetus that the only way they gain is if you gain). Even here one's work can get lost in the millions of submissions. If one can't find the needle in the haystack in the many varied perspectives and tastes that pool represents, then a last shot is the likes of self-publishing. As I say, it's just my opinion and a few have gotten lucky with the latter, but it's a morass where other parasites feed off your dreams with little benefit afforded in return. 

If you think finding potential candidates in the aforementioned pool is difficult (it is labor consuming) relative to your work, then consider how much effort I'm going through to find someone interested in Literary fiction by a naturalist ;-) 

Anyway, we all have our dreams and opinions, and all this falls under the second quote in my sig 
Most all of us, I think, subscribe to "Do not go gentle into that good night" ~ Dylan Thomas of course.


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## Riis Marshall (Jul 7, 2015)

Hello NYX

Here I have to agree with Lee and ask you whether you're interested in writing something you can be proud of or are you just interested in making some money?

In a perfect world we should be able to do both: to produce something of value, in this case pieces of original writing, then develop a readership - a group of people who will buy our books - and in the process make ourselves some money.

In the real world unfortunately it's not quite so simple. You can either:

1. Write, write write and keep writing until you're happy with with what you've written then market, market, market - or promote, promote, promote until you establish a readership. It takes work, it takes dedication and it takes time.

or:

2. Pay £25 for a disc with 7,500,000 email addresses on it and flog any old piece of writing to these recipients. My guess is the response you will get will be not unlike the way you respond when a guy who sounds like he grew up very, very far from either Britain or America rings you and says: 'Hello, my name is Gary and I'm calling from Microsoft about your infected computer.'

Just like playing a musical instrument or sport there are no short cuts to success. Learn the basics, pay your dues and practise, practise, practise.

There is an aphorism floating around now that states to get really good at anything you need to spend about 10,000 hours at it.

But go into your local bookshop and troll the shelves for writers who have made it big and whose work you enjoy reading. They made it and so can you.

Go for it.

All the best with your writing.

Warmest regards
Riis


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## David Gordon Burke (Jul 8, 2015)

There is one common thread today for both writers who take their craft seriously and those who throw together any old story or tutorial with nothing more than a paycheck in mind.  Both need to know how to promote themselves.  The very small (0.0001%) are those who get a publishing contract which takes care of all the marketing for them.  Even then they are probably required to do interviews and book signings and conventions etc.  

And the Trad publishers are likely to align their practices with those of the music industry.  They will soon be making the writers payout from the profits before seeing a dime (if they are not doing that already)  

David Gordon Burke


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## Loulou (Jul 9, 2015)

Nothing would stop me buying a book more than a spammy email from someone I don't know selling a book I've never heard of.  If you've got pride in your work, put some genuine, creative effort into promoting it.  Set up a Facebook page in the name of your book.  Offer free copies to reviewers/bloggers, but understand it's going to have to be good.  Contact your local newspaper do do a story.  I don't think spamming will work.  It's tacky.


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## David Gordon Burke (Jul 9, 2015)

I agree with LouLou.  Junk mail never gets read.  Period.  No exceptions.  I don´t even open spam if they promise boobies inside.  

But their is an opt in option for some email packages.  This means the user chooses to have their email address included in your data base and be informed of any new stuff in your career.

My blog is wordpress.  I was previously with blog.com but they BBBBBLLLLLLOOOOOOOOOWWWWWWW.  So anyone know how to set one of these babies up with limited computer savvy?  I am good with one step two step concepts in computers but some of these functions are beyond me.

David Gordon Burke


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