Effective marketing for your book or any other product is crucial, but at the end of the day … never put the cart before the horse. The following is a very simple example to say the least, and you would think this would be obvious to any major organization, but let’s face it – anyone can become blind to the ineffectiveness of their own marketing. The example or matter at hand here, came to my attention when a local newspaper ran a story about an up and coming aquarium that would be opening in a nearby town. As most parents would gravitate to a new fun thing to take their kiddos to; I personally immediately went to check out the website to get more information. Now, this company, who will remain anonymous, is pretty huge, so imagine my complete disbelief when I clicked on the new aquarium locale and there was zero mention of this new opening whatsoever and not even a coming soon. The paper did not get the story wrong, and this is a perfect example of a waste of a pubic relations effort. The point here is to make sure that you all all of your marketing ducks in a row lined up – brand, website, social media, etc. before you invest in ANY type of PR activity otherwise it is a lost opportunity to say the least.
