So many times we give up too soon.
Have you seen the popular meme that has circulated on Facebook that shows the miner giving up just before discovering gold?
That’s what I think often happens to authors as well.
We give up too soon.
I read this in the book, “The Miracle Equation” by Hal Elrod and thought it might encourage some of you with your marketing. I’m not necessarily endorsing the book but wanted to share this book marketing case study with you.
This is not meant to be a blueprint or suggestion that you should do exactly what Hal did. But, instead notice that he had a specific strategy that he developed specifically for his book and his audience.
This is a direct quote from his book: 
“When The Miracle Morning was published, I had very few resources beyond what the average person would have to promote the book. I didn’t have a platform or a big email list. And I didn’t know anyone else who did. So I asked myself what the best way to promote my new book would be.
After speaking to a lot of authors and doing online research, I decided that the fundamental strategy I was going to implement was being interviewed on podcasts.
I surmised that the type of person who listens to podcast interviews is the same type of person who invests in personal development. It’s also a very cost-effective strategy since being interviewed on a podcast costs nothing other than your time.
I have since done more than three hundred podcast interviews plus produced more than two hundred of my own Achieve Your Goals podcast episodes.
It took me eighteen months of interviews just to sell again what I had sold in the first month after the book was released.
The graph below shows the value of remaining committed to your process for an extended period of time, regardless of your short-term results.
That was eighteen months in which I saw very few sales in proportion to the amount of time and effort I was investing in securing and conducting podcast interviews. As you can see by looking at the graph on the previous page, I didn’t sell many books from December 2012 through June 2014, which means my effort wasn’t paying dividends in the short term. Had I been emotionally attached to my short-term results, I never would have made it.
But I believed in the book and knew that it would change people’s lives, so I stuck to my process and remained focused on the big picture.
Ultimately, my commitment to my process paid off. As of today, The Miracle Morning has surpassed over one million copies sold, half of them here in the United States and the other half spread across more than a hundred countries around the world—further evidence that although achieving significant goals often takes longer than we might want or expect, when we maintain Unwavering Faith and continue to put forth Extraordinary Effort over an extended period of time, we can create miracles.”
Action Steps:
- Have you ever felt discouraged with your book marketing efforts? If so, journal about it and what you think worked well and what you think didn’t.
- Marketing is a marathon and not a sprint. Are you willing to invest the time needed to market your book? If so, commit to weekly business meetings with God to receive strategy and direction from Him.
One of my favorite verses for business is Galatians 6:19, “So let’s not get tired of doing what is good. At just the right time we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don’t give up.” (NLT)
If you are willing to keep going and not give up, let me know in the comments below.
Hi
I am willing to keep going. There’s so much I’ve yet to know but I keep writing as the inspiration comes. Thanks
Great! We are cheering you on!