Do you remember where you were when you saw the Internet for the first time? I do. I was working at Henry Holt and an assistant asked me to check out something cool. He showed me a page of text on his computer. Nothing impressive yet, then he clicked on...

I think you are all awesome (dads are fabulous too, but that's for another blog). I have never met a mother who did not express her love for her children in the most beautiful way. Working or not. Religious or not. Affectionate or not. Struggling or not. Leaning in or...

As authors, you know there are a lot of marketing options for promoting your book these days. There's publicity, advertising and of course social media, but before you invest your money and time, it is important to know the benefits and challenges of the three types of marketing options (commonly...

As of January 2013, Facebook has 1 billion users. 219 billion photos have been uploaded and there have been 140.3 billion friend connections. The average age of users is about 22.

Clearly Facebook is not going anywhere and although my teens hardly use it anymore, many of us...

You may think of Pinterest as a place where scrapbooking fans, home interior aficionados and fashionistas go to hang out online and share images, but Pinterest is a social networking site that can be used for so much more. A year ago, Pinterest increased its unique visitors by 155 percent...

Those of you who know me are probably shocked at the title of this blog. You know I am a true believer in digital marketing and publicity and always suggest to authors that they should spend time developing a relationship with their readers. So why am I asking this question?...

I know it's not fair, but today along with knowing how to write a book and get it published, authors have to understand the digital marketing landscape as well. If you want to write books, publish them and sell them, you need to make an investment in your career and...

All social networking venues are not created equal. Each has its own identity. What works on Facebook may not work on LinkedIn or on Twitter. While you can use all social media platforms for an integrated approach to market your book or business, you have to know your audience. The...

As we wrap up 2012 and start to plan for the New Year, I wanted to review the things I got right and the things I didn't. In the past few years, there have been so many changes in the book industry, and in technology, that sometimes my only guide...

Most authors know that a public relations effort for their book is essential for their success. In order to have a campaign to promote their book comprehensively, many look to augment their publisher's efforts by hiring a PR agency. But, how do you choose the right PR firm for your...

Imagine if you opened your inbox, and saw only one e-mail. Imagine if you only got a new one when you answered the current one. Without knowing how many e-mails you have in total you would take the time and respond with great care. Now imagine you open your inbox...

Recently I read an article published in the New York Times called "The Best Book Reviews Money Can Buy," by David Streitfeld, about authors who are paying for reviews in order to help promote their books and increase their sales. Instead of real reviews from real people, these...

I have a confession to make. My guilty pleasure is reality competition shows like Project Runaway, Top Chef and Amazing Race. I know I am not alone because all these shows have seen years of success and ratings. Recently, I thought working in PR is a lot like being a...

Our brand is our reputation. It's built upon our stories and expertise, and our willingness to share our knowledge. In today's socially connected world our reputations have become global, making our brand more important than ever.

Here are six ways you can share your valuable knowledge with others and become...

An author recently reached out to me via email and said, "I've been tweeting for a couple of weeks and don't see a change in my Amazon ranking. What am I doing wrong?" I told him, "Nothing. Twitter is just not an instant fix. It takes a long time to...

If you are a published author, you've already done the hard part: You wrote your book and got it published. But don't stop there. If you want to become known as an expert in your field, you need to build your personal brand. There are all sorts of ways you...

I have seen PR people stressed out, screaming, sending emails in all caps, and worse. A new study puts public relations as number seven on the top 10 most stressful professions. As a public relations executive, of course I have days that are stressful, but I don't think...

Steve Jobs stepped down as the CEO of Apple on Aug. 24, 2011, and if you read the news on Twitter first, then you also saw the millions of tweets thanking him and feeling sad at the news of his departure. Think about that for a minute: we, the people,...

The explosion of social media in the last few years has brought with it a whole slew of social media applications and tools designed to help publicists deliver and monitor better results. As I have written before, I think social media has been a huge help for publicity....

Here are seven steps to developing a digital marketing blueprint. Many people skip the first four, but these first few steps are the crucial difference between success and failure. I have also uploaded slide presentations to help you along.

1. Assess Your Situation - This first step is...