Apparently I'm a benign virus - Think I like that.
Least I am according to Roy Bayfield's article which will soon appear HERE. I'll give the link when the article,which is about the marketing of The Tarnished Star goes live.
Meantime here's a snippet:
"Of course, the book itself has to be good or else the ‘cloud’ would be nothing more than vapour. It is good, and, importantly from a marketing perspective, has a ‘unique selling point’ that can be summed up in a few words: it is a classic western like the books and films of the 50s and 60s. That simple idea is ideally suited to the meme-fuelled world of online social marketing; when the idea encounters people with a latent desire (ie folks who think ‘hmm yes, it would be nice to read a good old fashioned western’) it latches on to them like a benign virus and hey presto, Gary gets another Amazon sale."
3 comments:
Roy Bayfield's contention that The Tarnished Star's "unique selling point" is that it's "a classic western like the books of the 50s and 60s" is plain wrong and just goes to show how small a part of the general public has ever heard of Black Horse Westerns. Robert Hale Ltd have been publishing these books in identical format since 1986. The titles now run into thousands and with few exceptions most of them have had this same allegedly "unique selling point". What IS unique about Gary's book is that he made the effort to give it the promotion it deserved -- and has done that expertly. Roy Bayfield's article is yet further evidence of Gary's abilities and success in giving himself an enviable profile. We all need have to learn from Gary if we want to share a similar level of sales. Writing an enjoyable "classic" western -- or even a couple of dozen of them -- is not enough in today's marketing environment.
I don't know Keith - I think Roy is quite correct and yes there are many other traditional oaters out there but I think the "traditional aspect" is not pushed hard enough. The full article makes several more points but to be honest I thought the blog might help to shift a few books but first and foremost I wanted, still do, to make the Archive a good read. However I fully agree with your point that writing an enjoyable western is not enough - it's the same with music, films etc - you've got to let people know it's out there. Anyway the full article will be up this weekend and I'll be interested to see what you think. Roy's done a great, enlightened piece and I am honoured greatly by it.
Will look forward to reading the entire article. :)
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