I believe I am probably sitting at the most critical point in this Quest. There was much excitement in the planning and preparation of all the marketing tools like the video. When I launched after the first of the year I took satisfaction in seeing a couple of Sneak Peeks being ordered every day. Now that I am into the meat of the process with only 90 days until the book release I recognize the scale of the goal I have set.
We have some great early wins. The press from the first few weeks created buzz and attracted several people who are now volunteering their time to help with PR, social media. The 1500 advance copies and speaking gigs are now turning into sales, 20 here and 30 there. Our Amazon # has been lifting steadily and I have emails committing to roughly 650 pre-orders that have not yet been executed. The big endorsement broadcasts are just starting. Jack Daly sent out a beautiful endorsement to his 30,000 Jackaholics today. Thanks Jack! Every day we get a new win that proves we are having impact.
But at the same time the hill gets steeper. The math is clear. We need roughly 85 sales per day from here to hit the New York Times in the first week. For every day we don’t hit that number we increase the amount we have to get the next day. With my travel schedule and consulting work (I have to make a living) I have been slow to get the word out to everyone that can help. I am working 18-hour days to get as much attention as possible and in some cases it’s a challenge. The reality is clear. If we don’t make it in the first week we have to get 8000 sales every week to make the list. At that point there is not much I can do to influence sales. Some best selling authors have spent over $1 million to influence that market which is certainly not an option for me.
We are coming to the wire on getting press attention based upon the Super Bowl News cycle. Unexpected, important news issues like Haiti and the Massachusetts election dominate the feature sections so we have shifted to go after only the sports media since they have to report on sports, but it’s a noisy press environment out there and our Super Bowl connection will be gone after the Jets win on February 7th. We postponed our Sam Horn interview because it seems not everyone is back in the swing of things. We’ll shoot for March, a consistently successful time for the 10,000 Friends of Sam Horn audience.
We have made some traction with our efforts in getting Wiley’s media engine engaged. They are definitely rewarding our efforts with more attention and services than a typical unknown author would get this early but it’s been made clear by their head of PR that we need a big media win or large bulk sale for them to spend money before the actual release. After consulting with other best selling authors our holy grail from Wiley’s marketing department would be a satellite radio tour. Richard Strauss is great at putting these together but they can get pricey for a bootstrapping operation like ours. Obviously for Wiley to spend the thousands they have to firmly believe it will result in comparable book sales and they are not overwhelmingly convinced… yet.
Don’t get me wrong; I firmly believe getting 8,000 pre-orders for the book is achievable. But the numbers confirm my suspicions that this process will not be steady and linear. It will require a big push up a hill with the hopes of coasting after the crest to success. This is the point where faith becomes crucial. I have seen many companies start marketing programs of this type only to give up when the original idea seems insurmountable and just before they were ready to breakthrough.
Short time frames can be deceiving. I know intellectually we are on track and ignore the concern or at least dampen it with a good martini at the end of the day. As the target gets closer the tattoo burns on my skin not unlike the famous Harry Potter lightening bolt scar but I continue easily because I am committed to the goal, and the process. Small wins help me manage my impatience. Today I challenged several well connected friends to bring 1500 pre-orders to the table. They have the connections and are willing. I will have to manage the logistics to make sure the sales are individual sales that count since bulk orders don’t.
Everyday I learn a little more, leverage each new opportunity and course correct as needed. People are waking up and taking action. The momentum is building. The tipping point is out there. Every action taken adds to the leverage necessary to make the Quest a reality.
This adventure is best described with my wife Deanna’s description of life with me… “Not always pleasant, but never boring.”
Social ROAR!