What Works...Online Marketing Symposium

Do you ever wonder why some books become bestsellers while others can barely be given away? Why some businesses succeed and others fail?  

How does a blog post or a YouTube video manage to go viral? What does it take to reach celebrity status? Why does a person who is less intelligent than you are become the teacher's favorite and make better grades with less work?

Is it a matter of luck or is there some magic formula for success? 
   

Would you like to know what works and what doesn't?

Well, now maybe we can latch on to some of the secrets and tricks that make success happen or what we might want to avoid. We want you to tell us your stories of success (or not so successful) as we present the blogging event that will help us learn.

                                               What Works...

               The first ever "Online Marketing Symposium!"

A blogfest with information you can use.

The event happens on Monday January 20, 2014.

On event day you tell us about a marketing idea that you've used and what worked or didn't work. Your post could describe a campaign that succeeded in a big or small way or one that failed drastically. Tell us about a business campaign, an organizational event, a fundraiser – anything where a bit of promotion was necessary!

The What Works.. Marketing Symposium is not limited to authors but also to anyone in a business that has a promotional aspect – online or otherwise!

Posts can be informational, statistical, a personal experience account, or a funny marketing story. Experience gained from a promotional effort in one area can have applications in other efforts in which we are involved so anything goes as long as promotion or marketing methodology has been involved. 

The ultimate goal is to learn.

Remember – no book – no problem. Marketing and promotion principles apply to your blog, your business, any dream, or project, because we all want to win people over.

This information exchange is more than just a "blogfest"!

It's an online forum where ideas are shared and success for all is the goal.  

Does the thought of marketing and promotion scare you or turn you cold? Fear no more—let's learn together.

It's possible the blogging community can help you make that next project a viral success orthat next book a best seller!

Join our first ever Online Marketing Symposium

Monday January 20, 2014

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sign up below:

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Challenge Participant Feature - Roland Yeomans

This month’s Challenge Participant is the amazing author, Roland Yeomans! His theme was Words of Wisdom for Writers, something he offers on a regular basis at his blog.


Please welcome Roland in an interview like none other!




Meilori's was empty for once: everyone was out Christmas shopping. What do ghosts give one another? Don't ask. You'll sleep easier.

Alex sat opposite me, toying with his Romulan Ale.

Alex:
You know, Roland. After our "Hangover" adventure with Mark Twain, I don't touch this stuff.

Roland:
Mark wanted to show you Asgard next ... with Jamie Alexander ... as his date.

Alex (rolling his eyes):
Of course as HIS date. Your blog always offers words of wisdom. Was it hard matching letters to your topics?

Roland:
With as varied a place as Meilori's and as populated as my linked novels are, it was fun. Sort of like bobbing for ideas.

In fact, some of my literary friends fought for some topics. Some letters were challenges, of course -- like Q or X or Z. That's what makes the A to Z Challenge fun.

Alex (sipping at his Romulan Ale):
Hey! This is Ginger Ale!

Roland:
I didn't want to risk you with Loki.

Alex:
Thanks for having my back.

Roland:
This way I get to accompany Jamie Alexander to Asgard.

Alex:
Oh, it was Jamie's back you were interested in. I should have figured. Your F post was on Frost. Do you really think poetry is dead? And just how important is poetry anyway to a prose writer?

Roland:
If poetry is dead, we prose writers are in the next ward over, wheezing noisily, with our family gathered around looking concerned and asking about our DVD's.

There are about six people who buy new poetry, but they are not feeling very well. I joke, of course. But poetry is becoming a lost taste in reading. A shame really.

Ernest Hemingway said that the best writing was poetry in prose. Read some of the early Stephen King and you will see what Hemingway meant.

Alex (stiffening in his chair):
Was that Carl Jung who just strolled by?

Roland:
Yes, and we writers can learn alot from him.

Carl Jung was a “spiritual thinker” who offered Western culture a way back to religion that places no shame on being human.

He said: "As far as we can discern, the sole purpose of human existence is to kindle a light in the darkness of mere being." And isn't that what fiction is meant to do as well?

Alex:
What are some of the keys to writing success, do you think?

Roland:
Well, Mark Twain had some keys:

#1 - Write without pay until someone pays you to do it.

#2 - Don't say the old lady screamed. Drag her out on the stage and have her caterwaul herself.

#3 - Do not hoard.

Give each paragraph all the dynamite you possess. Do not save "a good bit" for later. Your reader may become bored and wander off before your novel explodes.

Alex:
Which post was your favorite and which one was the readers' favorite?

Roland:
The post I am working on is always my favorite, for everything seems possible and the only limits are my imagination and my skill -- so I constantly push myself.

The readers' favorite is WHY FRIENDSHIP? (A RETURN VISIT) See it HERE.

In this digital age, we have never been so connected, yet so alone. Yvette Vickers, star of ATTACK OF THE 50 FOOT WOMAN, was found mummified sitting in front of her computer, having lived the last tragic days of her life, touching people only digitally.

Alex:
So tragic. But enough gloom. My favorite post was our Galactic Hangover adventure. How much fun was that for you?

Roland:
Immense fun. You got the hangover. I got the laughs. Flying through space in Ming the Merciless's space ship was a hoot. And I hope it got people to read about Gordon R Dickson's HOKA. :-)

Alex:
If you do tackle the A to Z Challenge again, what do you think might be your focus?

Roland:
The world is changing so, especially the publishing one. I might write on CHANGE.

You can't stop the future. You can't rewind the past.

The only way to learn the secret of life is to press "Play."


Thank you, Roland!

Co-host Ninja Captain Alex is the author of Amazon Best Sellers CassaStar, CassaFire and CassaStorm, and his blog can be found HERE

A thru Z? The Possibilities Are Limitless!

Infinity Room (Photo credit: pixeljones)

         Can you believe that in 2014 we will be celebrating year FIVE of the Blogging from A to Z April Challenge!

          How will you be using A to Z to your best advantage?

           From that first year in 2010 I realized the potential of an event like the April Challenge.  It was a great way to meet new bloggers and add to followers to ones own blog.  Now after four Challenges we've seen the endless possibilities that A to Z has to offer.  Each year brings talented bloggers with innovative ideas to try as well as tried and true methods of improving content generation, reaching out to community, and bettering oneself as a blogger.  

         Among the ongoing A to Z community and the A to Z alumni, proudly displaying A to Z badges and other identifiers is a mark of achievement.   A to Z has become a blogging institution of integrity.

How has A to Z helped you?   How can you make the Challenge serve your needs?

         These are some questions we'll be exploring in the next coming months.  If you've given up on the April Challenge or have considered not doing it again in 2014, think again.  You may be overlooking some important potentials offered by the A to Z Challenge.

Want to Start a Blogging Wildfire?

          Please check out my Monday November 11 post at Tossing It Out.   You don't have to read the entire thing, but scroll down to the last section.  I'm planting some seeds of thought that I hope to start sowing more extensively in the next couple of weeks.

         Or if you'd rather just skip the Tossing It Out post and visit the post that started my thinking, then go to the post by Yolanda Renée at A Faraway View.  This post might make you think.  But this post is only a starting point for something else.   Something that will come later.  Be sure to leave Yolanda a comment about her post so we know that you were there.

         How has the A to Z Challenge helped you?   Are you looking for more readers on your blog?   Do you think there is any tried and true formula for increasing blog followers or subscribers who actually come back to read your posts?

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