I have crossed the finish line, and the marketing marathon has begun. This is a race I have run before and loathed it. The Bible speaks against self-promotion. Marketing requires self-promotion. Jesus drove money changers out of the church. The Christian author’s target audience is in the church. While many churches allow it, I have never been comfortable selling my book in a church.

While the manuscript was in production, I decided to give copies away, hoping to start word-of-mouth marketing. Someone is more inclined to buy a book recommended by a friend than a stranger. Even though I was at peace with that idea for months, when the book released, I never felt at liberty to give it away, aside from a few elderly friends and key people in the publishing industry.

I brought copies of Faith’s Mystery to the Gospel Book and Gifts store to sign a consignment deal. I told the manager the book would make a great Easter gift, so he put it at the front door with the Easter display.

The following Saturday, I set up the Southern Christian Writer’s monthly meeting, then checked to see if any books had sold. Not one. After the meeting, attendees of SCW purchased all the copies except one. I replenished the stock and walked out the door with my share of the consignment deal.

Faith’s Mystery sat by the front door, in a prime place for a week without one sell. It did not escape my attention that the only people who bought the book knew me. I knew from marketing my previous book, which is no longer in print, if I spoke to a group, an average of 10% of the audience would buy. An author must connect with people before they will invest money. At one time, social media was an excellent venue, but changes in their algorithms have muddied those waters. Today, the best way to market is speaking, TV, radio, and podcasts.

• A Marketing Marathon