Publish & Prosper

Tune in for another episode of The Email Marketing Podcast with Laurie & Lauren! In this episode, Laurie & Lauren walk through the steps to prepare for an important email marketing campaign series like holiday sales or a new book launch. We review: 

• Why you should plan ahead for an email campaign
• Your pre-campaign planning timeline
• How to monitor your campaign once it’s live
• Wrapping up your campaign (and setting yourself up for success with the next one)

Watch this episode on YouTube!

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💡 Listen to These Episodes

• Ep #82 | The Email Marketing Podcast with Laurie & Lauren
• Ep #86 | Maximizing Your First Impression in the Attention Economy
• Ep #87 | Live From Content Entrepreneur Expo!

💡 Read These Blog Posts

• What Is an Author Brand and Why Does It Matter?
• Mastering Email Marketing for Authors

💡 Watch These Videos

• Lulu University | Holiday Marketing Playlist
  
  
  

Sound Bites From This Episode

🎙️ [10:23] “If you're not clear with what your campaign is trying to achieve, your click through or your call to action is going to most likely be a little bit confusing for the recipient. Because if I'm just like, throwing a bunch of stuff in an email, the recipient is not going to know where to focus.”

🎙️ [36:09] “It is really important for email to provide that value so that people continue to open your emails.”

🎙️ [55:03] “Because email is always going to be one of your number one channels for success for a big launch. So take advantage of it.”

💀 Can’t wait for our next episode? Check out our Resources page for links to our blog, our YouTube channel, and more.
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In this episode, Matt & Lauren sit down with our friend Lynette Greenfield, author and founder of Limelight Publishing. Learn how Lynette turned her prolific writing career and passion for helping aspiring authors into a successful hybrid publishing company. 

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💡 Meet Lynette & Learn More About Limelight

• Write Publish Repeat
• Lynette Greenfield Author Spotlight
• Limelight Publishing

💡 Listen to These Episodes

• Ep #53 | How to Create A Writing Habit That Actually Sticks
• Ep #79 | Book Launch Blueprint: How Justin Moore Sold Over 1,000 Books in 90 Days

💡 Read These Blog Posts

• Raising Eyebrows
• It Is Just as Important to Be Noticed as It Is to Be Remembered

💡 Watch These Videos

• How to Start Your Own Publishing Company Using Print-on-Demand 

Sound Bites From This Episode

🎙️ [11:41] “Every time something stresses me out, I always automatically think to myself, it's okay, I've got writing.”

🎙️ [37:17] “I want to be transparent, I want to be honest. I don't ever want to say, I mean, this is the most incredible book. It's gonna sell, it's gonna – I won't do that. But at the same time, everybody's stories are amazing. Everybody's books are incredible.”

🎙️ [48:16] “That's what I want Limelight to be. I want it to be a place that people can go. It's not just about publishing. There are so many reasons why you can publish a book.”

💀 Can’t wait for our next episode? Check out our Resources page for links to our blog, our YouTube channel, and more.
💀 Find us on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn at luludotcom!
💀 Email us at [email protected]
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In this episode, Lauren & Matt chat with old and new friends live from the show floor at Content Entrepreneur Expo! Tune in to hear from five industry experts about content creation and strategy, content entrepreneurship, book publishing, and most importantly, the great niche vs. niche debate. 

• 3:42 → Austin L. Church on Writing a Book (and What He’ll Do Differently Next Time)
• 18:15 → Lou Mongello on the Value of Community and Authentic Relationships
• 24:41 → Julia Levine on Building Your Content Pillars
• 31:57 → Joe Pulizzi on Making Your Content Entrepreneur Goals a Reality
• 41:48 → Robbie Fitzwater on How to Use Customer Data (and How to Get Even More)

💡 Watch this episode on YouTube!

💡 Meet These Awesome Content Entrepreneurs 

• Austin L. Church
• Lou Mongello
• Julia Levine
• Joe Pulizzi
• Robbie Fitzwater

💡 Listen to These Episodes

• Ep #53 | How to Create A Writing Habit That Actually Sticks
• Ep #69 | We Love Content Entrepreneur Events So Much, We Bought One!
• Ep #83 | Calendars Are Still Cool (We Can Prove It)

💀 Can’t wait for our next episode? Check out our Resources page for links to our blog, our YouTube channel, and more.
💀 Find us on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn at luludotcom!
💀 Email us at [email protected]
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You only get one shot to make a first impression when inviting new guests into your brand–don’t scare them away before they even make it to the front door! 

In this episode, Lauren & Matt share essential tips for capturing attention quickly, maximizing your ‘curb appeal,’ and making your first look count. We talk through nailing your elevator pitch, sprucing up your social media real estate, designing an inviting website, and delivering a warm welcome email.  

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💡 Listen to These Episodes

• Ep #25 | Author Branding 101: Building a Brand Beyond Your Books
• Ep #31 | Your 7-Step Guide to Building an Online Bookstore
• Ep #34 | Hooking New Readers With a Compelling Book Description

💡 Read These Blog Posts

• Basic Book Promotion on Social Media
• Mastering Email Marketing for Authors: A Comprehensive Guide
• 6 Author Website Tips for Success

💡 Watch These Videos

• Playlist | Author Branding
• How to Use Social Media to Grow Your Author Brand
  
  

Sound Bites From This Episode

🎙️ [5:31] “We live in an attention economy. Everybody's vying for the same attention span that you are, and attention spans are short right now. It's uber important that your first impression hits.”

🎙️ [18:43] “Those posts that you're posting on social media that you're hoping the algorithm puts it on their for you page or on their feed, or a friend of theirs shares it and it shows up or whatever… That is your elevator pitch to get people to come check out your profile. So if you're putting all your work into crafting those posts and you're ignoring the profile part of it, you're losing people.” 

🎙️ [27:38] “Websites are often now thought of as either A. SEO fuel or B. a place to sell your books, right? So a lot of people don't necessarily think of them as their first impression, their front door to their brand. But you should. You should still build your homepage, build your front page, as if that's the first impression somebody's going to get of you, or your brand, or your books.”

🎙️ [41:20] “There are three things you want from a fan, reader, follower, customer. You want their attention. You want their trust. You want their money. The first two are the ones you have to work the hardest for.”

💀 Can’t wait for our next episode? Check out our Resources page for links to our blog, our YouTube channel, and more.
💀 Find us on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn at luludotcom!
💀 Email us at [email protected]
💀 Sign up for our mailing list.

In this episode, Matt & Lauren share tips for making the most of your post-launch marketing and extending the sales cycle of your book. We talk through how to maintain the momentum of your brand growth, professional growth, and book sales by: 

• Exploring new ways to approach earned promo opportunities
• Reinforcing your relationship with your existing readers or new audiences
• Investing in yourself and your expertise as an author and as a brand
• Updating your brand strategy with post-launch feedback

Watch this episode on YouTube!

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💡 Listen to These Episodes

• Ep #35 | Designing the Right Go-to-Market Strategy for Your Book
• Ep #37 | How to Get Your Book Into Indie Bookstores
• Ep #56 | The Indie Author's Guide to Going Wide With Your Book Distribution

💡 Read These Blog Posts

• Amazon Isn’t the Only Option: Going Wide to Diversify Your Book Sales
• How to Turn Casual Followers into Dedicated Super Fans
• How to Earn Media Attention: Essential PR Tips for Authors

💡 Watch These Videos

• You're Doing it Wrong: Marketing Mistakes to Avoid 
• Why People Buy: Using Psychology to Sell More Books 
• How to Build a Community of True Fans 

💀 Can’t wait for our next episode? Check out our Resources page for links to our blog, our YouTube channel, and more.
💀 Find us on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn at luludotcom!
💀 Email us at [email protected]
💀 Sign up for our mailing list.

Reader personas are a powerful tool for understanding your target audience! In this episode, Lauren & Matt explain the value of niching down into your target audience, how to create your ideal reader personas, and applying those to inform every step of your publishing journey. Whether you’re still drafting your first book or looking to inject new life into the end of a sales cycle, you have to understand who your readers are. 

Watch this episode on YouTube!

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💡 Listen to These Episodes

• Ep #35 | Designing the Right Go-to-Market Strategy for Your Book
• Ep #51 | Finding Your Niche, Your Ideal Reader, and Your Target Audience
• Ep #78 | How to Use Generative AI to Sell More Books [How to Use AI for Reader Personas] 

💡 Read This Blog Post

• Building Effective Reader Personas for Authors and Creators

💡 Watch These Videos

• Lulu U Playlist | Audience Building
• Why People Buy: Using Psychology to Sell More Books
  
  

Sound Bites From This Episode

🎙️ [10:22] “A reader persona, for all intents and purposes, is nothing different or short of what we would call a customer persona or a buyer persona in marketing and sales, right? Understanding who your ideal candidate is, who's the person that you're talking to within what would be a broader target audience.”

🎙️ [30:25] “I think that when you know who you're writing to and you know how to actually authentically connect with them, it does kind of subconsciously build that rapport already.”

🎙️ [44:43] “I think that's the key with post-launch, and persona updates as well, is that you really have to be able to get that data and that information. You can't go back and update a persona if you're not getting that real time information. The only way you're getting that real time information is through selling those titles direct, or having some other direct way to come in contact with the buyers of your book.”

💀 Can’t wait for our next episode? Check out our Resources page for links to our blog, our YouTube channel, and more.
💀 Find us on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn at luludotcom!
💀 Email us at [email protected]
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In 2024, Lulu printed almost 57,000 calendars for creators and customers worldwide. In this episode, Matt & Lauren examine why wall calendars are so popular, the ROI on calendars, and different ways calendars can support your brand efforts. We also share calendar ideas for different types of creators, and our tips for making an awesome project. 

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💡 Create Your Own Calendar Now! 

💡 Listen to These Episodes

• Ep 58 | Creative Ways to Use Print-On-Demand to Support Your Business
• Ep 67 | Turning Your Blog Into A Book

💡 Read How to Make a Custom Calendar for Your Wall

💡 Watch These Videos

• Creating a Custom Calendar with Lulu 
• Creating a Calendar | Tutorial 

💡 Check Out These Creators

• Robbie Fitzwater
• Mike Melnotte / Reuben the Bulldog
• Sophie Gamand
  
  

Sound Bites From This Episode

🎙️ [6:17] “Of all the things that you could create on Lulu, or other sites that involve printed materials like books and pamphlets and calendars and things. Calendars are probably the easiest thing to create.”

🎙️ [36:13] “I don't think there's any genre or area or vertical out there where we couldn't find helpful content that they could use for a calendar.”

💀 Can’t wait for our next episode? Check out our Resources page for links to our blog, our YouTube channel, and more.
💀 Find us on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn at luludotcom!
💀 Email us at [email protected]
💀 Sign up for our mailing list.

In this episode Lauren is joined by Laurie Shipley, Lulu’s Email Marketing Manager, to explore the value of email marketing…beyond just newsletters! Laurie shares insights into growing and segmenting your email lists, using automated emails to increase revenue, and creating personal connections with your subscribers. 

Watch this episode on YouTube!

Dive Deeper

💡 Explore These Resources

• BookFunnel
• How Creator Lindsay Dollinger Found Her Tilt 

💡 Listen to These Episodes

• Ep #11 | Email Marketing for Authors & Creators
• Ep #22 | Using Customer Data to Grow Your Business

💡 Read These Blog Posts

• Mastering Email Marketing for Authors
• How to Build an Author Email List On Your Website

💡 Watch These Videos

• CEX 2024 | 3 Surprisingly Simple Ways to Grow Your Business Through Email with Robbie Fitzwater 
• Webinar | Maximize Your Marketing with Emails with Terezia Barna
  
  
  

Sound Bites From This Episode

🎙️ [5:08] “So one thing that you want to do…is really to figure out like what's the goal of your email marketing? Ideally, you've got something to sell because, you know, you can have a newsletter all day long that you share your thoughts or give some tips, but you're never gonna really maximize your email marketing resources if you leave it to that.” 

🎙️ [20:48] “I think some people are a little bit hesitant to send these types of emails. But someone subscribed, they want to hear from you, they're interested in your product. I mean, email marketing works.”

🎙️ [40:34] “That's part of the reason why I love email… It's very revenue driven for most companies, but it's also in my mind, extremely creative. And there's so many ways you can go about it. And it produces results, so it keeps you energized. And once you start doing it, you're like, I'm seeing the results of the work that I'm doing here.”

💀 Can’t wait for our next episode? Check out our Resources page for links to our blog, our YouTube channel, and more.
💀 Find us on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn at luludotcom!
💀 Email us at [email protected]
💀 Sign up for our mailing list.

In this episode, Matt & Lauren review the power of print-on-demand books for subscription-based creators. Whether your content is behind a paywall, time-boxed, frequently updated, or even just spread out over multiple channels, print books can be a great way to support your fans, reach new subscribers, and further establish your expertise and authority. 

Learn why we think POD print books are a great value add for your subscribers, different ways to monetize your printed content, and how to easily sell and distribute your new products. 

Watch this episode on YouTube!

Dive Deeper

💡 Learn more about Lulu’s Order Import Tool

💡 Listen to These Episodes

• Ep #58 | Creative Ways to Use Print-On-Demand to Support Your Business
• Ep #67 | Turning Your Blog Into A Book
• Ep #75 | 7 Steps to Publishing Your Book

💡 Read These Blog Posts

• Using Subscriptions to Create Recurring Revenue
• How Lulu Makes Short-Run Printing Easy
• 6 Steps to Create and Print a Book for Beginners

💡 Watch These Videos

• 8 Reasons Your Business Needs Print-On-Demand
• Content Monetization Playlist

Sound Bites From This Episode

🎙️ [10:36] “For people who create content that is educational in nature, something somebody might want to use for reference later on, giving them a source that is easily reviewable, something that they can have on their desk or a bookshelf where they can just turn around and grab it… It's just much easier to access.”

🎙️ [24:47] “It's just a different way to show off your content. It's a different gateway to entry for people.”

🎙️ [38:07] “But I think as a content creator, as anybody listening that considers themselves a content creator or does a subscription service, there's just so many ways that you could create some sort of printed content that you can offer your readers, listeners, subscribers, whatever you want to call them, that really adds value to the chain and brings in some passive revenue for you.”

💀 Can’t wait for our next episode? Check out our Resources page for links to our blog, our YouTube channel, and more.
💀 Find us on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn at luludotcom!
💀 Email us at [email protected]
💀 Sign up for our mailing list.

With print-on-demand, you can print just one copy of your book… But you can also print 100. Or 500. Or 1,000. Or 3,159. You do you.

In this episode, Lauren & Matt talk bulk book orders; when you need them, how they work with print-on-demand, and all the logistics (and discounts!) you should know about.

Watch this episode on YouTube!

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💡 Explore These Resources

• Learn more about Lulu’s Bulk Printing
• Check out Lulu’s Pricing Calculator 

💡 Listen to These Episodes

• Ep #39 | 3 Steps to Prep for an Author Event (and What to Do When You’re There)
• Ep #55 | How to Hit Your Perfect Pitch for Speaking Engagements
• Ep #62 | Sustainability in Publishing: Reducing Waste One Print Book at a Time

💡 Read about Simplify Selling Books with Lulu’s Order Import Tool

💡 Watch The Life of a Book

Sound Bites From This Episode

🎙️ [10:35] “If you are not selling your books through Lulu, but you want to use us to order 500 copies of your print book without having your book for sale in the bookstore or using our Lulu Direct plugin, you can do that. We have plenty of customers that use Lulu exclusively as their just book printer.”

🎙️ [25:47] “The number one top priority is to make sure that you are planning ahead.”

🎙️ [37:37] “That's the beauty of ecommerce technology and print-on-demand technology having caught up to where they're at right now at this intersection of time.”

💀 Can’t wait for our next episode? Check out our Resources page for links to our blog, our YouTube channel, and more.
💀 Find us on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn at luludotcom!
💀 Email us at [email protected]
💀 Sign up for our mailing list.