Upgrade Your Marketing with Media Kits and Virtual Assistants

Upgrade Your Marketing with Media Kits and Virtual Assistants

Aerio Staff

Virtual assistants? Media kits? Yes, it all sounds quite technical. Maybe something you would read in a sci-fi novel or a tech magazine.

Fear not. These terms represent a few simple ideas that can help focus less energy on book marketing and more time on doing what you do best, creating and cultivating excellent content.

What is a Media Kit?

Sometimes referred to as a press kit, media kits are a simple way of sharing information about a book or an upcoming series of books all at once.

Since “media” is in the name, there is an assumption that media kits are only meant for media personnel. Certainly a selection of those people should be added to your media kit mailing list, but you should also add retailers, bloggers, and anyone else who might help endorse your books.

What does a media kit include?

Whether you are a publisher preparing a media kit for an author, or an author preparing a media kit for yourself, there are a few essential elements you should include:

  1. Author Bio and Contact Information

Work under the assumption that whoever you are sending this media kit to knows nothing about you and/or your authors. Even if you do have a relationship with the recipient, this is your chance to highlight the things that make this work stand out.

Don't forget to attach your contact information to the “About You portion of your media kit, so interested parties know how to get in touch.

  1. Press Release

A press release is the perfect way to deliver more detail as to why they are receiving this media kit. Whether announcing the launch of a new book or an author debut, press releases need to be concise and targeted.

  1. Sample Q&A

Think of this as preemptively answering an interviewer’s first questions. In the event you do get some traction from your media kit, you will have already provided answers to the most obvious questions, and can quickly get into questions with more substance.

  1. Get Specific

This is the cherry on top of your media kit cake. What is it about your content that is noteworthy? Provide reasons as to why it’s special. This isn’t so much an overview of your book’s plot or your author’s bio, but why it matters on a larger scale.

Sound like a lot of work? Yes, preparing a media kit that effectively markets your book can take some time. But even less so if you employ a virtual assistant to do some of the legwork.

What is a Virtual Assistant (VA)?

While this sounds like some kind of artificial intelligence, virtual assistants are merely self-employed helpers. By hiring a virtual assistant, you get the help you need, but skirt the headaches that come with being an employer. Often you can hire VAs from companies whose sole purpose is providing businesses with short- to long-term help.

How Can A VA Help Market My Book?

All those tedious marketing responsibilities that take up a ton of your time, let a virtual assistant do it. VAs can help you in a wide range of minor book marketing duties such as:

Sounds like an intern right? Nope.

VAs are independent professionals who have business experience. They will probably require a bit of training, but they aren’t going to work for school credit. However, production levels and quality of work are going to be much higher than your average intern.

How Much Does a VA Cost?

Virtual assistants range in cost. Those employed by an agency may offer a better service, but that may come with a higher price tag.

Basically, it comes down to experience. According to freelancing website Upwork, VA hourly rates can range anywhere from $12 – $50 an hour and upwards.

If you want to smash your book marketing out of the park, you will need to put in the work. Consider hiring a virtual assistant to help you knock out time consuming tasks like creating a media kit. Use your newly acquired free time to develop better book content.

For more digital book marketing best practices, check out our other blog posts here.