“The glory and the obloquy of the author have both been forced into aids to a system of puffing at which Barnum himself would stare amazed and confess that he had never conceived of a ‘dodge’ in which literary genius and philanthropy could be allied with the grossest bookselling humbug.”
At least that was the opinion of one review in 1862 by Edwin Percy Whipple for The Atlantic Monthly upon reading “Fantine” – the first release from Les Miserables. Book reviewers, like movie reviewers, may sometimes be aghast at the way works of art are marketed but, at the end of the day, whether it’s Les Miserables or Star Wars, the proof is in the receipts. And just as over a century ago the press railed at the sophisticated mass marketing of Victor Hugo and his publisher to create a buzz across the world for his massive and magnificent tome, so it is today that your own marketing strategy needs to be bold, take advantage of the opportunities presented by available media, and strike a commercially successful balance between attention grabbing and huckstering.
After all, while Barnum would have been amazed at the marketing of Les Miz, he probably would also have asked himself, “Why didn’t I think of that?”
C’est la vie!
Here’s the lineup of this month’s blogs by my guest contributors:
Top 10 Reasons to be Thankful for Social Media (Part Two) – by Brandy Wheeler
Where Do Traditional PR & Online Marketing Meet? – by Amy Harris
Digital Nomad Tips for Setting up Your Mobile Office – by JonJon Yeung
How to Successfully Fund and Manage Your Marketing Budget – Scott Humphrey
The Apps You Can’t Afford To Be Without – Kate Pirs
*Read more at Victor Hugo Central http://gavroche.org/vhugo/review.gav
Media Magnetism 
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