Professional profile – Paul Mitchell

http://www.paul-mitchell.com.au

How long have you had a website and email list? What made you start it?

I’ve had the site and list for about four years. I started it because I was tired of sending emails about events that bounced and ISP’s crazy spamming rules for large recipient emails. It was a good way, before Facebook and other community sites, to send out news about what had been happening in my writing career and what was coming up. People would often say, ‘Let me know when you’re having a reading or launching a book’ and so it was a good way to make sure I didn’t lose people interested in my writing. Convenience was important in regard to the email list. In regard to the site, it was a combination of needing a brochure site to promote my professional writing and a way of promoting my creative writing. 

You have various items on your website (samples, links to buy, updates on events, reviews, etc.). How effective are these in promoting your writing?

It’s very effective. Because I make my living out of professional writing (journalism, corporate writing, etc.), I need to be googleable. I get plenty of work from people who just google ‘professional writer’ or copywriter. It has also been an effective way to promote my creative writing; people will read one of my articles, stories, essays or poems and then get in touch or check out more of my work on the Web.

What did you do to promote your writing before the website?

I just sent out emails and talked to people in pubs/bars/literary events/unis, etc. :)

How do you use your offline (performance readings, workshops, etc.) and online activities together?

Well, all my offline activities are promoted online and then at offline activities I have a business card with my Web address/email and the loop is complete.

What have you found has worked and not worked?

I have been frustrated lately in that my emails have been landing in recipients’ spam folders even though I haven’t been sending many out. It looks like it will cost me a bit to update my email list program. In addition, there are a few issues in the back-end of my site that mean I can’t easily access who has subscribed to the list – it gets difficult to take people off or add them on (often I don’t know if they are subscribers). My site has not resulted in many online book sales – my feeling is that the people who would buy my books would be more likely to do it in a shop or at a reading. But in regards to promotion, it has been an absolute necessity for both creative and professional work.

What advice would you give to an author considering starting a blog, email list or podcast?

For promoting writing, I think a designated site is better than using blogs, Facebook or other community sites. There’s a sense, for one reason or another, that a site (as opposed to a blog or Facebook profile) is more professional. There’s a sameness to Facebook and blogs that you can avoid with your own site – and because I work in the professional writing sphere as well as creative, I really don’t have a choice but to have my own site.

Any other comments you’d like to add?

When I started it, I never thought, ‘Gee, who the hell do I think I am having my own site’, despite the fact that I had only one book published. Now I’ve got three, a thriving professional writing business – and the site and list have been important players in that.

 
 

---