Seth Godin’s latest book Linchpin was published on January 26th. Now, Seth Godin sure doesn’t need me to tell him how to publicize his books. He’s done a pretty damn good job already.
However, when Linchpin launched, I did notice something and wanted to mention it, because once I noticed it, I started asking myself questions.
When the book launched, for several days, everywhere I turned in social media, I saw a review or someone mentioning the book.
Here’s only a few reviews/mentions of Linchpin:
Marketing Over Coffee podcast interview with Seth – January 25th
David Meerman Scott interview with Seth Godin re: Linchpin – January 25th
Duct tape Marketing podcast interview with Seth Godin – January 26th
Gretchen Rubin’s Happiness Project blog interview with Seth Godin – January 26th
During that 4-5 day window in late January, I couldn’t open up Google Reader without seeing Seth Godin’s smiling face – and yet another interview with him about Linchpin.
But, after that overwhelming barrage of interviews, Godin and Linchpin fell off the proverbial cliff in terms of digital publicity. Most writers lie awake at night dreaming of that many interviews touting their words and wisdom. But, was is it too much all at one time?
Again, to state the obvious, Seth is a very smart marketer, and he knows what he’s doing. He doesn’t need me to tell him how to sell books.
Right now, as I write this blog post on February 16, 2010, here’s Linchpin’s current Amazon rankings:
#50 in Books
#1 in Books > Business & Investing > Job Hunting & Careers > Guides
#2 in Books > Business & Investing > Business Life
#4 in Books > Reference
But, I still do wonder – what if he had staggered those interviews? Sure, you could do a big initial splash, but save your ammunition so to speak and do 3-5 interviews with influential bloggers every week for 6-8 weeks straight.
Would that staggered book publicity have an impact? What do you think?
Now, I’m off to read Linchpin and see what everyone is raving about.