Tim Ferriss

Ah, the digital age. Gone are the days of pesky human interaction, reading body language, interpreting facial expressions, and actually putting clothes on in the morning. More and more authors are embracing the advantages and savings that online promotion can bring them. And the hottest way to make yourself known on the web? Blog tours.

Most authors know the hardships of a tour: you travel incessantly, spend hours in the bookstore hoping more than four people show up, and spend thousands of dollars to sell dozens of books. A tour can be beneficial for authors who travel for business, but it doesn’t make sense for everyone, especially with rising fuel prices. Authors are looking for new ways to reach out to a mass audience, and blogging has become a great way to connect with audiences on a personal level without having to travel extensively. You can take it a step further, though, and organize a blog tour to promote yourself, your book, and your message to varied audiences. Bloggers hold an increasing amount of power in today’s market, and with a few simple steps you can be on your way to virtual touring.

The first step is to create your own blog. You can blog about anything you want, and there are certainly some strange ones out there, but the best idea is to write about topics tied to the content of your book—and keep writing about them as often as possible. The most popular blogs tend to include current news in their postings, and if you can tie in your message with those postings, all the better. Joining a blogging network such as BlogHer also helps you connect with other authors and can give you links to future guest spots on other blogs. Many blogging networks also host meet and greets every year, another great way to get in contact with potential reviewers.

Organize a blog tour or host a tour on your own blog. You can build a network of authors and cross-pollinate your audiences to reach readers you might not have access to through your own blog. By hosting a tour, you can bring new traffic to your website. By touring other blogs, you automatically give yourself credibility with that blog's audience through the recommendation of its owner. There are professional tour organizers out there, but you can also do it yourself with a little elbow grease and determination.

Tim Ferriss, author of the bestselling The 4-Hour Work Week, writes about his successes with blog touring in lieu of traditional touring on his own blog. While he is obviously a great example of the extremes that online marketing can bring you, other authors can certainly enjoy various degrees of success with little or no monetary input.

There are many ways to get your message out there, but the key to any good tour is to be inventive and persistent. Consumers are bombarded with advertisements every second of the day, and in order to make your message stand out you’re going to have to think outside of the box. Way, way outside of the box.