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A blog can be many things and serve many purposes. When you have a book to promote, it makes sense to turn your blog into a promotional tool. Whether your book is a historical novel, a how-to gardening book, a memoir or a book of poetry, let your blog entries spread the word and you will sell more books. Here are eight ideas for using your blog to promote your book:

1: Stay focused on your topic. Make sure that you are providing the information your audience wants in a way that makes it palatable. Stay on track when adding to your blog so that you are always addressing your target audience. Sure you can write about something personal if you want, but try to tie it into your primary topic.

2: Participate at other blog sites. Search out blogs on your topic. Leave comments, ask to be interviewed, offer articles and other information.

3: Offer freebies. Do you sometimes wonder if you’re being read? Offer free items or run contests from time to time. I know one author who offered a $100 prize to the 100^th person who purchased her book. I sometimes offer a free report—something that includes information or tips that may or may not be included in the book that I’m pitching.

4: Turn your blog entries into articles. Either submit them as is to appropriate sites and publications or tweak them to fit. Most of my blog entries are suitable for publishing, as I’m mindful to create stand-alone articles. Sometimes, however, a newsletter or magazine editor wants a longer piece or a more condensed version. Not a problem—I just rewrite the blog to fit their submission requirements. Of course, articles sell books. How? In a word: exposure.

5: Create handouts. Use specific blog entries as handouts when you promote your book through presentations, workshops or at book festivals.

6: Compile a booklet of blog entries. If you’re a dedicated blogger, you could actually produce a booklet every six months or once a year and offer them free to anyone who purchases your book.

7: Write a book based on your best blog subjects. Review your blog entries. If you’re like me, you may occasionally hit upon a topic that would make a good book. So start writing. With thought and research, your blog on the feral kitten you rescued over the summer might become a book featuring how to successfully raise a feral cat. If your current book features an aspect of pet care, this new book would make a great spin-off product. Your blog entry on how you created curb appeal that sold your home, could become an entire book for others who want to make an excellent impression when selling their properties. And what a great companion this would be for your book on family financing.

I was discussing the interesting and controversial subject of book reviews the other day with a colleague and we agreed that reader reviews are often swayed by moods. If a reader picks up a book to escape and is faced with a more serious conflict than she expected, this might launch her into a foul mood. If a character or scenario reminds her of something ugly in her past—too close to home—her demeanor and opinion of the book might change dramatically. Or maybe she’s not in a reading mood, but wants to get this book off her tabletop—feels an obligation to read it. She may not spend one enjoyable moment in the process.

So what is her response when Amazon comes around and asks her to review the book she purchased? She’s not going to be kind. She’s too angry, upset or disturbed, not particularly by the story itself, but by something it stirred up inside her.

Truthfully now, have you ever read a book or tried to read a book and just couldn’t get into it—didn’t like the premise, it started too slow…whatever? Yet, you picked up the same book months or years later, slipped right into the story and enjoy it.

Could this be one reason for such conflicting reviews for the same book—why some readers lambaste it, while others praise it to the hilt? Yeah, that makes sense. It isn’t the book as much as it is the reader—what’s going on in his or her life, their current mood, their past experiences and, of course, their preferences in books. There are reviewers who have strong ideas about the direction a story should go and when the author chooses a different route, they complain and criticize. Don’t believe me? Just go read some of the reviews people leave at Amazon. It’s quite an interesting study in human nature.

Those of us with books to promote are always striving to solicit reviews. When regular customers post a review, we get ecstatic, unless…it is a negative, nasty, mean-spirited review.

Then we wonder, “Where do these people come from?” “Why do they read a book that clearly involves cats, dogs, murder, clowns? and that’s obviously a cozy mystery, military story, romance, or? and then write a review saying, “I hate cats (mysteries, cutesy stories, war stories, sappy stories about dogs), etc.”

I know that Amazon actually chases down customers and asks them to write a review for the books they purchase. That’s a good thing, unless they catch the reader when he is in a foul mood or it is a customer who hated the book.

Customer reviewers—you gotta love ’em, (when they write rave reviews). But what about those people who don’t agree with your fans—who didn’t love, love, love your book? I like to tell clients who are upset about a bad review, “It’s just an opinion.”

Yeah, that’s how I look at it—when the review is excellent or at least swell, I say, “People love my work. I am a good writer. My story is good.” And when I visit my Amazon book pages and see a negative review, I say, “Well, it’s just an opinion.” It’s not an opinion I like much, but it is someone’s opinion and I sure wish they’d keep it to themselves.

In the meantime, I try to look at the big picture—out of 113 total Amazon reviews for my Klepto Cat Mystery books, a solid three-quarters of them are rip-roaring positive. But what can one do with the percentage we all get of less than desirable reviews?

Stack the deck? Ask for phony reviews? Naw. Not in my DNA to do that. It isn’t a bad idea to ask friends, neighbors, coworkers, colleagues and acquaintances who have read your book to write a review. Some of them just don’t think to do it. And most of them would at least humor you and write a decent one, don’t you think? And then just continue to write the best books you can and have them professionally edited/proofed.

There will always be people of varying opinions. Even major best-selling books get bad reader reviews. Just look at the opposition over the years to the most famous book of all—the Bible.

And that super controversial book that came out a few years ago—“Fifty Shades of Grey”… This book has collected nearly 11,000 five-star reviews. But wait—the one-and two-star reviews number over 8,500.

There’s always a rainbow somewhere. You just have to look for it. Today, I will focus on the positive. I have a higher percentage of great reviews than some of the bestsellers.

If you like cozy mysteries with a little romance and cat fur involved, check out my Klepto Cat Mystery series. There are four books now—“Catnapped,” “Cat-Eye Witness,” “Sleight of Paw” and, the latest, “Undercover Cat.” If you have something nice to say after reading one or more of them, please do leave a review!!! Here’s a shortcut to the Klepto Cat Mystery page. http://amzn.to/1kAI8I2

Do you have a signature? I mean one of those blocks of information—maybe a logo—that appears at the bottom of each of your emails?

You’ve probably seen them on incoming emails. People sometimes tack on a meaningful saying under their messages or they use signatures to advertise their businesses.

Well, when you’re an author, you’re in business and many authors use signatures to promote their books. Every email that goes out to colleagues, coworkers, friends, family, acquaintances and strangers includes a little blurb about their book.

Is using a signature effective in selling books? If you’ve followed this blog, read my articles, studied my books and/or attended my lectures, you know that I’m an advocate of diverse marketing. I suggest promoting your books through many varied channels. Naturally, I recommend using a signature, as well. I do.

And it has served me well. Just last week, I received an email from a local journalist and radio personality who wanted to quote me for an article on local history. After he received my email response, complete with my signature promoting my new Klepto Cat Mystery series, he contacted me again and asked to interview me for a newspaper story.

I’ve received speaking engagements because of my signature. My signature has enticed people to visit my websites and I’ve sold books.

Sometimes my signature has simply sparked a new conversation and, certainly, at times, a greater understanding of my work and my books. Someone might contact me as the director of Small Publishers, Artists and Writers Network and learn, through my signature, that I’m also a book editor. People might know me through my books for authors and, after receiving an email from me realize I also write fiction.

The signature is a sort of electronic business card. And I “hand” mine out in nearly every email I send.

I delete my signature when I email back and forth with close friends and family. It’s easy enough to do. But since most of my email connections are with colleagues and strangers, I usually leave it.

I’ve seen some creative signatures. And one beauty is that you can change it on a whim. As I said, I’m currently promoting my Klepto Cat Mystery series through my signature, and I can add new book titles as they are published.

If you have a book for sale, a business or you offer a service, you really ought to have a signature. Most email programs have the signature option. If you can’t find yours, use your help button.