So I’m sitting here in a little back office at our local tennis club. 

My son is at the tennis camp and because it’s in a dodgy part of town, the guilt and worry about leaving him was too much. 

So here I am, tucked away among a pile of boxes, old fridges, filing cabinets and dusty trophies, when I overheard this golden nugget of a conversation between a coach and parent:

Coach: I’ve got a lot of respect for runners. Anyone who can pound the pavement and race against themselves day after day must have a lot of mental strength. 

The mum:  That’s what I like about tennis. You focus on the ball. 

Coach: Yeah, and you’re playing against someone else. You’ve got a target. 

And this little snippet perfectly sums up my view of what it’s like to be an author. 

And to build an email list. 

A lot of people, not just authors, focus on open rates, they focus on the ball, on getting the sale, on getting more followers on TikTok ‘because it sells books like nothing else.’

And while that’s true, it’s also a lot of work. 

Ok, the sales are rewarding. The dopamine hit you get when you check the kdp dashboard gives you a warm fuzzy feeling. 

There’s nothing wrong with that. Not in the slightest. 

But I play a different game. 

A long term game. 

A game where you’re only in competition with yourself. 

Where running for the journey is the destination. 

I focus on the road. The relationship. 

Focus on the relationships you build and the sales will come. 

Try shifting your focus, from the ball (email open rates, for example) to the road, are your sales trending uphill? Or downhill? 

If they’re heading uphill, do more of that. If they’re heading downhill, change your route, try going a different direction. But don’t play against anyone else, play only against yourself. 

Get one percent better at one aspect of marketing and you’ll get there.

What one thing could you try and get better at, if you reply and let me know I'll give you my best advice to help you get there.  

Right, that’s enough of the cross court action. The kids are in for lunch and all I can smell is tuna.

Angie

p.s If you've got a book launch coming up and you'd like a little guidance on maximising the sales from your email list, apply using this form while I'm still affordable.