How are new DIY techniques in book marketing different from traditional techniques?

The standard advice to authors is to build a fan base, write a blog, schedule readings, post on Facebook, sprinkle some fairy dust and cross your fingers; in other words, try to attract readers to your book. Good reviews help, and some writers lucky enough to publish with big publishers can get help from their publicity departments, though not always. More and more, the author is left on his or her own. New DIY techniques in book marketing work to achieve the opposite - to reach out to buyers rather than attract buyers to you. Because of the advent of the internet, the abundance of specialized mailing lists and more, this has become increasingly accessible to individual authors, not just professional distributors and publicists. Skills covered in our consultations and classes include placement in independent bookstores, book groups, academia, public libraries, specialty markets, and more.