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Cell Groups – A Great Way to Learn Book Marketing on the Web

The newest way to educate authors on marketing their books is being introduced by the John 3:16 Marketing Network. If you are a member, go to [private link, John 3:16 Members only] to get started. The first step is to fill in your name for the cell group in which you want to begin. If you are inexperienced at social networking, or if you are new to the network, I would recommend you start in the “Review Cell.”

The order of the groups will be the same for everyone, but where you start will be different:

Standard Cells

·                     Reviewers

·                     Bloggers

·                     Special Activities (Facebook, Pinterest, Rafflecopter, HootSuite, Marketing Research and writing blog pieces for the John 3:16 Marketing Network Blog)

·                     Twitter (Will learn how to use Tweet Adder 4), Lorilyn Roberts will teach.

·                     Q&A and Mentoring – for Those Who Want to Excel at Marketing.

Alternate Rotations:

·                     Book Launch

·                     Sabbatical

Permanent

·                     Prayer Cell

Let me give you an example of how this will work. If you start out in the “Twitter Cell,” the next cell (after four months) that you would rotate through would be “Q&A and Mentoring New Members.” Then you would go to “Reviewers,” followed by “Bloggers,” and “Special Activities.”  Then your rotation would start over. During that rotation, if you wanted to do a “Book Launch,” you would rotate into that group for four months After those four months, you would return to your regular rotation.

After two rotations, or eight months, I will encourage people to rotate off and take a four-month sabbatical. This will work well if you have a major writing project going on or other things in your life that need to take priority, though none of these rotations should take a significant amount of time. You are doing these things anyway, and now you can learn how to do them more efficiently. That is why I came up with this, to train authors in how to become better at marketing. After you rotate through all the rotations, you will have a pretty good handle on marketing, and you will have developed many relationships along the way, which is very important for an author. As I have said in the past, writing is a solo journey, but you can’t effectively market your book without the help of others.

Each cell will have anywhere from 12 to 18 members. Your first responsibility in the network is to those people in your cell. For example, in four months, in the review group, you would be expected to review some of the books of the authors in your cell. I don’t want to say how many because it won’t be the same for everybody, but what you can do comfortably. Everyone has a different comfort level. Each cell will have a leader and a co-leader that will be responsible for the cell. The leader after four months will rotate off and into another cell. The leader will pick the co-leader, and when the leader rotates off, the co-leader will be the leader for the next four months, and he or she will pick a co-leader to lead the next four months when he or she rotates off.  The leaders and co-leaders will spend eight months in a group instead of four months. The idea is to develop leadership skills within the network which will help you to be on the other side of helping authors—you always learn more when you lead, and everyone needs to learn how to be a leader.

We will not grow as a network unless we develop a leadership team. We are limited by my time and my own experience, and we can do much more if others step up and assume some of the responsibility. You can add this to your resume, and mostly, you can learn and grow and feel used by God.

Now, if some of you just don’t want to participate in the cells, you have two options. You can just be inactive, which means you are out of the loop on everything. Or you can pay a $5 membership fee which will be put back into the network for book launches and other benefits to members. For example, you want to host a book launch through the network, but you don’t want to rotate through all the cells – maybe you feel overwhelmed with other commitments right now. You can either start out with a four-month sabbatical, or you can pay a $5 a month membership fee. However, I would strongly discourage anyone to take a four-month sabbatical and then do a book launch. That is not a good way to build relationships in the network, and as I said, marketing is all about relationships.

As far as participation, after four months on the first rotation, if a member has not adequately participated, per the leader, then the leader will need to let me know so that I can talk with that member and see what the issue is so we can help him or her. We want you to be an active member. Otherwise, I have to ask, why did you join the John 3:16 Marketing Network?

You have an opportunity to learn a lot rotating through the cells, not just from me, but from others. You have an opportunity to give back. The biggest issue with the network right now is only a few people are participating. I truly believe it’s because people don’t have a job, or they don’t know what to do or how to do it.  I can’t expect people to tweet for book launches if they aren’t on Twitter. I can’t expect people to host people on their blog if they don’t know how to upload stuff on their website. Recently I asked some people to host me – two people didn’t know how. Two people didn’t know how to open my document. Two people didn’t know how to upload pictures to their site. So here is an opportunity to spend four months and become a better blogger, for example. You will be responsible in the blogger group for hosting people in your cell on your blog.

Now, suppose someone in the “Blogger Cell” wants people in the “Twitter Cell” to twitter for him? It will work just a little differently, because you are in different cells. You will exchange “services.” For example, you would offer to host some in the “Twitter Cell” on your blog in exchange for them tweeting for you.  That way you get crossover, and more help, and it’s not one person doing all the work. There is an exchange, and hopefully this will help everyone to get more involved.

Now, I will be first to say I haven’t worked out all the details.  But we won’t start this until January. We have the next four months to get all of this worked out. Right now you are signing up for what cell you want to start in for JANUARY. If you would be willing to be a leader for a cell, let me know. I will be leading the "Twitter Cell," but the other cells are open for leaders.

“The Prayer Cell”:  This is a non-rotating group—which means it’s a one-year commitment. The idea is you are committed to praying for the members in the network. I would love to see our once-a-month prayer meetings return. This would be a great opportunity for our pastors in the network, particularly if they don’t want to rotate through the other cells, but anyone can be in this group. Members of the network would direct their prayer requests here, and I hope that maybe we can have a once a month email with prayer requests and praises.  Our connection here must be centered on Jesus Christ. That is what makes everything else possible.

Let me know if you have any questions. Make sure you go to [private link, John 3:16 Members only] and in the document put your name and email in the empty block underneath the cell you want to start in. Each person’s entry should be on a separate line. That way, I can easily go down the list and import those names into other documents. Again, if you have any questions, let Lorilyn Roberts know.

If you are interested in becoming a part of our dynamic marketing network, you can listen to Lorilyn Roberts on a CACC Spotlight at http://lorilynroberts.com/john_3_16_marketing_network.html

I Want to Join the John 3:16 Marketing Network

We just reopened our membership with some restructuring on July 1. While the membership fee has been increased to $40, we now have a membership packet that will be sent to you upon joining as well as a mentor that will be assigned to you for the first 45 days. 

I am excited about the future for the network and how God can use us as authors, bloggers,  and writers to spread the Gospel with our nonfiction and present a Christian worldview with our fiction. 

Besides the spiritual warfare that is ever present anytime we do anything in the name of our Lord Jesus, marketing can be the most daunting endeavor in the world. Personally I believe as Christians there is an element of destiny in it all, but unless we are humble and committed, God won't be able to use us. 

The John 3:16 Marketing Network has so many wonderful and talented Christian authors, I wonder sometimes why I was "chosen" by God to begin this network. At times it has been overwhelming and at other times I have been awed by the workings of our great Savior--in our prayer meetings, in the kindness of others, in the emotional support and cutting edge knowledge shared, and in the character and humbleness of so many.

If you would like to learn more or join us, please go to the following link and read what is necessary to become part of a winning team for Christ. And remember, whatever you do, the outcome is always in God's hands.

 Link for the next step to join the John 3:16 Marketing Network as an author or blogger.

Lorilyn Roberts

Author and Founder of the John 3:16 Marketing Network