Thought I’d check in with everyone and let you know how things are going with the virtual book tour for 21 Simple Things You Can Do To Help Someone With Diabetes. You might think that I’m sitting back with a boat drink or two and letting it all happen (now that the guest posts and interviews are written), but there’s a lot more work to be done once a virtual tour is on. This has been the most successful tour I’ve ever had thus far, and I chalk it up to having a better sense of my brand, increased online interaction, and involvement in social networking. The last one is the most key. I’m not even talking about Facebook and Twitter, I’m talking about forums and chat rooms, and ways that you interact.

Now that the book tour is going on, I have to promote it. What I mean by promotion is the active marketing of online articles and posts. I listed some of my favorite promotion sites in an article I wrote for Suite, and I’ve been “digging” and “stumbling” each tour stop. If there is a contest involved, I do everything I can to promote it, including submitting it to places that hype online contests (I mention a few of these in another article I wrote a while back.) I do a lot of social networking and bookmarking. (If you’re unfamiliar with these terms, I wrote a piece to help distinguish them) and I also have been blogging about each stop at my diabetes site.

The best thing about a book tour like this is the lasting effects. I can tell you that my previous book tour (for Internet Dating Is Not Like Ordering a Pizza) is still giving me book sales and exposure. Even if someone doesn’t catch you on the first round, the links are still there and for the most part, the word about your book continues to grow.

I really like the diversity I have with blogs on this tour. There’s food blogs, personal blogs, mom blogs, craft sites, city guides, and more. This is another thing I’ve done differently than my last blog tour, and something I think will help me as I continue to promote the book.

I’m also through the first rough draft my upcoming ebook about doing virtual tours, so I’m hoping I’ll be able to release it immediately following the tour.

As for right now, come to think of it I believe I will have that boat drink after all!