In the Romance Novel Business,
we, writers, often talk about
the big break out hit,
the one story that catapults
a writer into fame,
gives her a huge readership overnight.
I’ve had medium-sized break out experiences.
The thing that no one
really tells you
is a significant number
of those insta-readers
won’t stick around
for the next book.
They read one book by you
to say they had
and they move onto
the next hot writer.
Kevin Alexander
witnessed
the same experience
in the restaurant business.
“If there was one
main negative takeaway
from the raging fires
of food tourist culture
and the lists fanning the flames,
it was that the people
crowding the restaurant
were one time customers.
They were there
to check off a thing on a list,
and put it on Instagram.
They weren’t invested
in the restaurant’s success,
but instead in having
a public facing opinion
of a well known place.
In other words,
they had nothing to lose
except money
and the restaurant had nothing to gain
except money,
and that made the entire situation
feel both precarious
and a little gross.”
When hunting the big break out,
realize that many of those
insta-customers
won’t stick around.
Plan for that.
Ensure you take care of
your regular customers
while wowing your new ones.