Are you a self-published writer searching for marketing opportunities? If yes, then you have come to the perfect place for advice. The world around writers and book publishers is certainly getting hard to compete with.
The basic reason is that fewer people read, and those who do are very selective. While books transform into eBooks and marketing shrunk from billboards to websites, writers now struggle to get their word across.
Book fairs and seminars are also out of trend, and not more than ten people are likely to turn up if you try that as a marketing technique. But guess what? Webinars aren’t. There are several aspects of online marketing that you haven’t explored yet.
In this article, we will guide self-publishing newbies and old experienced writers who wish to go online! Traditional internet book marketing that most people use to this date is via Good Reads or Amazon descriptions.
However, that is not all. There are several other platforms where you can present your material, or even just a sample of it.
1) Go Online!
By going online, we mean you shift all your work to your ‘author’s website’ and then market it from thereon. Most writers these days pay other bloggers to write about their books (as a promotional strategy) or make a blog of their own to write their thoughts on the book.
For this purpose, we recommend sites like medium, WordPress, or Instagram blogs. Here you can write your book or ask others to have a read and then write a brief review on the book and its developments.
Most people these days like to write about politics or entertainment so if you write on one of these topics, perfect! You can market these easily, unlike any other genre.
2) Use Network Services
Networking services are a great help in book marketing. These are a set of book marketing you can buy from the network of your own choice. These services include the following:
- Podcasts: Here, the networking services can offer you to start a podcast on your writing. Perhaps you could begin promoting yourself without the help of a third person. On the other hand, they could also arrange for you to be invited to someone else’s podcast so you can talk about your books there.
- Social Media Platforms: They can provide you with social media handles or just design social media posts to share with the audience. Another thing these services can provide is to ask other members to promote your writings.
- Social Media Advertisements: Networking Services can provide creative ads that you can post on your profile or publish as sponsored ads.
Whatever the book marketing means you choose here, keep in mind that this is one of the most fruitful steps in the process. Social media is undoubtedly an excellent source for grabbing the audience and proving to them your skills.
- Lead Magnets: Lead Magnets are another useful book marketing technique provided by networking services. These are used to make ‘sales leads.’ Simply put, these are some contact details of the potential target audience gathered from different places.
You can use these contact details in any way you like (of course, ethically). Send a text immediately inviting people to a webinar or book fair, tell them something catchy about your books or just send a kind intro!
- Emails: Just as lead magnets, this is a list of emails the networking services can provide you. You should use emails instead of contact numbers for promotion.
#3) Self-Promotion
Promoting yourself over social media and a personal blog is not something to be ashamed of. Since the Vlogging culture has taken trend, people find it more effective to market their brands, books, and anything else via their Vlogs rather than through formal podcasts, etc.
You can post a story daily about how you’re working on something, and your audience might be excited or curious about it. This also gives the people the impression that you are a hardworking writer, and thus they can support you even more on the journey!
And most importantly, learn to market yourself. The language and tone you use when putting a promotion story on Instagram should be persuasive. Remember, stories are short; you need to get to the point and get done with your book marketing.
However, if you are making a whole vlog on your new book, that is when you have all the time to explain each aspect of your writing. Below are some points you should always cover when self-promoting your book in a personal blog:
- From where did you get the inspiration to write the book?
- What became your biggest obstacle in completing the book?
- How important or close is this book to you?
- What type of readers do you recommend should not miss this book?
- Who would you dedicate this book to?
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#4) Webinars and Panel Discussions
Although this can be seen as another way of self-promotion, we categorize this marketing method separately. This is because webinars are a bit more formal than vlogs or stories. Moreover, most people join a webinar to gain something out of it.
So, keep in mind that your focus in a webinar should be to explain the unique aspects of the book and the problems such a reading can solve. However, your background and inspiration for writing the books remain a part of the discussion.
You can also try carrying out seminars right where your target audience is. For instance, if school children would read your books, go to a school. If women are your audience, find a women’s park or workplace and fix a time with them!
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Panel discussions are more of a traditional way and are usually appropriate for a writer who is famous and has a big audience.
#5) Become A Guest Writer
Guest Writers post as ‘guests’ on other authors or bloggers’ websites. This is another useful way of presenting to a new audience and increasing your exposure. You can also link this external post on the other website to your site.
Conclusion:
In conclusion, it is easy to market yourself as a writer. All you need to do is grab a camera or build an attractive website, and you’re good to go!
