Dos and don’ts of marketing your book
When did being an author get to be so hard? Now, there’s marketing and social media and websites involved, none of which writers sign up for when first aspiring to write a book. It has become necessary, however, and especially for the self-publishing author.
There are dozens of rights and wrongs when it comes to marketing. Some are obvious and some are buried in good intentions. If you’re going to get into marketing, why waste your time on what doesn’t work? Just because it’s easy doesn’t mean it’ll produce fruit. If you want to maximize your sales, you have to prune the branches that aren’t producing so your time isn’t spent feeding dead things.
Or the wrong things. Let’s not get carried away.
Dos
Look nearby before reaching outward
Whether you’re hosting a book event or starting off your fanbase, don’t deny yourself a few obvious things. You’d be amazed to learn the types of friends and family you have around you. Many of them may not be helpful, but friends and family are the easiest groups of people to get in contact with because they listen to you. They already know you. So start there. Don’t treat them as your primary audience (they’re not), but you might be surprised to learn who you know.
Keep an elevator pitch on hand and a link on your phone/on paper
If you happen to bump into someone at the store or start a conversation with someone at a cash register, don’t be shy. Believe it or not, you’re exotic. People love to know they met an author, so to say you’re releasing a book soon is to tell a stranger you’re taking the plunge. You’re taking the world head-on. You’re trying to do something with your gift.
And they might want to be part of it.
If you tell them you’re releasing a book or revealing your cover, some will be thrilled, and if your fifteen-word pitch (or close to that) intrigues them, you might want to be able to toss them a paper with the link or send it through your phone. It may be nothing, or it may be a book sale. Or maybe it’ll be one of those rare golden readers who don’t shut up about your work.
Create business cards
This is optional, as are all of these, really, but this is more beneficial than you think. If you have your links on a business card with your most recent or best-selling book on it, you won’t find yourself at a loss when your book comes up in conversation. Ever think about how many times your book has come up in conversation and the person says, “I’ll have to check it out.”
How many people who say that do you think actually remember to check it out? A business card doesn’t automatically mean a sale, but cards aren’t expensive, and they’ll help more than hurt.
You don’t have to buy them, either. If you don’t have the funds to purchase professionally made cards, simply purchase cardstock and design them yourself. If you look up business card designs, you can get an idea of how they look, what size to make them, and then you can create something simple to use until you can afford nicer ones.
When in doubt, use white space.
They’re especially handy at book events, and if you have any giveaways, sticking a business card in there will give people an opportunity to look at your other social platforms and published books. You need your readers to find you.
Talk to local bookstores, newspapers, magazines, etc.
Don’t wait for your audience to come to you. Get yourself out there. Newspapers and bookstores have your audience, as do some magazines. Prepare a media kit, write your press release, talk to small bookstores, and make sure everyone knows you’re local. Nothing is better than a local success. Sure, you might not be famous, but hometowns take pride in area talent.
But they have to know you’re there. Check out this post to learn three keys to marketing in this area.
Look for blogs willing to review your book
Blogs have audiences, too, but these places will likely want a free book. Prepare to give them one. They’re giving you a review and exposure. A free book won’t hurt you. If you can give them an e-book, that’s one better. You don’t spend a dime.
If a blog requires you to pay, however, look at your budget. This blog post isn’t covering budgeting, but you can look out for one in the future.
Reedsy has a fancy little spot where you can look for paid and free promotion services. You can even organize the list by tier (credibility), cost, genre, traffic size, and more! You can get to that here.
Give away free books in return for reviews
I couldn’t decide whether to put this toward the beginning or not, but here it is. Having fifty reviews or more is healthy for a book, so make that your goal. It doesn’t mean you need to give out fifty free books. Remember, though . . . e-books are free gifts. Please see the don’t version of this subhead.
Preparing events ahead of time
Whether it’s a physical book signing or an online book release/cover reveal, prepare ahead of time. Prepare posts, prepare gifts, gather merchandise, and figure out what you’re going to do, wear, and say. Think about what your audience will be like and plan for it. Do not assume people will come. These events are a waste of time if you don’t prepare and hype your book and find your audience.
If you’re a pantser writer, don’t be a panster event host/attendee. People want to see a professional or they want to see someone who has something they want. Be what they need and be ready. Don’t show up empty-handed.
Make yourself visible online
This means you should create a Goodreads account, create an Authors’ Central account on Amazon, start a Twitter, a website, Facebook page, email list, and whatever you’re able to start to get your name out there. Your audience is everywhere. Be everywhere you can.
But don’t create it then leave it. Look out for another blog post on learning what works in your social media strategy.
Don’ts
I know I slipped and had a few don’ts in the above sub-subheads, but that’s okay. Remember, these are things you should not do. So don’t do them.
Ask for good reviews
Asking someone for a good review is like telling your friend to tell someone you’re super attractive (if you wanted to go on a date). While the statement might not be wrong, it’s not honest, meaning you’re asking them to say something they might not believe. Besides, why would you want to mislead your readers? Let people say your book is good because it is, not because you want it to be. Reviews are sacred, and they are what make people buy things. Don’t mess with that and make reviews a dishonest marketing tool that lose value as a result of dishonesty.
Talk bad about a book similar to yours “for a sale”
Nothing is worse than shutting down someone else’s work just to make yours look better. Your book must not be that great if it can’t stand on its own. If you disagree, don’t use a tactic that requires someone else’s book to look bad for yours to look good. Be creative. Showcase your book in a positive light. Damaging someone else’s work for your sake, and at the risk of damaging your reputation, isn’t worth it, and it’s just wrong.
Leave bad reviews for your competition
This is for the same reason as the above label. Why do this if your book is good? Let authors have their light. They deserve it. Don’t be petty, and don’t damage the credibility of the same review system you use to increase the hype of your book. In the end, a false review hurts you, too. And that’s not considering if you get caught. Have you seen some of the stories about people who get caught doing things like this? Don’t be that person.
Buy merchandise you don’t need or won’t use
It is absolutely thrilling to see your book on a shirt or your book cover on a coffee mug. But, think about whether people will actually buy it before you fill an order and buy a bunch of merch. If you have tons of fans, this might be an awesome idea, but identify where the demand lies before buying things. Shirts and mugs are always a quick go-to, but pens, business cards, postcards, key chains, bookmarks, posters, and even signed copies are quicker to leave your supply than mugs and shirts. It might be different for you, but it’s easy to give away a keychain or sell a signed copy. It’s hard to sell a shirt. Keep in mind, this might be different depending on how successful you are, but consider your options. That’s the idea.
Spend money with the “spend money to make money” mindset
You don’t have to spend a lot of money to make money. Yes, you will have to spend money, but don’t think you have to pay for marketing for everything you do and buy a bunch of merch so you have something to hand out. Something as simple as a quick conversation with a lady at the bookstore will be a more promising sale than handing a stranger a key chain with a link to your book.
Spam writing groups or social media with your book
Why would a writer buy a writer’s book? That’s like trying to sell a roof to a roofing company. Sort of. Your audience is not in a writing group, nor is it in an “advertise your books here!” group. You know who you’ll find in an advertising group? People who want to advertise books. You know where you’ll find your audience? The library, book events, a book club, reading events, bookstores, grocery stores, your community, and beyond.
Things like marketing a book are something you’ll learn a lot about as you try. You’ll find an online ad that works, you’ll figure out a good day to offer free e-books, and you’ll figure out that spot in your social platform that allows you to communicate with your audience and be heard. These dos and don’ts aren’t here to knock your dreams into the dirt or tell you what to do. However, they’re good tips to help you start somewhere so that as you learn, you can find the right path for yourself.
A few tools to guide you
I won’t leave you without a few things to help you get started. First, if you’re not published yet, take the steps necessary to make your book the best it can be. If you need a cover designer or an editor (like Kingsman Editing!), add that to your budget. Those services are part of your marketing strategy.
But here are a few more to help you learn more and prepare for this new thing you’re going to master:
NaNoProMo. Learn more about marketing in general, or get to know someone who does it for a living. It’s annoying to hear people say that they “should write a book” like it’s easy, right? Marketing isn’t a walk in the park, either.
Canva. Need help creating ads? Canva has an amazing template collection with strong examples that you can edit to fit your brand. Don’t pretend to be a designer if you’re not. Use tools!
MailerLite. When starting your email list, use something that will allow you to grow without breaking the bank. MailerLite has a great free plan while you navigate the marketing world and figure out how to maximize your presence.
Reedsy promotion list. I mentioned it earlier, but Reedsy has a good place to start looking for promotion services if you want to take advantage of that and hand off the torch.
Do you have other tools that have helped you? What have you learned in your journey to become a marketing expert? Share any questions or comments below, and don’t stress too much.
Have fun with it!
Leave a Comment