Marketing a book is not the same as it was even a decade ago for a few reasons: self-publishing is now a massive industry, book stores are slowly disappearing, and the internet, with all of its perks, has made the pool of available content unbelievably massive. So how do you go about getting your book in front of readers? Blend modern tactics with time tested book launches to build your fan base.
A modern twist on traditional launches
The days of the traditional author tour are over (for the most part), but book launches are still a great way to start off your marketing campaign. Work with a book store or literary organization local to you, or an independent store or organization in a major city, to put together a launch. Today, launches are often set with a group of authors in one niche – this increases press promotion and reader turnout, so don’t let the group approach deter you.
So where should the launch be held? Probably not in the bookstore itself. Restaurants, event centers, and even park events all increase ticket sales and give you more opportunities to talk with readers and make connections with other people in the industry.
Go digital with your launch
If you can’t find anyone to work with for your launch, or you want total control over how things are handled, the internet is the place to go. More and more, authors are hosting ‘launches’ as live streaming events with sites like LiveLab Network, Shindig, and YouTube. If you already have a fair amount of social media followers, this can be a fantastic way to interact with readers and tell them about your new book. The key to converting this launch into sales? Have a buy link highly visible during the event, and offer people who are logged in a coupon code for the book.
Be active, but yourself, on social media
You’re trying to sell a book, not a car, so a thoughtful approach to social media is essential. Build relationships with your followers and stay up to date on what they’re interested in so you can provide valuable, timely comments and ideas. While you should absolutely share a link to your book when it’s ready, and more than once, as well as utilize Facebook Ads, do not spam your followers with daily posts and tweets to buy your book – they will run away.
Reach out to medium to large bloggers
Figure out who’s reading your book, or pinpoint who you wrote it for, then research what blogs that demographic is reading. Reach out, offering to write guest posts, collaborate on an interview, or ask the blogger to review the book if you send a free copy. When the post goes live, make sure you share it with your social media followers and tag the blog’s social media accounts in the tweet or post.
You need to be on Goodreads
This bibliophile’s social media site has over 20 million members who review books; the more reviews your book has, the more likely people checking the site are to buy it. Host giveaways on the site to generate a ton of early reviews and increase your visibility, and make sure to share the details with your social media followers.
Although the internet has changed how authors market books, it’s not necessarily a bad thing – work with the changes, not against them, and you’ll get real results.
