5 Online Book Promotion Tips
Congratulations on publishing your book. Whether you signed with a traditional publisher or you are self-published, there are thousands of unpublished writers looking to achieve what you have. Take a few moments to enjoy the victory before the real work begins, MARKETING YOUR BOOK.
Publishing houses are expecting more of their writers in these times when budget cuts translate into fewer resources and personnel to promote your book. Sales of books are tracked and low book sales of your first book can make it more difficult to get that second book contract. The self-published author faces obstacles of getting their book noticed without the resources of publishing houses. Marketing your book online offers a low-cost and effective way to get your book noticed and sold.
#1 CREATE A WEBSITE:
The cost of hosting a Website or blog has come down quite a bit in the last few years. Authors can find decent hosting services for less than $100 a year. You can also create a free blog or website however it recommended that an author pays for hosting. Paying for hosting services has two key advantages over the free sites.
* You won’t have to worry about ads on paid sites. These ads posted by free sites can detract from the content on your site.
*You can choose the URL of the site as long as someone else hasn’t chosen the name first. With free sites, you may have to deal with a long string of characters making your site hard for readers to find.
#2 SOCIALIZE ONLINE:
Create Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter accounts about the book separate from your personal page or account. Make sure posts appear in all of your social media accounts to increase engagement. This can be done easily by linking accounts. Look for communities and groups that might be interested in your book and socialize with them. The goal is to build an audience that is interested in your story.
CAUTION: Be careful when promoting your book online. You want to be subtle in this arena or you will offend people.
#3 CONNECT WITH ONLINE AFFILIATES:
As it gets closer to your book’s publication date make sure you have a way for people to preorder and order the book. The two most popular online affiliates are Amazon [affiliate-program.amazon.com] and Barnes&Nobles [www.barnesandnobles.com/affiliate]. These affiliate links should be on the homepage of your Website. The links to these pages should be included in all online communications about the book.
#4 POST A VIDEO OR PODCAST:
Authors can inexpensively create videos themselves reading key excerpts from the book and post them online. Readers are curious about the author, and posting a video can help establish your brand. An author may be asked to participate in a podcast (basically an online interview). Once the podcast is posted, an author can use that link in their marketing by posting it online to their Website, blog, and social media pages.
#5 NETWORK ONLINE:
There are blogs, websites, Facebook groups, and other social media channels on every possible subject and topic. These sites are often looking for content. Ask if the site reviews books. If they do, send the designed reviewer an ARC [advanced reading copy).
Set up sweepstakes and include the link on your website. Network with other authors and post on each other’s website and social media channels. Do an Instagram or Facebook Live to promote a book or participate in a podcast. Sweeten the deal by doing sweepstakes.
Compiling contacts of related sites and blogs will help the author develop a list that can be used in an e-newsletter campaign.
E-newsletters can be created easily in newer versions of Microsoft Word. In addition to information on your book, these e-newsletters should have content related to the book that will appeal to readers.
TIP: When communicating with blogs and Websites make sure you update your email signature to include the name and Web page link of the book.
These online marketing steps should begin soon after the book is
slated for publication. It takes time to build a community. Use online promotion for your titles and you will sell books. An author looking for a long career invests time and resources in promoting their titles independent of what the publisher is doing for the title.
About Candace Waller
Candace Waller is a Christian fiction author. Her novel, What Goes Around Comes Around can be purchased on Amazon. Her new book Good Things Comes, a sequel to What Goes Around Comes Around, is available for preorder on Amazon.