“Not all marketing people are writers, but all writers must learn to be marketers.”
Joanne Kraft
You’ve written a book, edited it to the best state that it can be, hired a cover artist, typeset it, and got it on the market.
New authors and writers do not have much experience when it comes to marketing ones book, which is to be expected because we are writers, not marketers. We go in thinking that people will want to read this masterpiece of ours.
I’m going to be frank with you. Most people won’t even give your book a second glance. Most people won’t even see it. Amazon is flooded with traditonal and indie published books, so your book may not even show up on the first page when you type in the exact title.
It’s heartbreaking to see that happen, but it is at this moment that writers realize something crucial: they must market.
This is a personal accounting which has made me pick up indie books before, and is not based on anyone else but me.
Marketing Starts before you even publish your book
Invest Time in a Great Cover
When they say don’t judge a book by its cover, that’s sweet, but idealistic. We are people that are guided by visuals. A good book cover is the first sign that YOU care about your book, start to finish. Good quality book covers have meaning, and cost a pretty penny. What if you’re a new author who doesn’t have the resources to get a good book cover?
I saw, if you really want your novel and hard work to flourish in the market, put the money into two areas at least: editing and the cover. You want your book to reach industry standard, and you want readers to keep coming back to your story.
Let me show you an indie author who has currently caught my attention because of his gorgeous book covers.
Brian McBride is the author of Sons of Slaughter, Every Bright and Broken Thing, and Love and the Sea and Everything in Between. All of his covers are stellar and stole my attention, one of the main reasons I was convinced to buy his books. And I did, and I am not disapointed. With the same care he regards for his covers, he regards for his writing as well.
Consistant Marketing
Looking for good sales? The key is consistant marketing. I’ve followed a couple of indie authors on instagram, and the constantly mention and market their book. On average, it takes me at least ten reminders in order for me to buy a book. When you continue to market and advertise your books, people will be curious, especially if you have raving reviews about. Slowly, you’re peaking the door open.
Show people what they’re getting into
Buying a book online without the ability to peek in and read a little is daunting, so make sure you offer a little sampe, whether is be a handful of poems or a chapter of the novel.
Also show people on social media! If you are a poet, share your poetry. If you are a novelist, write some short stories. Gain some experience with literary journals and magazines, submit to contest. Get your name and work out there.
Elly Schyven recently published her debut poetry book, Rose Petals. I heard about it on her instagram, so I dmed her, asking for samples. If she had not given me some samples of her poetry, I might have not bought the book, but since she sent me three poems in it, I know it would be a good book and got it on Kindle.
Offer a Sale/Discount
Sales and discounts are by far the best way to convince me to check out your work. @so_many_ocs on instagram recently put her two novels, defy and unchain, on amazon for free for a week. Now you might be asking, how does that increase sales? Well, people by a free book, then read it. If it’s a series, they get hooked, and the rest of the series is NOT free. If your story is good enough, they will eagerly want to buy your book, and are more willing to review/promote it.
Check out Defy here:
The key with sales is to have good timing. You don’t want them all the time, because then people just wait for your next sale. Sales should be a sign of thank you to your audience, and also another way to grow your base.
Giveaways!
Giveaways are similar to sales, but can really help you grow your base. People love doing giveaways and tagging others in your posts so that more people know about your book. Giveaways are an A+ marketing techinque and a show of grattitude to those who have supported you. Giveaways can be structured
Support Other Writers
This is a big one. When you support writers and creators, they will support you. This comes in the form of helpful blogs, book reviews, advertising, endorsing, collaborations, all of that. When you support people in your field, there is a much higher chance that they would want to support you and your book.
Reviews, reviews, reviews
This is my last tip. Reviews will save your life, my friend, more than you will ever know. Before you publish your book, send an e-book to reviewers, small and big. Offer advanced reader editions. Offer reviewer deals so that people will read your book and give the public their honest opion on it. Also request readers leave short reviews on your amazon and goodreads page. I read reviews before I buy a book well…because I want to know if its worth my time and money, and good reviews typically impact me positively.
But also…don’t force reviews.
I hope this helped! This is strictly a marketing post, not actually getting people to enjoy your book. That post is coming later.
The Enthusiast 