Writing a book is usually a solitary process where we keep our thoughts to ourselves—and when it’s time to sell, it can be difficult to flick the switch to do the opposite. Some of us are more comfortable than others when it comes to marketing, but the less you think about it as “marketing,” the more people you are likely to attract. If you’re wondering how you can increase your audience and sell more books without having to go too far out of your comfort zone, here are some tips to help you get your name out there as an indie author.
Mix it up with your blogging
Once you’ve written a blog post, where should you post it? On your own blog? Somewhere else?
With a daily roundup of their favorite articles, there’s plenty of opportunities for your post to get noticed on Medium, as journalists, authors, and thousands of others across world contribute to it daily. Writing a meaningful and honest blog post is highly likely to resonate with many, which will intrigue them to seek out your books. Try a mix of posting on your blog, and medium, for best results.
Don’t spread yourself too thin on social media
One or two active social media accounts—with regular activity—has a stronger impact than six content-starved profiles. Stick to the ones that feel most natural to you.
If you’re more visual and tend to post a lot of photos stay with Instagram and Pinterest.
If you tend to write more, Twitter and Facebook may be better for you.
Get involved and contribute to trending topics that are relevant to your books.
[clickToTweet tweet=”The more you try to scream BUY MY BOOK the more you will hear your own voice echo. #amwriting” quote=”The more you try to scream BUY MY BOOK the more you will hear your own voice echo. “]
Write a stronger job title on Linkedin
LinkedIn is often scoffed at when talking about social media platforms as it’s viewed as the most corporate one, but joining groups and contributing to some discussions will help you get your name out there. I see plenty of authors with a one-word job title– Writer or Author–but what kind of writer? What are the titles of your books?
Who would you prefer to read?
“Joe Tomlinson | Author”
Or
“Joe Tomlinson | Indie Sci-Fi Author, over 20,000 eBooks sold”
The second will make a much stronger impression.
Get filming on YouTube
This sounds like a lot of work but it doesn’t need to be. Nearly all computers have a built-in camera these days. A laid-back five-minute video every few weeks is easy to film and upload. Talk about other’s books, the process of writing your own, an event you attended or anything else that’s on your mind.
Make a mailing list
If you’re not too keen on starting a YouTube account, a mailing list is just as good. Services like MailChimp have made it incredibly easy to send out well-presented emails—without any coding skills required. (Nothing Any Good ‘s periodic updates utilizes the MailChimp platform.)
So, what are you going to write about? Don’t worry—the ideas will come. I jot down my ideas on my phone. I’d say about 80% of them are terrible, but the remaining 20% with good ideas is more than enough to write a monthly email.
Marketing isn’t as big and scary as it sounds. It seems the more you try to scream “buy my book,” the more you will hear your own voice echo. But by simply being yourself and releasing content that means something to you, this is bound to resonate with others and bring them to you and your books.
[clickToTweet tweet=”Marketing isn’t as scary as it sounds. Be yourself & release content that matters to you. #amwriting” quote=”Marketing isn’t as scary as it sounds. Be yourself and release content that matters to you.”]
About the Author
Darren Boyd-Annells is the CEO and co-founder at Joosr, a digital publisher helping busy people find the time to read with 20-minute summaries of leading non-fiction books.
Find more writing and publishing tips at Nothing Any Good.
