The digital landscape is a beautifully evolving environment. Barriers that hinder authors from growing their businesses are being torn down each and every day, as new and exciting avenues to success and prosperity become clearer.
However, having a great book is just the first step. The next is to market your book to the right audience….
And that is where social media comes into play.
With billions of people worldwide, social media is one of the best ways to cast a massive net and drastically increase exposure for your self-publishing business.
Understanding Social Media Marketing
This is the process of promoting products or services through social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, etc.
The goal is to create engaging content, encourage others to share on their social networks, increase brand exposure, and broaden customer reach.
This type of marketing is also very potent due to its highly targeted nature. Never before in history has there been such an opportunity to reach audiences (e.g. future customers and brand-loyal supporters) all over the world.
Furthermore, with its built-in data analytic technology, tracking the efficacy of your campaigns and target audiences based on demographics, interests, and behaviors is easier than ever.
How to Develop a Social Media Strategy
#1 - Craft Your Goals
When sculpting your social media goals, ensure they are SMART - Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound.
#2 - Pinpoint Your Target Audience
Assess variables such as age, gender, geography, interests, and behaviors in order to tailor your content. The goal is to appeal to your audience, and always prioritize your audience.
#3 - Select Your Battlefields
Every social media platform is a different beast, each with its own features and quirks. Instagram, for example, is a hip hangout for younger crowds, perfectly poised for visual storytelling.
LinkedIn, on the other hand, wears a more professional guise and is better suited for business-themed narratives. Choose your platform wisely, and tailor it to your audience and your book's genre.
#4 - Spin Enthralling Tales
Your content should enchant, inform, and be as deliciously contagious as a deep belly laugh. Let your audience peek behind the curtain of your creative process or deep-dive into the themes of your book.
Oh yeah, and don't forget to sprinkle the magic dust of effective hashtags over each post to amplify your visibility.
#5 - Measure Your Footprints
Welcome the power of built-in analytic tools with open arms to gauge the impact of your campaigns. Monitor reach, demographics, engagement, and conversions to understand what tickles your audience's fancy and what makes them raise an eyebrow and scrunch their nose with distaste
Leveraging Social Media Features for Promotion
Each platform is different and comes with its own benefits and uses. Therefore, it’s crucial to make sure you not only utilize each platform but also strategically understand the WHY that platform is better suited for specific aspects of your marketing strategy.
Let’s go over a few examples of how you might choose to put each “player” into the game:
A Facebook page dedicated to your author persona can help establish your brand. You can share updates about your writing, interact with readers, and even set up a shop to sell your books directly.
Instagram Stories are a great way to share behind-the-scenes content and engage with your audience in real-time.
Pintrest
Pinterest, on the other hand, could be an excellent option for creating a visual collage of your book. This board can contain images of the book cover, excerpts from the book, and any other related content that might be of interest to potential readers.
Don’t limit your content to just your book. Share other relevant content that your audience might also find interesting. This could be related to the subject of your book, or it could be other books that you recommend.
The key is to provide value to your audience so that they will continue to engage with your pins. Just like with any other social media platform, keywords and hashtags are important and shouldn’t be overlooked.
If you have the budget for it, consider running ads on the platforms, to promote your book. This can be a very effective way to reach a large audience quickly.
In the end, the goal is to share the value of your business at its maximum potential, and social media marketing is one of the easiest, most effective ways to do so.