Category: marketing
Your next read: How to start a blog in India?
Published by Santosh Gairola || Dated May 6, 2024, 11:09 am
Do you want to know how to market your book for free? Then don’t worry. You are on the right blog to learn everything about book publishing and making a career as an author. In this post, you will figure out how to promote a book for free.
Completing your first manuscript is such a wonderful feeling. But you know what makes a budding professional author happier than writing a book?
It is making money from their craft, especially when you are a new, unknown author. But the reality is only 20% of new authors make money from their first published book. Don’t get disheartened by the above statement. I never mean to demotivate you by writing this. I intend to put the facts in front of you.
The main reason many new authors fail is because their book lacks quality content. Potential buyers can sense this deficiency. So, it is a challenging task to market such a book. On the flip side, many new authors who have quality content don’t have a plan for marketing it effectively in the initial stage. Don’t worries, in this post, we will also learn how to fix both issues.
Thus, first-time authors who want their debut book to make an impact should start appropriately. Otherwise, making a place as an author in your niche would become difficult for you. Niche is the category of your writing on which topics you are writing your books.
It’s almost certain that your debut book will be unappealing because you’re still in the learning phase as a professional writer. And there is nothing wrong with it. But realizing your mistakes and accepting them will take you further on this journey. The faster you accept your mistakes, the quicker you become a skilled writer and publisher.
The golden rule of the publishing industry says that before marketing your book, you should have a high-quality book to market. Unfortunately, many new authors don’t understand this and publish low-quality books. Afterward, they wonder why their book is not selling well. Hence, I’m sharing how you can avoid these dire situations and see the light of success in the darkness. Here are some of the proven strategies you can use to promote your first book.
Apparently, promoting your first book is challenging, but it is not unattainable. The crucial element for becoming a successful author is having the right mindset. The first step towards the right author mindset is forgetting the pressure of being a successful writer and inhaling fresh air.
I’m holding my pen for a minute. Just close your eyes and take a deep breath. I know you are feeling better and much more relaxed. Now, we can focus on marketing your debut book.
The untold truth of the publishing industry is your one high-quality book sells another book. I understand that you have already written your first book and are looking to market it first, but marketing a book begins before writing it.
Yes, you read it right. Think about your bigger vision of authoring that book. Indeed, ask yourself, what is your goal behind writing this book?
No, I’m not interested in listening to your financial goal. Please keep them to yourself. I’m asking, do you have a mission in your mind regarding your book like what problem you are trying to solve with your book?
Who are your readers, or are there people interested in reading the topic of your book in the future?
In simple words, I’m asking you to create your author brand because no one buys from an unknown author. You may get one or two sales here and there, but not more than that. So, you will require strategic publishing of more books in the same niche. Having more books in the same niche assures the reader that you are committed to solving his problem. When a writer establishes trust with their readers, an impressive bond develops.
So, it’s crucial to foster that trust from the beginning, as it will lead to a deeper connection with your audience. That is where branding starts in the publishing world. In fact, every author’s branding starts with the first book, and the second book boosts the credibility of that author.
Therefore, performing a market search is a way to move forward. Analyze the top book in your genre or niche and identify your competitors. Obviously, I’m not asking to compete with big publishers. All I’m asking you to figure out the content gap in your genre. Your next book should not rehash the same old content that is already available in the market.
In fact, your book must present a different aspect of that topic and help the readers uniquely. Readers love reading those books, which gives them a new outlook about the subject. But also keep in mind that your content should be helpful from the reader’s perspective.
So, you don’t need to reinvent the whole wheel. Discover what’s popular in the market and position your book uniquely within that space. You must be thinking about how to do that. My simple answer would be to research your topic well and read other authors’ books on that topic. Acquire knowledge about your audience, market potential, and the primary obstacles to tackle in your own way.
Now you have the data about those readers. It’s time to outline your book chapters accordingly. But the best thing that you can do is choose an enticing title for the book. The title of your book is the first place to express your marketing skills.
Let me tell you about the best marketing strategy for books. Write quality books that add value to your reader’s life. You can identify a quality book when it addresses the core challenges and frustrations of the readers and provides the best solution to their problems.
Thus, a quality book speaks for itself. So don’t write low-quality books for the sake of money. Instead, write the most amazing, high-quality book.
Writing a high-quality book will also boost your confidence in that book as an author. Experience the thrill of confidently showcasing your book to others and bask in the splendid excitement it brings.
Readers are always hungry for a good book. As an author, it is your responsibility to write only those books that help the readers to find their solution. And it is a universal fact that a quality book will sell itself through word-of-mouth publicity. You only need to give an initial push to that book. After all the hard work, your book will sell for itself.
Every successful author has an audience. Do you have an audience who are curious to read your book?
No, I’m not talking about your family members and friends. Here, I’m talking about your dedicated fans. Imagine the joy on the faces of those who would eagerly read your books. These are the readers who religiously follow your words and solutions. They are out there, waiting for your next book to be published. Those readers will be your audience base. Ask yourself how you will reach them. “The correct solution is to build an author platform.”
You are an author. Have you considered starting a blog? Your blog can serve as a bridge between potential new followers and loyal fans. Create a blog or website to share all the information regarding your books and writing process to connect with your readers. I advise you to start a blog with your name. It will work as your personal branding. The best thing about starting blogging is you can create your community there and connect with other authors and bloggers in your niche.
Start collecting your blog visitors’ emails on the return of a lead magnet to your blog. Through email marketing, you can send informative personalized emails to subscribers regarding your niche and educate those subscribers. It is one of the best ways to stay connected with your audience. Mailchimp can be the place where you can build your blog’s audience and send them monthly newsletters.
Writing guest posts for other authors is another fantastic way to get new eyeballs on your content. Blogging also allows you to collaborate with other creators in your niche. Possibilities are limitless. You just need to explore the options available to you.
Creating video content can skyrocket your business. In fact, starting a YouTube channel on your niche topic can also grow your writing business. Short-format video content and reels are getting more popular these days. You can use TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube shorts to create short videos regarding your niche topics. In case, if you are not comfortable showing your face, you can create a faceless channel. The point is to make a genuine relationship with all the book lovers who are interested in reading your book. Your readers are not just numbers, they are the actual people.
The other thing that you can do is start a podcast on your niche and connect with people. Through a podcast, you can also push yourself to public speaking. As an author, speaking is one of the best ways to make connections with readers and the interesting thing is it is also the fastest way to get popularity. The more you create audio-video content, the better you will understand your audience. Creating quality content will bring new invites and opportunities to your writing business.
Share updates of your books on a platform like Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn. Readers love watching behind-the-scenes insights, quotes, and any events related to your book. Through these social media posts, you can engage with your followers or take part in relevant communities.
Although, I’m not a big fan of these platforms as the algorithm keeps changing. But you should have an online presence on some platform because it eases the life of your reader.
One of the most underrated tips is connecting with other authors and helping each other. I have an acknowledgement that sometimes many authors are not comfortable in working with other authors. But if you can, please try it. It can help both of you to grow together.
One of my close author friends loves to give me all the support and suggestions that I implement in my business. It helped me a lot. I do the same thing for him. It is a feeling of mutual respect and understanding.
I remember that in this post; I have promised to give free tips but if you can afford it, try investing some money in these places. §
Sponsored and reviewed posts on the blogs
§ Influencers’ marketing on Instagram and
Facebook
§ YouTube interviews and collaborations
§ Press releases and ads on promotion sites
§ Organizing local events and online seminars
§ Connecting to the local libraries and bookstores
to organize book giveaways
§ Hosting a live event on social media
Do whatever you can. Be a shameless promoter of your book. But keep in mind that you don’t need to spam any platform with the link to your book. Instead be genuine and helpful to others, your ideal readers will automatically check out your social media profile and reach your book’s sale pages.
You can create an author business and sell more books by creating reader-centric online content that can bring more eyeballs to your books. This entire process is called content marketing, which can allow you to create an audience base and connect with them.
Publish at least 50 top-notch content online for one year and see the stats based on that. After one year, you can understand the interest of your audience and create more content of that type.
But I would like to advise that pick one or two particular platforms to work for. Don’t work on every platform. Limit your social media presence; it will help you focus more on essential tasks instead of wasting time. If writing content on your blog is your passion, then keep publishing more content there. I wish you all the best for more sales and business growth.
Friends, your every share motivates me to write more content for all the readers and helps the search engine algorithm reach the right audience.
We are grateful for all your kindness and support.
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