New online platforms continue to debut as others mature and become part of the world’s social fabric. When it comes to how to market books, being visible in places where your target audience is reading and watching is essential. It varies by genre and can even be different for various authors within a genre. Marketing only works when you reach the right audience, and your plans should include their favorite media and online platforms. What you say also makes a difference; thus, crafting effective key messages is important. Weaving them through all your communication materials helps your campaign.
Podcasting and blogging offer significant opportunities for authors. They increase your visibility and provide opportunities to mention your book to promote it tactfully. As many authors do, you can launch a blog and podcast and be a guest on those of others. Reaching new audiences and consistently expanding yours helps; if you have a business to promote, it will benefit similarly. Like social media, you must experiment and see what works best with your audience – or the audience you’re hoping to attract. People look to nonfiction authors to be informational and want novelists to be entertaining.
If your book PR plan includes media coverage, have you considered becoming a contributor? You’ll find opportunities with budgets stretched thinly at legacy media outlets and online news sites always running on a no-frills cost structure. One excellent way to reach new audiences is to freelance an article. You can write on a topic related enough to your book that people who read the article may want to learn more from you. When you list your book in the writer’s bio at the end of the article, it receives a valuable plug to target readers. Writing articles is a way in when you’re trying to get media coverage.
All books and authors do better with a multi-faceted PR campaign; putting all your eggs in a single basket can be limiting, and branching out is safer. You also need to test the waters and find out what excites people about your book. Some things you plan for your campaign may need adjusting once you have some successes under your belt. Flexibility matters as much as it does to have a plan and timeline for implementing specific tactics. It’s essential to reach your target readers multiple times if you can. They might not buy a book the first time but will be ready by the second or third.
