Promotion Tips for Authors

One of the most gratifying parts of writing a book is actually finishing writing it. But where do you go from there? You want people to find your book and purchase it so that you make money. It’s up to you to get your book out there and into the hands of readers.

Now is the time to promote and market your book. If you’re not sure where to start with your marketing, or what you should even do, turn to experts in book promotion. I spoke with Dan Smith and Corinne Liccketto of Smith Publicity and asked them for some promotion tips. Here’s what Dan Smith, the founder and CEO of the company, told me:

“Be creative! There are thousands of books coming out every day because of the boom in self-publishing, and this means authors usually can't rely on their book being solely taken on literary merit by media. Authors must present their book and themselves in creative ways. What can YOU do for the media? How can you be interesting for an interview, feature story or commentary? Examine your competition, because they are all vying for the same media attention you are, and see how you can set you and your book apart from them. It's all about using the media as a conduit to spread word of your book to the book-buying public. Authors must be relentless, patient, and creative; book marketing is more marathon than sprint. It is a highly competitive field, however, every day we see indie books find their way through the mass of books to reach prominence. It CAN happen. Be realistic, yet optimistic.”

Corinne Liccketto’s advice went along the same lines, focusing on four points:

1. Research your options! There is no one way to promote a book; rather there are several initiatives that work together to increase visibility for the book and round out your marketing plan. Once you have a handle on the top marketing/publicity strategies, you can begin to narrow down the options and select the ones that best suit you and your project. 
2. Know your target audience! Everyone is not a target audience. By focusing your marketing efforts on the most applicable audiences first, you'll work to build a foundation for your book upon which you can leverage interest from audiences outside of your core target. Start with the most relevant audience, even if it is niche and small, and work your way out from there. 
3. Have a professionally designed website! This is your online business card and the marketing tool that will be used in all of your publicity and marketing initiatives. 
4. Blog! Launching and upkeeping a blog well in advance of your book is just one fantastic way to encourage followers and build a network before your book is launched. Additionally, having an updated blog means you're providing new content to your audience ongoing so even after they've ready your book, they can still engage in discussion and your new writing trends. 

Not only do experts in promotion have tips for you to follow, but fellow self-published authors are a great source of information. I talked with three – Kara Griffin, Kate Devlin, and Bobbi Romans – and they all had great ideas. Kara stated that authors “shouldn’t be afraid to give books away for free,” as “getting reviews goes a long way to gaining readers’ interest.” Kate promoted “supporting other authors! Tout their new releases, Be a cheerleader.” Bobbi, Like Kara, gives out review copies, but also swag items as forms of promotion such as “Mini note pads with Bobbi Roman Stickers on them. Rack Cards (can still be used as bookmarks but hold more info) and magnet business cards.”

Promotion may seem like hard work, but in the end, it’s worth it. Try a few of these tips, and watch your book sales soar.