It’s no secret that authors are entrepreneurs. They have to do the work of marketing their book themselves. There is no one else who can do it for them! That means that they need to be active on social media, maintain a website, and publish press releases about their latest books. The following seven tools will help every author with digital marketing:
Website
Website is the digital storefront of your book. It should be clean, professional, and easy to navigate so a visitor can buy your books with ease. A website also provides you with an opportunity to build brand awareness by including links to other social media accounts like Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram and providing information about where readers can find your work for sale.
GoodReads profile
Every author should have a profile on GoodReads. Adding your books to the site is free and easy, but it’ll take you some time if you want to do it right. When creating your account, you can specify what kind of reader (teens, adults) or genre enthusiast (fiction, non-fiction) that will be most attracted to your books.
It is important to have your expertise on this platform since people often use it for research and to find experts in the field. You will also want to see who has been viewing your profile, how many connections you currently have (which can be increased by sending out a connection request), and who has endorsed you. Once your profile is complete, make sure to keep it up-to-date with the latest information about yourself or your books.
Twitter is a powerful tool for authors. Getting on Twitter can be as easy as setting up an account and following people who have similar interests to you, but there’s so much more that goes into making the platform work well for your business needs. It also helps if you already know what hashtags are!
Amazon profile
Your Amazon profile should include your biography, a link to all of the books you’ve written on Amazon (including any free Kindle downloads), recent reviews for your book(s), and upcoming releases.
Professional headshots
Professional headshots are a great way to create an author brand and give readers a visual of who they’re reading. It also helps promote the book, as photos are used for promotional materials such as postcards or advertisements.
Press kit
A press kit (or professional author media kit) is a collection of materials used to describe and talk about you, your company, or your organization. You can send a press kit to reporters, bloggers, and other members of the media.
The press kit should include:
- A one-page biography or short description about you (what are your credentials?)
- Listing of all your books with links or a PDF version for people who want to download them on their own time
- Photos that show you at your most engaging and professional
- A media kit that includes reviews of your work quotes from other industry professionals who respect you and a list of upcoming events.
- Final Thoughts
Digital marketing is essential for authors as a means of building credibility. It also helps to increase visibility and connect with readers who are interested in their work.
Each author should have an individualized digital marketing plan that will improve visibility on search engines like Google, which may allow them to rank higher than other books within those categories or genre searches.
May Dream Design provides authors’ digital marketing services to promote books and establish authors’ personal branding.
