Now What?
Your book is written. It is published. You’re proudly and tenderly holding a copy of your new ‘baby’ in your hands! The problem with this baby is that you have to sell it (here the analogy breaks down in a most unfortunate way).
Marketing Your Book
Whether your book is published traditionally or Indie published, the lion’s share of marketing your book is your responsibility. Since many authors are introverts and prefer writing to (shudder) interacting with the public, this is challenging. There is no end of people who track authors down on Facebook and offer to sell their books, but they’re scam artists. See the “Book scammer be like” series on my Facebook page. Most writers don’t fall into their traps. Since 90% of book authors cannot live on what they earn, it might be better to try to market your book for free- DIY, if you like.
Social Media
One way of marketing your book for free is to put it out via social media: Facebook, Linkedin, Instagram, Twitter, and the like. This will require posting often and sharing with every group you can. The problem is that those sites aren’t interested in selling your book. They want to make a profit for whoever owns them! You can pay to promote the post, but the cost-benefit ratio is not good. Personally, I’ve tweeted like a crazy bird, had 27,481 Facebook views, and apparently reached 10,704 people in the last month. I have almost 900 connections on Linkedin. And all of that has resulted in very few sales. Social media may work for you, but it hasn’t for me.
Website
There is no doubt that having a robust author website is essential. This is where you showcase all your books and blogs (which I’m told are vital), list the talks you can give, and post when you will be where. In the past, I had a different website for each type of book, each with its own blog. You can see how writing all that became overwhelming! Thus, I have amalgamated.
But, like everything, it isn’t easy. Once your website is up and running, it needs regular updates. Since most authors can’t afford to hire a web designer, that means learning how to DIY—AGAIN. I’ve found Elegant Themes by Divi to be invaluable.
If your goal is to market your books, it is also vital that people can find your website. There’s no use having one if nobody knows it’s there. This means you need to optimize it for search engines. I’m partway through doing this. It takes lots of time, is another steep learning curve, and requires more money to be invested (I chose to use Yoast, which is less functional with Divi). Oh, and by the way, website hosting services also cost. But it’s worth it, right?
Newsletter
Here’s something else that the experts advise authors to have: a newsletter. Of course, having people sign up for your newsletter requires a service, which costs. And to develop a relationship with the wonderful people who may buy your books, you need to write to them. Not write books. Write to supporters. Time and money. But less than you would spend if you hire someone to market your books.
Personal Appearances
This is what I’ve found to be the best way to market my books. Perhaps I’m not as much of an introvert as I thought! I do enjoy getting out, meeting the public, talking about my books and their lives, and all that goes with it. Currently, I have a stall at craft fairs, festivals, and farmer’s markets and do book signings at various bookstores. I also speak at churches, schools, libraries, and retirement homes. Try it! You might also find it’s the best way to market your books. A word of warning: fairs and festivals charge a table fee. Bookstores take 55% of the price of your books, leaving you making less than the minimum wage for the hours you spend. And gigs in other places require that you contact them!
What Else?
You may be feeling a little overwhelmed. After all, this is necessary in addition to writing, editing, etc. your books! But there is more. I am currently working on creating a Speaker One Sheet to connect with bloggers, radio hosts, and other venues. I’ve been coming up with topics I can speak about and even recording some sample talks. There’s already been some fruit in terms of people showing interest. Will it result in book sales? Only time will tell. Meanwhile, I’m having fun.