Are you trying to promote your next book but don’t want to risk sounding too arrogant or pushy? No one cares for an author who comes off like a salesman. As an author, it can be tricky to find the perfect balance between growing your network and bragging about your writing. Here is a six-step guide to finding a balance when it comes time to promote your next published project.
Show, Don’t Tell
Rather than telling people about how skilled or talented you are in your given field, show potential customers how you add value to their life. Naturally, people want to know what you provide, especially if it’s something they wouldn’t be able to either do themselves or find someone else to do for them. However, don’t spend a lot of time creating content with the intent of convincing your audience that you are worthy. Show them what you are up to. Take photos and post videos, answer questions, and share content of value. Just like with your writing, showing your followers is going to be more powerful than telling them.
Consistency
By having a consistent presence on marketing platforms, you will build up your credentials. When the time comes that you are ready to sell your work, your followers will be more willing to respond. Nobody wants to be overly bombarded with sales pitches but if you have a presence that involves more than promotion, people will enjoy and engage with your content and brand. This is going to mean developing an editorial calendar and sticking to it. You can post a week, or a month, worth of content in one sitting. Let go of the frantic need to come up with something new to post each day by doing some pre-planning.
Boundaries
An author that markets their books all the time doesn’t have time to expand their marketing and provide valuable content to their audience. It’s important to set boundaries to avoid burn out and maintain a healthy balance. Schedule out the times of the week you will work on your marketing and stick to those guns. It’s easy to get distracted and prioritize ineffectively.
This concept also applies to your potential customers. You should not be constantly pushing out sales pitches on all of your marketing platforms because then you will not only burn yourself out but your potential customers as well. Marketing posts should be 80% educational, informational, and entertaining; and only 20% sales pitches. This will keep your followers engaged while also promoting your value. If you don’t have time to create additional content of this nature, do a search for similar posts to share that your audience will appreciate.
Build Your List
It is always useful to expand your network, not only for the sake of increasing sales but also for the sake of potential partnerships down the line. If you create valuable relationships, you are more likely to have positive engagement down the line when it’s time to launch your book. Your network will already trust you and will be more willing to recommend your business to their friends. Don’t only grow this list when you are about to launch a new book – get in the habit of building this list all year round.
Engage
People love knowing that there is a human being on the other side of a marketing platform. If you respond and engage with your potential customers, your audience will feel connected and valued. Rather than having an automated tech service respond to your network or worse, not responding at all, show your followers that you care and send a personal response. Build in a timeframe that works for you to respond to comments and engage with your followers. Don’t stay plugged in all day long – your productivity (and possibly sanity) will suffer.
To find the right balance for promoting your published work, you will need to dedicate some time to creating a list of priorities, developing a calendar for content, and setting aside time to schedule posts and engage with your readers and fans.
