Promote your book on high traffic websites
As well as your author platform, and social media channels, there are other ways to promote your book and your author profile.
Websites
Amazon
Set up your Amazon author page. When you have built a tribe, it’s very disappointing for readers to click on your author profile to find a lacklustre author page. They want to see you shining in the limelight. Amazon has added this feature because they know this human connection matters a great deal to readers. Check out Amazon Author Central for more information. You can also add a basic bio in CreateSpace.
Goodreads
Goodreads Author Program is a free program any author can join. All you need is a published book that can be found in their database. Claiming your author profile page enables you to promote your book and engage with readers. As a verified author, you can tell your fans to follow you on Goodreads by using the badge associated with your profile.
To find any information about you on Goodreads, search using your ISBN, and then click on the author profile. You can email the Goodreads team and authenticate your account.
As a verified account, you can manage your profile. Once you get access, update your profile image to be the same as your author profile photo. Double-check your bio and book details are correct. You can connect your blog to your profile too.
Goodreads is a high traffic website is a great place to advertise your books and run offers and promotions. There are marketing tools you can use to help generate more book buzz.
Online ticketing for events
Create a workshop based on your content. Your table of contents is a stone’s throw away from being a great course syllabus and provides the skeleton outline for your slides. Put together a video explaining more about the event and pay to have it promoted to your audience using social media and search engine advertising. Add your course to websites like Eventbrite to handle the ticketing – www.eventbrite.com is a good one.
Listings
Have a look for online directories that would be a good fit for your author platform website. Look for book lists on blogs and ask to be included.
Become a HARO source.
HARO stands for “Help A Reporter Out”, which is an email service where journalists, podcasters and bloggers etc ask for experts to comment or appear on a feature they are putting together.
The list is broken down into categories, like relationships, business, finance, and lifestyle and is sent out several times a day. It only takes a few moments to check through for opportunities and apply. When you do apply, mention you are available for future articles and would like to be added to their contact database.
Look for organisations in your field that send large-volume emails. Try to get your book reviewed in their email or newsletter. When the number of people receiving the emails is 100,000 or more it’s sometimes referred to as an email blast. Else see if you can get a paid placement.
Share an edited and formatted snippet of the final draft of your book to build an email list. Use this list to build a relationship and build up pre-launch buzz. Alternatively, give away the snippet and let people know they can sign up for an email alert about your book launch.
If you have an email list then create an autoresponder sequence that follows a simple three-step strategy. Your first email is 100% content based and shares helpful information related to your book topic. The second email has content but also lets people understand the problem what they need to do to get the result they want (solving a problem, meeting a need). The third one is a promotion for your book, showing how the material will get them that result, with a link to buy a copy.
Put something inside your book that encourages people to sign up for your email list. Downloadable supporting resources are a great option. Think spreadsheets, checklists, templates – things that speed up applying your advice. You then have a list to promote your message to, whether that’s more helpful advice, the launch of your next book, other related events, products and services your readers may be interested in. Some of these people may also volunteer to be your beta-readers for your next book. You can’t have too many people checking your book for silly mistakes – with over 30,000 words and 1 million characters, there is always an infinitesimally small chance a mistake will creep in, and they do.
Put a link to your book in your email signature (and if you’re a bestselling author, then make sure you say that!).
Next up in the series is advertising, incentives and paid placement.
See ya.
