Do you remember the days when people used to communicate everything through traditional methods like letters, phone calls, and face-to-face interaction and not rely on social media platforms? Good old days, right? So, given the chance, will you go back to those times? We can sense you all nodding your heads in disagreement. Social media has made our lives easy and entertaining, even for authors. To put things into perspective, picture this: you’re an author who has to rely more on traditional methods to reach out to your audience, like library events, book signings, interviews, etc., to promote your book. Despite doing it all, there are still chances that you don’t get the recognition you deserve. How will you feel? We’re guessing it’s an awful feeling. But nowadays, things have changed immensely; authors can benefit significantly from social media if used correctly. But how? What is the right way to promote your book on social media? If questions like these trouble you, this blog post is for you.
What are Social Media Platforms and How to Stand Out?
Social media platforms offer a place for people to connect and share snippets of their lives with the world. Besides, it plays a significant role in effacing boredom by showcasing memes, photos, and videos that people share with their audience. It’s where trends are born, friendships are forged, and creativity takes flight. Nowadays, everybody is well-versed in social media platforms, but using them effectively and standing out in the digital world is crucial, and the key to going viral is to engage with your community and utilize tools to attract the right audience and gain the recognition you deserve.
So, as an author, you can create an author page and encourage your readers to provide their reviews on the book cover and title or share sneak peeks to intrigue them. By doing so, you can make your readers feel like they are a part of your book publishing journey, ultimately attracting the right audience.
Things to Consider Before Choosing Social Media Platforms
Nowadays, not just adults or teenagers but even children are highly active on social media platforms. Therefore, attracting an audience that relates to the genre you write is crucial. Moreover, deciding on the social media platform that helps you intrigue the right audience is also essential. So, we have tabulated certain things that you should keep in mind before deciding on the social media platform to promote your book.
- Target Audience: The best way to choose the social media platform to promote your book is to comprehend your target audience, their interests, and behavirour. For instance, if your book is for young adults drawn to visual content, platforms like Instagram might be more suitable. Or, if your book is for a professional audience, LinkedIn or Twitter could be a better option for interacting with them. Basically, comprehending where your target audience spends the most time online and promoting your book on those platforms will maximize your reach and engagement.
- Comfort Level: Although social media is widely used and accessible, using it efficiently might not be everyone’s cup of tea. Therefore, as an author, you should comprehend your comfort level by evaluating your familiarity with multiple social media platforms. Once you know which social media platform you can use efficiently, you can engage with your audience more authentically, leading to a more genuine book promotion strategy.
- Use of Hashtags: The ideal way to attract an audience is to leverage relevant hashtags, which helps people find your content easily. Moreover, you can create unique hashtags specifically for your book to build a community and encourage readers to engage with content related to the book. Additionally, engaging with users who use similar hashtags can also help you reach a new audience and generate buzz around your book.
- Age Group: Before choosing social media apps to promote your book, understanding the age group of your target audience is also essential. You will see that all the older people are more active on Facebook. Whereas the younger generation primarily uses Instagram, Twitter, etc. So, if you have written fan fiction, promoting it on Instagram would be ideal. Therefore, comprehending your target audience and what type of social media they use can help you promote your book efficiently.
Strategies to Boost Your Online Presence
So far, we have come to the realisation that the ultimate aim of promoting your book on social media is to engage your audience to enhance book sales. Now, there are two ways to engage your target audience: organic and paid traffic.
As the name suggests, organic followers are those gained naturally with the help of relevant hashtags, engaging content, and genuine interaction with the audience. These followers are typically more valuable as they are truly interested in the shared content.
On the contrary, strategies such as sponsored posts, influencer collaboration, or targeted ads help you gain paid traffic. This strategy instantly boosts the number of followers, but they may not be genuinely interested in your content or engage with your brand.
On a Parting Note
To conclude, book publishing and promotion have become more effortless than ever. Now, you don’t have to follow traditional methods to reach out to your audience, as you can find your bookish community on social media. All you have to do is attract your audience strategically by comprehending social media’s algorithm. The simple and easy way to boost your online presence is to use a social media app you are well-versed in and see if your target audience is active on that app. Besides, you can use relevant hashtags to engage with your audience. You can also enhance your online presence through organic and paid traffic. The ultimate idea is to put in a little effort, and your book will stand out in the literary market.
Please let us know your thoughts on this post by leaving a reply in the comments section. Also, check out our recent post on “How AI tools are useful for authors?”
