To become an author requires more self-promotion than you’d think. In this chat, I talk about the steps, tools and struggles needed to get there.
Discussion notes:
My story. Writing books, writing children’s books – at this moment I have over a dozen books on Amazon, most of which are children’s books that I’ve uniquely written and illustrated based on my life struggles.
Start a blog. Or some place where you are creating content.
Write what you know. Don’t do what the other marketers say and create some niche you’re not passionate about just because the money is there.
Start with self-publishing. When you’re unknown, publishers will not pay attention to you.
Choose a main platform – I recommend Amazon.
Plan a pre-launch – build a fanbase where it matters, create buzz.
Promote yourself like crazy, put yourself out there.
Don’t get spammy with links, try being more conversational.
Ask for reviews in exchange for a free copy of your book. Aim for 10 to start.
Participate on social media. Twitter appears quite popular for authors because link sharing is popular with retweets. Facebook groups in your niche are great. Forums on Amazon, Goodreads and Reddit are great. Get on Pinterest if your content is targeted for women.
Expect to spend 12 hours per day promoting if you do not have a marketing team to start.
Price your books appropriately – a $0.99 book will give you initial exposure, but it won’t align with the quality of your books.
Try Amazon Ads. Expect an initial loss.
Try Facebook Ads for added traffic. Losses again are a given when starting out – things improve as you fine-tune and define your audience.
Get into guest blogging and interviews with partners who have more traffic than you.