Marketing is a key component of any indie author’s business strategy. This year, I’ve been at least loosely following BookWork‘s month by month marketing plan. The early months are more about research and figuring out who to connect with, and then building on that throughout the year.
Some other marketing ideas and practices to consider include:
- “Best Marketing Strategies for a Long-Tail Book Promotion” on ALLi: Build an email list, reach out to influencers, and stack promotions if possible.
- “Media Networking via Social Platforms for Author Publicity” on BookWorks: Find media people on social media, read stuff they post about, and make a connection with them/pitch to them.
- “Promotion is NOT Platform & Ads are NOT a Brand: Know the Difference” on Kristen Lamb: “Once the brand is defined, the audience cultivated and a rapport established…THEN promotion and ads can be an asset.”
- “To Translate or Not to Translate” on Books Beck: Decide if it’s worth paying the costs of translating your books to open them up to new markets.
- “Free Digital Products Are the Backbone of This Content Marketing Strategy” on Shopify: “Effective content marketing isn’t merely about churning out blog posts, YouTube videos, or podcasts—it’s about creating value independent of your products or services and giving it away to your ideal customers. In this episode of Shopify Masters, you’ll learn from an entrepreneur who did just that with free digital products, growing an email list of over of 200,000 parents and teachers.”
- “How to Sell More Books: A Tale of Fishing & Catfishing” on Kristen Lamb: “The more niche we can become, the less competition we have to outmaneuver and outdo.”