How To Market Yourself As A Self-Published Author

Self-published authors are becoming the norm. According to wordsrated.com, there are 300 million self-published books that are sold each year.

That means that now is the perfect time to share that book that you’ve always wanted to write with the rest of the world.

One of the reasons why many people hesitate to publish their own books is because every part of the publishing process will rest on their shoulders – including the marketing of their book.

Why Marketing Matters For Self-Published Authors

One of the reasons why many authors have wanted to sign with traditional publishing companies is because of their marketing tactics.

As an author, it’s very tempting to leave all of your book’s marketing strategies in the hands of a publishing company. After all, they have connections and a reach far greater than you.

But that’s not necessarily true, is it? As an author, you have a group of family members, friends, and even acquaintances who all know other people.

You also have some type of social media platform, whether it’s Instagram, Twitter, or Pinterest.

You also know how to promote something, whether you’re aware that you’re doing it or not.

So it seems like you bring so much more to the table when it comes to marketing.

As a self-published author, you can use the same marketing tips as traditional publishing companies to market your book.

Here are some actions that can help you create the best marketing strategy for your book.

Discover Your Target Audience

All marketing strategies begin with the target audience.

You want to think about who is going to be reading your book. Is it a children’s book, or a book for young adults?

Are your readers interested in romance, science fiction, or horror? What age range are they?

The more you can envision your audience in your mind, the easier it will be to think of how to market to them.

Create Your Own Website

Next, you’ll need to establish your online presence. One of the best ways to establish a strong online presence is with a website.

As an author, you’ll need somewhere online where your audience can find you and learn more about you. That’s why a website is so crucial.

Your website can be used to establish your individual brand, share more of your book with your audience, and promote your book and future works.

You can also post additional content that can help build your credibility with your audience. Many website owners use blog posts, articles, and other written content to drive more traffic to their websites.

Instead of just relying on Amazon or other social media platforms to promote your book, you can use your website to promote it to the right people.

Create A Mailing List For Your Readers

It’s not just enough to have your readers visit your website. You need a way to remain in constant communication with them without getting on their nerves.

To do this, you should consider adding an email marketing service to your website. You’ve seen this before. These are the ads that ask you to sign up with your email address for exclusive deals.

In exchange for having your readers subscribe to your email list, you can offer them writing content like newsletters. Newsletters are the perfect type of written content to submit to your readers.

They’re long enough for your readers to enjoy without getting annoyed. You can include information like updates with your book or special discounts in your newsletter.

Collaborate On Different Platforms

Another way to increase your online presence and connect with your target audience is through different social media platforms.

On the social media side, there are so many platforms for authors and readers. You can find your tribe on various Facebook writing groups.

You can connect with other authors and book reviewers on Instagram or TikTok.

You can also collaborate with several BookTubers on YouTube.

Even outside of social media, you can collaborate with several podcasters in your book’s genre. There are podcasts that are literally geared toward promoting self-published books and book marketing.  

Make a list of the potential podcasts, YouTube channels, or book reviewers on social media that you want to collaborate with and network.

Build Up Anticipation Through Your Social Media Platforms

You can also use your personal social media accounts to share portions of your book with your audience.

Sharing details like your book cover or a few portions of your chapters can help build anticipation with your readers.

It’s also a great way to remind your readers of your book without pestering them.

Schedule A Book Blog Tour

One of the best tools you can use as a self-published author are book reviews.

Everyone wants to get a second opinion before purchasing a product, and that is especially true when it comes to books.

One of the best ways to receive reviews for your book is to take it through a book blog tour.

Book blog tours are digital tours that your book takes through various blogs and platforms. It’s similar to a physical book tour, but instead of visiting physical bookstores your book will be reviewed by several bloggers.

If you want to do a book blog tour, you must make sure that it is planned out weeks in advance from your release date. Book blog tours usually last between one to two weeks. They are one of the greatest ways to build buzz around your book.

When planning your book blog tour, you want to make sure that you remain organized throughout the entire process. You want to keep track of the bloggers you are contacting, the number of review copies that you want to provide for bloggers, and the dates that your blogs will be posted.

You also want to reach out to bloggers who review books in the same genre as your book. If you want your science fiction novel to be reviewed, the last type of bloggers you want reviewing it are romance book reviewers.

More Information On Self-Publishing

As you can see, there are several steps that you can take to market yourself as a self-published author. Traditional publishing companies are not the only parties who are capable of marketing books.

To learn more about the self-publishing process, check out my blog post Can Self-Publishing Really Work For You? – Valeria Publications.

Also feel free to share in the comments below if you’re in the process of publishing your book.

Sources:

Nicholas Rizzo. February 2, 2022. Self-published Books & Authors Sales Statistics [2022]. https://wordsrated.com. Link: Self-published Books & Authors Sales Statistics [2022] – WordsRated