First Appeared on the Burning Soul Press Blog 9.21.21
“Building a social media strategy doesn’t have to be intimidating.”
You’re in the throes of writing your book: first drafts… edits… revisions… you name it. And now you have to think about how to market and sell your book to your ideal reader.
Building your social media strategy doesn’t have to be intimidating – it doesn’t even have to be time consuming. The trick is learning how to develop a sustainable strategy that works for you. Because the reality is… you have to have a presence on social media to remain relevant in the conversation.
Read on to learn the 3 key strategies to jumpstart your author presence on social media:
First, Pick your Platform:
- Choose one (or two) platform that you’re comfortable with. It’s better to do well in just one than spread your presence too thin.
- Select a platform based on the authors you follow and enjoy. Be mindful about common interests and goals. Follow… engage… grow organically. TIP: do not ever pay for followers.
- Be knowledgeable. The top 3 platforms for the writing community include Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter (and the new up and coming platform is Tik Tok).
Second, Engage with your Audience:
- To build your organic audience, start by research authors in your genre. Engage with them. Comment on their content and seek out their other forms of marketing (podcasts, videos, blogs, etc.)
- Commit to 15-20 minutes a day of external engagement. You can have the world’s most beautiful content, but if you’re not spending the time engaging with others, the organic growth you seek will not happen.
- Hashtags are key. Research relevant hashtags in your genre. Create a cheat sheet that caters to the audience you’re hoping to reach with each post.
Third, Post your Content:
- Utilize programs that allow you to schedule your posts in advance (Later, Hootsuite, Facebook Business Suite, etc.). Avoid posting on Fridays and weekends. The best time to post is mid-morning Monday – Thursday.
- The sweet spot is three posts per week. For every one post that promotes your book, you should have two posts that focus on other parts of your writing journey. Rarely post external links (Facebook’s algorithm does not like them).
- Consider your brand. Every post should be consistent in theme, font, color palate, and tone. Your most recent post should tie-in or build upon your last post. Every post should have an action item. Ask or tell your reader what you want them to do with the information you’ve posted.
To jumpstart the organic social media growth you seek, follow these strategies. And have fun! Afterall, it’s about the journey – not the end result.