How Do I Sell My Books?

A publishing client told me she doesn’t “grasp” how to sell her books. 

As a former book marketing and author platform instructor with WOW! Women on Writing, I have plenty of strategies I can share. I even recently revised a 4-part e-course.

But it dawned on me that those strategies could make the author feel like she’s being dumped in a foreign country without knowing the language. She’d feel lost.

It’s not that the lessons are difficult, but this client has NO knowledge of the writing (she’s also a ghosting client), publishing, and book marketing world. 

So, I put on my thinking cap, looked up some of my articles, and came up with a list of the bare-bottom, easiest-to-do beginner book marketing tips. LOL. That’s a mouthful. 

VISIBILITY

The foundation of any author platform is creating and maintaining visibility. 

Visibility is the promotional aspect of marketing your book. It’s about getting your book noticed. 

Here are five tips to help get you noticed.

1. The Author Website

Even though it may not sound simple, your first step is an author website.

The most popular website builder and hosting service is Bluehost (this is what I use and I'm an affiliate). There’s also GoDaddy and Wix.

The only FREE website builder and hosting service I know of is Blogger.com. It’s user-friendly, too. Most others, if not all, are free for a trial period only.

The author website is your book’s online home. Anything you do online, like social media marketing, should lead back to your website.

For an article on why you absolutely need a website, read: 

Do You STILL Need an Author Website?

2. Social Media Marketing

Social media marketing is next up on the visibility agenda. It’s the process of attracting and leading people and businesses back to your website through social networks.

These networks, such as Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, and LinkedIn, allow users to share much more information per post. 

Along with increasing website traffic through your own postings, social media networks allow the ‘sharing’ of content. This is where your visibility takes a HUGE leap.

It’s one thing for those in your social networks see the posts you share, but once your followers or connections share your post with those who follow them, your visibility is increased substantially.

Another huge benefit of social media marketing is that social networks are direct communication channels that allow users to bypass search engines such as Google and Bing.

Social network platforms have their own search engines that direct those interested in your content to you. Most network channels have a search box where the user can input keywords that will lead him to the information he wants.

This marketing strategy involves ‘joining’ the networks and posting valuable content in a specific niche or industry.

But don’t worry about providing ‘valuable’ content. You can share quotes, memes, your book blurbs, etc. You can and should also share other users’ relevant content. 

Remember, you want to be noticed and make connections.

3. Blurbs

In connection with social media marketing,  creating several blurbs and images to go with them is a good idea. 

It’s a quick and easy way to get visibility in addition to your other postings. You can make your own with services such as Canva.

Here are three I created (not with Canva):

     

4. Book Reviews

Positive reviews from reputable sources can significantly influence a book's success. Authors should reach out to book bloggers, reviewers, and influencers in their genre to request reviews. 

But it’s not just influencer reviews that matter. Everyone who reviews your book has the potential, through a positive book review, to motivate someone else to buy your book. For this reason, encouraging satisfied readers to leave reviews on platforms like Amazon and Goodreads can boost credibility and attract more readers.

A good way to encourage readers to write a review is to mention it in the backmatter of your book. It’s called a call-to-action (CTA). Create a blurb asking them if they enjoyed the book to write a book review and put it on Goodreads and Amazon.

I recently did this with my book “How to Write a Children’s Fiction Book.” I created a PDF out of the book and revised it a bit. Then, I added a CTA in the back of the book and included an incentive:

If "How To Write A Children’s Fiction Book" has been helpful, please write a review on Amazon and any other place you’d like. Goodreads is another good review site.

If you do, let me know at kcioffventrice@gmail.com. As a thank you, I will email you TWO PDFs: Understanding Book Marketing: A Guide for Beginners and DIY Self-Publishing.

It’s always helpful to incentivize your CTAs.

Book reviews can make or break a book. Positive book reviews sell books.

For more information on book marketing, check out:
How to Jumpstart Book Sales with Book Reviews

5. Book Signings, School Visits, Book Festivals, Book Fairs

I have an online friend who is a children’s author; she sells more books through book festivals and fairs than online. 

You can also contact local bookstores and ask if you can do a book signing.

There are also school visits. You set up a visit with the school. It may be held in a classroom or larger presentations in an auditorium. 

You might talk about your book, your writing process, how to get story ideas, how to get published, and so on. You might read your book aloud.  You might even conduct writing workshops.

I also have a coaching client who conducts book readings in a local theater. 

Look for venues or avenues you can take to gain valuable visibility.

I’m a working children’s ghostwriter, rewriter, editor, and coach. I can help turn your story into a book you’ll be proud to be the author of, one that’s publishable and marketable.

OTHER HELP I OFFER:

HOW TO WRITE A CHILDREN’S FICTION BOOK
A DIY book to help you write your own children’s book.

PICTURE BOOK AND CHAPTER BOOK COACHING
Four to ten-week coaching programs.

WRITERS ON THE MOVE PRESS.
Self-publishing help for children’s authors.

You can contact me at: kcioffiventrice@gmail.com. Or give me a call at 347—834—6700. (Please leave a message- I’ll get back to you as soon as I can.)