Remember that whilst we are trying to sell our books, most people don’t respond well to hard selling all the time. Your audience needs to get to know you and take value from your content. When planning out your content, think about not only what your audience would like to see but who you are as a person – where your interests and strengths lie and prioritise them.
You can create content around: writing snippets, talking about your writing process, what the publishing process looks like, sharing your love of books: that’s something that everyone in your audience will share with you so lean into it!
If your audience is also made up of writers – how can you help them? What value can you provide? That might come in the form of writing advice, talking about your experiences with professional editors, cover artists etc. so writers who haven’t experienced that yet can know a little more about what it’s like.
You also need a good hook for your brand – the same way that your first chapter and blurb need to hook your readers, you need a hook to draw in your ideal audience. If someone clicks on your social media account or website what is going to grab their attention and make them want to stay?
Show off your personality in order to find like-minded people. Even the most introverted of us are social creatures by nature and we automatically get excited when we come across similar people who share our interests. Talk about your inspiration – books? Tv? Where did your ideas come from? Talk about the themes in your books and your characters. Let people fall in love with your stories and the people in them.
Keep in mind that organic growth is slow and can be hard. Branding yourself well makes the process much easier for you and for your ideal readers to find you and that’s the ultimate goal of marketing through social media – having the right reader experience your work and enjoy it. So be clear about who your ideal reader is, what they can expect from your platform and your work, and most of all be yourself! Ultimately the biggest draw for your brand and your books is you. There are thousands of books out there with the same plot or characters as your books. There are also millions of authors out there working to market themselves BUT no one tells that story exactly the same as you and along that same vein, there is no one out there like you, use it to your advantage!
S. M. MITCHELL 