Writing Corner: Engaging with an Audience
You've worked on a book for six months. You've edited it multiple times, it has been reviewed by beta readers, editors, etc. You've listed the book, promoted it on your social media platforms, and it is finally launch day. Eagerly you wait to see the response to something you've devoted quite a bit of time to.
The book is published and now you are monitoring your sales. You are doing so not for monetary reasons, but you want to see if people are reading your book. You see the sales numbers and page reads and the region breakdown. There are people out there reading your book, you can see the numbers. However, you are not getting any reviews or reader feedback. So, how can you connect with your existing audience and possibly engage potential new readership?
I've found that being on social media not solely for promotion is a good way to connect with people. I tweet about upcoming movies and television shows, reply to others' tweets, send out random polls, all having nothing to do with books. I still promote on Twitter, but that is not the only thing I do.
I also have this blog which I use as my website. I have many promotional posts about my books, but I also have posts like this, just my musings on writing and being a self-published author. I also occasionally have random 'About Me' posts that are like a really long tweet.
Finally, I publish a podcast focused on being an Indie Author. There is a bit of overlap with some blog posts, but I tend to expand my views on self-publishing and promoting in the podcast episodes. I also don't use the podcast to promote my books as much as I use my website.
Using multiple venues to connect with the audience has been a success. I have people that first learned of me from listening to my podcast episodes and they have since connected with me. I've had people DM on Twitter and others submit Contact Me forms. I am slowly building an online presence and am happy to hear from anyone, regardless of if you buy my books.
There are plenty of posts, Youtube videos, online subscription newsletters, and other means with the best / greatest / most valuable way to increase your sales. This is nothing like that.
I just like to hear from my audience, whether it be readers of my books, people who follow my blog posts, listeners of my podcast, or those who suffer through my twitter floods and droughts.
The book is published and now you are monitoring your sales. You are doing so not for monetary reasons, but you want to see if people are reading your book. You see the sales numbers and page reads and the region breakdown. There are people out there reading your book, you can see the numbers. However, you are not getting any reviews or reader feedback. So, how can you connect with your existing audience and possibly engage potential new readership?
I've found that being on social media not solely for promotion is a good way to connect with people. I tweet about upcoming movies and television shows, reply to others' tweets, send out random polls, all having nothing to do with books. I still promote on Twitter, but that is not the only thing I do.
I also have this blog which I use as my website. I have many promotional posts about my books, but I also have posts like this, just my musings on writing and being a self-published author. I also occasionally have random 'About Me' posts that are like a really long tweet.
Finally, I publish a podcast focused on being an Indie Author. There is a bit of overlap with some blog posts, but I tend to expand my views on self-publishing and promoting in the podcast episodes. I also don't use the podcast to promote my books as much as I use my website.
Using multiple venues to connect with the audience has been a success. I have people that first learned of me from listening to my podcast episodes and they have since connected with me. I've had people DM on Twitter and others submit Contact Me forms. I am slowly building an online presence and am happy to hear from anyone, regardless of if you buy my books.
There are plenty of posts, Youtube videos, online subscription newsletters, and other means with the best / greatest / most valuable way to increase your sales. This is nothing like that.
I just like to hear from my audience, whether it be readers of my books, people who follow my blog posts, listeners of my podcast, or those who suffer through my twitter floods and droughts.
Comments
Post a Comment