Increase Book Sales with Strategic Marketing

Imagine writing a book and not knowing if anyone would even read it? Or worse, writing a book without knowing how to sell it or get readers to buy it. Would your manuscript languish on the virtual shelves of Amazon for years with not-so-kind reviews? No matter how much you love writing and reading, most people won't discover your work until you find a way to market it. This is why increasing your book sales becomes so essential. The good news is many self-published authors have been helping others improve their book sales by sharing best practices and strategies they used to do the same. Whether you're just starting out or ready to take your game up, these tips can help you expand your reach as an author — even if you write fiction instead of non-fiction.

Create a solid brand for your book

If you don't have a solid brand for your work, you won't be able to expand your sales beyond your current audience. You might be able to sell a handful of books every year, but that's great — you can rest assured knowing you've done your best. But, if you want to see strong growth in sales, you need to create a brand for your work that can encompass all areas of your book marketing plan. Ideally, you want to create a brand that includes all your marketing efforts so they work together like a well-oiled machine.

Provide value in your work

It's one thing to submit your book to agents, editors, and other places to find a publisher. Still, it's another thing to get readers excited about your book. So what can you do to make your work valuable? To start, look at your book from a reader's perspective. What value does your job offer them? Ask yourself this question and make sure it's important to you too. Is there a specific thing readers would get out of reading your book? For example, suppose you write a book about how to build a better relationship with your children. In that case, you might value that more than you love writing about another topic. Find the value in your work, and you'll create a much stronger brand for your book.

Write a clear and compelling synopsis

It's essential to make your synopsis clear and compelling enough so that potential readers know exactly what they'll get and why they want to read it. And you want to do this while keeping it concise — a synopsis that is 50 pages long will get lost in a publishing house or agent inbox. In contrast, one that is only a few pages long will get their attention. A synopsis should be no less than one or two pages long. If you can condense it further, even better. Ensure you include your book's major plot points, themes, and characters so potential readers can get a quick feel for what they'll get from reading your work. You'll also want to include the genre, word count, publication date, and other pertinent information. Again — keep it concise, but make sure it's clear and compelling enough for a reader to want to pick up your book.

Use paid advertising

When reaching readers, nothing is better than targeted paid advertising. Paid advertising is where a publisher or other entity pays you to create ads for your book on sites like Google, Facebook, Amazon, or any other place with ads. Once these ads are online, they can be seen by potential readers searching for books. Paid advertising is one of the most effective ways to increase book sales. You can also use paid advertising to promote your non-fiction book or a series. For example, if you write paranormal romance, you could create an ad promoting the first book in a series. While paid ads are very targeted, they are costly and may not be the right fit for your work. You want to pick the right target audience and genre of books, as well as the price and placement of the ad — all of which will play into the success of your ad.

Include giveaways and other organic marketing tactics

If all you do is pay for ads and hope for a bump in sales, you'll likely be disappointed. What you really want to be doing is building an audience of readers who are excited about your work, have read your book, and can recommend your book to their friends and family. While paid ads and marketing campaigns are great for getting new readers, offering giveaways and other organic marketing tactics is the best way to grow your book sales. Offer free excerpts, review copies, reviews, and other free book giveaways to build an audience of fans who can recommend your work and even purchase your books. Create email lists and grow your mailing list with daily emails that include exclusive content and discounts. Make your writing and publishing process as transparent as possible, so readers know as much about your process as possible.

Take advantage of e-readers and audio books as new media options

To expand your reach as an author, it makes sense to try new media options. While you may be tempted to stick to traditional publishing, there is more competition in this space, which makes it crucial to be creative. And the more creative you are, the more likely you'll see success. New media options such as e-readers and audiobooks can be great ways to get your work in front of new readers who may not read traditional forms of media. E-readers are a popular way for readers to get their books on the go, and they can also be a great way to expand your reach. You can also create audio versions of your work that can be downloaded on Audible or any other platform. What you want to do is pick one or two new media options and really dig in. Look at what types of readers you can reach and how you can make your work more accessible to them.

Don't forget about blogging and podcasting

Blogging, podcasting, and other forms of self-publishing can be a great way to increase your book sales. If you're a successful blogger or podcaster, you can help other authors find their feet and find loyal readers. And you can also create your own content for your blog or podcast, which can be great for building an audience and creating more value for your work. You're usually best off starting a blog or podcast if you haven't done so already. This will give you a focus and help you stay focused on marketing your work. You may want to partner with another author or create an audiobook.

Bottom line

It's important to remember that increasing book sales is an ongoing process. It's not something you do once, and then it's done. It's something you have to constantly work on; sometimes, you'll see a spike in sales, and other times you won't. It's worth remembering that best-selling authors must continuously find new ways to grow their fan base, which can be difficult when you've already made it. But the good news is, you can do it too. And once you do, you'll be well on your way to living the dream of writing and publishing books.

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Thank you for taking the time to read my article! I have much more to come on writing, self-publishing, and marketing geared toward writers and authors.

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~ Matthew