Blogging
A blog can be a creative outlet for a writer, not to mention a powerful promotion tool. Update it frequently (at least three times per week) and over time your traffic is bound to increase. To start yours, check out www.Typepad.com or www.Wordpress.org.
Social Media
Sites like LinkedIn.com, Facebook.com and Twitter.com are ripe for finding and building an audience. Create an interesting profile and get active in social networking communities. Invest a little time each day, be engaging, share great content and watch your fan base grow!
Internet Radio
Unlike traditional radio where you might be interviewed for 10 minutes, online radio shows, podcasts and teleseminars typically have guests on for up to an hour. An added bonus: listeners are often at their computers ready to buy! To find relevant shows, search Google for keywords and investigate shows archived on iTunes. Also check out sites like www.blogtalkradio.com, www.alltalkradio.net, www.wsradio.com, and www.womensradio.com.
Ebooks
Kindle books are currently outselling all books on Amazon. Ebooks are also being read on Barnes and Noble’s Nook, the iPhone, the iPad, home PCs and many other devices. Now is the time to embrace this excellent opportunity for authors to get exposure and earn higher royalties. Set up an account with http://dtp.amazon.com and http://smashwords.com.
Conduct a Virtual Book Tour
Contact bloggers, teleseminar hosts, and internet radio shows and let them know that you are available for interviews. Book tours are typically conducted over a period of time (two to four weeks). Cross-promote the event by posting announcements through your social media channels and blog.
Article Marketing
For years I have used article marketing as one of my top strategies. Here’s how it works: write a brief article (700 to 1,000 words) and make that article available to others to reprint on their websites and in their blogs. In exchange, users must publish your brief bio—a single paragraph about you, your book, and your website. You can distribute your articles through content directories such as http://ezinearticles.com, http://ideamarketers.com and http://goarticles.com. Also offer your articles for reprint to websites that reach your target audience!
These are all great, but the fastest way to build your list, get paid for doing it and sell hundreds at a time is with ebook/book launches or tours. The first is with an email the second with a live call-using joint venture partners with lists targeted to what you are selling. So authors shouldn’t overlook these options.
Hi Ellen, While joint venture launches can be a strategy, there are many other strategies that also work well. We have clients who have sold many books via other methods: selling to corporations, selling to schools, PR coverage, speaking engagements, and via their own followings on their blogs/websites and social media. My point is that there are a million ways to sell books and though joint ventures are an option, they aren’t a fit for everyone. I do appreciate your thoughts!
I really want to give non-fiction writing a try but have no audience.I have to thank you tons for this article and the information it gives. I have taken notes and plan on putting things into action.