Target Your Marketing

ACFWAdvice, Authors and writing, Friends of ACFW, marketing, Social Media, tips Leave a Comment

by Ane Mulligan

As we have to do more promotion for our books, whom should we be trying to reach? Readers, of course. Okay, but exactly who are these readers?

Writers. They’re voracious readers.
Book club members.
Senior citizens; they have more time now.
Women buy 80% of all books
Chapel Springs Revival
Where do we find these people? I use the Big 3: Social Media. Websites for readers. ACFW.

Social Media
I use Twitter, Google+, Facebook and Pinterest. Twitter and Google+ are my favorites, because I see an increase in followers each time I post. While I’m more familiar with Facebook (aren’t we all?), I prefer Google+ because they don’t use an algorithm to decide who sees my post. I can choose which circles see my post or choose public. I like that aspect. Somethings I post I want to go to friends, others to Authors or Public. I have control.

Always use proper social media etiquette and promote others twice as much as you do yourself.

Websites for Readers
There are several, but my favorites are Goodreads and The Book Club Network. Both are for readers, not writers. It’s a great place to find readers and TBCN is for book clubs. I’ve picked up a few book clubs and a lot of reviews from giveaways there.

ACFW
If you carefully choose the authors whose blogs you ask to add to your blog tour, you can gain readers. Here’s the deal: I write women’s fiction. Ronie Kendig, while a dear friend, writes military thrillers. I won’t glean many readers from among her fans. I try to stick to women’s fiction and romance authors’ sites.

Yeah, I hear you shouting that you read all kinds of genres, but before you use me for an archery practice target, hear me out. We only have so many hours for marketing. Are you going to aim at a site with a thousand readers of your genre (we pick up 5-10% of those readers) or a site where you might only realize one or two new readers?

Yeah, I thought so. Target your social media and your blog tour.

Senior citizens
Here’s an entire generation who reads. Target them through websites, churches, service clubs (like Kiwanis), libraries, senior centers, parks, and even the grocery store.

A word for email marketing
Email marketing is gaining ground. According to @PublishingPush on twitter, “For every $1 spent, $44.25 is the average return on email marketing investment.”

Remember though, if you do an email newsletter, use a service like MailChimp or Constant Contact. Several offer free newsletters to up to 2,000 recipients before they charge you. These services offer instant opt outs for the recipient. Remember, at every event where you speak or do a book signing, have a newsletter sign-up sheet, because it’s illegal to send newsletters without permission and an opt-out.

Leaning AneAne Mulligan writes Southern-fried fiction served with a tall, sweet iced tea. She’s a novelist, playwright, and humor columnist. She resides in Georgia with her husband and two dogs of Biblical proportion. Chapel Springs Revival released Sept 2014, Chapel Springs Survival, releases Oct 2015, and Home to Chapel Springs, releases May 2016.

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