Top 5 Best Social Media to Use for Social Marketing If You’re An Author

Authors nowadays need not even rely on traditional marketing media to get word on their works out to the world. Today, social media networks and websites can serve as superb platforms for that purpose, allowing authors, artists, and other creative minds to bring their talents and products to the public’s attention through social networking and direct interaction. Below we list some of the best social media websites that you can use for this purpose and even give you some tips that can help you make the most of each option.





1. Facebook – No surprise here. Nearly everyone is already on this website, and that includes companies and other entities more concerned with business than “pure” personal socialization. Authors can get a lot out of Facebook since it allows for a variety of media on its pages. Consider using your Facebook account to post visual updates on your book, for instance: photos of key events in its genesis or of things related to its contents can generate more interest than a dry snippet of text. You can also start up promotional contests here that will get word out about your work.





2. LinkedIn – This is a great resource for those with books that deal specifically with something of interest to the business world. LinkedIn’s demographic has a higher average household income per user than most other sites—Facebook and Twitter included—and most people logging into it do so for rather more serious business than your average social networking site. Business tends to be the big topic here, which is why authors with business-related books can do some fine promotion on it. To get the most out of LinkedIn, join groups relevant to your topic and spruce up your profile with links to your site or products.




3. YouTube – This is undoubtedly one of the best social media marketing resources online: YouTube is not only interactive (people react to videos, create video responses, link them to others, comment on them, etc.) but also easy to use, and in some cases, you might not even need your own video camera to use its marketing potential. If you know people who review or talk about stuff related to your topic or book on their channels, you can simply send them a message and invite them to talk about your book in exchange for something like a free copy. This way, you get videos talking about you out to the right audience—which is provided for you straightaway in this method.




4. Twitter – This just has to be mentioned if you are marketing something with social media. Twitter might not allow you to put out a lot of content per tweet, but short and sweet can actually be a good thing where marketing is concerned: it condenses information into just the most important, most scintillating core of the idea and tantalizes the reader into wanting more. Just remember, though: when you use Twitter to market your book, steer clear of direct sales pitches (or, at least, of using them alone). You should try to intrigue people before even directing them to a sales page, and the best way to do that is to tweet information or useful ideas from the book—as opposed to ones that are simply about it.




5. Google+ - Of course, no list on great social media sites for marketing would be complete absent Google+. Google+ can function much like Facebook—albeit with even wider integration in your other web activities—and you can promote your books with it by joining relevant communities and circles as well as participating in events that may be concerned with your topic. Communities, in particular, can be very helpful, as they let you get in touch with those who think the same way or are interested in the same things: the ideal readership for your new work.



About the author: Ashley Hartnett is a consultant in social media marketing and, more broadly, Internet marketing. She occasionally gives talks on the topic, and is currently involved in marketing a number of sites and online brands, including Morbie.com.