Does Social Media Really Sell Books?

In brief, yes and no.

Over at Writer Unboxed, I’ve written a post on social media marketing. It begins:

Most new authors, upon securing a book contract or planning a book launch, are advised they need to establish a Twitter account, a Facebook page, or [list social media channel here]. Why? To market their book, of course.

This presents an immediate dilemma: If the author is not already active on these channels, of her own interest and volition, she now has the mindset of using these tools to “market”—and the new author may have no idea what that means beyond telling people to like their page or follow them.

Go read the full post (with a wonderful discussion in the comments), A Key Marketing Principle That Authors Must Learn (or Not Forget).

And for those paying attention, I am once again a regular Writer Unboxed columnist. It’s good to be back, and my thanks to Therese and the WU family for so warmly welcoming my return.

The post Does Social Media Really Sell Books? appeared first on Jane Friedman and was written by Jane Friedman.