Why Authors SHOULDN'T Only Focus On Social Media For Their Marketing

For many authors, social media can seem like the only thing to focus on when it comes to your marketing.

But honestly, it really shouldn't be the only focus for ongoing sales. *Gonna step on some toes here*

Social media is not our home. 

• It’s not a space we own. It could get shut down tomorrow.

• The clock app might not be here soon.

• The picture app changes features literally every week that no one asked for. 

• Glitches happen on every platform. 

Though all of these are true, and it’s frustrating, we can’t get mad at how someone handles their business in “their house”. Instead, we adapt and make changes to be able to be invited back again because readers are logged on. 

Now hear me…I did NOT say completely forget about social media.

All of these apps are wonderful tools to be able to reach people from across the world who might not have known about your book before seeing your post. Additionally, having others snap a pic with your book is something that will always make dance. *Shout out to those in Australia, India, the UK, etc for ordering my books*

When it comes to getting continuous sales on a platform, over time, we have to remember, though the likes, shares, and comments make us feel good, they shouldn’t be the primary metric we focus on when it comes to selling our books.

Instead, there is another option that's often overlooked. It doesn’t have as much razzle dazzle, but it works consistently. And you've also likely heard of it before: email marketing. 

Ok, I know you're thinking, “Emails?? I hate getting emails!” 

And maybe you do, however think about how many email lists you are subscribed to and stayed on because you 

• found value in what the person was saying 

• were waiting on a coupon (just keepin’ it real) 

• are waiting on concert tickets (That’s how I got to see Adele - shout out to hubby.) 

Whether you believe it or not, there are people out there who think the same thing about your book(s), products, and services. 

This means they would quite possibly love to be on your email list and are happy to hear about things you might share about your book and surrounding topics to show your expertise. 

So if you are interested in learning more, you can grab my on demand class. It’s free and titled: Why Every Author Needs An Email List.  

Oh, and one more thing…email newsletters are not the same thing as email marketing. 

Think back to Geometry class…I know it was my least favorite math class. But catch the lesson:

a square is a rectangle but a rectangle is not a square.

The same goes for email marketing vs. newsletters. 

A newsletter is part of email marketing…but email marketing is not (just) newsletters.

If I lost you, don’t worry. You can get clarity on understanding why email marketing is a must for authors these days even better with my free masterclass: https://sheppublishing.kartra.com/page/EmailsForAuthorsFreeClass.

Let me know, do you use email marketing for your books?