Now that you have chosen self-publishing , one of the crucial steps that need attention from day one is brand building. Unlike traditional publishing, where marketing was done by the publisher only, authors today are their own brand ambassadors.

Brand building for authors is not limited to established writers; neither is it rocket science. The democratic nature of the Internet and social media equips every author with tools to construct their unique brand.

One of the sweet dreams of every writer is that if their content is appealing, word of mouth will take care of the marketing of the book. But the hard fact is that relying only on one marketing tool for promotion is not a good idea. Completing your manuscript will give you satisfaction, and publishing it will make you a published author, but getting people to read your book will require more effort than trusting on the quality of your book or word of mouth.

An author brand is a connecting thread of all the marketing efforts for increasing publicity of your book. It synchronizes all your efforts towards a common goal of persuading your potential readers to buy your book. Writers unfamiliar with the term “author brand” might assume it to be a high-end marketing concept. Don’t worry, it’s more about application than theory – and quite simple. Here’s a step-by-step guide for creating your author brand without any expert help.

Define yourself
Building an author brand begins with knowing yourself. On a piece of paper, answer questions like – Why did I write the book? How does the work inspire me? What value am I offering? Composing these thoughts together will give you a better idea of your mission and vision for writing your book. Remember, your books can be in different genres, but your personality cannot change with every new book. Clarity of your thoughts will ensure you avoid activities that would dilute your brand.

Discover your audience
You may write a book with or without knowing your readers, but while creating an author brand, give high priority to knowing the person who would read your book. Break down the interests, hobbies, reading habits, age, gender, and attention span of your reader. Scan the places where such people hang out either in cafés, libraries, or social media groups. See what they comment on in social media. These insights will help you feed the right content to your audience while promoting your book.

Communicate
Every word is spoken, and every sentence written by you on the internet will be scrutinized, judged, and analyzed by your audience. Your communication strategy needs to be in sync with your brand values and your audience. When someone finds your book for the first time, he/she would like to explore more about the author. This is your opportunity to grab attention, share, and convince – to influence their buying decision. To look like a professional, you need to have:

• An Author website: You have to build a world of your own on this website to provide relevant and non-relevant information your audience is looking for. Your potential reader may want to know about your background, location, education, hobbies, photos, books you read, your beliefs, and the kind of person you are. Again, it may sound everything, but it’s very much targeted and well-structured information on the website.
• A Blog: Maintaining a blog with relevant information can give that delicate balance between promotional and information content to your website. It can also bring new audiences.
• Social Media Pages: Your posts, photos, and comments on social media platforms like Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, and Instagram should all talk the same tone. You can choose to be friendly, authoritative, feminine, or informative, but according to the values you are proposing, and your target audience.
• An Author Bio: The information in this section is critical in all platforms, either website or social media. A short and crisp note about you can bring the reader under your spell. Be sure to include your achievements and what you stand for in this section.

Brand Identity
The Internet is crowded, and getting noticed is becoming difficult every day. Your website and social media presence might have outstanding content but may fail to hold the attention of visitors. Brand identity will add the final spark to the compelling copy you have written. So what comprises brand identity for an author?

Things that usually go unnoticed make up the list of brand identities such as color, design, logo, font, icons, graphics, and brand tagline. If you are planning to write a series of books, consistency in design plays a vital role in distinguishing your series from standalone titles, as well as from other authors. Every element should reciprocate the same set of ideas you believe in considering the target audience.

Reinforce
The author’s brand will become successful when you repeat the same message and thoughts in all the platforms you promote. Your audience should be familiar with the colors, the font, and the tagline you use. Slowly, your messages will stick to your audience’s thoughts with minimal effort.

The growth of your brand will revolve around the engagement level with your audience on social media. You can measure your success with the number of shares and comments you get on social media. Eventually, the author’s brand will be useful when you write your next book. You can conduct a survey on the type of book people expect or want to read from you.

All the above tasks may appear overwhelming initially, but don’t worry, we are here to help you. Prowess Publishing guides authors in all frontiers of book marketing and author promotion. Our marketing team will help you create your brand step by step. Contact us.

Please follow and like us: