Sonaali and Shreshtra

What are the top social media platforms available in India and the USA for book promotions?

Gone are the days where books were promoted only through traditional methods like book signing events, author meet and greet, and newspaper articles. In today’s world, social media is the key to promote their books and reach the right audience. 

Instagram, YouTube, Goodreads and Twitter are the best platforms authors can choose to promote their work. Creating a Facebook group for discussing about the book will attract all like-minded people, keeping them engaged with updates about the book might turn into sales. Book trailers have become a trend these days. It not only catches the eyes of readers but also non-readers as well. 

At what stage of my book publishing journey should I consider social media promotions? Pre publishing or post and how?

As book bloggers, we feel a book will attain its optimum reach when the author chooses to promote the work at a pre-publishing phase. This will keep the readers talking, and it will create hype even before its release. One of the ways to promote a book before the release is to post countdowns for the title, cover and blurb reveal. This is where book influencers act as a bridge and help the authors connect better with their target audience.

What are the 5 most effective ways to promote books on social media?

Reels have more reach when it comes to Instagram. Reels are the modern-day rabbit hole and the most effective way for promotion. They can post a bit about their book with trending music. The author can issue e-letters to their subscribers from their website. This will not only give instant updates to their followers but also add a personal touch. Offering a free chapter on the author’s website give the readers a sneak peek and leave them wanting more. The author can advance a few copies to reviewers in exchange for honest reviews. The author can host book release events on Goodreads and keep the readers updated.

What are the common mistakes made by first-time authors while promoting the book on social media?

There is a fine line between giving away enough plot, and more than which they tend to become spoilers. The author must always keep the blurb short and keep the readers guessing. Giving away too much during promotions would take away the essence of the book. The author must have a proper editor. Another common mistake the first-time authors make is that there is no good proofreading. If there are any grammatical errors in the blurb, it will not set a good impression. The authors must interact and connect with the readers on social media. They must not solely focus on selling the book. Marketing a book before the launch is crucial. That will help the author build a good set of audiences.

What kind of post engagement is received on social media while promoting books? What is the percentage of clicks, likes, and comments?

Relevance is as important as growth. Authors can share inspiring stories of how they turned into an author or the struggles they faced. These posts will receive a lot of attention and engagement. Proper use of hashtags will boost the performance of the post. Authors must set unique keywords as hashtags for their books. People can follow that hashtag and get updated about the book. Authors must engage with as many comments as they can to boost the reach of the post. The author can organise a Q and A session virtually and give a bit about the book. When the author has more than 10K followers on Instagram, the swipe up feature is unlocked. This feature will increase the clicks to their website.

How much money should I spend on social media promotions for my book and some things to keep in mind?

Authors should set a budget and work the marketing strategy according to the size of the budget. They can take the help of book influencers to get the word out. They can pay an amount equitable to the efforts put in by the book bloggers. It is sad when the author does not recognize our work. The author must be open to accepting constructive criticism. Authors must not buy the review but be confident about their work.

How to find the perfect hashtags and time to post my book promotions on social media?

When it comes to Instagram, the author can access Insights. They can look at the perfect timing and day to post their content when maximum users are active. In general, it is always better to post during late evenings and at night as it is the time when most people wind up with their work. Social Media is all about keeping up with the trend. Instagram allows the usage of up to 30 hashtags. Hashtags help the audience to find relevant content. The right mix of hashtags will boost the reach. Using Niche hashtags will help to attract the target audience. It sets a perspective on the content. The best way to use hashtags in Facebook and Twitter is to be specific and relevant.

What are the things an author should be cautious about before finalizing a social media handle (page) for promoting their book?

The authors must do a thorough background check and then decide which social media platform best suits their interests. They should check if it will yield the desired engagement and reach from the respective social media handle. They should approach several book influencers to spread the word and not just rely on one. The author must not blindly focus on the sales perspective but can make a good connection with their audience.

Should an author run paid ads on social media-based interests? Is it effective and what sales can I expect?

Yes. Paid advertising is a great tool to reach another level of engagement. The basic requirement is to have a Facebook business account. Paid Ads could increase profile visits, views and website click. We can customise the advertisement as per our desired duration and cost. Twitter ads are unique in their approach and equally effective too. Authors can pay only when they reach their desired goal. Since it is targeted to a specific audience, the sales are bound to come through.

Please give a bit of a background about your social media handle, its Vision Mission, Top management, the Kind of book you promote, and your biggest strength as a book influencer popular authors promoted so far, years of experience, any testimonials, etc.

Gentlepages has been around since 2018. We are a team of two. What began as a hobby has now become a daily part of our life.

Our motive is to spread the joy of reading and to help cultivate the reading habit in this digital age. We make sure to put out our honest and unbiased reviews on our website and Instagram. 

Our good cousin helped us set up the website, and he helps us with the technical work. Since we are just a team of two, we take turns managing our account and posting content alternatively. This way, we strike the right balance between Academics and Book blogging. Our cousins have helped us from time to time. 

We try to explore all kinds of Genres and try to expand our reading palette. We don’t read only the newly released books but also try reading the evergreen books. 

The book community is our greatest strength. It is a positive space and, we have found many amazing recommendations. The people from the community never fail to inspire us every day. Our book blog holds a great value on our resume. 

We have promoted books for Preeti Shenoy, Kartikeya Ladha, Bidisha Ghosal, Chaitanya Salvi, Sabarna Roy, Uday Singh and a few others. 

We have been blogging for three years now. Review copies have allowed us to discover new and budding authors. There has been a slow but steady growth on our website/Instagram but, we still have a long way to go.  

At Sharing Stories, we have an ongoing campaign ‘Let’s Empower Our Kids’. Please suggest some books that you think every child should read before the age of 15 (mostly the character-defining age), teaching them life lessons. Things like empathy, sympathy, relationships, etc.

To begin with, we appreciate the campaign you have organised. Cultivating reading habits from a young age would help develop good morals and set a better perspective towards life. Reading is the best way to get in touch with emotions. Every child must read these books before they turn 15.

• Little women by Louisa Alcott 
• A man called Ove by Fredrik Backman 
• Wonder by RJ Palacio 
• Black Beauty by Anna Sewell.
• Who moved my cheese? by Dr Spencer Johnson

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