Viral Marketing for Self-Published Authors – Tip #1

Tip #1 – Give something away

Everyone wants something for free.  Strategically advertising a free giveaway (a copy of your book, a service, free information) is one way to attract attention.  This attention may not turn into profit immediately, but in general more interest in your self-published book means greater potential for sales.

Look at Squarespace for example.  This website software company is currently running a contest on Twitter.  They are giving away an iPhone to one contestant each day for 30 days.  In order to enter, the contestant must send out a “tweet” with the #squarespace hashtag.  This “free” advertising tactic quickly brought Squarespace onto the top ten “Trending Topics” list on Twitter, which means everyone on Twitter user (approximately 1.3 million daily) will see that Squarespace is popular topic and many will click on the links to find out why. 

The good news is you don’t have to give away an iPhone a day to attract attention for your book, but consider your audience and think about what you can give away that may spark their interest.  It could be a copy of your self-published book or it could be a service you provide.  Whatever it is, be sure to include your book and/or web site in your promotional materials.

I’ll have more viral marketing tips for you over the next few weeks.

Good luck and have fun!
Kelly Schuknecht
selfpublishingadvice.wordpress.com