Immediately after you’ve published your book, it’s time to get into marketing. Here’s what you need to understand in order to jumpstart your book marketing campaign on Facebook.
- You need a fan page – NOT a personal page.
Personal pages and fan pages function very differently. A fan page offers a one-way relationship between you and the fan; fans see your updates, but you don’t see theirs. A person only needs to click “like” to immediately become your fan. With a personal page, a potential fan has to send you a friend request, which is an intimidating barrier for people who don’t actually know you. Even more importantly, personal pages have a friend limit and only fan pages give you data on how fans are interacting with your posts.
- Any given Facebook post will only reach a small percent of your fans.
Fans are people who clicked “like” on your page, but they will not automatically see your updates.
Facebook has become so popular that it had to develop an algorithm to prioritize the flood of posts available for a person’s news feed each day. Say, for example, that one of your fans is a fan of 100 other pages and has 400 personal friends. All of those pages and friends represent hundreds of possible messages going to that person’s news feed. Only a few of those messages will be shown. Your new fan may actually never hear from you again, depending on whether or not you understand number 3…
- Likes, comments and shares mean almost everything on Facebook.
Facebook chooses what to show and in what order based on which friends and/or pages a person engaged with in the past. “Engaged with” means the person clicked, liked, shared or commented on a post.
If a fan doesn’t take one of those actions on your posts regularly, the algorithm will decide they aren’t really a fan, and that person will rarely, if ever, see your content again. You could have 10,000 fans but literally be talking to a near-empty room if Facebook is methodically removing your posts from their feeds due to lack of engagement. That means you should write every post in a way that facilitates likes, comments, or shares.
- Small tactics can make a big difference in driving “click engagement.”
Here are some tips for encouraging clicks:
- Experiment with post timing. The average post is only shown in feeds for about 3 hours. If most of your fans are on Facebook in the evening but you always post in the morning, they’ll never see you.
- Be concise. Studies have shown that posts between 100 and 250 characters (less than 3 lines of text) receive about 60% more likes, comments, and shares than posts greater than 250 characters.
- Use different types of posts. Some fans click mostly on links, others engage mostly with questions, and some click mostly on photos. To maximize the number of fans who engage with you, use a variety of post types.
- Your cover photo is premium real estate to market your book.
You have 851 x 315 pixels worth of space to market your book. Use this space to show off an image of your book. You can also promote a tour or giveaway here.
- Connect Facebook with promotional apps.
Use Facebook to successfully host a book giveaway with apps like Woobox, Rafflecopter, or Shortstack on your Facebook page. Be sure to advertise it on your cover photo space. Or use a video app to create a book video to post on your Facebook Page (or purchase a book video trailer). Show your readers the author behind the writing. People connect with those they can relate to and adding a video of your book will increase interest. Plus, Facebook’s autoplay video feature will entice users to pay attention.
- Link Facebook with a way to purchase your book.
Be sure to link to your online shop (whether that’s on your publisher’s site, Amazon, Barnes and Noble, or your own website). Dedicate a button on the dash below your cover photo for “Shop.” This will be more successful if you regularly post positive book reviews on Facebook. Reviews are among the best ways to get more eyes on your book. Not only can you get in front of the reviewer, but the reviewer may also recommend your book to others. Don’t expect people to automatically review your book. Actively ask for reviews on your Facebook page.
- Use the “Promote” feature.
Under each of your Facebook posts, there is a button that says “Promote.” For a relatively small amount of money, you can get more of your fans to see specific posts. The cost depends on your particular fan base, but typically runs around $5 per thousand people you want to reach. You can also promote your post so friends of your fans will see it. Paid promotion is a great tool for getting important posts in front of as many people as possible. It’s also a great way to get back into the feeds of people you’ve lost due to lack of engagement in the past; if a person engages with a paid post, they’ll be more likely to see your future unpaid posts. Paid posts give you a chance to win fans back!
- Be consistent and generous.
The key to engagement is consistent posts that your fans consider valuable. Try to post daily. From time to time, post an image of your book and an offer they can’t refuse, such as free chapter of your new book. The most important thing is to grab people and bring them onto your page. Make sure you use the word “free” in your posts. You want to offer them something to reward for them visiting your page.
Self Publishing Advisor 