There are several possible tactics you can try to give a boost to your book marketing power throughout your long-term marketing strategy, but some of them rely on opportunity. In this post we’ll discuss some effective active book marketing strategies that rely on seizing the moment to potentially get big results.
Timing is Everything! For this Marketing Strategy, Anyway
In marketing, this strategy of seizing the moment is known as real-time marketing. It includes tactics such as newsjacking and trendjacking to take advantage of of-the-moment events and topics.
The theory behind this style of marketing is that when a topic is in the news or something is trending, you can jump on the bandwagon while people are paying attention. This is not a new strategy, but it’s a proven strategy.
In regards to book marketing, searches for a topic may be up because of current events, or because readers may be talking about the latest hot book that everyone is reading. If that’s your area of expertise, or you write in that genre, it’s probably a good time to put yourself out there by joining the conversation or drawing attention to your book.
Always Be Ready to Boost Your Book Marketing Power with Real-Time Strategies
You may be wondering how, exactly, you can prepare to take advantage of trending moments? Well, there’s no way to know the future, but tapping into your available resources is a good way to start. You can sign up for industry newsletters and bookmark favorite sites related to your book/topic/genre and do quick daily scans.
But an even easier method is to set Google alerts for related topics and to follow topics and people in your sphere on your social media platforms. Then, if something is happening, you’re far more likely to know about it as it appears.
You can also prepare by creating social and ad graphic templates in advance. You can keep an ongoing document filled with your ideas, thoughts, and prepared statements handy too. These can include assets you’ve used for other promos. Just repurpose them as needed.
Easy ways you can prepare to seize the moment:
- Set alerts and follow topics and people in your sphere.
- Prepare and save templates, ideas, and statements in a dedicated file or doc.
- Keep all marketing assets (including one-sheets and media kits) fresh and easily accesible.
How these Real-Time Strategies Can Work for You
Some authors get lucky and start a trend, some publish at the right time and fall into it. Others may need to rely on seizing a moment. This could be you!
When something is trending, it means more people are paying attention. It also means, search results for certain topics or genres could sky rocket. Take advantage of that! Trendjacking seems to work best for genres and themes. Newsjacking works best with nonfiction, and even the right fiction books.
For instance, the romance novel, Heated Rivalry became a sensation and it remains a hot topic. This romance, recently adapted into a popular show, has brought interest to the genre and the author’s other books. This would be a great chance to boost your book marketing power if you write romance in the sports, or enemies-to-lovers, or LGBTQ+ drama genres, right?
As far as newsjacking, when big events are happening (and they are daily these days) you can take advantage of that attention. Imagine what a nonfiction writer could do if they happened to have written a book on Iran, or Middle East politics? Even fiction books with relevant settings or scenarios could work.
Are you starting to see the many possible chances to boost your book marketing power that pop up on a regular basis? That’s what drives this real-time marketing strategy.
Some Actionable Ways Boost Your Book Marketing Power with Real-Time Strategies
Once you’re following topics and news events related to your book, and you have some ideas, templates and statements prepared, you’ll be ready to boost your book marketing power when the chance arises! But, how, you may ask?
There are a lot of ways, and you can try them all or just a few, depending on the situation and how it relates. It’s about getting creative! Plus, these strategies are great for your blacklist too. Any book you’ve published at any point can benefit from this. Remember, book marketing is an ongoing and sustained effort.
Here are some actionable ways you can seize the moment and boost your book marketing power with some real-time strategies:
- Publish a newsletter or blog post about it, connecting it to how it relates to your book. You can get pretty niche and creative here. Make sure to include a link to your book in the post. Share the post on social media.
- Share your thoughts and get people talking about it on social media. Make sure your profile looks sharp, that there are links to your website and author platforms there, and use hashtags if appropriate (yes, people are still using hashtags, just more for categorization and search purposes).
- Update your website content and keywords, if needed. Refresh your online book descriptions and marketing copy, and your social platforms, to include search terms and keywords,etc. Remember, more people will be searching for that topic or trend, so let your content reflect the connection.
- Get more bang for your buck by using your ad budget for these real-time marketing opportunities. Use appropriate keywords and make your ad copy sparkle! This even works for reviving backlist titles, or books that have gone by the wayside, that you thought were dead.
- Have your one-sheets ready! This is where being an authority on your topic can come in handy. Pitch ideas to media such as journals, blogs, and podcasts, or write an op-ed. Be prepared to be your own publicist.
Will You Be Ready to Seize the Moment?
Taking advantage of trends and newscycles isn’t a new marketing strategy, but it’s a proven one. Real-time strategies can offer a big boost to your book marketing power. You just need to be prepared, and willing to put yourself out there.
Just keep in mind, it should still feel natural and authentic, and assume that you’ll have to be creative. But it can be fun and even pay off in much bigger ways than you may expect. You could sell more books, you could grow your audience, and you could even use the momentum to establish yourself as an authority. A boost to your ongoing marketing efforts could be just the push you need to take it to the next level.
Have you ever used a real-time strategy like newsjacking or trendjacking to promote your book? Did it work? Why or why not? Is there a topic you’d like us to cover in an upcoming blog? Let us know in the comments!
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