If you’re wondering how you can build your reader audience in a world of increasing competition, algorithmic uncertainty and the growing presence of AI, you’re not alone.
The thing is, there is no one magic trick to give you an advantage in the ever-shifting marketing landscape. But knowing what your audience wants, and delivering it, will always be the best approach.
You can take advantage of current trends and hone your marketing skills, but nothing beats good content, authenticity, and connection with your readers. Below we’ll discuss how you can stop stressing over things beyond your control, and start building your audience with a sustainable and more organic approach to book marketing.
Readers Want Community, So Seek Opportunities to Grow One Around Your Book
Book clubs have always been popular with avid readers because it brings people who share a common interest together. Now these types of communities are even more popular with readers. People are craving a reason to get together to avoid the sense of isolation that solo fandom brings and they’re looking for new reads through existing communities. You can take this opportunity to build your reader audience by making it easy for people to form a community around your books. How can you do this?
- Reach out to book clubs directly and suggest your book for their next read.
- Organize a book reading or signing event and host a Q&A session. You can do this as part of your book launch extravaganza.
You can also encourage readers to create their own events by offering value-added items such as:
- Creating a conversation guide for book clubs or discussion groups. Add this to your website as a printable PDF, as a list on your book page, or even include it in the back pages of your book.
- Curating and sharing a themed playlist that relates to your book.
- Offer recipe cards for book themed cocktails, mocktails, or snacks to make for discussion groups and book clubs.
- Creating a book discussion forum online or offering topic prompts on your website or your social media platforms.
Other ideas, such as topic-based group chats and AMAs done via Zoom or even a Discord channel allow you to be accessible and connect with your readers without shouting into a social media void.
These are all opportunities to build your reader audience because they get people talking about your book and/or they’re a chance for you to directly connect with fans of your book. The better you know your audience and what they want, the better prepared you are to give it to them.
Build Your Reader Audience Through Direct, Personal Connections
If figuring out the constantly shifting strategies and rules of social and ad algorithms sounds exhausting, you have other options. AI’s integration into search algorithms, social platforms, and even Amazon means you have less control over your discoverability without cracking these new codes. But here’s the thing. These AI algorithms are in flux, and it’s no longer guaranteed any formula will be the key because of this. Of course, they’re designed with the intention of helping readers find what they’re looking for, but an algorithm gets to decide what that means. How can you keep up then? Well, by not relying solely on these shifting algorithms to build your reader audience.
Instead, you can do this by reaching readers your directly. This requires harnessing the power of your own channels, where you maintain control of your reach and your content. Here is where you still have control over your discoverability too.
There’s an Advantage to These Changes in Search Functions Though
Remember, these new AI algorithms are designed with the user in mind and they get more sophisticated and tailored to the user the more they’re accessed. There are definite flaws, but there are also advantages. Because these AI-powered search engines and LLMs, including the now ubiquitous AI overviews in search results are based on user intent, this means that if you’re creating the content your audience wants, there’s a higher likelihood they’ll be able to find it.
Overview results are now bringing up links to online conversation forums and social platforms. They’re integrating snippets of blogs that answer readers’ questions. This means that if people are having conversations about your book online, or your blog content is deeply related to your book’s topics and themes, the algorithms will help you build your reader audience by showing this relevant content.
Read about how SEO is evolving due to these changes (and what that means for you) here.
An Authoritative Website Tells Search Engines Your Content Matters
An authoritative website, by search engine standards, is one that regularly adds quality and relevant content. If your website has good SEO, meaning your keywords and metadata are in sync with the on page content, you’ll build your reader audience because search engines will prioritize it in search results. You can read more about optimizing your website here.
And remember, your website is the one place online where you have total control of the content and how your visitors experience that content. If your website is on brand, and speaks to them, readers will keep returning. Your website is your platform and it’s a great tool for connection.
Newsletters and Blog Feeds Don’t Rely on Algorithms to Be Seen
Social media algorithms are fickle and they don’t always reward quality content. Because of this, you may put a ton of energy into creating posts that will never be seen. But you have other options to build your reader audience and to keep them engaged.
A regular newsletter or blog feed that arrives directly in your audience’s inbox means the hard work you put in to creating content has a bigger payoff because it has a better chance of actually being seen. It’s also a tool for more intimate connection, and you can even target emails and tailor them to specific groups for a more personal touch.
Of course, you need to build your email list first. You can read about how to do that here. We also wrote a blog about choosing between a blog feed or newsletter, to help you decide which is best for you.
Relevant and Consistent Blog Posting Will Build Your Reader Audience
We’ve said this so many times before, and we keep saying it. Because despite all the changes in how search engines work, or how effective active marketing( like promo posts or paid ads) is or isn’t, quality content is still king.
Writing relevant and consistent blog posts as a way to build your reader audience ties in with the above two strategies. This will increase your website’s authority, and you’ll have something to send to your email list recipients. If you’re writing about the stuff your audience wants to read, you’ll also be giving them what they want. Doing this increases engagement and builds loyalty and connection.
Need ideas for your author blog topics? Read our post on that here.
Build Your Reader Audience with Authenticity, Not by Overworking Yourself
You have to ask yourself, do you want to spend your time and energy focused on learning tricks to beat these ever-changing algorithms and chasing the latest trends, or do you want to focus on building your reader audience by giving them what they want?
Remember, your marketing plan needs to be sustainable and it shouldn’t be a source of stress. So, maybe instead of doing promos on social media or spending all your time figuring out ad testing, you could take the time to write blog posts, host an AMA, or reach out to a book club or your local book store to see if they’d be interested in collaboration?
By worrying less about being visible on social media, or if your ads are doing well, you can focus your energy on real conversations with your audience, and creating the content that speaks to them. Because, now more than ever, readers are seeking trust, connection and authenticity. They want to read books they really love and build community around that. And you can’t build community through ads and promos, and trying to outsmart algorithms. Community happens through genuine connection and engagement.
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