When it comes to book marketing services and platforms, LinkedIn may never be the first option that comes to mind for many writers. It’s understandable because LinkedIn is known more as a platform to connect with colleagues and co-workers for matters and works related to employment.
When it comes to marketing books on social media, we usually think of Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and even Pinterest. However, LinkedIn’s value in book promotion has been quite underrated. Some authors have made the best use of LinkedIn to market their books.
LinkedIn is a place for professionals, and authors are professionals in their areas of expertise, especially writing. So authors can leverage the power of the world’s most business-oriented platform to market their books.
If you’re an author, here are some of the best ways LinkedIn can prove to boost your author profile and book promotion efforts:
Brand yourself as an author
You’ll have to stand out as an author. Other people might have written other books in your niche too, but you need to build credibility among your connections and the potential readers that can find you on LinkedIn.
Your LinkedIn profile should show that you’re an authority on the topic. When people find you, they should look forward to your book.
A great way to brand yourself on the face value of your profile is to add your book in your publications section with a bit of detail of each book. If you’ve contributed to other books, you can mention them as well.
Use your connections
Your connections can act as beta readers or people who can market your book by word-of-mouth. This means that you can reach some people in the business area with much ease.
This is especially useful if your book is in the business niche or academia. When you connect with people, you’re not only building relationships, but you also have opportunities to share and promote your books.
Sharing your book
Like any other social media platform, LinkedIn allows you to share different kinds of content. Your content can be full-fledged articles or even short posts.
Leverage the use of these posts by sharing excerpts of your book. If you don’t want to share too much of your book, you can share relevant pieces of information that relate to your book and your niche. Publishing articles is another excellent way of showing your credibility.
Express yourself within your niche
A person in human resources will gain reliability and trustworthiness among his connections and the public when they share valuable HR advice and opinions.
Similarly, you can boost your visibility and the chance for others to visit your publications (including your books) by posting your opinions and thoughts on the topics related to the books you write and the things which interest you and go around you.
The more you express yourself with relevance to your book and its niche, you’re giving your book more exposure.
Get into groups
People don’t usually actively participate in groups on social media such as Facebook or Meetups, but LinkedIn is quite different. Usually, people are pretty active on LinkedIn groups.
When you participate in groups, you can get in touch with all kinds of people. People will usually be discussing business-related topics. You and your book get exposure by getting involved with people and engaging with them for the right questions and issues.
A good option available on LinkedIn is to subscribe for daily and weekly emails from the groups you’re a part of. That way, you can filter out the right discussions for you. Of course, you don’t want yourself spammed with emails, but you can make a more strategic approach in terms of LinkedIn engagement.
Endorsements and recommendations
These are two very important headings that require updates when you’re searching for a job. For authors, they help you stamp your authority on the subject matter of their books. Endorsements on your profile help you display your skills in a very effective manner. People who trust you will endorse you for the right skills.
Recommendations and testimonials can go a long way too. When your book gets recommended by someone else, it’s already a plus sign for you. Also, getting a recommendation from a major player in the industry will make people want to buy your book. There are some books that Bill Gates loves, but do you think that the authors would get the same amount of traction if it weren’t for Bill Gates mentioning or recommending them?
