With the Jam Run release date fast approaching, I decided to meet new readers in person to promote it, myself, and my other books.
Readers are among the best friends an author can have. For the past few weeks, my editor has been working on my manuscript for Jam Run. She hopes to finish before the end of September 2022, which would be great if I wish to release it before Christmas 2022. So, what is an author to do to promote their upcoming release when they have a limited budget? For months I’ve been searching for new ways to connect with new readers to grow my platform. So far, here is what I’ve learned:
- Facebook/Google/TicTok promotions have proven to be a waste of money.
- Working with marketing companies that do not specialize exclusively in books.
- Relying solely on a social media post. Getting several likes will not translate into readership.
Book marketing expert, Penny Sansieveri, mentioned in her book: How to Sell Books By The Truckload on Amazon, that readers have a personal connection with books and their authors. The bottom line is that when you’re an author, it’s crucial to be able to engage with your readers.
Connecting with new readers is not as difficult as it may appear to be. The good news is that pandemic restrictions were removed—allowing many public venues to be reopened. If I expect to promote Jam Run efficiently, then the first thing to do is to introduce myself to potential readers.
So, I tried something new. For the summer of 2022, I would pound the pavement and be physically present in as many places as possible. I started by attending two book fairs held on two separate weekends in Toronto.
The first event was The Motive Crime and Mystery Book Festival on the weekend of June 3, 2022. It was okay, but it was not well promoted to attract a large crowd.
The second, The Word on The Street—the largest book festival in Canada—attracted tens of thousands of book lovers. This made it easier to sell every copy I brought with me—and a few eBooks—making it the most successful book fair I’ve attended. The experience taught me that my target audience isn’t limited to a specific group of people. My new readers came from a diverse group: young, seniors, LGBTQ, and multi-ethnic. Attending this festival yielded better results than any social media ad, demonstrating that promoting primarily on social media is not the most efficient method to attract new fans.
Only recently, I realized my only mistake was not asking my new readers on the spot to subscribe to my newsletter. The reality is that when we get excited over great results, we may unintentionally neglect an essential activity. But like all writers, we get better with experience.
Now that we’re on the subject, if you did not subscribe to my newsletter, here’s your chance to do so. Just click HERE.
Jam Run, the exciting new Eddie Barrow thriller, is coming soon. Click here to read the first chapter.
