Are you blogging, and if not, should you be?
This is a great question for an author.
Some say blogging is over. I don’t think so.
As is true with anything, trends come and go and book promotion is no different. For a long time everyone was encouraged to write a blog, and now it seems everyone is encouraged to do a podcast. There are an infinite number of things you can do to get more visibility for your book, so how do you decide what to do? Should you have a podcast? Should you be blogging?
Let me ask one question: What do you love to do?
It came as a surprise to me years ago when I discovered that some authors don’t like to write. They may have had a ghostwriter, or they themselves slogged through the writing process, but the thought of writing regularly on a blog was more than they could fathom. Consequently, it wasn’t going to be something they would be able to sustain. They should not be blogging. Therefore, podcasting or producing videos may be a better way for them.
On the other hand, some authors really love to write and they view writing blog posts as a relaxing and fun thing to do. That is an excellent space to be in when producing any kind of content. They definitely should be blogging.
Here is the truth:
Even the most prolific writers don’t publish books often enough to build and engage an audience, but if you’re blogging on a regular basis, you can conceivably pull in new people every day. Many will join your email list which means you can continue to market to them — not only when your new book gets published. Here are some other great reasons to blog:
- It’s an excellent way to continue to get your voice out there.
- You can continually bring in new fans.
- It’s something you can promote on social media.
- If you like to write, creating content for a blog is a lot of fun. However, you may need to ditch all the digital distractions, which we talked about last week. It’s here if you missed it.
- Information changes quickly, but you never have to get behind on new info when you can talk about it any time you want to. A blog allows you to stay current.
- You’ll gain more confidence. When you blog, it’s all about you. What do you want to talk about? Even if you’re a little shy in some social situations, with a blog it’s your domain.
- Your blog could become your next book.
- You could make money at it. Some people do.
- Blogging creates opportunities. You can interact with so many different types of people when you blog and you become a member of the blogging community.
A blog is the best way to share your expertise and drive people to your website. It can live on your own site, and you can guest post on other blogs. Then you can share links to your blog on social media. Because everyone is a publisher these days, everyone needs content. You can ask high trafficked websites if they’d like to use your content. The length of these guest posts can vary depending on the format of the blog you’re targeting, but I find word counts of 500 to 1000 are very typical.
Bottom Line
To make something sustainable, whether it’s blogging, podcasting, or any other number of projects, it helps if it’s something you love to do. It isn’t worth it if you have to whip yourself into a frenzy every time you need to create some content. If you enjoy writing, and if you want new people to discover you, then blogging is a fabulous opportunity and channel for you.
To your success!
Joanne
P.S. I had the pleasure of being part of the Nonfiction Writers Conference this week, which is run by Stephanie Chandler. A number of people from there have joined our Savvy Sunday Community, so I want to give a quick shout out to them. Glad you’re here. Now, let’s get this party started. Crank it up and start blogging.
#blogging
#buildengagement
#bookmarketing
#bookpublicity
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