One of the most common methods “experts” suggest for marketing books is through the use of social media. But how much of a difference does it make to post your Amazon links on sites like Threads or Facebook?
I decided to dive into all of the expert advice online to see if I could figure out the best methods. After seeing a self-published author clear more than $4000 in a month in sales using nothing more than social media, I thought there had to be a great method out there somewhere.
Of course, that particular author wasn’t too keen on sharing details. So, let’s see if we can crack the code – if there is one.
I am going over the most popular and frequent tips found online. These were taken from more than 20 different blogs, both from authors and major brands.
10 Common Ideas for Marketing Books on Social Media
Initially, the search for marketing books on Google yields the basic results: be active, have an author page, use hashtags, and collaborate with influencers. While those might help, I have yet to see any sales results.
It’s kind of like the blanket go-to of most “experts,” really. It’s cookie-cutter content that is common across the board.
Nonetheless, I’m going to see if any of this advice really pans out.
1. Create an Author Page
Every brand should have its own social presence, and being an author is no different. It separates the author content from everything else. As such, your author page should be dedicated to what you write and your interactions with your readers and fans.
I’ve been creating separate pages for brands since the beginning of the Internet. I’ve always thought it just made logical sense to keep things organized and focused on relevant content.
Yes, I am that old.
This process has garnered a bit of traffic, a few follows, and a handful of sales when A Freelancer’s Tale came out. But nothing for Kingmaker, my debut dark fantasy novel.
So, while an author page is still useful, especially as you grow in popularity, it’s not necessarily going to generate a ton of sales in the beginning.
2. Properly Using Hashtags
Hashtags connect similar content together on a variety of social media channels and can help with marketing your books. That is as long as they are used properly to connect with your target audience.
There are a lot of hashtag tools on the Internet that will show you the most popular for your niche. Unfortunately, a lot of them either lock the best features behind a paywall or have websites inundated with advertisements.
On the other hand, some social sites give you basic visibility stats when using a hashtag. Instagram shows how many posts are used with the particular tag, but not how often they are actually viewed.
Although hashtags have helped some of the posts I’ve made get seen by a few more people, they haven’t influenced sales in the slightest. In fact, it seems that if there is a link to the book at the same time as using a hashtag, the post is seen by fewer people than without the link.
As with an author page, it seems hashtags only have the greatest impact if you have more than several thousand followers.
3. Use Visual Appeal
On average, posts that have images relevant to topics or brands get 94% more views than text-only posts. Most of the Internet is driven by visual stimuli whether it’s a still picture or a short video.
In my experience, using imagery has been hit or miss. For example, none of my top five posts on Twitter for impressions between October 1st and February 10th have images. In fact, they don’t even have hashtags.
Even the top post on Facebook is text-only with no hashtags. And I had to scroll down to the 52nd most popular post on Threads to see an image, and it was a meme I posted.
Granted, I don’t post a lot of “relevant” images. I just don’t think I have an interesting life that people want to view. But even the relevant images I have posted don’t perform well on almost any social media site with the obvious exception of Instagram.
4. Host an Author Q&A
An author question and answer session helps connect your readers on a more personal level with the artist. Whether it’s questions about your book or regarding your creative process, people love to engage.
When it comes to marketing books on social media, though, I have yet to see results from a Q&A session. I’ve held many of these so far and most of the viewers were already fans who just like hanging out with me.
Seeing new faces with questions doesn’t happen that often.
Of course, I only do these live on YouTube. I’ve never tried broadcasting to Facebook, Twitter, or Twitch as WriterSanctuary. Perhaps doing so on Instagram or other platforms might be a better use of marketing time.
Nonetheless, author Q&As seem to be more effective for those who have several thousand followers or subscribers. That’s kind of a common theme among these tips, actually.
5. Collaborate with Influencers and Book Bloggers
Collaborations connect creators with each other’s audiences. It’s often used to expand reach to a market that may not know the other exists.
Unfortunately, a lot of collaborations nowadays come with a price tag. Interviewers want money from interviewees to “introduce” the individual to the interviewer’s audience. In reality, it should be more of a symbiotic relationship.
I never charge anyone for being on my show for author interviews as I’m not a bottom feeder. I want to help someone get more recognition and they help me generate content on the YouTube channel. That’s how collaborations are done.
I’ve had one individual reach out to me for collaborations, and that was back when I was merely working on my first book. I didn’t feel I was worthy enough, to be honest. That’s one of the major drawbacks to impostor syndrome.
Today, though, I’m feeling far more confident.
Anyway, it’s difficult for new authors to gain any attention from influencers and book bloggers, especially if those people have larger followings. That’s part of why I try to help the new authors as much as I can.
So, like many other points above, this usually pans out better if you can amass a decent following on social media.
6. Joing Some Writing Communities
Writing communities are quite abundant on social media, and they can connect you with some amazing people. These groups can help spread the word of your book as well as your name online.
Most authors are readers themselves. So, it’s not too difficult to find financial support for your craft while in a writing community. However, I’ve found most will buy your book to be nice with no intention of reading it.
Sure, they’ll say they can’t wait to dive into the novel. But it’s all out of being nice and supportive while bringing positivity to your experience.
There’s nothing wrong with that. In fact, I think more people should be cognizant of the effort it takes to publish a book, especially as an indie author. Yet, my point here is that a lot of the people in these writing communities aren’t necessarily going to be your target audience.
Don’t get me wrong, you can find a lot of support from other authors. But not every one of them is going to be keen on your genre or writing style.
At the end of the day, writing communities are worth joining. Just don’t expect to market your book to those individuals and make tons of sales. They will often be great friends, but not always great fans.
7. Sharing Positive Reviews
Sharing positive reviews of your books on social media is often used as a marketing tool. As many as 98% of consumers read reviews before making a purchase. Spotlighting that people enjoyed your book is a major contributing factor.
That’s one of the reasons why so many authors will pay for reviews. People are more likely to read a well-reviewed novel as opposed to one that has very few – even if they’re glowingly spectacular.
I’ve shared reviews of my books on social media platforms. Not only do they get fewer impressions, but they also often have fewer likes and comments.
Despite the number of people who read reviews, it doesn’t pan out to future sales. At least not from an author who has fewer than a thousand followers.
Nonetheless, it doesn’t take much to screen-capture a review, save it as an image, and then share it on social media with pride. It just doesn’t translate into a lot of shares, likes, or sales for a new author.
8. Using Behind-the-Scenes Stories
A lot of creators use behind-the-scenes stories and content as a way to include the audience in the process. This makes people feel more connected to the creator and what he or she is trying to accomplish. It can be quite effective at turning occasional viewers into hardcore fans.
I use behind-the-scenes content all the time, from the writing process of my next book to creating videos. And although I’ve made some solid fans in doing so, it hasn’t turned into additional shares or book sales.
Like nearly everything else on this list, however, it’s more effective with popularity. No one wants to know how you got started if no one knows who the hell you are.
Don’t get me wrong, I love my ride-or-die readers and viewers. Without them, I probably wouldn’t keep doing what I do for the blog and YouTube channel. But for experts to say that BTS content helps generate sales is kind of misleading.
It’s one of those things that sounds good in theory and on paper but doesn’t work too well in practice. Not without having 5,000+ followers on all of your social platforms, anyway.
9. Using Paid Advertising
Social media advertising has the potential to deliver almost immediate results faster than organic growth. With a marketing strategy targeting your reader, it’s possible to generate sales in a relatively short amount of time.
I watched an interview with the author, Andy Maslen, and he commented about how he generates more sales of his books with paid ads on Facebook than any other marketing strategy.
Of course, that is Andy Maslen’s experience. He is quite a prolific author and has a large fan base. Obviously, his experience is going to be different than a new author.
It would be like the same advertising company showing my books compared to Stephen King’s novels. King is damn near a household name -he’s going to sell more books than I will.
Yet, this is one thing I have yet to try. For the most part, I didn’t have the money to create ads on Facebook or any other social media sites. However, I have experience using pay-per-click ads to sell goods for an affiliate. It’s a similar process. The only downside is having the upfront cash to get started.
In my experience, though, I usually profited double what I spent on Google ads. If I spent $100, I would make $200. I couldn’t keep going, though, because of some severe issues with a particularly evil landlord back in the day. Not to mention that a lot has changed since 2006.
Holy crap, I really feel old, now.
Unfortunately, I don’t have much to share on the topic of paid advertising for social sites. If something changes, I’ll be sure to update this post.
10. Using Giveaways or Contests
An effective form of marketing books, whether on social media or not, is using giveaways or contests. People love freebies, and many will sign up for newsletters, follow social accounts, share content, and more for a chance to win something.
There are two distinct problems with this strategy, unfortunately: a) you lose money, and b) interest is often short-lived.
Yes, you can chalk up a free book as a loss, and you can even claim it on your taxes. However, a lot of people who follow you because of the freebie will quickly lose interest if it’s not a steady flow of giving.
I’ve seen this happen both as a gamer and as a self-published author. The engagement is relatively high for about a month or two, but then the majority of those people leave because they weren’t truly your audience to begin with. They simply wanted something for free.
Still, giveaways and contests can be fun, as long as you have the funds to keep them going. From an author’s perspective, however, don’t expect it to result in accumulating a lot of sales.
What Can We Try for Marketing Books on Social Media?
When all is said and done, there are a few stand-out points that need to be addressed when it comes to social media marketing. Now, keep in mind that I’m no expert by any stretch of the imagination. But what I am is a new author trying to make a difference.
Despite doing everything the “experts” say, I’m still not selling books. So, what can I do to increase the chances of getting a few more fans and making a few more sales?
Let’s look at all of the 10 tips above and try to assemble a decent strategy going forward.
Revamping the Author Page
It’s not a bad idea to occasionally update the author pages of your social accounts. This is especially true if you recently published a new book. Some authors include the cover in updated page banner art to bring attention to the new title.
In my case, this will include: Twitter (sigh), Facebook, Threads, Instagram, BlueSky, and YouTube. In fact, it’s been a while since I updated my information on YouTube, my most effective social platform.
Using a Hashtag Strategy
Developing a hashtag strategy for marketing books on social media has the potential to be effective. The right tags may connect with new readers, widening your reach across various platforms.
This will include researching the most effective tags for what I’m writing and who I’m targeting. This means keeping an eye on analytical data while using available hashtag tools.
Improve Visual Appeal
Statistically speaking, images and videos are more effective than text-only posts. The trick is to use images that are relevant and relatable to your target audience.
This will probably be the most difficult for me to manage, simply because I don’t lead a very interesting life. However, it wouldn’t take much to create a few images featuring my characters or stories. So, perhaps a bit of an artistic approach is better for books from a hermit.
More Author Q&As
I’ve done several Q&As as an author, but all of them have been on YouTube at 7pm. Perhaps trying different platforms at different times of the day is more effective for my target reader.
Plus, I wouldn’t mind being more active on other platforms. Now that I know some authors take to Twitch, it might be worth multistreaming.
Seek More Collaborations
I’m not very good at reaching out. And the ones that have piqued my interest come with a dollar sign. Or, they are so massive that they ignore those with a much smaller follower count.
Still, I’m sure there are other creators and podcasters out there who are fine with real collaborations.
I know there are several Facebook groups and such, but I often don’t have time to spend browsing social media. I suppose that might have to change soon.
Interacting with Writing Communities
As with collaborations, I often don’t have time to hang out with writing communities. I can read a few posts and make an observation every once in a while, but my time is relatively limited.
Nonetheless, it’s a common tip from “experts.” I suppose I can try to make the time to interact with those communities.
Sharing Positive Book Reviews
The hardest part about doing more with book reviews is actually getting them. Unfortunately, only a small fraction of readers will ever get on to leave a review for a book they bought on Amazon.
Still, I’ll share any that I receive. So, this is kind of an obvious addition that I probably won’t need too much strategizing behind. And no, I will never buy reviews unless it’s part of a service that I am reviewing myself.
Behind-the-Scenes Content
People like to feel connected to their favorite authors and celebrities. A candid, behind-the-scenes post puts authors into a human light and makes them relatable and memorable.
I can try to do more for BTS content. As I said before, though, my life really isn’t all that interesting. Perhaps I can do more regarding the books I write and what inspires certain scenes and whatnot.
Paid Advertising
Until recently, I haven’t had the funds to put into paid advertising. The last time I tried it for a month was with A Freelancer’s Tale, which resulted in zero sales. But that was a different kind of book from the one I am working on now.
In any case, I’ve always wanted to try out a few things with paid advertising. Now that I have a few dollars saved up, I’ll start working on getting a few small ads out on various platforms.
Giveaways and Contests?
I haven’t tried to run a giveaway or a contest on social media. The last giveaway I ran was on this website for a signed copy of my book and a Barnes & Noble gift card.
I’m sure a contest would be fun for my current audience and followers, so I might do it for them if nothing else. I love giving things away.
Is Social Media Worth Marketing Books?
When it comes to marketing books, perhaps the main element is that of time. If you were to include all of the tips “experts” state, it would be a full-time job to duplicate on all of your social platforms.
Even maintaining one would take up a good chunk of your day. And that’s if you have a constant flow of things your audience wants to read or see.
Now, there is no doubt that some people have been able to make it work. Unfortunately, the vast majority of self-published authors are still trying to make things happen on social media. Myself included.
It seems the biggest contributing factor is building a large community. Anything less than 1000 followers on any platform is simply not enough to gain traction for book sales. In fact, I’ve yet to see anyone with fewer than 1000 followers sell enough books to reach triple-digit income in a single month.
Well, consistently, anyway. And if you know of one, I’d love to hear about it in the comment section.
Another contributing factor is how you use social media in the first place. Are you creating content to address your potential readers? Are people following you for all the right reasons?
Although marketing your books on social media is basically free, it’s the time you need to consider. Is it worth your time to funnel effort into something that is just not going anywhere?
Rest assured, though, that I’ll share anything I figure out.
Marketing Is Such a Pain
Marketing books, in general, is a major pain whether it’s on social media or not. And nowadays, a lot of publishers and agents won’t even look at you unless you have a massive following. It can easily suck the wind out of your sails.
However, I’m never one to quit. I’ll keep trying to find my groove, and so should you. Just because something isn’t working today doesn’t mean you won’t figure out what works best. Giving up is a guaranteed failure. You at least have a chance of success by continuing the journey.
You never know when you’ll stumble across something that works.
- How I Am Balancing College While Maintaining All of My Projects - March 26, 2025
- Why You Should Consider the Weekly Writing Contests at Reedsy - March 24, 2025
- Can You Use vidIQ for Blog Ideas? It’s Not Just for YouTube - March 21, 2025