Just about every author who starts out has some very self-indulgent reasons for writing a book.
This applies even to the authors who think their message isn’t about them and insist that it’s a universal one. Readers can still disagree, and it’s not like you’ll be the first person with a ‘big idea’ that they’ll encounter when browsing a bookstore.
That is why identifying an audience will always be important. It not only gives your ideas more focus, but it will also go a long way in organizing your writing.
Because at the end of the day, your books are still a product.
Just like any product, it needs marketing. And when there is marketing involved, there is definitely a need to identify a target audience.
Photo by Melanie Deziel
Social Media
Whether it is advertising your book or just simply using it as a means to communicate and regularly connect regularly with your audience, using social media offers tools to really get the numbers that pinpoint compatible readers and let you know you are on the right track.
These include metrics from advertising on various platforms. One of the enduring advantages of social media marketing is also how you can still use it to test for more audiences. These types of tools can even extend to other areas of your growing book-based business (such as websites).
Influencer Marketing
If you took a good, honest look at some of the most influential non-fiction authors in the last ten years (from Seth Godin to Joyce Meyer), you have to admit that they are more than just their books. They are influencers and thought leaders in their field.
Their books have become just one tool in their media arsenal, and there is certainly nothing wrong with more authors to go the same route, provided they still remember who their audience is. Because, for the most part, every new channel is really just an additional means to help your audience continuously engage with your message.
Networking and Events
Lastly, there is no rule that says your book should only be used to expand an online presence and not be used when pitching yourself when networking or as a valuable speaker for relevant events.
It should be the opposite! After all, not all your competitors are going to have the advantage of representing their books (and their ideas) in person. Knowing your audience means you know the kind of people at events who could benefit greatly from your book and hearing you provide helpful information in person.
Email Marketing
You may have heard that a lot of independent authors get their best marketing done via email. Or more specifically, it’s by building an email newsletter list.
But whether you are using a list to supplement your broader marketing strategy or find that it also works best for your book, it is definitely the strictest when it comes to knowing your audience. Unclear targeting in email campaigns could have disastrous consequences (such as losing subscribers and declining credibility).
Now, it is perfectly fine for some authors to read all of this and think to themselves that this might be far beyond the simpler goals they wanted to accomplish with their book.
It still doesn’t make it less important to know one’s audience. A small audience may still have needs or questions that your book could easily address, but it will fail to do so because you didn’t pay enough attention.
In this day and age, there is no need to make such careless mistakes!
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