The successful completion of a book is an achievement few people realize. Many start writing, but life deters the completion, and one’s potential is never realized. However, in the 21st century, amid the global competition for getting noticed, what is necessary is the creation of a basic marketing plan that utilizes the most powerful tool at our fingertips – social media. So here are four simple points to keep in mind when you’re looking market your book.

Marketing Over Selling

The tendency for most writers who write for profit is to try and make sales as soon as possible. But the idea of marketing is to make the book and its author known to the general public, so they can decide whether they want to purchase it. So when venturing on to social media, don’t simply attempt to sell the book. Create an announcement that lets people in your target audience (or market) know that the book is available and where it can be purchased. In the end, it will be their decision.

Target Your Buyers

A basic principle of marketing is to define the audience to whom you are selling your product or service. Though you wrote the book with a target audience in mind, there are other secondary markets that your book can appeal to, resulting in additional sales. For example, a book on the subject of adult education may have secondary markets in online/distance education or training for a new career. When engaging in social media, you need to consider all the possible meta tags that will draw interested potential buyers to your website or blog.

Remember Post-It Notes?

Those yellow, adhesive pieces of paper that was an indispensible office item in days-gone-by offer a simple piece of advice in marketing your book via social media – they remind you to keep it simple! Social media sites are replete with people who are browsers rather than readers of most things online digital, so choose your words carefully and keep your post or message short, yet creative. If the title of your book catches the eye of the browser, then your job is much easier. The idea is to draw attention to, rather than offer a full description of, your book.

Multi-Social Media

While the obvious candidates for social media marketing are Facebook and Twitter, there is an entire subset of social media networks that are genre-specific and relevant to your marketing efforts. Some you may have already established during the writing of your book, and there may be social networks embedded in there. One site that is often perceived to be an employment or B2B site, yet has connections to groups and has the option of connecting your professional profile to your business, is LinkedIn.

It’s been said that the best form of advertising is word-of-mouth, since people tend to connect and be influenced by the people they know. This is one reason social media is an excellent marketing tool in the Digital Age. Keep in mind that marketing is not advertising, as marketing needs a strategy and specific goal before moving forward. Social media can play a major role in that strategy, having the potential to create a large number of personal contacts with a minimum investment of time and money.

James Gerardio writes all about marketing. His recent work is on the Top 10 Best Online Masters in Marketing Degree Programs.