Social media has proven itself to be a powerful asset in the world we live today. People use it to build connections, check out what’s going on in the world, and of course, to promote themselves. Through social media promotion, people are getting job offers, selling products, and even getting sponsorship deals. So why not consider harnessing that asset for yourself and your own marketing efforts? You just have to make sure you’re using social media to promote books the right way.

And there is just no one “right way”, just so long as you are not doing it wrong.

Using social media to promote books? How does that work?

The trick is to go into social media not with the immediate goal to sell books (thought it’s most likely your long-term goal), but to go in and build yourself a community. The critical thing when you’re starting off using social media is to lay down the groundwork and build a foundation to get you to the point where you can use it easily everyday. This can involve learning how to use it correctly so you’re not spending a lot of time just figuring out how to do something everyday. For example, you don’t want to waste precious time learning how to use hashtags every time you use Twitter. Familiarize yourself.

Once you’ve created your profile and designed it to best appeal to your book’s targeted audience, make sure you begin to engage with others. Obviously you don’t want to start off the bat by chirping to everyone, “Buy my book!”, but rather, strike up a conversation with others. Post about the subject matter your book is about.

Still unsure about where to start? Check out our article on what social media goals you should start out with!

Read more tips about using social media to promote books (from a literary agent!) at Bookbub’s blog!