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We live in an increasingly noisy world. As an author, chances are you may feel like your message is getting lost in the host of blogs, websites, social networks and other books that are available to readers today. However, with all this noise comes an increased opportunity for you to reach people in ways that authors have never before been able to. This blog post overviews seven steps you can take to elevate your platform and get noticed.
1: Don’t Be Boring
If you want to get noticed, you have to be interesting and unique. The important thing is to be yourself and let your personality shine. If you are passionate about your message, make sure that it is demonstrated through your content and interactions. Don’t be afraid to be different. Your unique perspectives will reach your audience better than copying someone else’s platform.
Be entertaining. Even if your topic is somewhat mundane, you can add twists and tie-ins to pop culture that will make what you have to say more appealing and accessible to your audience. Be creative and fun. The more fun you have, the more your audience will enjoy your content as well.
2: Target Your Audience
If you try to reach everyone who has a pulse, you’ll fail. Be sure to research and identify your niche audience of readers. Discover who will gain the most value with what you have to offer. Identify your audience’s needs and interests and discover where they congregate and gain information on a regular basis. Then be in their space.
It cannot be emphasized enough how important this step is. How you build your reader profiles and personas will determine your success in how you reach your audience.
3: Build Your Hub
Create a professional website and blog as your platform base. Develop this place where people can get to know you more and gain information on a regular basis. All your activities should point your audience back to this place. Your social networking should connect with your website. If you speak, encourage people to follow your blog or sign-up for your newsletter. Create your community around your author hub.
Don’t try to build a website all on your own. This is not an area you want to skimp on. The value of a professionally designed and laid-out website or blog is integral to the success of your message getting noticed. This is how you position your place for the long-term and where you drive your audience to connect with you. You want it to be easy to navigate and appeal to the audience’s interests and needs.
4: Brand Yourself
Position yourself and establish your unique expertise. Your brand is your promise of value proposition. In other words, clearly demonstrate in both what you say and do in terms of the value you offer your audience. What can they expect to gain from you to enrich their lives? Be sure to follow through with your promise because branding is 99% based on consistent delivery.
Branding goes beyond a name or slogan. It’s about establishing authority and telling your story.
5: Create Great Content
Today content is king. Consistently create valuable and relevant content that your audience craves. The more valuable content you write and create, the better your success will be in reaching your audience. Don’t focus on building content for search engines but instead concentrate on subjects that your audience will want to read and share. Search engines will naturally find you. Track your content and take notice of what is generating the most buzz and then do more of that.
Content includes blogs, social posts, videos, and images all relevant to your target audience. Don’t advertise your offerings; share them. Understand the power of free in impacting your audience. Research what information will be the most helpful and useful to your readers, and create content around it.
Also don’t forget to share content from others that you find particularly useful. If your readers know they can find useful information from your hub, the more they will follow you. Plus, the rule of reciprocity often applies. When you share content from others, the more apt they are to share yours.
6: Engage with Your Audience
Don’t be a hermit. Invite and involve your audience to engage with you. Hiding behind your brand will create a sense of inauthenticity. Don’t be afraid to show your true self and talk with people. Encourage conversations and responses to your blogs. Be active on social media by initiating conversations and engaging in others’ conversations. Involve your audience by asking poignant questions and inspiring feedback.
7: Expand Your Reach
Build relationships by networking with others. Leverage the connections you make online and offline. Join organizations and niche social groups. Focus on friending people who influence your audience. However, concentrate on how you can help others versus what you gain from them.
To expand your platform, continue to write. Write more content. Write more books. Authors who publish more than one book are more successful in the long-term.
You have to think like an authorpreneur. This is a business that needs a strong plan to carry it through successfully.
