Why Engaging with Your Audience Helps Your Author Brand
When authors focus their efforts on regularly engaging with their audience, they will find that their brand is stronger for it
Too many authors focus on how many followers their social media accounts or newsletter subscriber list have as if this is the status quo that establishes them as professional writers.
As important as it is to grow your amount of followers, what really matters in regard to your follower count is the weight those people carry.
An audience that an author grows and maintains shows how well they engage that audience. Meaning, how often they respond to comments on their posts, how they support their audience, and how they show their appreciation.
When authors show their audience how important they are, great things can come from them.
What are some of the benefits that come from a consistent audience?
Increase in book sales
Creating a community
Meeting wonderful people
Learning new things
They share your posts and help increase your following
However, if authors try to build an audience with the single intention of increasing their sales, that is what drives their audience away.
Once you build this audience, it’s important to show them how and why you appreciate them.
Try these ideas:
Sharing a post to highlight your top fans
Believe it or not, a simple post that expresses your appreciation for fans that frequently comment or share your posts can go a long way.
Doing this doesn’t have to be lengthy either. For example, you can simply post something such as, Couldn’t be more thankful to my loyal fans (insert their names here) for following my posts! Follow them to see how great they are too!
When fans are recognized this way, it incentivizes them to continue this behavior.
Sharing a free story with them
Creating a short story between 600 and 2,000 words and making it available for free is a wonderful way to treat your loyal fans.
This can be shared with them in a few ways:
In a newsletter
Through a link in a blog post
Made free across platforms such as Amazon, Kobo, Apple, and Google
Once you have created this free story, share it with your fans. Like this: To thank fans for sticking with my stories this long, I hope you all enjoy a free story. You can find it here: (Insert link).
A little gesture that goes a long way.
Hosting a giveaway
Hosting a giveaway can yield numerous benefits, the main one being a reward for a fan.
You can do this over social media with a post such as: For fans of The Backup Superhero series, I’m hosting a giveaway in which the winner will receive a free paperback version of the series and a special merchandise item. To enter, tell me what your superhero name would be, what level in the superhero system you’d fall under, and why. Contest ends (Insert Date).
You can also do this through services that help you choose a winner.
To save yourself postage, be sure to note which exclusions apply such as countries and regions.
When you show your audience appreciation for following you, they will reciprocate.
Building an author brand is more than just a follower count.
It’s about building a community of people who can learn from each other.