This post, from Mindstir Media, originally appeared on that site on 7/25/11.
The term free book marketing is self-explanatory, but words like “Goodreads” and “LibraryThing” –book marketing tools–are not. Here’s a short list of free book marketing tools each author should utilize:
- Blogger/WordPress/Tumblr: It’s important to have your own blog. You should write quality content relating to your book(s). For example: If you’ve written a fantasy novel, you could blog about fantasy writing, review comparable books, interview other fantasy authors, etc. Make sure to include book ordering information on your blog as well as subscribing options and icons linked to your social media accounts.
- Facebook: Read this post–Facebook For Authors by Cindy Ratzlaff–to understand the personal profile, the fan page, and the benefits of using the leading social network as an author. Over 600 million people use Facebook nowadays, so it’s not a tool you can ignore!
- Goodreads: The #1 social networking site for book lovers. This site, from an author’s perspective, is all about targeted marketing and networking. You can network with tons of fans from your genre; include your book in Goodreads’ giveaway program (which they promote to their members for you!); customize your author profile after signing up for the free Goodreads Author Program; launch a targeted ad campaign with self-serve advertising (not free); and more!
- LibraryThing: Much like Goodreads, you can run a giveaway on LibraryThing.com (LT), but the LT giveaway program is superior. Here’s why: You can give away e-book downloads, which cost you absolutely nothing but help you gain readers and reviews. Each author also gets a free author profile like on Goodreads.
Read the rest of the post, which includes 7 more free book marketing tools, on Mindstir Media.