Book Marketing with LinkedIn – Top Mistakes and Solutions

Are your book sales slow? For social media marketing, you may have tried Twitter and Facebook. Maybe, you’ve even put up a book blog to stimulate and engage your book’s audience. I too used Twitter and Facebook and dropped my first blog over 2 years ago thinking not enough results. That is, until I got some coaching on social media marketing. I discovered that Linkedin markets my new blog beautifully. LinkedIn works so well for consultants, coaches, authors and other small businesses.

Maybe you made these two big mistakes on social media.

Mistake 1. You collected followers, friends, and contacts, but most of them weren’t your book’s best audience.

Until I got my 1000 friends and book group members to join my fan pages, I got low results at Facebook. So, for all three of my social media marketing (Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn) I shifted my marketing strategy from collecting numbers to concentrating my social media marketing only on my book’s best audiences, This may shock you, but this change makes all the difference in my results of getting my specific audience to my site.

Results, Results, Results!

You need to also check what social media marketing is working and what not each month is.

Check Google Analytics Monthly.

For Linkedin, my Web site has gotten 25% more targeted visitors each month for the months of February, March, April and May, 2010. And more are coming from LinkedIn each month.

Check your Alexa Score Monthly.

I check my Alexa score monthly. It seems that my social media book group at Linkedin is partially the reason for so much new targeted traffic–only people who want to establish a relationship with me as a book coach and the 1075 other members who are so moved my how to messages, my positive personality, that they will visit and comment on my blog and eventually open up their wallets to buy my books and my short term coaching offers at my site.

My Alexa score has gone from 600,000 a few months ago to 330,000 in mid June, 2010. (That’s a good score) and my goal is 100,000 by the end of 2010. That score and lower mean very successful small businesses.

My Results Can be Your Results.

Some specific visitors just read my blog articles. Some come for my free reports. Many in my target audience take my hands-on teleseminars. The committed ones either read some of my books or contact me for my famous half hour coaching sessions to get specific solutions for their specific needs.

Less is More.

I still tweet, but only 2 times a day. I interact a few times a week at my Facebook (FB) fan page and Twitter with people who want book writing, self-publishing and social media marketing.

Mistake 2. You haven’t’ become active enough on LinkedIn.

You may have joined and put up a short profile, but this is not enough. You may complain it takes too much time. Yes, you don’t want to waste time on just any social media–that’s why I suggest you give LinkedIn a better chance. From my newest book “LinkedIn Marketing-8 Best Tactics to Build Book and Business Sales.” I’ll recommend a few of the 8 Best Tactics now. (Tactics that are working well today)

LinkedIn 3 Best Tactics that Bring Top Results

1. Do the most important thing first. Edit your Profile.

Your first profile probably needs freshening up. Make sure it engages your profile visitor. Show them the benefits of working with you, or buying your book. Don’t start so many sentences with “I”.

In all content marketing as LinkedIn and blogging, start from the YOU point of view. What can you do for your audience?

Include testimonials near the top because they sell books.

2. Join 5-10 groups that relate to your book or skills you need.

Keep researching and adding groups weekly that fit your book or business. Find these through search words for help like “book writing” and “LinkedIn strategies.” or search words of your audience who will want your book. Hint: My best audience is business people.

Do you know your book’s top 5 benefits? Put them in your profile and mention them in the groups. Do you know your book’s target audience? You need to know this for any book promotion to work. This is the pre-marketing know how that brings an author real success. Remember, benefits sell; features explain.

3. Get active on ten or more groups you that fit you.

Once you join, request weekly emails on what new discussions are going on. Then, when they show up in your email (how convenient) you can decide which ones to chime in with your useful comments.

Each time you contribute, the whole group sees your face and who you are. That’s great exposure to brand you or your book. You can contact individuals privately by email too, which can eventually lead to a sale.

Develop Patience and Start Relating to Others in your Audience

Know that getting to the sale takes at least 3-7 steps, so don’t make the big mistake and shout out your Web site or link to buy your book. You don’t need to. Readers in groups will see your picture and what you do and contact you if they are interested.

Get people curious about your book. They will respond. Offer one comment at a time. Or offer a blog link to a piece that relates to the discussion. This is the one link that is not considered promotion. Remember these groups are for education and help–not to sell directly to.

LinkedIn offers many more ways to interact than other social media. That’s why I love it so much and have enjoyed its results.

A book coach 25 years, I’m glad social media marketing is a great piece of the book marketing puzzle.

My mission is to assist you in getting more eyes on your book–the ones who really want or need it.

What’s your concern about Linkedin marketing? Leave me a comment and I’ll respond.

If you want to read more on Linkedin Marketing, be sure to see my 38-page book.

Published on June 21, 2010 at 10:32 AM by Judy Cullins

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(C) 2012 Judy Cullins. Skills Unlimited Publishing.