How to Build an Author Platform Step by Step?

DO YOU HAVE AN AUTHOR PLATFORM?

For starters, this post is not a "how to" manual. It is really a question. Because it is all I ever hear from publishers and from experts on websites about authors and book publishing. And there are tons and tons of articles on the Internet about the subject matter but I still am not sure if I can ever succeed at getting me one of these. And I have been reading a lot of these articles.

For example:

• Build Your Author Platform: 7 Manageable Ways to Start From Scratch by thewritelife.com

• Your Writer Platform: How to Build Your Following Before the Book by yourwriterplatform.com

• A definition of Your Author Platform by Janefriedman.com

• How  to Build an Author Platform in 10 Hours Per Week by bookbaby.com

And this is just for starters. There is just so much information on this topic! The question really is how to parse through all the noise and actually come out with a "platform" that is big enough to sell books - preferably sometime before you croak. Am I right?

I don't have the answer to this question. Below find some of the tips I picked up from my research of the issue:

First, it is important, I think, to know what an author platform is. What is an author platform? According to Chris Robley of bookbaby.com, an author platform is a "fancy buzzword folks in the book business use to talk about an author’s fan engagement, their social media and web presence, the size and dedication of their readership, and their connectedness to other authors, bloggers, critics, agents, publicists, publishers, etc."

How are you doing so far with that? Do you have a social and web media presence and if so how big is it? The bigger it is the bigger your platform, I think. That is the rule of thumb: big social media presence, big author platform. But as Mr Robley points out, it is not just the social media. You also have to have an "in" with other authors and people in the book industry. How are you doing with that? I imagine much better than I am at this point.

Next point. You have to publish a lot to build a big platform. This means submitting work to online journals, magazines, blogs, newspapers, etc. Obviously, if you are a niche writer you need to keep your work relevant to this niche and to seek out publications in your niche. (and don't worry about the rejection letters just keep submitting till you get that climax.)

After. You need a website but that is without saying so maybe the point is that you need a few websites going simultaneously, as opposed to just one website, because obviously every writer has a website or blog or both. (what is the difference anyway??) And you need a massive following on these sites and blogs. The bigger the following the bigger the blog, the bigger the platform you can boast.

Then. Get on TV or radio as often as possible discussing whatever - preferably stuff relating to your niche.

Did I say. Develop a niche? This is key to being able to target an audience that becomes your "target market" and frankly, your customers and this will go far towards building your platform.

On top of that. Name drop your celeb friends and get them to name drop your book during media appearances. Or just hitch your wagon to someone famous the way Kim Kardashian did. Or date someone famous. That way you will be famous yourself and it is the easiest way to build your platform and sell your books.

Critically important. You need a mailing list. So you have to solicit emails from people who visit your website by using pop ups & free downloads and stuff like that to entice them to sign up.

Understand this: it is all about your ability to influence. You need to be good at winning friends and influencing others with your words, deeds and achievements in order to build a big platform. How do you do this? Create value. Solve problems. Give answers to life's tough questions. They will love you.

Understand that you need to think of yourself as a brand. It's like you are the Nike in the book industry. You have to get everybody to want to "wear" you no matter how ridiculously high your price of acquisition is. How do you do this? One way is to create "scarcity" and "exclusivity." This could contradict the whole point of building a big platform because you will end up with fewer people rather than more people when you are so exclusive. But in a way, growing your platform is not just a numbers game. It is the quality of the people you have at your finger tips, not the number. The quality of people in the self-publishing domain would seem to be people most likely to buy your books. The way you brand yourself could determine who is willing to buy your books.

Finally. Join as many communities as you can and be visible in them (both online and offline.)

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Check out my publications and books here: author page on amazon.com