Recently I stumbled across an incredibly simple way to define and understand “platform” and what it means to build one. I was listening to a podcast about fitness expert and NYT bestselling author Chalene Johnson, in which she spoke about the work it took to build her platform enough to get the contract for her first book, Push. Chalene said that it doesn’t matter how many people know you or have heard your name.
What matters is how many people YOU can reach.
That’s it, in a nutshell. This is why the engagement on your blog and all your social media feeds is so important. How many people do you have direct access to?
The best and most direct way to reach people is through their personal email address. This is why the size of your email marketing list is quickly becoming one of the most important indicators of your platform. If you have an occasional newsletter and have been collecting your fans’ email addresses, then you’re off to a good start.
There are secondary ways to reach people: social networks. Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, Facebook and Google+. They’re not as effective or targeted as your email list, but they still represent a number of people you can REACH.
Chalene Johnson tells the story of how she wanted her agent to shop her book, but her agent said she needed to work on building her platform for a year. Keep in mind, Chalene already had bestselling fitness DVDs and millions of customers. “Her agent had to remind her that publishers don’t care who you know; publishers want to know if you have the ability to reach those people.” She got to work building her platform until her agent decided it was big enough for her to get the kind of publishing deal she wanted. How many people were on her email list?
*100,000*
Don’t freak out. Not everybody needs this size of following. Chalene’s area of expertise (fitness) happens to be extremely popular. It’s important to know, however, that people are out there building platforms of this size. Your platform will be dependent on the kind of book you’re writing, but you need to know the kinds of numbers publishers sometimes see. And love.
How will you build your numbers?
NOT by tweeting and putting up Facebook posts about your book!
(Especially if you don’t have a book yet.)
Here’s what you do:
1. Identify who your primary, ideal reader is.
2. Determine where to find that person. What social networks do they prefer? What online blogs and magazines do they read?
3. Come up with a topic, or set of topics, that interest you and your ideal reader. Forget about your book(s) for now. Who’s your audience, and what do they like? Maybe you’re writing contemporary inspirational fiction and your target audience is women in their 40s. Can you come up with a strategy to begin engaging with these women on Pinterest and Facebook by posting articles, photos, and quotes that all center around being inspirational? Or knitting? Or work-life balance?
4. Begin joining online communities, and building your own online community, that consists of these people and these topics.
But that’s SO MUCH WORK!
Yes, it is. But remember this…
You don’t have to create your own content.
… it’s the secret to making platform-building completely do-able.
What does this mean? You only have to spend 50% of your dedicated “marketing time” to creating content (writing blog posts, twitter posts, etc.) for your audience. The other 50% of your time can be dedicated to finding, re-posting and sharing other people’s content that fits into your strategy. This is known in the social media biz as “curating content.”
The idea is to build a real, true social network around the topic or theme you’ve identified. Then eventually, you’ll be directing all of these people to your website or Amazon page where they can see that you have books available for them to buy. And you’ll be sending them newsletters announcing your books.
This topic of building a platform and figuring out how to reach your potential readers is a HUGE one! I’ll be doing more posts on it. But I hope this is a good starting point for those of you who are simply flummoxed about platform.
What are some questions I can answer about platform and social media marketing in future posts?
TWEETABLES
Secret to understanding platform = how many people can you reach? Click to Tweet.
In social media, curating content is just as important as creating your own content. Click to Tweet.
What’s the most valuable and important element of your platform? @RachelleGardner explains. Click to Tweet.
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Great topic, and very helpful – thanks. I’m working on my own platform-building, so any hints are appreciated.
A couple of observations –
* Personality is the lens through which the content is filtered, and that personality has to be fresh and true every day. You can’t have an off day, and let it show.
* To my mind, email’s a lot trickier in engendering engagement, and the one art form that must be mastered is the “Attractive Subject Header”. I’m on a number of email lists, but don’t have time to open everything. If the subject catches my eye, I will – or might- give it a minute. If it looks boring, routine, or is an obvious sales come-on, I pass and delete.
* Don’t assume everyone is you. Rein in your passions, because they can make you look obsessive and will turn people away. Go at about 70% intensity; the goal isn’t converts, it’s engagement.
* It may just be me, but I find that too much “curating content” sends me away (too many book reviews on a blog do the same thing). I’d much rather hear the principal talking about something; it’s his or her personality that will keep me coming back.
* Don’t be afraid to say, publicly, “I was wrong”. That kind of humility is compelling.
* Look for long-term growth based on quality of content.
That last one sounds like it’s from a mutual fund ad…
Helpful and wise tips, Andrew, thanks! I agree with personality — it’s what drives engagement. I like your point about curated content. The secret there is to make sure you’re only sharing really great stuff that perfectly fits your brand. Good words!
I agree with Andrew about emails–at least that’s how I treat them also. So, I’m wondering, if we agree that emails are the most direct, do they still translate to sales? They must, if you place that much importance on them. I’d think for an email sent to me to translate to a sale, I’d still have to either know something about the person, or their work. Can you share data that shows how emails translate to sales? Percentages, etc.
Anne, this is a much bigger topic than I can cover here. Social media marketing, including email marketing, is something that every business in the world uses nowadays, so it goes far beyond writers and books. In any case, the data will be different for every individual business and author. But the statistics stack up – many, many businesses report the highest conversion rate comes from email marketing, rather than click-throughs from other sources. Of course, the email marketing has to be savvy and well-done. Not something that can be taught in a blog comment. 🙂
Great instruction, Rachelle. Thank you!
Do you have any specific suggestions for the younger reader–like fifth through eighth grades? Or maybe a suggestion or two as to which authors out there do a great job with social media and that particular age group?
I know the middle school kids I teach live on Twitter, Instagram, and Tumblr, so I’m not sure if the email list-newsletter method would work with the 5-8 grade age group. In addition, the younger age groups and high schoolers follow trends. They switch sites more often when adults show up on them, so I’m thinking web site traffic is the best bet with them, or am I way off base?
What suggestions do you have regarding this young adult age group? Or what resources would you direct me to so I can learn more? Maybe this is a blog topic idea for Rachel Kent–since I believe she is the agent at Books & Such for young adult lit. 🙂
Also, when I look at the info for various Christian writing conferences, I do not see many presentations regarding how to reach that age group. So if anyone out there has some info for this age group or younger, please share.
Melodie, do you think YA and middle grade might need to be reached through their parents? I’m wondering about that myself.
I know what you mean, Shelli. The younger market is frustrating me because if all the adults show up where they are, the kids leave. That’s why high schoolers got off of Facebook.
For younger readers, I’d suggest experimenting with Instagram. It probably has the most potential at this point. We can explore this more in future posts.
I’d love to hear your thoughts on how to reach young readers through Instagram, Rachelle. And Tumblr for that matter. As I’m sure you can relate, I have a teen girl who is constantly “coaching” me on how not to be “that embarrassing mom” who tries to act too young.
So, as an adult who writes YA, I want to reach teens in a way as to not try to be one of them, but offer them content that would be helpful and engage them in a way that would draw them in to see what kinds of books I write. That’s tough.
Yes, I would enjoy learning about how to use that to market to younger audiences.
I have to agree with Andrew and Anne that emails don’t work for me either. I get some periodically, and though I love what they are doing, how they are serving God … I just don’t have time to open it. It has to be from someone that is very, very important to me …
Example … though I receive B&S’s email daily … I never come to you through the email or because of the email. I come directly to you intentionally, with no reminder.
And … is this kind of following for non-fiction writers only?
Shelli, this kind of following is NOT just for non-fiction authors… it can be customized for every kind of author and every kind of business. It’s harder for fiction authors, that is for sure. But it’s not impossible. Paulo Coelho is a fiction author who is well-known as the social media superstar:
5,652,816 Twitter followers
9,295,931 Likes on Facebook
Blog can reach 200,000+ viewers a day
Yes, those numbers are millions.
Cec Murphey’s newsletter in an email is definitely one I will open. I agree with Shelli that I have to really, really like them to spend the time on it.
Thanks for the info, Rachelle! The topic of platform always makes me nervous, because, as you said, I know it’s hard work — on top of writing a stellar book! 🙂 Pinning this article for future reference.
Yes, platform isn’t a fun topic for writers who don’t see themselves as talented marketers. But it’s a new world, right? I think this is doable for most people.
You are so right, Rachelle. It is a brave new world. I’ve struggled with the concept of platform, but you’ve made it understandable.
Earlier today I read about Microsoft paying $2.5 Billion (with a ‘B’) to acquire Minecraft, a game platform with a huge customer base (50+ million) in the “young, hip demographic” it needs to attract.
If only I could come up with $2.5 Billion … 😉
I’m looking forward to your posts on this topic, Rachelle. Trying to figure out how to build a platform amid real life and writing life is a challenge. What is the best way to begin compiling an email list, especially for those of us who are pre-published? Do we need to ask blog subscribers for permission to send them emails? I’m not sure the etiquette for email newsletters.
Also, I’ve heard it’s good to offer our readers something, like good content, but also other things. One friend, who focuses on quotes offers a list of her top 20 favorite quotes for those who subscribe to her blog. I’d love tips on how to figure out what I can offer readers and those who subscribe to my one-day-newsletter. 🙂
Jeanne, what a neat idea to offer something! I’ve seen that but it hadn’t dawned on me to do it myself. Lol! I guess we better get brainstorming.
And I want to know how you people on here get your pictures to show up when posting. Maybe I need to use my gmail account where I have a picture?
Melodie, I think mine shows up because it’s linked with my wordpress blog. And I have it on Gravatar (which also comes from my blog). I don’t know if that helps? 🙂
Jeanne, you gather email addresses by offering something, like you said. “Sign up for my quarterly newsletter and get my free e-book.” Or whatever.
Interesting timing. I took a PiYo class yesterday for the first time, which I believe originated with Chalene Johnson. I loved it! I’m shocked to hear that she had to step back and work on being able to actually “reach” people who might buy her book. But that makes sense.
Building that newsletter list has been an invaluable way to actually communicate with people who choose to hear about what is going on with my books. As a YA fiction author, the trick has been figuring out how often to communicate and what types of things my subscribers want to hear about. Do they just want to hear when I have new releases, so very little communication? Do they want extra content, like short stories? Do they want monthly communication? Now that my numbers are growing, I’m asking lots of questions like this.
It seems that a lot of our questions are very similar to the questions fiction writers have asked about blogging. What content to readers truly want? What can we give them that will actually engage them without causing them to unsubscribe?
I’ve been watching a few authors recently who have extremely successful newsletters. One of them only sends out new release information. Another sends out monthly content, including giveaways, free short stories, and any other news she has to share. It’s tough to figure out exactly what your audience wants and how much time you have to give them that.
Heather, would you be willing to share which authors you are following so we can learn how they do it?
The two off the top of my head are:
Kathleen Brooks. She has built a “new release news only” type of newsletter.
And Denise Grover Swank seems to do an amazing job of providing new content and engaging her readership with her newsletter.
It helps that both are excellent authors. I still believe the writing and the books MUST COME FIRST!
The key to figuring out what kind of content is to drill down to your perfect, ideal reader. Then ask yourself: what kinds of thing does that person like? You DON’T want to be talking about your books all the time, but offering videos, quotes, photos, blog posts and articles that your target audience would find interesting.
Another key is experimenting, and paying close attention to what works and what doesn’t. Don’t be afraid to keep tweaking. Your strategy should be constantly evolving according to the results you’re seeing.
Thanks for these thoughts, Rachelle. I admit, I’ve been focusing more on my actual writing lately, but know I need to dive back into actively (not just passively) building my platform. So, how much time a week should someone be spending on building platform? (I love the tip about curating content, by the way! I’ve heard so many views on this both ways, so it’s good to know where you stand!)
The time spent on marketing vs. writing is going to be different according to where you are in your career. One successful self-published author I know spends the first hour of the day on marketing activities, and the rest of the day writing. She’s very strategic and is always working according to a plan, which is the only way it will work. You can’t just do things haphazardly. You’ve got to plan your actions, know what your goals are, and have a way to measure them.
It’s interesting, for sure. There is a part of me that thinks … you either have it, or you don’t.
That one catchy thing that attracts readers … and you don’t really have to work for it. I stumbled across a twitter profile … “Why My Cat Is Sad” … 158K followers, following 6 … really? Really people? But, I guess it’s fun and funny …
The cat has it and I don’t! 🙂 (Shelli blows a raspberry at the cat!)
Shelli, when it comes to social media, we’ll never win out over cats. Might as well drop that notion right now. 🙂
Oh that’s crazy! I have a weirdo weiner dog, maybe I need to tweet about him to get attention.
I write historical fiction. Do you think if I posted pictures of my cats dressed in vintage costumes, I’d draw more readers to my blog? Maybe stage scenes from my novels using my cats as characters?
I hope you will send me cards and chocolate when I’m in the hospital recovering from my wounds.
Jenny, Melodie … you gave me a good laugh. I know … it’s so bizarre. I guess it’s finding our voice … even if it’s through a cat. Why couldn’t I have thought of it first?! 🙂
I think everybody has it. You have to really pay attention to the kinds of things your audience likes.
Beg pardon, but I’m new at this party, and so I’m into the green stages of blogging and tweeting. I’m still in the throes of starting to polish my first draft on Scrivener, not yet ready to even query. I do have a comment about some (make that most) of the tweets and comments I read, and it concerns Circumspect. I’ve read many comments that a little fore-circumspect would have avoided embarrassment had the blogger used it before clicking on send. Incidentally I’m participating in advance of initiating my marketing strategy, although I have made a list of seven reader categories. The longest journey…etc. Lotsa luck.
Welcome, John. You’ll learn a lot here. The agents and writers are generous about sharing social-media successes, failures, and do-overs.
Thanks for the welcome, Jenny. I visited your website and am very impressed. A little of my background, if you will. Have written several novels, the writing bug got me several years ago. One published “GOSHEN,” historical fiction about the man who invented Ancient Hebrew between the Books of Genesis and Exodus. My wife got the cancer that would take her life and she asked me not to participate in the marketing, so….. I’m 82, but a young 82 and am still looking for worlds to conquer. I guess I got a bit too much into the Lost Generation authors to realize how different writing fiction and getting it published is today. But that’s a different story for another day. I will say in closing my thank-you note that your style is pleasing–which means IMHO an absence of adverbs. I was taught that an adverb means I have the wrong verb. Lotsa luck.
Welcome, John Wells. I found this site a year ago, and it has been a wealth of information daily. B&S has blessed me; I know it will bless and encourage you, too.
John, it’s nice to “meet” you. I’m with Jenny. This is a great place to connect with others on the journey and to learn from some of the best agents in the business, IMHO.
And I’m sorry to hear about your wife.
How right you are, John. We all need to be extremely careful and thoughtful in our online activities!
Good information, Rachelle. Along with creating original content and curating others’ content on my site, I’d add a third piece: making my own content “curatable,” meaning others both WANT to curate it onto their sites and can do so EASILY. B&S does this well when you include “tweetables” at the bottom of each post. First, the content is appealing/useful enough to want to repost, and second, you make it super-easy to do so. Any advice you can give on tweetables and other ways to increase one’s”curatability” is most welcome. (Sorry for the made-up words; “curatable” is not in Webster’s but it’s the only word that seems to fit.)
Jenny, your website is gorgeous!
That’s KEY, Jenny. Try to make sure everything you post on any social network, or your blog, is so good that others will want to share it.
Thank you, Rachelle, for the thought-provoking post. The regular posts here on the subject of platform keep the topic in front of me, stimulate me to consider what I can do, and demonstrate that others like me are designing a platform that works. Thanks. As a unpublished author, I need all that!
Wonderful, Betsy! There’s so much to learn, isn’t there?
Befriending people on Facebook, blogging, etc. doesn’t get us email addresses. If you don’t have a newsletter does any one know of a way to get addresses? It sounds like an idiotic question, but I thought I’d ask. lol
Great question, Jeane. In today’s world, it seems people are more cautious about handing out that email or phone number … our information gets sold … we start getting huge amounts of junk email and phone calls.
I do like the “follow by email” option on blogs. Even though we don’t have their personal emails, at least if we post current or upcoming news, we know they receive it.
Jeane, ir’s absolutely not an idiotic question (or maybe I should say, I’ve had the same question, so if it’s idiotic, that makes two of us. 🙂 )
My target audience is the nostalgia-minded woman who suspects she was born 50 or 100 years too late. I do offer a quarterly newsletter, but as I’m an unknown author with no published books yet, it’s not a big draw. Recently I added a .pdf giveaway about adding touches of vintage style to everyday life. I’ve seen a small uptick in sign-ups, not a huge one, but it’s a little too soon to tell. I plan to switch out the giveaway now and then to keep it fresh. My next one will probably be something like “Tips for a Sparkling Vintage Christmas.” If I land on one that seems like a winner, I’ll let you know!
I have the same question, Jeane. Maybe there is a spot on your web page–if you have one. On my blog, people can subscribe through email, and I know it works because my husband served as my test for that, but I cannot find a list of emails anywhere as to who actually gets notified. I know one of my writing partners signed up, but the site does not notify me of that.
Certainly there is a way to find it and acquire a list. For those who use blogspot through gmail, if you know the answer, please share.
You gather email addresses by offering something, like you said. “Sign up for my quarterly newsletter and get my free e-book.” You shouldn’t use the list of people who have subscribed to your blog – they HAVEN’T opted in to a newsletter or any kind of email communication from you except your blog. That’s why your Sign-up on your blog needs to say something like, “Sign up here to receive my newsletter and occasional opportunities to win free books. In addition, if you sign up now, you’ll receive my popular list of the Top 20 Vacation Destinations for History Buffs.” (I made that up as an idea for someone who writes historical fiction.)
Offer great content and valuable giveaways. That’s how you get email addresses.
This may sound like the infamous “circular firing squad,” but one of my potential target bloggers will be comprised of authors (wannabes or published) who are interested in character development using the Enneagram character analysis methodology, because I consider these people among the most qualified to give me feedback about my treatment. In this regard my hide makes a rhino envious and I consider that such is necessary in order to advance my craft. I don’t mind reading critical or degrading comments IF they’re on target.
I believe the core of author marketing still comes down to this:
Figure out where your potential readers are gathered, then go stand in front of them till they notice you.
I would add to that… “then go stand in front of them AND BE INTERESTING till they notice you.”
Thanks Rachelle _- I will add that to my philosophy of writing.
I’ve tried all kinds of things on my blog to increase readership.
Because of the new Star Wars movie coming out in 2015, I run a Star Wars quote almost every week. I post author interviews which are also popular. Disney seems to stir some interest, but my readers aren’t too interested in sports.
Most of the people who read my blog will send me an email or text message instead of posting comments on the blog. And it’s not only older adults who do this. People in their 20s comment to me this way too.
Do you think it matters that I don’t have many people comment on my blog?
I’ll keep trying new things. And I’m going to take your advice and have another give away.
Thanks, Rachelle.
I have to admit I haven’t put a lot of time into building followers on my blog and I haven’t set up a newsletter yet. I can’t help but wonder if that really hurt me in my recent search for an agent. When you look at submissions, how much does this help/hurt a potential client?
Hi Rachelle, I’ve just finished my first novel. Before I start the querying process, I’ve been giving platform a lot of thought. I bought a website but am not publishing it until I have a clear strategy. This is my question. My first novel is on one topic and will have a target audience. But my next novel might not have the same target audience. So, where do I focus to decide who to target? I suppose I should focus on the current novel’s audience and worry about the next novel when I get to it, but what is your opinion?
Thanks for simplifying the definition of ‘platform’, Rachelle. Although the size of Chalene’s subscriber list blows my mind, I’m pleased to hear you think a sizable platform is achievable with time and effort. For those of you wondering about the nuts and bolts of how to build a subscriber list, particularly through a newsletter, Jeff Goins and Tim Grahl are two people in the industry who are generous with their time and expertise. If you follow them, they have lots of resources available on this topic. Tim’s book “Your First 1,000 copies” speaks very specifically to this topic. I hope that helps.
“…finding, re-posting and sharing other people’s content that fits into your strategy.” I have definitely used this to grow my blog. It helps.
Great advice, thanks Rachelle. So many of the replies above are helpful too. I’m a published author and former publisher but I’m pretty new to blogging and I’m building my platform gradually (I’m not even promoting my books there yet). I find that people are responding to the service I provide: Free Literary Mentor, which gives free, professional, constructive critiques for new writers and displays their work. Eventually I’d like to invite subscribers to a newsletter (another good tip above!). I believe offering a genuine service can attract readers, and the mentoring side of things keeps up a dialogue on my fb page. I read all genres on http://www.cherylhingley.com/
Rachel, I have been seriously writing for less than two years. I am a member of a writers group and have attended four conferences. I have heard varying definitions of platform, which I am working to sort out. Some speakers have suggested it is the host of one’s blog or website, while others suggest it is one’s following. It is hard to build without knowing what it is your building. Your post brings it a little closer to focusing for me. I look forward to your future posts on platform building. Thanks.
Thanks for encouraging people to make social media social. It’s kind of the point and works great!