Building a Poetry Career
Poetry is a unique kind of literature, with a small but potentially passionate audience. Reaching that audience in the digital age requires strategic use of digital marketing.
As a poet myself, here’s a guide to help you effectively market and sell your poetry books online.
1. Build an Author Website
Creating an Online Presence:
Your website serves as the central hub for your digital marketing efforts and as your online “home.” Ensure it includes:
Author Bio: Share your story and what inspires your poetry.
Books Section: Include information about your books, share excerpts or quotes, and purchase links where readers can order copies of your books.
Blog: Share poetry inspiration, sentiments about other poets’ work, poetry movements taking place, writing tips, review local poetry readings or poetry slams, and post regular updates to engage readers and improve your site SEO.
Newsletter Signup: Collect emails to keep readers updated on new releases and events.
SEO Optimization:
Optimize your site pages (and/or blog posts) with relevant keywords like “contemporary poetry,” “modern poets,” or specific themes of your books to improve search engine visibility.
2. Leverage Social Media
Choose the Right Platforms:
Focus on platforms where poetry and literary communities thrive and do so in a way that you personally prefer. Some platforms, such as Twitter/X can encourage boundary-free content whereas other sites such as Mastadon can provide more active curation.
Picking the platform you feel most comfortable with, and sharing your poetry through, can help you find your best way to share and build an audience.
Instagram: Use visual poetry, specific quote or section pull-outs, images from specific pages, book covers, pictures of people reading your books, and behind-the-scenes content. Owned by Facebook, users here seem to prefer short, catchy video and visual content most with appropriate hash tags or Calls-To-Action (CTAs).
Twitter: Share quotes, engage with the poetry community, leverage the power of hashtags and participate in writing prompts. Be aware that Twitter/X is very open or free of any moderation.
Facebook: Create an author page to share events, blog posts, sales links, specials, free downloads, and interact with readers. Facebook has probably the broadest, widest reach of any social media platform.
TikTok: Engage with #BookTok to reach a younger audience with creative video content. Obviously TikTok prefers short, snappy, cool video content.
Content Strategies:
Visual Posts: Share aesthetically pleasing images of your poetry, readers with your boo, yourself at poetry readings or signings or events, images of books, and writing space.
Engagement: Respond to comments, join poetry discussions, and share user-generated content.
Regular Updates: Consistent posting keeps your audience engaged and informed.
3. Utilize Email Marketing
Build Your List:
Encourage website visitors to subscribe to your newsletter with incentives like exclusive poems or discounts, free downloads (like checklists), and other incentives that can help fledgling poets or encourage active readership.
Content Ideas:
Announcements: New book releases, upcoming events, or poetry readings. Some of this may be redundant but simply reworded and/or linked to for greater ease of use for navigation (also called User Experience).
Exclusive Content: Share unpublished poems, writing tips, or personal stories.
Regular Updates: Monthly newsletters with highlights, book recommendations, and poetry news.
4. Collaborate with Influencers and Bloggers
Identify Key Influencers:
Look for book bloggers, literary influencers, and poetry enthusiasts with engaged followings.
Pitch Your Book:
Reach out to podcasters or influencers with a personalized message, offering a free copy of your book in exchange for a review or feature. If you’re not sure as to whether or not you’d be a suitable podcast guest, or not sure about how to market yourself as a podcast guest check out my blog post on “pitching” to podcasts.
Guest Posts and Interviews:
Write guest posts for literary blogs or participate in interviews to reach new audiences and build credibility offering to write guest posts. As a podcast host and guest myself, I can count on one hand the number of times podcast hosts mentioned the possibility of cross-posting as a means to build online visibility. Don’t miss that opportunity.
5. Run Targeted Ad Campaigns
Social Media Ads:
Facebook and Instagram Ads: Target users interested in poetry, books, and literature.
Budget Management: Start with a small budget and scale up based on your Return On Investment (ROI) performance.
Google Ads:
Keyword Targeting: Use Google Analytics and the most specific keywords relevant to your book’s themes and genres.
Ad Copy: Write compelling ad copy that highlights unique aspects of your poetry.
6. Engage with Online Poetry Communities
Join Forums and Groups:
Participate in discussions on platforms like Reddit, Goodreads, and specialized poetry forums.
Share Your Work:
Post excerpts, join writing challenges, and provide feedback to other poets to build relationships.
Host Virtual Events:
Organize online poetry readings, workshops, and Q&A sessions to connect with readers and showcase your work.
7. Offer Promotions and Discounts
Limited-Time Offers:
Run promotions during holidays, National Poetry Month, or your book’s anniversary.
Bundle Deals:
Offer bundles of your poetry books at a discounted price to encourage multiple purchases.
Exclusive Discounts:
Provide special discounts to your newsletter subscribers or social media followers.
8. Collect and Display Reviews
Encourage Reviews:
Ask readers to leave reviews on platforms like Amazon, Goodreads, and your website.
Highlight Testimonials:
Showcase positive reviews on your website and social media to build trust and attract new readers.
Respond to Feedback:
Engage with reviewers by thanking them and addressing any constructive criticism.
Summing Up Ways to Build and Market Poetry Books
Marketing and selling poetry requires embracing both traditional and modern marketing approaches; and of course digital marketing is the heart of modern marketing. Using it effectively requires a combination of strategic online presence, engaging content, and targeted advertising.
By building a strong author website, leveraging social media, utilizing email marketing, collaborating with influencers, running ads, engaging with communities, offering promotions, and showcasing reviews, you can reach and grow your audience, ultimately increasing your poetry book sales.
Embrace the digital tools and approaches available, and watch your poetry find its way to readers around the world.