5 Handy Tips to Make Your Book Marketing Life Easier
Five more useful tips every writer can use now!
Book marketing can feel overwhelming, but there are simple ways to streamline your efforts to work smarter, not harder.
Whether you're just starting or have been at this for a while, these five tips will help you make the most of your time and energy—without pulling your hair out.
Be sure to read my first Useful Tips article here ⬇️
1. Check Your Analytics
You can’t improve what you don’t measure. Checking analytics helps you understand what’s working and what is wasting your time and money.
However, many authors are too busy or unfamiliar with HOW to check analytics. Which buttons to push? Which metrics matter? What does it all mean?
I asked those questions on my main platforms, and the same answer came from each:
I don’t know. I don’t know how to find out. We can check that?
I promise it’s not scary.
Social Media: X/Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, Linked, YouTube, and Instagram all have built-in analytics. If you upgrade your IG (free on Meta) to a business account, you’ll see even more robust analytics. Same with Pinterest - upgrade free to run ads and see analytics.
Use engagement rates and follower growth to determine which content performs best (X analytics are now only available with Premium accounts). This will inform you where to spend your ad monies, effort, and time.
Here’s what that looks like on X for my author account:
Website Traffic: Use Google Analytics to see how people find you, what pages they visit, and how long they stay.
Email Open Rates: If you use a platform like MailerLite or ConvertKit, check your open and click-through rates. If your emails aren’t being read, you might need a better subject line or a different approach.
You also have great analytics here on Substack! Upcoming post on how to check those.
👉 Example: If you notice your Instagram posts about writing tips get twice the engagement of your book promo posts, focus on creating more of what your audience loves.
Besides, nobody wants to see “buy my book!” in every post. Mix it up.
2. Use a Social Media Management Tool
Manually posting on multiple platforms is exhausting. None of us can be ‘on’ all the time. A social media management tool allows you to schedule posts in advance, repurpose content, and track engagement all in one place.
Some great options:
Buffer – Great for scheduling and analytics.
Hootsuite – Supports multiple platforms with advanced scheduling and great reports.
Metricool – A newer, data-driven option with detailed reports.
Publer – Affordable and lets you auto-schedule based on best posting times.
👉 Example: Instead of scrambling to post every day, set aside one hour per week to batch and schedule your content. That way, you stay consistent without it taking over your life.
To be clear, I don’t recommend scheduling every post. However, a scheduler can be a fantastic, practical tool for efficiency and consistency, not to mention energy.
This is especially helpful when sharing your Substack, videos, or blog posts for #MondayBlogs, which is about sharing posts on Mondays on X and Bluesky. More here.
3. If the Newsletter Process Feels Overwhelming, Try Substack
Newsletters are a fantastic way to connect with readers, but platforms like Mailchimp or ConvertKit can be time-consuming and a little spendy. Plus, all your efforts that go exclusively to email will not be visible on search engines.
If you're struggling, start with Substack.
Why?
It’s free and easy to set up.
Readers can subscribe with one click, and you can always import your current subscriber list.
💥Your posts go to your entire subscriber list AND are automatically published online, which means Google can index them, unlike regular emails, which remain private.
If you outgrow or don’t like it here, you can switch to a different email platform later.
👉 Example: A fiction author using Substack can write a mix of personal essays, book updates, and short stories, keeping readers engaged without dealing with complicated automation.
4. Turn Off All Notifications
This probably sounds weird from a book marketing/social media manager, but hear me out…
Notifications are productivity killers. Every social media notification, email, or phone ping steals your focus and makes marketing take longer.
Try this:
Turn off social media alerts. You don’t need to know instantly when someone likes or comments on a post with a smiley face. Instead, check once or twice a day. We become addicted to that dopamine hit and keep returning to it.
Find that dopamine hit elsewhere - touch grass, read a book, take a bubble bath. Something that gives you joy unrelated to social media!Silence your phone while working. If it’s urgent, they’ll call twice (or you can change your phone settings to allow calls from important people only).
Use the ‘Do Not Disturb’ feature. Most phones and computers have this built-in.
👉 Example: You’re writing a book update for your newsletter, and a Facebook notification pops up. You check it, scroll for 10 minutes, and suddenly, your writing flow is gone. Instead, set a timer, finish your work, and check later.
5. Use a Universal Link Tool for Your Books
Linking to your book should be easy for readers, no matter where they live, and easy for you to share. Instead of sharing multiple links for different stores in different countries, use ONE universal book link tool to send readers to the right place automatically.
Two great options:
Booklinker (Free) – Creates short links for Amazon and Apple Books.
Genius Links (Paid) – More advanced, works with all retailers and includes analytics. Cost: $6/month. Worth it.
👉 Example: Instead of saying, “Find my book on Amazon (U.S.), Amazon (UK), Apple Books, etc.,” you can say, “Grab my book here: https://geni.us/BrokenPeople,” and let the tool direct people based on their location.
What I love about these tools, besides the ease of use and reasonable/free cost, are the analytics. I know precisely where clicks originate (referrers) and where they end up (destinations).
Here’s what that universal link landing page looks like (and super easy to update anytime):
Final Thoughts
Marketing your book doesn’t have to be overwhelming. You'll save time and energy while reaching more readers by using analytics, automating posts, simplifying your newsletter, turning off distractions, and making book links easy.
Have any favorite book marketing hacks? Drop them in the comments! 😊
Interesting Stuff
Upcoming #BookMarketingChat on Twitter/X the first Wednesday of each month at 2 pm PT/5 pm ET. Join us on Wednesday, March 5!
Topic: Book launch for an incredible memoirist, Danika Duarte Smith, author of the FANTASTIC about-to-be-released travel memoir One Year And A One-Way Ticket Ditching My Mother's Five-Year Career Plan to Travel Solo (Atmosphere Press, March 11, 2025).
We’ll discuss her travels, writing, and the efforts she put into her first book; plus, she’ll give away one signed copy to a lucky listener. Must attend to qualify.
Click here now to set a reminder (recorded if you miss it).
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Shout-out to Booklinker, free universal book links, and my exclusive advertising sponsor.
Happy writing!