Your author platform and brand are separate marketing elements that work towards the same objective. It can seem as if they’re interchangeable or indistinct from each other because they work in tandem to grow your audience, build a loyal readership and sell more books. But defining and distinguishing these two elements is an important step in successfully building your overall author marketing strategy.
Author Platform and Author Brand. What’s the Difference?
An author platform and brand serve different functions, though they may seem like the same thing and the terms are sometimes used interchangeably. But having one without the other is ineffective. You need a platform to get the word out. You need a brand to sustain a strong platform and you need both to sustain an effective author marketing strategy.
What is an Author Platform?
An author platform is a catch-all for your visibility and reach. It’s your digital footprint. It is also your stage. It includes your website and social media channels, and your blog or newsletter. It can also include speaking engagements, podcasts and media coverage. Basically, it is how you reach your audience and where they can find you. You grow your author platform by being more visible and capturing attention, which hopefully leads to gaining a larger audience.
So, What is an Author Brand Then?
An author brand is your reputation and how you present yourself. It’s who you are and what you’re all about. Having a platform will make you visible to your audience, but your brand will keep them engaged. It builds loyalty and trust when done well. Your brand is what sustains a connection between you and your audience.
Why You Need Both for a Successful Author Marketing Strategy
So, now that we’ve distinguished the difference between your author platform and brand, it’s probably clear why you need both. They work in tandem. For instance, you can be highly visible and maintain a huge digital footprint, but without a consistent and solid brand behind your efforts, your audience may see you, but they won’t necessarily want to engage.
Again, your platform is your stage. Your brand is what you have to say and how you say it. Ideally, what you have to say and how you say it will resonate with your audience.
This is why knowing your audience and finding the right platform is crucial too. The goal is connection, engagement and authenticity. It’s not about saying a lot. It’s about saying the right thing.
The lack of a strong author brand is usually the reason that, despite spending a lot of time and energy creating content and posting online, many authors fail to grow a loyal audience. Another common misstep is not knowing your audience. Not coincidentally, researching and discovering your audience allows you to form a marketing strategy directed at them.
Then, your author platform and brand can work together not only to expand your reach, but grow your audience. This matters because these are the people who become loyal fans. And let’s face it, you can’t market to an audience that doesn’t exist.
Some Tips for Building Your Author Brand
When working with clients on their marketing strategy, before we work on building their author platform, I have them focus on defining their author brand.
Remember, an author platform and brand are both essential, but to effectively grow your platform with intention and purpose, you need to know your brand. How do you want to be perceived? Who are you and what are you all about? How does this translate into what you will be saying and how you will be saying it?
What are the Elements that Define Your Brand?
Remember, an author brand isn’t about creating a fake persona to sell yourself and your books. It’s a reflection of who you are, authentically. Not only is inauthenticity offputting to your potential audience, it’s just not sustainable. And sustainability is the goal! Marketing is a long-term project and burnout can derail your ambitions.
Essentially, building your author brand starts with you. I ask my clients to do a few exercises to help them define their brands.
Some of these exercises include:
- Defining your core values (the heart of your brand)
- Creating an author mission statement
- Crafting a unique writer proposition
- Perfecting your elevator pitch
- Forming an author messaging strategy
You can click the links for details on each topic. These are all steps in figuring out your author brand. They will lead you to discover what’s at the heart of what you do, what your goals are, what sets you apart and how you want to present yourself to the world. That’s an author brand!
The Basics of Building a Solid Author Platform: Visibility Leads to Discoverability
Some authors already have a platform and some don’t. But the key is finding the right spaces and using them to their full advantage. This starts with not only knowing where your audience is, but also where you feel the most comfortable.
Remember, sustainability is key! Your author marketing budget includes more than the money you plan to spend. You also need to factor in your time, energy and emotional budget.
Are you more behind-the-scenes or shy? Maybe you can concentrate your energy on blogging regularly? Or publishing articles? Do you thrive on interaction? Perhaps focusing on video content, Q&A sessions, or conversational engagement works best for you?
Once you know where your audience is, and where you’re most comfortable, and therefore most likely to shine, you can work on visibility. This visibility leads to discoverability. If you’re not visible, how will your audience find you?
Visibility comes from doing the work of creating content or engaging with your audience. Maybe you publish more articles? Perhaps you land speaking engagements or guest spots on podcasts? Whatever it is, you begin to increase your digital footprint and expand your stage. The more you’re out there, the more visible you’ll become to your audience.
A Note on Finding Your Audience/Readers
Many new authors make the mistake of trying to market their book to everyone. But, the problem is, your book is not for everyone. Your book is for your audience.
This is why doing the research before you start this whole process is so important. You need to know who your book, specifically, is for, and then you need to market to them.
The process of positioning your book before you publish will ensure that you get this right. You can read my post on the topic here.
How to Use Your Author Platform and Brand in Your Marketing Strategy
Together, your author platform and brand function to grow your audience and build your fanbase. But this is meant to be done with intention. Figuring out where your audience is, who they are, and what they want allows you to use your platform to its full potential. Then, your brand allows you to build connection and trust with your audience. This is how they become loyal fans.
Together, your visibility and intimate knowledge of your audience increases your discoverability. Then, you tailor your marketing strategy to appeal to them. When you speak directly to your audience, they notice. Your marketing strategy needs to be all about them. So, write the blogs they want to read. Engage authentically and give them what they expect from you to build trust.
You can shout into the void hoping your audience will find you by chance or you can find your audience and speak directly to them. The latter will not only save you time and energy, it becomes a joyful process. The former will probably leave you frustrated, and wondering why you’re bothering.
It’s all about your audience. Catering to anyone else is a waste of time.
This can all seem like a lot, right? Well, not to worry. The business of being an author is a marathon, not a sprint. I write bi-weekly on the important topics author-publishers need to understand because I want to see you all succeed. So, check out my blog for tips, insights, and step-by-step guides. Subscribe so you won’t miss out!
