Everyone’s crazy about social media! The majority of us are finding ways to connect with people who share similar interests and choices in life. With the growing popularity of social media, it is not surprising that more and more people are finding it easy to connect and share their wills and preferences. If you have been struggling along with the same as an author, Goodreads is an amazing platform for you to look into.
What is Goodreads?
It is a popular social networking platform meant for authors and book lovers like you. Goodreads is not just like any other social media platform, it is more like a community for authors and readers.
If you have been struggling to find a platform to showcase your talent and work, this can be a pretty amazing spot to get started with. It’s a free forum used by authors to share their books. It allows the community to run a random search to find the books that suit their taste.
It is one of the most vocal community and is ideal for:
- Book reviews
- Book recommendations
- Free book promotion
How to Set up a Goodreads Author Profile
If you don’t have an author profile in Goodreads, we highly recommend you to have one. Here is a list of steps you need to follow to create a profile:
1. Create an Account
Start by opening the website www.goodreads.com. Once that opens, you will find a signup portion where you can register either with Facebook, Twitter, Google+, or even with Amazon accounts. Alternatively, you can also use your e-mail account to enroll yourself on the platform.
We encourage you to use an email id not linked to your Facebook or Amazon account. Since Goodreads is owned by Amazon, it might affect the usability of your account in Goodreads. Amazon might access the reviews you post here. So, we highly encourage you to use a separate mail id that is not linked to any other social media, KDP account, or your Amazon shopping account.
By filling in the designated tabs there, you are all set to explore the prospects of getting your- self out there as an established author. The only thing you need to do is ensure that you take time to be active on the platform, interact with the readers,, and even be able to answer some queries that they have with your book.
2. Claim your Book(s)
You can start by searching if your book is added to the Goodreads database. There are chances that readers have added it already to it. If not, you can add your books to the database.
First, search for your published book. When you click the result for your book, it will open the book page. On the book page, click on the link for your name.
Click on the link that says, “Is this you? Let us know.” You can send a request to join the Author program.
Goodreads will process your request, and it may take up to 48 hours for approval. Once your request is approved, you can begin to network with this account.
3. Customize your Profile
You can customize your author profile by doing the following:
- Add a profile photo
- Write a compelling author bio
- Ask your audience to sign up for the e-mail list
- Add your blog
Read Goodreads Author Guidelines to know more about the author page, and the guidelines you need to follow.
How to Promote your Book on Goodreads
As we did mention before, Goodreads is an immaculate platform to help gain better exposure as a writer. It is quite easy to set up and can gain you the kind of exposure that you have always wanted for your books and for your overall string of talent.
There are unique features that make this platform great for authors. Here are a few amazing things you can do here to promote your book and also your talent as an author:
1. Using Listopia
Listopia, as the name suggests, is a whole list of books. Next on the list of things to do is to ask your readers to list out your book on Listopia. Goodreads has a listed section, which is essential because it provides better access to books based on categories.
When you ask your readers to list out your books, make sure that the books you have are under appropriate listings as well. The higher your books rank in this category, the more reads your books are going to get. Thus, ensure that you use the platform to channel in a better amount of listings.
You can use the Goodreads list majorly in two ways:
- Create own list for Listopia
- Add your book to other users’ lists.
You can find niche categories in which you can place your book, and add it to the list. It is one of the smartest ways to promote your book.
2. Connect the Blog
If you are an author, chances are that you are going to end up having a blog to showcase your thoughts and writings. One of the best ways to get started along with good reads is by connecting your blog with the account that you started.
Goodreads has this amazing feature in which they email the fans at least once a week to keep them updated on all the latest blog posts that you have made. Blog integration helps ensure better exposure without any issues whatsoever. If possible, you can even get a good hang out of it.
3. Author Q & A
Leading an interactive Q&A session is another amazing way to help you gain better exposure and visibility in general. Often, are reading your book, stumble across a number of questions they need answers to. What better way to get their doubts clarified than to consult the author of the book directly, right? Doing so can even help in building a better relationship with the readers which is an added bonus. If required, you can even talk to your readers and get their opinion.
4. Goodreads Quotes
Quotes are a great way to promote your content. You can see any kind of quotes been used in all possible social media platforms. People create it and share it vastly across all platforms.
Goodreads has its own bank of quotations. You can add the quotes to this pool of quotes where you can get due recognition as the creator of those lines. The quote should be from your book, and not from your blog or journal. You can officially become a quoted author on Goodreads.
It is highly beneficial since people tend to share quotes more than anything else.
5. Do Giveaways
Another amazing way to increase the readability of your book is by ensuring that you host giveaways. When you do, chances are that the interested people who enter the giveaway are going to add your books to their lists and even improve their engagement with your author profile. This enhances the exposure and helps provide a better outlook altogether. Goodreads has a book giveaway section which makes the process even easier for you to take a peek into.
Once you are done with the giveaway, ensure to remove the widget from the platform and confirm that the giveaway is done with. Or else, people might think that the same is active.
6. Goodreads Quizzes
Quizzes are a fun way to engage your audience. Goodreads provides you a platform to create your quizzes for your fans and followers. It is a fun and entertaining way to reach your audience, and with the tags for your quiz, you can also reach a wider audience.
Create a quiz on the published book of yours, and include questions regarding the genre as well. After creating the quiz, add tags so that it becomes easily recognized by the users.
For instance, if your book falls under the genre of thriller, add tags like thrillers, mystery, murder mystery, etc.
7. Goodreads Polls & Trivia
Polls are normally used to gather information and data. Creating polls in Goodreads will allow the author to know about readers’ opinions regarding the book, or even topics regarding book publication, cover, design, and writing.
Polls can give more exposure to your page and your books.
Trivia is another tool that can be used effectively to promote your books. You can add simple trivia questions regarding your work or about your book, and boost the exposure of your work.
8. Advertising on Goodreads
Goodreads has a separate section for advertising programs you can leverage for your marketing needs as well. There are chances that not many authors use this owing to the lack of budget to spend on advertising. If that is the case with you, it is best to take time out to judge the situation at hand.
This social media platform does have a click-through advertising program under which you need to pay for the advertisement only when someone clicks on it. This way, you are assured that you pay only when some action is taken through with it. It is a fantastic way to gain better exposure without having to go bankrupt through the process.
You would have understood that Goodreads is a very popular social media networking platform for book lovers and enthusiasts. If you are an author and want your book to get out there, Goodreads is a good enough platform to start the journey with.
It goes without saying that the process is never going to be easy but, it is important to ensure that you do take time out to assess the situation and find better ways to promote and market your book, so it reaches a wider spectrum of audience.
