Content Marketing for Writers: 4 Essential Strategies That Work

A decade ago, marketing strategies for writers did not even exist. All a writer had to do was write. A writer wrote, and submitted the work to an editor and let others worry about content marketing. Today, writers play the role of a writer as well as a marketer and a promoter. Marketing strategies are now seen as one of the important tools in the writing world.  

Since the writing industry is growing more than ever now, marketing strategies for writers becomes a necessary skill to own. Adaptability and flexibility come a close second. Therefore, every writer needs to acquire these skills to turn their writing hobby into a profitable career. 

What is a marketing strategy?

In simple words, marketing strategy is your plan of action to get more audience for your content. You use these strategies to interact, attract attention and promote your writing. 

A clear marketing strategy helps you identify which platforms to use to get your readers to know, like, follow and buy from you. 

Why is marketing important?

Ignoring marketing is like starting a business but not telling anyone about it. Especially for writers, marketing becomes the scary part. But that said, marketing is the most important part of the writing business or any business. You could be an excellent writer, but if nobody knows about you or your work, how would you make a career out of writing? A successful writer balances time spent in writing and marketing.

Benefits:

• It helps create measurable business goals.
• The strategy provides consistency.
• It also makes you stick with your budget.
• Helps in providing better service to customers.
• It makes you not only think but be proactive rather than reactive.

In spite of the countless platforms available, promoting content can be a daunting task. After all, a writer is supposed to write, right? Each media platform comes with its pros and cons. So, how do you figure it out? 

Here are 4 excellent marketing strategies for writers:

Marketing strategy for writers #1: Create a blog or a website

For a writer, a website or a blog is like their own personal business car. The readers get to know not only about your content but also how to contact you.
A blog is an essential marketing tool for all businesses. Because it allows you to build a personal brand and also a loyal following. So, creating a website or a blog is a marketing must for every writer. But before you start publishing content you need to design a website that is user-friendly. 

Creating a website:

The first step to building a website is choosing a domain name. That is easy. Most writers stare at the screen blankly after that. They create a boring website and begin publishing. That’s where they go wrong. Packaging is an important aspect of marketing. You have to present your content in a simple but attractive manner.

Every website must have at least these four pages:

• Home page- where all your content will be listed
• About page- a short bio about yourself
• Portfolio page- links to your works
• Contact page- call to action page with your contact details

Top 5 platforms that let you create websites easily:

• WordPress
• Squarespace 
• Wix
• Weebly

 Once that is done, keep publishing relevant content to target your audience. 

Create compelling content:

The best way to market your content and increase conversations is to focus only on your target audience’s needs and desires. The best-received writing is not what you want to write about. It is what your target readers want to read about. For instance, if your reader’s biggest struggle hitting the gym to work out, write about ways to work out at home. 

Follow these three important steps when creating content:

• Find topics to write about by knowing what your audience wants to read about.
• Create content that addresses their problems, desires and challenges. 
• Research plenty before writing about a topic.
• Give links to your social media profiles in each post.
• Make email subscriptions available to your audience.

Marketing strategies for writers #2: Make full use of Social Media

Indeed, social media could be your best ally if you use it wisely. Gain more traffic to your content by promoting it on social media. Furthermore, the quickest way to promote on social media platforms is by running paid advertisements. In addition, you can offer your writing services on these platforms as well.

The best platforms to market your content are:

• Instagram – An Instagram business account provides access to marketing insights and other helpful features.
• Facebook – Follow the 70-20-10 rule. 70% of original content, post 20% of relevant content and 10% of self-promote.
• YouTube – Create attention-grabbing thumbnails and titles.
• Twitter – You can market content by posting during peak hours. Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays have the highest click-through rates.

So, now you know which social media platforms to use. Brainstorm to think of ways to make full use of these platforms. Apart from posting your original content how can you garner attention and interact with the audience? Remember, your main aim is to market yourself as a writer.

Some easy ways to do that are as follows:

Run targeted ads: 

Whether you want to advertise your content or blog or book, ads are the best way to reach out to people. Targeted ads let you reach your targeted audience. These are the people most likely to read your content. 

On the other hand, you can create an advertisement and target new writers, entrepreneurs, etc. and offer them your services. Create a short form for them to fill in and submit. You could offer to mentor upcoming writers. An ad takes all that you have to offer and presents it in the market. It helps you reach countless more people.

Organize contests and giveaways:

One of the best marketing strategies for writers is to organise contests for their followers and create giveaways. Of course, these contests need not be very tough to crack. Use them as a fun way to interact with your followers. Moreover, this allows them to have a fun time on your platforms and pushes them to revisit again and again for updates and follow-ups. Giveaways give your readers an incentive to revisit. It makes them feel fulfilled and grateful to you. Also, it gives you much-needed publicity. 

Share posts by other writers:

Sharing content by other fellow writers gives you the opportunity to get featured on their platforms as well. It is one of the marketing strategies for writers that works well. It helps you get on the radar of fellow bloggers and authors and garner the attention of their audience as well. In addition, it allows you to gain and build links organically.

Book-reviews:

Sharing book reviews of books you love may not market your content as such. But, it lets you interact with readers who have the same interests as you. People who like the book you review would support your view. On the other hand, those who do not like the book will pour in their thoughts. Either way, it will allow you to interact and market your own thoughts, ideas and writing. Therefore, this comes under one of the finest marketing strategies for writers.

Share fragments of your life:

Sharing fragments of your day-to-day life gives your followers and your audience a sneak peek into your life. It improves your chances to connect on a deeper level with your target readers and interact with them. It also helps people see you as a writer who they share certain similarities with. Sharing your achievements and celebrations fills your reader with a feeling of elevation and builds a bond. Also, make a point to connect by interacting and sharing positive views on other people’s posts. Therefore, this way you indirectly market your work. 

Make use of hashtags:

A hashtag, written as a # symbol, serves the purpose of indexing keywords or topics. It was initially used on Twitter but is now also used widely on Instagram and YouTube. It allows people to follow topics easily. Thus, they are always informed about trending topics. Therefore, a hashtag makes it easier to find information with a specific theme or content. They let social media users explore content that appeals to them. Hence, writers can use hashtags to reach their target audience. It can be used to expand your audience and get more reach. So, when you use a hashtag, your content will appear on the page for that particular tag. It becomes an important tool in marketing strategies for writers.

Marketing strategies for writers #3: Networking

Networking lets you expand your reach. Be it online or offline, having a good network can help you market your work more effectively. Some people are shy about meeting new people, especially writers. But networking proves to be one of the excellent marketing strategies for writers. It keeps a door open for someone to come along and help your business succeed. Constantly meeting new people can exponentially increase your audience. 

Create business cards

Why limit yourself to the internet? There are plenty of business owners who can use the help of a writer. Many writers build good public relations blogs to help their client’s image. Create a fancy-looking business card for yourself. Do it easily on apps like Canva for free. Hand them over to everyone you meet. This is networking at its simplest. Furthermore, let them know what work you do and how you can benefit them.

Join groups

There are plenty of writer groups online. You can wander through social media platforms and find groups that suit you best. Thus, you will be part of groups with like-minded people. Moreover, you can feature your work in these groups. In addition, you get feedback on your writing from fellow, well-established writers. Also, it helps you to learn about the trending topics, issues faced by writers and their solutions via such groups. On the other hand, you can also join groups and clubs offline. Look for writer events, clubs or groups in your city. When you attend these, make sure to carry along your business card!

Promote a cause

Become an active volunteer for a social cause. It can be related to the writing field or it can be any social cause that is important to you. This is one of those marketing strategies for writers that not only benefit the business but also help them grow personally. You could write about the cause you are supporting. Therefore, you not only create content but also create awareness. Volunteering provides a healthy boost of self-confidence, satisfaction and self-esteem. Doing good for the community gives a natural sense of accomplishment. Furthermore, it helps you grow your network.

Post on Medium

Is the process of looking up emails and pitching editors tiresome for you? Medium is another way to market your content. Medium is an open online publishing platform. Here readers find dynamic thinking. Also, not only experts but also undiscovered voices can share their writing on any topic. Therefore, way you reach out to a newer and bigger audience. Posting regularly can attract a high number of people to your writing. If eligible, the Medium Partner Program also pays you, which is a major benefit. These are one of those marketing strategies for writers that get you discovered by large publishers. Always on the lookout for popular authors, this can lead to writing gigs.

Marketing strategies for writers #4: Guest posts and Email leads

Write Guest Posts on Authority Sites:

Indeed guest posts mean writing for free. You may ask why should a writer write for free. Because you aren’t writing to get paid but you’re not creating content to get paid directly either. Guest posts get a large number of eyes on your work.

If you post on an authority site, they add a link back to your blog. This tells Google you are a genuine writer and your SEO ranking will improve.

Keep in mind that guest posts are unpaid articles. So, try to write for the best websites in your niche. 

The best way to get accepted for guest posts is to give editors compelling topics they have never covered. Furthermore, include links to your portfolio and website in the email to editors. If the site’s readers like your content, they’ll head over to your blog. Therefore it is one of the best marketing strategies for writers.

Create Email leads:

A lead is any gift you offer your readers in return for their contact information. Earlier people signed up for something for free, but not as much these days. So, creating relevant and compelling lead magnets proves to be one of the best marketing strategies for writers. 

A lead magnet is one that solves a major problem for the readers. For instance, your readers are finding it difficult to get healthy recipes. Therefore, your lead magnet would be offering a free recipe book for healthy recipes. Certainly, you would give this for ‘free’ but in exchange for their subscriptions to your emails/newsletters. It is a win-win situation. Moreover, it boosts your chances of getting more shares and likes.

 The challenges of self-promotion:

• In case you are a natural introvert, it is more likely not in your nature to attract attention to yourself. You would need to come out of your comfort zone and follow one or more of the marketing strategies for the writers mentioned above.
• Some people are raised not to showcase their talent. They lack the confidence to post that update about a great review they received. They struggle to market themselves. 
• Fear of rejection affects many! Since we all are subconsciously looking for approval a negative response can be painful. Therefore, for fear of rejection most writers avoid marketing.
• Indie publishing has opened several opportunities for many writers. Therefore, the competition is intense. Without self-motivation, writers avoid competition of all kinds and hence give up on marketing.

If you wish to learn the best way to market your content and many more strategies, consider the content marketing course by Henry Harvin.

Henry Harvin stands as one of the leading providers of training and advisory services. With a strong team of 400 and more employees and 650 plus consultants, it has offices in more than 11 cities around the world. 

Needless to say, it certainly offers an amazingly curated course for those who wish to learn content marketing. In total it provides live classes and offline videos. In addition, it provides free access to content-writing tools. Also, a Certified Content Marketer Certificate is awarded at the completion of the course. It opens up numerous freelance opportunities as well. 

Learning Benefits of the course:

• Learn about social media marketing channels.
• Also, learn image and video marketing.
• Offers 3 months of paid internship.
• The internship is optional and with flexible hours.
• Communication and understanding ideas, concepts, and topics become easy.
• Also, teaches article and press release marketing.
• Provides lessons in email, event and B2B marketing as well. 
• Unlimited live batches are available at no extra cost.
• Helps develop soft skills as well.
• Provides the best learning environment. 
• Moreover, a comprehensive curriculum allows candidates to gain confidence and fluency.
• 1 year of Gold Membership gives access to recorded videos, masterclasses, and live projects.
• Regular Bootcamp sessions are conducted.
• In addition, provides regular career guidance and weekly job support. 
• Also, mock interview sessions help improve communication skills.
• Provides training, certification, internship, membership and much more in the 9-in-1 course.

If along with marketing strategies you wish to learn more about content writing, then consider the content writing course offered by Henry Harvin.

As the #1 institute, it certainly offers an amazingly curated course for those who wish to learn content writing. In total it provides 40 hours of training. 15 hours of lectures, 15 hours of assignments and 15 hours of hands-on tools. In addition, it provides free access to content-writing tools. Also, a Certified Digital Content Writer Certificate is awarded at the completion of the course. It opens up numerous freelance opportunities as well. 

Learning Benefits of the course:

• Learn fluent, confident, and flawless English.
• Also, learn to write 30+ types of content.
• Offers 3 months of paid internship.
• The internship is optional and with flexible hours.
• Communication and understanding ideas, concepts, and topics become easy.
• Also, teaches advanced English grammar.
• Publish your first e-book, blog and press release. 
• Unlimited live batches are available at no extra cost.
• Helps you become a fluent writer of the global language.
• Provides the best learning environment. 
• Moreover, a comprehensive curriculum allows candidates to gain confidence and fluency.
• 1 year of Gold Membership gives access to recorded videos, masterclasses, and live projects.
• Regular Bootcamp sessions are conducted.
• In addition, provides regular career guidance and weekly job support. 
• Also, mock interview sessions help improve communication skills.
• Provides training, certification, internship, membership and much more in the 9-in-1 course.

Conclusion:

Every business has one ultimate goal. That is, to gain more audience and create more sales. You need marketing strategies to do that consistently. Although there are millions of tactics one can use, the initial point remains the same. Have a well-crafted marketing strategy.

It doesn’t matter whether you are a writer or a businessman or from any other sector. If you wish to get noticed, you need to create a marketing plan.
Indeed, it can sometimes prove to be intimidating to market yourself because of the countless ways to promote your services. But if you follow a well-established plan, you will be able to make a mark.
Following one or more of the marketing strategies for writers mentioned above will surely help you. You can not only overcome the challenges but also set yourself up for writing clients.

If you liked these marketing strategies for writers you may also like to read the following blogs:

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