Finding Your Platform

Author Platform Development: Book Marketing for Indie Authors and Publishers

Beth Kallman Werner — Thu, 17 Apr 2025 12:34:09 GMT

Current Revision posted to Finding Your Platform by Beth Kallman Werner on 4/17/2025 12:34:09 PM

In this webinar, Author Connections Founder and President Beth Kallman Werner defines the term “author platform” and explains the importance and benefits of creating one as a part of your book marketing plan. She reviews the four Ps of book marketing (product, position, pricing, promotion) and covers these steps in developing a successful author platform:

• Defining a target audience for your book
• Selecting spokes in the personal brand wheel
• Setting up relevant channels and a foundation of theme content
• Establishing a budget and timeline for a manageable promotion routine
• Garnering reviews and testimonials and networking with bloggers and reviewers
• Other initiatives including obtaining awards and entering contests, securing appearances and PR media, blogging, social media, and more

Here is the handout referenced in the session:
www.authorlearningcenter.com/.../ALC-Handout-_2D00_Author-Platform_5F00_Werner.pdf

www.authorlearningcenter.com/.../AuthorPlatformDevelopmentBookMarketingforIndieAuthorsandPublishers23.mp4

About the Presenter:
Author Connections (AC) has been serving a global roster of author and publisher clients since 2010. AC is devoted to editing and marketing excellent content for discerning readers. As former Director of Marketing & Sales for Kirkus Reviews, Beth worked with major houses and indie authors on book reviews and title campaigns for any size budget. Since launching Author Connections, Beth has worked on more than two hundred titles in fiction and nonfiction, adult and children’s books; many earning multiple marketplace awards and accolades. Beth is Advisor to the Next Generation Indie Book Awards (NGIBA), a Partner Member of the Alliance of Independent Authors (ALLi), and Author Connections has earned the coveted Seal of Excellence from the Association of Independent Authors (AiA). Beth’s own book, "Travels of an Independent Woman", is scheduled for September 2026. For more information on Author Connections and the services offered, visit https://authorconnections.com/.

Tags: fiction, Nonfiction, Subscriber, Recorded Webinar

Author Platform Development: Book Marketing for Indie Authors and Publishers

Beth Kallman Werner — Thu, 17 Apr 2025 12:30:01 GMT

Revision 7 posted to Finding Your Platform by Beth Kallman Werner on 4/17/2025 12:30:01 PM

Here is the handout referenced in the session:
www.authorlearningcenter.com/.../ALC-Handout-_2D00_Author-Platform_5F00_Werner.pdf

www.authorlearningcenter.com/.../AuthorPlatformDevelopmentBookMarketingforIndieAuthorsandPublishers23.mp4

Tags: fiction, Nonfiction, Subscriber, Recorded Webinar

Beth Kallman Werner on Her Inspiration for Starting Author Connections

Beth Kallman Werner — Thu, 17 Apr 2025 12:03:50 GMT

Current Revision posted to Finding Your Platform by Beth Kallman Werner on 4/17/2025 12:03:50 PM

Book marketing advisor and Author Connections President Beth Kallman Werner was inspired by the story of famous book editor Max Perkins during her masters degree studies. She didn't initially pursue a career in publishing, but after spending many years in the corporate world, decided to bring her advertising, marketing, and communication skills to the world of literature. Her mission is to make sure the good stories and writers get the attention and readership that they deserve.
www.authorlearningcenter.com/.../BethKallmanWerneronHerInspirationforStartingAuthorConnections2.mp4

Tags: fiction, Nonfiction, video

How Authors Can Elevate Their Position in the Book Marketplace Prior to Publishing

Gregg Gonzales — Wed, 13 Nov 2024 16:11:44 GMT

Current Revision posted to Finding Your Platform by Gregg Gonzales on 11/13/2024 4:11:44 PM

Many writers don't think about marketing or promoting their books until after they've published, which is too late. Unfortunately, books will not just sell themselves; they require strategic planning that should start well before the books are released.

Gregg Gonzales, founder of The SpeakEasy Method, encourages writers to start creating content around their books during the writing and editing process. The planning, recording, and listening sessions that are a part of his method provide his writer clients with content-rich audio, video, and transcripts relevant to their books. These assets provide a mountain of valuable information that can be used to develop marketing materials and messaging. Gonzales believes writers should start getting their name out there the moment they decide to write a book. He recommends writers explore avenues like social media and email marketing to build awareness early on.

www.authorlearningcenter.com/.../HowAuthorsCanElevateTheirPositionintheBookMarketplacePriortoPublishing.mp4

Tags: fiction, Nonfiction, video

How Authors Can Elevate Their Position in the Book Marketplace Prior to Publishing

Gregg Gonzales — Wed, 13 Nov 2024 16:10:57 GMT

Revision 1 posted to Finding Your Platform by Gregg Gonzales on 11/13/2024 4:10:57 PM

Many writers don't think about marketing or promoting their books until after they've published, which is too late. Unfortunately, most books will not just sell themselves; they require strategic planning that should start well before the books are released.

Gregg Gonzales, founder of The SpeakEasy Method, encourages writers to start creating content around their books during the writing and editing process. The planning, recording, and listening sessions that are a part of his method provide his writer clients with content-rich audio, video, and transcripts relevant to their books. These assets provide a mountain of valuable information that can be used to develop marketing materials and messaging. Gonzales believes writers should start getting their name out there the moment they decide to write a book. He recommends writers explore avenues like social media and email marketing to build awareness early on.

www.authorlearningcenter.com/.../HowAuthorsCanElevateTheirPositionintheBookMarketplacePriortoPublishing.mp4

Tags: fiction, Nonfiction, video

Building an Author Platform and Leveraging it to Sell Books

Stephanie Feger — Thu, 16 May 2024 14:08:01 GMT

Current Revision posted to Finding Your Platform by Stephanie Feger on 5/16/2024 2:08:01 PM

• Gain clarity on what an author platform is, why it is important and how pivotal it is to your book marketing (and book selling) success.
• Navigate through the “shiny new marketing objects” and focus on the immediate next step to take to build or grow your author platform which will help achieve your goals.
• Begin to develop a strategic and systematic plan to increase visibility and deepen meaningful engagement with superfans and influencers, which in turn, will help you maintain book selling momentum.

While this session is geared toward nonfiction authors, there are many tips that will apply to all authors, regardless of genre.

Here is the handout referenced in the session:
www.authorlearningcenter.com/.../Author-Platform-Guidebook_5F00_ALC.pdf
www.authorlearningcenter.com/.../BuildinganAuthorPlatformandLeveragingittoSellBooks24.mp4

About the Presenter:
Stephanie Feger, owner and chief strategist of the emPower PR Group, is passionate about emPowering nonfiction writers, authors and authorpreneurs with laser-focused marketing strategies and tactics to help them write books that sell, promote their books to those who need and want them most, and build a meaningful business from a message that is emPowering. As an author of two books herself, Stephanie merges her love for writing books and her skillset in marketing them, to help nonfiction authors make their author emPact. She doesn’t believe in movement without strategy, and always keeps strategy front and center. She has also seen how emPowered people emPower people. In fact, her business is built around it! Learn more at www.emPowerPRGroup.com.

Tags: fiction, Nonfiction, Subscriber, Recorded Webinar

Building an Author Platform and Leveraging it to Sell Books

Stephanie Feger — Thu, 16 May 2024 14:07:26 GMT

Revision 5 posted to Finding Your Platform by Stephanie Feger on 5/16/2024 2:07:26 PM

While this session is geared toward nonfiction authors, there are many tips that will apply to all authors, regardless of genre.

Tags: fiction, Nonfiction, Subscriber, Recorded Webinar

Building an Author Platform and Leveraging it to Sell Books

Stephanie Feger — Thu, 16 May 2024 14:06:35 GMT

Revision 4 posted to Finding Your Platform by Stephanie Feger on 5/16/2024 2:06:35 PM

We’ve all heard of it, but understanding where to build it, how to leverage it, and the goal of it anyway isn’t quite so clear. Stephanie Feger, owner and chief strategist of the emPower PR Group, will inspire you to not just make the leap to build an author platform, but begin NOW! During the session, expect to:

• Gain clarity on what an author platform is, why it is important and how pivotal it is to your book marketing (and book selling) success.
• Navigate through the “shiny new marketing objects” and focus on the immediate next step to take to build or grow your author platform which will help achieve your goals.
• Begin to develop a strategic and systematic plan to increase visibility and deepen meaningful engagement with superfans and influencers, which in turn, will help you maintain book selling momentum.

While this session is geared toward nonfiction authors, there are many tips that will apply to all authors, regardless of genre.

Tags: fiction, Nonfiction, Subscriber, Recorded Webinar

Building an Author Platform and Leveraging it to Sell Books

Stephanie Feger — Thu, 16 May 2024 14:05:10 GMT

Revision 3 posted to Finding Your Platform by Stephanie Feger on 5/16/2024 2:05:10 PM

Tags: fiction, Nonfiction, Subscriber, Recorded Webinar

Key Components of a Digital Author Platform

Caren Wolfe — Fri, 15 Mar 2024 18:34:16 GMT

Current Revision posted to Finding Your Platform by Caren Wolfe on 3/15/2024 6:34:16 PM

Many authors hear they need to have a "platform" to reach readers and sell books, but few fully understand what this means. An author platform includes all of the ways you are communicating with potential readers. Per W Publishing Group Vice President of Marketing Caren Wolfe, there are three main components when building your platform online: 1) your social media, 2) an email newsletter, and 3) your website. Wolfe believes the email newsletter is the most important to establish and maintain because this is your "owned following", meaning you have complete control over the content and what is seen and when. The key is converting followers from your social media pages to sign up for your email newsletter. An author website is the central hub for driving traffic to and for monitoring user engagement with features such as a blog.

www.authorlearningcenter.com/.../KeyComponentsofaDigitalAuthorPlatform.mp4

Tags: fiction, Nonfiction, video

Key Components of a Digital Author Platform

Caren Wolfe — Fri, 15 Mar 2024 16:16:11 GMT

Revision 2 posted to Finding Your Platform by Caren Wolfe on 3/15/2024 4:16:11 PM

W Publishing Group VP of Marketing Caren Wolfe shares the online components that are essential for building an author platform.

www.authorlearningcenter.com/.../KeyComponentsofaDigitalAuthorPlatform.mp4

Tags: fiction, Nonfiction, video

Key Components of a Digital Author Platform

Caren Wolfe — Fri, 15 Mar 2024 15:27:57 GMT

Revision 1 posted to Finding Your Platform by Caren Wolfe on 3/15/2024 3:27:57 PM

W Publishing Group VP of Marketing Caren Wolfe shares the online components that are essential for building an author platform.

Tags: fiction, Nonfiction, video

How Authors Can Determine What’s Newsworthy About Their Book

Allison Carter — Fri, 16 Feb 2024 20:36:18 GMT

Current Revision posted to Finding Your Platform by Allison Carter on 2/16/2024 8:36:18 PM

Whether or not the topics, themes, and messages in your book are "newsworthy" matters when trying to garner media attention for you book. Media outlets want books that address trending and relevant topics for their audiences. Per Publicity Director for W Publishing Group, Allison Carter, a book's newsworthiness refers to the hook or pitch angle she is going to use when reaching out to media outlets to try and garner opportunities for her author clients.

For example, an evergreen topic like parenting can garner interest every time she pitches a book that is parenting-related. The more newsworthy your book's topics, themes, and messages are, the more opportunity for you or your publicist to get it back in the headlines again and again. Your book will have a much longer lifespan in the marketplace with a hook or pitch angle that is consistently relevant.

www.authorlearningcenter.com/.../HowAuthorsCanDetermineWhatsNewsworthyAboutTheirBook.mp4

Tags: fiction, Self-Help, Nonfiction, Religion and Spirituality, video, Parenting & Relationships, Religious and Inspirational

Determining What is Newsworthy About Your Book and Why it Matters

Allison Carter — Wed, 14 Feb 2024 15:11:30 GMT

Revision 1 posted to Finding Your Platform by Allison Carter on 2/14/2024 3:11:30 PM

W Publishing Group Publicity Director Allison Carter explains what "newsworthy" means and why it's important to know what's newsworthy about your book.

Trends in Christian Publishing and How to Stand Out in the Marketplace

Pete Nikolai — Thu, 21 Dec 2023 14:32:29 GMT

Current Revision posted to Finding Your Platform by Pete Nikolai on 12/21/2023 2:32:29 PM

The Christian publishing space is a unique niche in the book publishing world, per Pete Nikolai, Director of Publishing Services at HarperCollins Christian Publishing. The genre has its own audiences including churches, online programs, television programs, radio shows, and podcasts. These are all channels a Christian author can tie into, and should.

As with publishing as a whole, Nikolai says the availability of publishing options has greatly expanded, giving authors in all genres more control in getting their books out there on their terms. The biggest challenge Christian authors face in what is a competitive marketplace, is how to break out and get noticed. He recommends building your author platform early and looking for opportunities for speaking engagements and article contributions to relevant blogs. He also advises authors to have an email newsletter and be consistent over time. These are the best ways to develop an audience and build a name for yourself in the Christian space.

www.authorlearningcenter.com/.../TrendsinChristianPublishingandHowtoStandOut.mp4

Tags: fiction, Nonfiction, video

Trends in Christian Publishing and How to Stand Out in the Marketplace

Pete Nikolai — Wed, 20 Dec 2023 19:01:18 GMT

Revision 1 posted to Finding Your Platform by Pete Nikolai on 12/20/2023 7:01:18 PM

Pete Nikolai, Director of Publishing Services at HarperCollins Christian Publishing, reviews trends in the marketplace, and how authors can make a name for themselves.

www.authorlearningcenter.com/.../TrendsinChristianPublishingandHowtoStandOut.mp4

Tags: fiction, Nonfiction, video

Three Factors That Influence an Author Reaching Bestseller Status

Mark Glesne — Fri, 08 Dec 2023 21:14:45 GMT

Current Revision posted to Finding Your Platform by Mark Glesne on 12/8/2023 9:14:45 PM

Many authors aspire to see their books make one or more of the bestseller lists, whether that's on the New York Times or on Amazon. The reality is that only a small percentage of authors ever make these lists due to it being a very competitive marketplace.

Mark Glesne, Senior Marketing Director at HarperCollins Christian Publishing, believes there are three key things that affect a book's ability to make a bestseller list:

1) Preorder sales, which factor into your first week of sales numbers
2) Media appearances and mentions
3) Overall sales

It's important to note that each bestseller list has different factors that are taken into consideration.

www.authorlearningcenter.com/.../ThreeFactorsThatInfluenceanAuthorReachingBestsellerStatus.mp4

Tags: fiction, Nonfiction, video

Mark Glesne on His Role at HarperCollins Christian Publishing, and Assessing a Book’s Marketability

Mark Glesne — Fri, 08 Dec 2023 20:29:05 GMT

Current Revision posted to Finding Your Platform by Mark Glesne on 12/8/2023 8:29:05 PM

As a Senior Marketing Director at HarperCollins Christian Publishing, Mark Glesne is responsible for providing marketing support for two of the company's highest profile nonfiction author brands — Max Lucado and Lysa TerKeurst — along with many others. He works on a team known as "Special Imprints" where he strategizes marketing campaigns and executes special projects for authors year-round.

In his role, it's important he understands the marketability of the books he supports, how they address the "felt needs" of readers, and how they can help readers solve a problem. The best thing you can do for a book marketing campaign, he says, is to produce a high quality product that resonates with that felt need of readers you identify.

www.authorlearningcenter.com/.../MarkGlesneonHisRoleatHarperCollinsChristianPublishing.mp4

Tags: fiction, Nonfiction, video

Mark Glesne on His Role at HarperCollins Christian Publishing, and Assessing a Book’s Marketability

Mark Glesne — Fri, 08 Dec 2023 20:28:34 GMT

Revision 2 posted to Finding Your Platform by Mark Glesne on 12/8/2023 8:28:34 PM

As a Senior Marketing Director at HarperCollins Christian Publishing, Mark Glesne is responsible for providing marketing support for two of the company's highest profile nonfiction author brands — Max Lucado and Lysa TerKeurst — along with many others. He works on a team known as "Special Imprints" where he strategizes marketing campaigns and executes special projects for authors year-round.

In his role, it's important he understand the marketability of the books he supports, how they address the "felt needs" of readers, and how they can help readers solve a problem. The best thing you can do for a book marketing campaign, he says, is to produce a high quality product that resonates with that felt need of readers you identify.

www.authorlearningcenter.com/.../MarkGlesneonHisRoleatHarperCollinsChristianPublishing.mp4

Tags: fiction, Nonfiction, video

Mark Glesne on His Role at HarperCollins Christian Publishing, and Assessing a Book’s Marketability

Mark Glesne — Fri, 08 Dec 2023 16:26:09 GMT

Revision 1 posted to Finding Your Platform by Mark Glesne on 12/8/2023 4:26:09 PM

Mark Glesne discusses his role as Senior Marketing Director at HarperCollins Christian Publishing, and what he believes makes a book marketable.

www.authorlearningcenter.com/.../MarkGlesneonHisRoleatHarperCollinsChristianPublishing.mp4

Tags: fiction, Nonfiction, video