A virtual book tour can be a powerful tool for any author wanting to reach an audience. Once upon a time, the best way to get in front of readers was to literally get in front of them. Authors would travel town to town visiting book sellers big and small. Now in today’s ever-connected digital world, you can get in front of thousands without ever leaving your house.
From social media marketing to email marketing to search engine marketing, sharing your story with others has never been easier. It’s also never been noisier. According to Cisco, we’re uploading information to the internet at breakneck speeds. How is an author supposed to get noticed in this noisy world?
Podcast interview marketing is one tool in the world of virtual book tour planning. Rather than yell above the noise or try to “break through” the noise, become part of the conversation with your ideal customers. The potential readers of your book are listening to podcasts. If you can take a tour of those podcasts, you can launch a virtual book tour.
1) You reach a new audience
You may have audience already. However, you can reach a new (and bigger) audience by becoming the featured guest in front of other audiences. The more podcasts you guest on, the larger the audience is that you reach. Some shows have very large audiences, and some have smaller ones that are extremely engaged. Knowing your niche and reaching that audience will build yours.
2) You develop critical business relationships
Podcast hosts know other hosts. It’s a small world. When your net worth is built in direct proportion to your network, developing relationships with well-connected hosts can help you find more podcasts and build a bigger audience. Launching a virtual book tour through podcast interviews can help you develop to relationships you never thought possible, leading to a bigger audience than ever.
3) You build brand awareness
Becoming a subject matter expert will bill you as the best brand for your niche. Podcast interviews make you the expert, building a powerful brand simply through conversations. Brand awareness through interviews, rather than banner ads, is a more effective way to get people to know, like and trust you. That’s the kind of brand awareness that pays off in the end.
4) You develop better SEO
Links in show notes to your website and to your book will send SEO signals to search engines and the more podcasts you’re on, the more links you’ll have and the more signals the search engines will receive. It’s a top-notch system.
5) Your social media reach increases
Hosts share your social media accounts, which puts you in front of their audiences, building your presence. Social media is a great place to develop new reach, deepen relationships and build a following that just might launch you onto best-selling lists – and all through a virtual book tour instead of a “load up the van and drive everywhere” book tour!
When you’re ready to launch your book tour on podcasts, download the 9 secrets to getting booked on your first podcast to get started. Good luck!
image source: book tour
