After last week, you should have a pretty darn good idea of who your larger group of readers (your target market) and a specific idea of one reader in particular — the one on which you should base all of your marketing decisions.
Now, it’s time to get down to business and actually find those readers.
When it comes to finding readers, every author’s approach is a bit different — and that’s okay! The route that works best for you depends on your personality (and that of your readers). If your target is a mom, blogs are a no-brainer way to reach out. If they’re a TV junkie, a forum like Television Without Pity might be more up their alley.
Your goal for this lesson is to create a list of places to find readers. Sounds simple, huh?
Well, fair warning: the exercises below might be a little too effective. You could come out of this with a mega-list — the kind of list that makes you throw your hands in the air and give up! Don’t do it!
Breathe. Promise me that you will NOT be overwhelmed! Pinky promise? Okay.
What you’ll end up with here is a list of options, which is a good thing! Options keep your marketing fresh and allow you to focus. You can’t be everywhere at once and trying will just make you crazy!
Since everyone has a little different personality (and reader), the route you choose below to find those reader hangouts is up to you. I recommend reading through each of the processes first, then choosing one or more as you see fit.
In the next lesson, we’re going to discuss how to narrow down that list into the best places to find readers, so don’t go nuts trying to figure out your strategy before then. You’ll have plenty of time afterwards to go on a reader-finding spree!
Now, on to the “hide-and-seek” options!
Note: Please excuse me for the lack of my usual fun banter in this lesson! It’s a lot to cover, so I’m forcing myself to be terse 😉
1. Perform an interest brainstorm.
Dig out that reader profile and make a list of all of your reader’s hobbies and interests (come up with at least 3). For each interest, visit Alltop and search for blogs that cover that topic. Try to find at least 3 blogs for each interest.
For example, if your reader enjoys sci-fi/fantasy, check out the blogs in the SciFi and Fantasy Novels page on Alltop. See that light red box on the left-hand side of the page called “Most Topular Stories?” Those are the most popular posts on the page — the perfect place to find heavily trafficked blogs (but more on that in the next lesson).
That’s it! You now have 9 blogs on which to find readers.
2. Get inside your reader’s head.
Visualize life through your reader’s eyes. How does she spend her day? Where does he hang out? Just like option #1, some of this you can take from your reader profile.
In this option, we’re not just looking for blogs and online outlets. Consider all of your reader’s hangouts to get a more complete picture of what appeals to him!
Some questions to ask yourself:
- How does she spend her morning? Does she rush to check Facebook or read her hometown newspaper? Does he catch the 7am repeat of Sportscenter or check out the top stories on Google News? Does she listen to NPR, her iPod or the local morning show in the car?
- Where does he go for lunch? Does he hang out in his car or go out with his coworkers? Maybe she’s a stay-at-home mom who catches The View while feeding her child lunch or a cubicle dweller who brings her lunch and catches up on her favorite blogs.
- What does she do in the evenings? Does he catch his local news? What’s the last book she read?
You get the idea. Use the questions above (plus any more your super-creative mind comes up with) to find out the media sources which your reader consumes, including: television, social media, music, movies, blogs, newspapers, forums, etc.
3. Do a follow chain.
In kind of an extension of number 1, choose three of your reader’s interests and find the top blog regarding that interest using a site like Alltop, Technorati or Google (search: “their interest” blog). Visit the site and check for the following:
- Websites the blog links to in the sidebar
- Websites of the commentors (or sites they link to in their comments)
- Websites that the blogger links to in his most popular posts
Then, choose one of the sites you found above and do the same thing there! You can keep going with this as long as you’d like, just be sure to keep a list of each site you visit (it’s way easy to get lost doing this)! Every site you visit is another potential place to find readers.
4. Get offline.
Take a break from all these online shenanigans and hop on over to your local Barnes and Noble, indie bookstore or library.
While you’re there:
- Check out magazines your reader would be interested in. Take note of both the ads and the articles, writing down any websites, blogs, or social media links you see. If any of these are community oriented (like a blog, forum, Facebook page, Twitter hashtag, etc), write them down as potential reader hangouts!
- Investigate the book tables. Notice what’s grouped together. Take notes of any author names in your genre that you don’t recognize (could be good fodder for #6 below).
- People watch. Find a comfy chair and notice the folks checking out differnet genres. See any surprises there? For instance, maybe your romance novel-reading soccer mom also digs science fiction or your thriller-loving twentysomething has a soft spot for YA. Write down a couple of author names in those genres and check out their websites to see how they connect with their readers!
5. Pick a reader’s brain.
Time to do your best Brian Williams (or Jon Stewart or Bill O’Reilly, depending on your personality) impression! Interview a reader (either the same reader you used for your reader profile or another) and pick their brain! Find out:
- Where do they hang out online? Which social media sites do they use?
- Which blogs do they read? Which blogs do they subscribe to?
- Who do they follow on Twitter? Whose updates do they actually pay attention to?
- How do they choose which books to read? Blogs, reviews, friend/family recommendations, bookstore browsing?
- Do they read any other genres that would surprise you?
Make a running list of the locations, people and observations they tell you — they’re all potential locations to find readers!
6. Stalk a successful author (in the least creepy way possible).
Find another author in your genre (indie or otherwise) and perform some kind stalking. We’re not lurking in bushes here, we’re trying to figure out where *they* find their readers! Check out:
- Which blogs have reviewed that author’s work?
- Who comments on their blog? Do their commenters have their own blogs?
- Who follows them on Twitter? Facebook? Where else do those readers haunt?
- What sites come up with you Google her? Where are folks talking about him?
You can do this with big-name authors and other indies — it’s a great way to see what works for each type of author.
Wrap-up & Discussion
Remember, in this lesson, we’re just looking for a list of the potential places to find readers. Just do one or two of the above exercises! In the next lesson, we’ll evaluate the results and figure out which hangouts are the best use of our time. Then, next week, we’ll learn exactly how to engage those potential readers and turn them into lifelong fans!
Which of the options above sounds like the best fit for you? Have you found readers in an unlikely place? Do you have other reader-finding ideas for your fellow authors? Chime in below!
