If you’re looking to learn how to promote a book from scratch, you’re in the right place. Many writers dedicate themselves to write their books and then getting fully involved in promoting them through social networks but, is it really effective? The truth is that promotion begins during the creation of the book itself.
There are basic elements that can help you a lot to pave the way in the promotion of your book. If you don’t have the product with the basic promotional elements, then it’s useless to invest time and effort on the Internet. That’s the reason why today we’re going to deal with how the title, the synopsis and the cover design of a book affect its brand image and its promotion.
Basic concepts: the brand image
Before beginning with the basic aspects to promote a book, it is very important that you learn and take into account the concept of brand image. If you are a writer who is taking his first steps independently and want to learn how to promote your book and reach the target you want, then knowing what the brand image is and how to develop it with your book is essential.
You may be familiar with the concepts of corporate image and brand image, but there is a difference that stands out between these two aspects. The corporate image refers to the global image of the company, which in this case refers to the writer and all his books. On the other hand, the brand image focuses on the product, in this case the book to be promoted.
In general, the definition of brand image is summarized in “what people think of your brand, their perception of the brand”, that is, what people think of your book. You are probably a writer who self-publishes his books, so it is important to know that the brand image is what will influence when readers decide to buy your books.
Keep in mind that people don’t need to have read your book to create their perception of it. There are other elements that can lead to the creation of the perception, such as the title of the book, the synopsis or the cover.
The brand image is not something that can be changed just like that, because in the end it is people’s opinions. However, you can take into account the key aspects that we have mentioned when promoting your book, which will help the public to have more information, and therefore, they might change their perception of the brand.
Choosing the title of the book
It’s a basic in the publishing world. The title of the book is practically the first information that is going to get to the readers and it must be impressive, it must cause the sensation or feeling that you look for to reflect with the book.
The title is an element that must reach your target instantly and must synthesize the essence of the book. There are short and classic titles of works such as The Lord of the Rings, The Name of the Wind or Game of Thrones, which are usually focused on nouns. On the other hand, it is also popular to use the name of a main character as a title, for example, Harry Potter or Ana Karenina.
Whatever title you choose, keep in mind that it should reflect the content of the book. To begin the brainstorming process, you can ask yourself the following questions and answer them briefly in one or two lines: What is the book about? Who is or are the main characters? What does the story tell? What message does it transmit? What is the main concept?
Another technique to find the key to your title may be to reread the book over it. Look for the key moments in the book and perhaps a phrase, a certain part of the story or some part of a dialogue will be very relevant and may give you clues about what to include in your title.
Of course, this is not a straightforward process so the best advice is: write it all down. That’s right, every time you come up with an idea, write it down. After a while, you will have your notebook, phone or laptop full of possible title ideas and it may be easier for you to choose one or compose it from that information. Remember that the title reflects the essence of your book and helps to create a brand image.
Designing the book cover
If the title of the book is the first information in the form of a message that reaches readers, the cover is the equivalent but in visual form. The book cover is the first thing people see, a visual message that reaches readers and causes a certain feeling. That’s why it’s very important to find the right cover that contains the essential aspects of your book.
It’s true that many people apply to themselves the famous phrase “You shouldn’t judge a book by its cover” and they focus on judging and choosing a book based on the content. However, many people come to find out the content of a book just because it has an attractive cover.
I’m sure you’ve had this situation before: you’re looking for a book on the internet and you get 10 book options, all on the same category. Which one do you click on first? The one that catches your attention the most visually, right?
You must keep in mind one thing, when we say that the book cover has to catch attention we don’t mean that it has to contain loud and bright colours, we mean that it must reflect the spirit of the book, the emotions it will provoke. For example, a horror novel will probably use dark colours because they are associated with it, just as a children’s novel will have brighter and plainer colours.
The idea is for the cover to draw attention of the public who will be reading that book. Of course, to get that eye-catching touch, there are techniques for designing a book cover that make the human eye feel more attracted, such as placing a certain element in an area or having the elements trace a diagonal.
Ideally, you should entrust the cover to a professional because, just as you are an expert in the field of writing, the professional is an expert in the field of design and can enhance the message of your book and transform it into a visual element.
Preparing the synopsis of the book
Usually, after reading the title and looking at the book cover, the first thing a reader does is having a look at the synopsis. We could say that the synopsis is that opportunity you have to show the reader what he is going to find out in the book.
Is it a romantic novel? Make them want to fall in love with the characters. Is it a horror novel? Write some lines that make them feel concerned or afraid. Is it a book about a serious subject like nutrition? Then you must sum up everything they’re going to learn.
Make no mistake, writing a synopsis is not easy, especially if you want it to capture the essence of the book and become a promotional element. But if you’ve managed to write your book and you’ve come this far, don’t let a bad synopsis make you lose potential readers.
To see if your synopsis reflects the content of your book, try writing several and give them to people you know so they can read them and tell you what they understand, what they feel and what they think they will find in the book.
On the other hand, another exercise you can do is to show possible synopsis to someone who has already read your book to advise you if it is faithful or if it does justice to what readers will find when reading your book. This type of exercise will help you see the path you want to take in writing your synopsis, as well as understand how those people perceive your book when they read it.
Conclusions and tips to promote a book
As you can see, promoting a book is not just putting it on the internet or social networks. The promotion of your book starts from the moment you are creating it. Believe it or not, these basic elements of the book such as the cover design or the creation of the title and synopsis, are the first strong point that you must work on promotional level.
This doesn’t mean that you can’t work on promotion at a more intensified level through social networks, web pages, etc. It simply means that in order for your promotion to be effective, it is important to engage readers also with the most basic elements from the beginning.
Obviously, the title of the book and the synopsis are issues that concern you directly as a writer and that, if you follow the advice we have given you, you will probably get a good result. Remember, if you’ve managed to write a complete book, you can create a title and a proper synopsis.
On the other hand, designing the cover of your book is probably not your strength. If you really want to make your book cover to stand out and capture the essence of your book, it’s best to contact a professional and work with him side by side, giving him all the information he needs. You can have good ideas for your cover and if you manage to transmit those ideas to a designer, surely he can shape your idea into a great result.
Now that you understand the importance of the brand image for your book, you’re sure to get the best out of it and make your way in the publishing world. Keep in mind that the brand image is the perception that people have about your book, even without having read it, just with the information they get from it.
If you keep this in mind, you will be able to focus your book to the target you want, always keeping in mind how important it is to take care of every basic element of information that reaches the public: the cover, the title and the synopsis.