You did it! You did the thing, wrote a book about it, and now the media has come calling! Or, let’s be real: you (or your PR rep) probably pitched a ton of outlets, newspapers, and influencers to land a coveted spot in their publication or on their channel. Maybe it’s a free placement, or maybe you’re paying $$$ for the privilege of talking about your book.
Regardless, you want to milk that placement for all its worth! It’s HARD to do what you’ve done, and honestly…the writing the book part is the easy bit. Making sure the world knows about it is tough. So do what you gotta do to get the word out! Be shameless! But really now. Make it your mission to get every second, every word of your feature out there in another format.
Here’s what to know.
Sharing is daring to succeed
Remember, in this social media era, a media placement isn’t a one-time thing. We live in the sharing economy! SHARE those guest appearances, TV interviews, and podcast guest slots like your life depends on it. If you’re worried about coming off as braggy, here’s how to do it in a way that will make people cheer you on:
Before the spot. Grab that behind the scenes footage! This is a great opportunity to show yourself being real, gasping in awe at that cool studio building, talking through the things you want to touch on, and venturing into unknown territory. Let those nerves shine through – you’ll look excited instead of big-headed! (Psst, make sure your look is on point with these tips.)
During the spot. Promise me you’ll never walk away from a spot with no proof it happened. Hand over your phone to someone and have them take photos. Ask someone else in the room to be a back-up camera operator. Or chase down that person taking happy snaps and ask them to share them! You can even stalk social media to grab and share real-time snaps or recordings.
After the spot. Go forth and promote! Update your bios to say “As seen on”. Share that video, promote that link, put that soundbite on social media (and your Instagram pinned posts), and go back and laugh at your “oopsie” moments. If you’re self-conscious about the attention, hype up your excitement instead of the thing itself. Absolutely stoked to have had your first radio or TV spot? Tell everyone what it was like! Invite them on that journey and show them why it was a dream come true – this is way more engaging than shouting your own praises from the rooftops. These media snippets are great for those TikTok-style “remember when?” or “throwback” pieces of content.
You’ve worked hard to get those media placements – you’ve probably even forked out good money for them – so leverage them to the full extent of the law! And look, if you work your tail off sharing your placement as widely as you can, the media team or influencer will take note. Hopefully, you’ll end up on their Santa’s “nice” list, and they’ll invite you back
Think beyond traditional social
You know your media appearance needs to be shared far and wide over social, but here are a few other places you should be uploading your snippets:
-Amazon/Goodreads author page. You have one of these, right?? Upload videos, images and quotes to your page…and add any great reviews or feedback to your book’s listing. “AS SEEN ON…” goes a long way.
-Your media kit! Every author needs a media kit. It doesn’t have to be fancy. It DOES have to be easy for the press to find – even a link to a Google Drive folder on your website is fine. Make sure your media kit contains your headshot, bio, book info, and any great clips or quotes from your interviews or features.
-Your blog or newsletter. An author blog is a great place to keep people updated on your latest movements, and a newsletter is perfect for “bonus” or “fun” content you haven’t shared on social. Use that subscriber-only content as a way to get people to sign up! (Bonus points for linking your blog to your Amazon author page – this will automatically pull content from your latest posts.)
-YouTube! YouTube makes it easy for news organizations to embed and share your content. (So does Twitter, btw.) Upload those snippets, then pitch your story to Buzzfeed, Forbes, the Dodo or whatever outlet is relevant to your book. They’ll be able to grab your embed link and repurpose your media appearance for their platform.
-Your publisher’s platform! If you’re trad-pubbed, share all of those links and snippets with your publisher’s marketing person. They’ll LOVE you for providing great content they can upload to your book’s page, their website, or their social channels.
Need assistance on how to better leverage social media for your upcoming PR placements? Get in touch! We love working with public relations firms and agents so you can strut your stuff on social media.