Why Your Social Media Posts Aren't Translating to Book Sales
EPISODE NINETY SIX
You're showing up on social media. You're posting about your book. But when you check your sales... nothing is happening.
If you've been creating content but seeing zero momentum, this episode will show you exactly what's keeping you stuck and the three specific things that need to change.
Spoiler: It's not about posting more or being on more platforms.
In this episode, I break down:
The exact symptoms that tell you your marketing isn't working (and why)
What successful authors are doing differently that you're not
The foundation you need before any social media strategy will actually work
Stop posting and praying. Start being strategic.
Links
Transcript
If you're posting about your book whenever you remember, sharing randomly on social media, and hoping that eventually something will click and people will start buying - we need to talk about why that's keeping you stuck.
I'm Jenn Hanson-dePaula and I've been in marketing for over 25 years. And today I want to show you the exact pattern that's sabotaging your book sales, the symptoms that tell you you're stuck in it, and what actually needs to change.
And if you want to get a jumpstart on your marketing and set your book launch up for success, be sure to grab my free Book Marketing Blueprint. The link is in the show notes.
Now, let’s dive in…
Let me describe what you’re probably experiencing right now…
You're posting on social media - maybe a few times a week, maybe more - but you have no idea if what you're posting is actually helping you sell books. Some posts get a few likes. Some get ignored completely. There's no pattern you can identify.
You're spending time creating content, but you feel like you're throwing spaghetti at the wall. You don't know what's working because nothing seems to be working consistently.
And here's the symptom that really tells you you're in trouble: you're exhausted from posting, but you can't point to any real results from all that effort.
If any of this sounds familiar, you're stuck in what we refer to as "Post and Pray" marketing.
Here's what's actually happening when you market your book this way.
Random marketing has no through-line. Your audience sees disconnected posts that don't build on each other or create a clear picture of what your book is about or why they should care. They might like a post here or there, but they're not compelled to take the next step because there is no next step.
Random marketing doesn't speak to what your readers actually need. You're posting about what you feel like sharing - your writing process, your book cover, generic quotes - instead of addressing the specific problems your book solves or the reasons someone would actually want to read your book.
And most importantly, random marketing has no conversion path. Even if someone loves your content, they don't know what to do next. There's no clear journey from "I saw your post" to "I bought your book."
That's why you can post consistently and still see no book sales. You're creating motion without direction.
So what needs to be different? There are three specific things that need to be addressed.
First, you need a clear message that runs through everything you post. Not just "buy my book," but a consistent theme that connects your content to the value your book provides. Every post should reinforce the same core idea about what you help readers with or what experience your book delivers.
If you wrote a book about overcoming perfectionism, your content should consistently address perfectionism. If you wrote a cozy mystery series, your content should consistently appeal to cozy mystery readers. This seems obvious, but most authors are all over the place with their messaging.
Second, you need each piece of content to serve a specific purpose. Some content attracts new people who don't know you yet. Some content builds relationships with people who are already following you. Some content moves people toward buying your book. You need to know which purpose each post serves before you create it.
Right now, you're probably creating content that doesn't serve any clear purpose. You're just... posting. And that has to change in order for you to actually sell more books.
Third, you need a system for moving people from social media to somewhere you can actually build a relationship and sell books. Social media is the beginning of the conversation, it’s not the entire conversation. You need to guide people to your email list, to a free resource, to something that lets you continue the relationship beyond random social media posts.
These three changes - clear messaging, purposeful content, and a conversion path - are what separate authors who sell books consistently from authors who are stuck in the "Post and Pray" trap.
Let me show you what this looks like with a real example.
I worked with an author who'd been posting on Instagram two to three times a week for months. She had about 800 followers and her book sales were sporadic at best. She was doing all the things she thought she was supposed to do - showing up, posting, engaging with comments. But nothing was translating to sales.
We made three changes based on what I just told you.
We clarified her core message - she writes about historical women's participation in American democracy. Every post started connecting back to that message instead of being random thoughts about history.
We gave each post a purpose - some posts were designed to attract new readers who were interested in women’s history, some posts built trust by sharing her own stories, and some posts moved people to her email list where she could talk about her book more directly.
And we created a simple path: social media posts drove to a free resource, which added people to her email list, where she nurtured those relationships and then led them to buy her book.
In 90 days, her book sales went from a few sales a month to over 3,400 books sold. Same effort, different strategy.
That's the difference between random marketing and strategic marketing.
If you're recognizing yourself in these symptoms - if you're posting but not selling, creating content but seeing no momentum, wondering what successful authors know that you don't - here's what needs to happen.
You need to step back from the random social media posting and build the foundation first. Before you can create strategic content, you need to know who you're talking to, what message you're sharing, and where you're guiding people.
That's what my Book Marketing Starter Kit walks you through - the complete marketing foundation that makes your social media actually work. You'll learn how to identify your ideal reader, craft messaging that resonates with them, create book hooks that grab attention, and build the conversion path from social media to purchasing your book.
It includes content ideas and book hook templates for fiction, non-fiction, memoir, and children's books, plus the complete strategy for turning awareness into book sales.
You get the entire system that transforms random posting into strategic marketing. To get the complete system, click the link in my show notes.
And once you have that foundation, if you want help building the newsletter piece specifically - where you nurture those relationships and actually sell books - be sure to grab my Newsletter Starter Kit for Authors - that is in the show notes as well.
But here's the key: you can't skip the foundation. That's why the random posting isn't working - you're creating content without the strategy underneath it.
You have two choices: you can keep posting randomly and hoping something eventually clicks. Or you can recognize that hope isn't a strategy and get the system you actually need.
The authors who are selling books consistently aren't working harder than you. They're working with a strategy. And once you have that strategy, everything gets easier.
Stop posting and praying. Start being strategic.
I’ll see you in the next episode.