Tag: writer’s brand

Categories
Platform and Branding

Hey, Writer. Let’s Talk About Your Brand!

Platform and Branding

Now more than ever, personal branding is important. Whether you’re scrolling through Instagram looking at the latest influencers’ posts, or on Twitter engulfed in a sea of book promotions, it may seem like everyone is pushing their personal brand.

Maybe you attended a writing conference and were declined representation due to your lack of platform. Maybe your book made it through pitching and garnered the interest of a publisher, only to have the marketing team squash your hopes of landing a contract. I’ve been there too. If you’re only here for writing, that’s ok. We have numerous articles on the writing craft. If you want to write for yourself, you can skip this article and go read another. However, if you want to write and build a career then keep reading.

Branding is a cornerstone to a solid writing career. That’s why we need to talk about it.

Writers embody their writing. Think of J. K. Rowling—a giant in her genre. But she is both known for what she writes and also who she is. The character of Harry is so endearing partly because we know Rowling’s past. To be an author with a career is to open yourself up to the public and show who you are.

That’s where branding comes in.

We don’t need to share every detail of our lives to get published, but we do need to share select details.

Notice the word select there. Brand comes down to what you choose to share.

What are you passionate about? What colors do you love? How do you decorate? Believe it or not, this all influences your brand. As a writer you will likely do some speaking and promoting. What you talk about hopefully comes from what you’re passionate about. How you dress when you speak hopefully is inspired by the colors you love. How you decorate will likely influence the type of photos you post on Instagram or your author Facebook page, or what you pin on your author Pinterest board.

We’ll continue future, in-depth discussions of author branding (as well as platform) but for now, can I assign some homework?

Look up your favorite authors and notice what they’re posting, tweeting, and blogging about. Notice trends. Notice recurring themes. Colors. Topics. Questions. Ways they engage with their followers.

Then look at your own social media and writer website. Notice trends, recurring themes, colors, topics, questions, and how you engage. Take note if there are discrepancies between your social media bio and what you’re posting about.

For now, that’s all you need to do—notice. Next time we’ll take it a step further.

Until then, happy writing!

Sarah Rexford is a Marketing Content Creator and writer. She helps authors build their platform through branding and copywriting. With a BA in Strategic Communications, Sarah equips writers to learn how to communicate their message through personal branding. She writes fiction and nonfiction and offers writers behind-the-scenes tips on the publishing industry through her blog itssarahrexford.com. She is represented by the C.Y.L.E Young Agency.

Instagram: @sarahjrexford
Twitter: @sarahjrexford
Web: itssarahrexford.com

Categories
Authorpreneur

Build a Brand 2: It’s all about personality

A few days ago, my wife returned from the grocery store with two different brands of coffee: Lavazza and Caribou. While Lavazza is a household favorite, I immediately claimed the Caribou coffee. Why? Because its cover spoke to me. The rustic image of a caribou in the wild resonated with the part of me that loves being in the woods.

Simply put, a brand’s personality is the way that the products make people feel. As a rule, we tend to like people whose personalities match our own. We do the same with products. And businesses know that.

Companies spend millions of dollars building up their brand’s personality. They know that consumers make decisions to buy, or not to buy, products based on how much the product (and by extension, the brand as a whole) matches their own personality.

While Lavazza and Caribou both produce awesome coffee (at least in my opinion!), I opted for Caribou because it connects with my personality.

So what kind of brand personalities are there, and how can authors leverage this information to their own advantage?

In the ‘90s, a social psychologist, Dr. Jennifer Aaker, identified five dimensions that form the general basis for marketers understanding of brand identity. They are:

  • Excitement (brands that are trendy, and daring like Red Bull)
  • Sincerity (or brands that capitalize on a “family” feel, like Southwest Airlines)
  • Ruggedness (which focuses on a more masculine you-can-handle anything attitude like  . . .  Caribou)
  • Competence (which promotes products that are hardworking and secure like Apple),
  • Sophistication (which focuses on high-end, typically feminine products like Chanel or Dove).

Your readers are consumers. Therefore, they will decide whether or not to “buy your product” (a.k.a read your book) in part based upon the way its personality makes them feel. There’s no way to please everyone but you can leverage this aspect of being authorpreneur to maximize your potential with your target audience.

Here are three steps to give your “brand” of writing its own personality.

Observe: Look at the work of other successful authors in your genre. As a reader, how would you describe their books? Do you see them as being in the exciting category, sincere, rugged, competent, sophisticated or a mix of the above? Don’t just look at the big names out there.

Once you’ve done this, decide what aspects of those books you can incorporate into your own work—things such as cover design and interior formatting. Is there one character featured on the cover or are there many? Are the pages cream or white? These are the things that give a book its feel . . . or personality.

Also consider what makes your book different from other authors in your genre. How can you feature those differences so you’re giving your readers something fresh yet trending?

Plan: Think about who you want to read your book. If you could create the ideal reader, what kind of personality traits would he have? If your ideal reader is a daring, young woman, then you want your book to push excitement and possibly sophistication. If your book is geared toward children of aging parents, for example, you might want to take a “sincere” or “competent” approach.

Think about your image. What we wear often reflects our personality. The same is true of your book.

Your image isn’t just the cover—it’s also the methods you use to connect with readers. To make the most of your social media audience, make sure your online presence reflects your brand’s personality. While Facebook should play a role in your marketing mix, authors that are more “youth-focused” or have a more “exciting” personality might want to build an audience on social media channels that are perceived as being “newer” such as Instagram .

Authors who want to build an audience that favors “honest” or “competent” trends might consider focusing the bulk of their online time on longer blog posts and Facebook groups.   

Keep in mind that, because you’re marketing to readers, your audience will most likely be comfortable reading blog posts, but readers are also visual people who love pictures, videos etc . . .  So present your book’s personality in a way that is likely to resonate with your target market.

For marketing ideas, tips on how to build a brand and more, check out my website: www.JPRobinsonBooks.com

JP Robinson gained experience in the marketing field doing promotional work for multi-million dollar medical facilities and non-profit groups over the past decade. He is an international speaker, educator, and prolific author of both fiction and non-fiction.

JP also conducts writing seminars in various parts of the country and heads Logos Publications, LLC, an emerging publishing and book marketing team.

When he isn’t writing or teaching, JP loves spending time with his wonderful wife and children.

Categories
Mastering Middle Grade

Branding Basics for Middle Grade Writers

When you think about the word “brand,” what comes to mind? A metal tool used with cattle? A particular fruit? A can of soda?

Before I started writing for kids, I wrote marketing campaigns and ad copy as part of a corporate brand advertising team. Companies invest major money in creating brands, and for good reason. People who sell products want to claim a portion of your mind and heart so you will feel good about spending your hard-earned money on them.

What is a brand, anyway? A brand is:

  • a promise
  • an emotional connection
  • actions that deliver upon both

You may be wondering whether this is important right now, especially if you have not published that much or are pre-published. Branding is important for writers for the same reasons it is important for businesses. Readers have plenty of options to choose from, and they are more likely to choose books by authors they are either a) familiar with or b) recommended by their friends. You have a better chance of being read if readers recognize your name. That’s where your branding efforts come in.

Does this mean, as a writer, that you have to take out a second mortgage to hire high-powered advertising agencies to create a brand for you? Of course not. But you do need to spend a little time thinking about some things. Make no mistake: you are, with every decision you make and every action you take, constructing your own personal brand. Let’s make sure that it’s the one you want to build.

Good branding starts with understanding the business – in this case, you.  Remember the three essential elements of a brand that I outlined earlier? The first one is the promise. What is your promise? Discover this for yourself by answering these questions:

  • What do you write?
  • For whom?
  • What value do you bring (what makes you special)?

Next, you will want to consider what kind of emotional response you want associated with your author brand. Whether you write scary stories, bible-based adventures, or slapstick comedy, think about how you want to be perceived by your readership. Do you want them to count on you for a dose of silliness in a stressful world? Do you want to connect through your adventurous spirit and imaginative tales?

Finally, your actions – what you do and where you go to market your work – must be consistent with your brand promise. Whatever your desired connection with your reader is, you need to bring that goal into focus and let it guide you. Thanks for reading and happy branding!

Kell McKinney earned a B.A. in journalism from the University of Oklahoma and an M.S. in documentary studies from the University of North Texas. She’s a part-time copywriter, double-time mom and wife, and spends every free minute writing and/or hunting for her car keys. Connect with her on Twitter @Kell_McK or kellmckinney.com.

Categories
Platform and Branding

Brand basics – do your colors and fonts present your best look?

Good content is critical for a writer but how that content is presented is also important. In Brand Basics – 2 Considerations For Writers, we discussed the importance of consistency across your social media networks. Using the same images and verbiage will tie together your unique look and help people recognize you. As you develop that look, choose colors and fonts that enhance your brand and help you stand out.

Colors

Response to color varies from person to person, and even between males and females. Most research proves, however, colors convey these basic feelings:

  • Red – fire, stimulating, but also anger
  • Orange – fire, adventure, optimism
  • Yellow – sun, happiness, energy
  • Green – nature, peaceful, but also envy
  • Blue – waters, trustworthy, masculine (favorite color of men)
  • Purple – royalty, sophisticated and artsy, but also feminine
  • Brown – earthy, rugged, but also dirty
  • Black – classic, strong, but also grief
  • White – purity

color wheel, look for writers

 

Lighter shades have a more feminine quality, while stronger hues feel more masculine. The colors you choose should resonate with your audience, enhance your look and also complement your voice.

Choose 2-3 colors to use consistently on your website, and use those colors as often as possible in your shareable images and infographics. Your readers will begin to associate those colors with you and your work.

 

Fonts

With so many free Google webfonts, we’re no longer limited to a handful of options on our websites. Sites like Font Squirrel and DaFont also provide access to many free or affordable options to use with our logos and our graphic design projects.

look at different fonts for writers

When selecting fonts, consider the overall look and feel you want to convey. Consider pairing two different but complementary fonts, using a standout font for headers and a simpler font for body text. Use the same (or similar) fonts on your website and in your shareable graphics and images.

Research

Pay close attention to your favorite authors and influencers and notice how they incorporate fonts and colors in their brands. One of my favorites is Amy Porterfield. She repeats the bold colors from her header in her featured images and infographics. The backgrounds are solid colors and she uses two basic fonts: a handwritten font for standout text and a sans-serif font for her body text.

Amy Porterfield featured image

If you pay close attention, you’ll see the “How to” text on the top line differs slightly from text on the bottom line. The fonts are actually the same family, the top font is the narrow version. 

Fiverr offers graphic designs starting at $5 (hence the name). Although very few of them actually deliver a product for that price, it’s a good place to find samples. Look at the portfolios for some of the top designers and see how they use not only colors and fonts, but also images, graphics and white space. What looks are pleasing to your eye?

Last Word

Remember when choosing fonts and colors: LESS IS MORE. Over 50% of your readers will view from a mobile device (cell phone or tablet), so choose fonts and colors that are easy to read on a variety of devices. Create a look that’s recognizable to your readers and then incorporate those elements as you share your great content.

Tweetables:

[bctt tweet=”Create a look that will represent your #writer brand, via @a3forme @susanrstilwell #amwriting” via=”no”]

[bctt tweet=”How colors and fonts can enhance a #writer brand, via @a3forme @susanrstilwell #amwriting” via=”no”]

brand basics colors fonts

Resources:

FontSquirrel and DaFont

Google web fonts

how to add to Google web fonts to blogger

WordPress plugin to add Google web fonts: easy google fonts

Fiverr Graphic Design

Font Pairing

Additional Reading:

The Psychology of Color in Marketing and Branding

Photo Credits

Color Wheel: Sailom, FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Amy Porterfield, screenshot

Categories
Platform and Branding

Brand Basics – 2 Considerations For Writers

We’re familiar with a brand as it relates to corporations. When we think of Coke, McDonalds, and Nike these logos appear in our minds:

Coke – red background with white letters.
McDonalds – golden arches.
Nike – swoosh.

These corporations have spent millions (billions?) of dollars over the years with marketing groups and design teams to develop brand recognition. Few writers have the resources to invest in that kind of brand development but a personal brand is an important part of a solid platform.

Two important considerations for branding that every writer must consider are Content and Look.

CONTENT

Do you have a clear writing focus?

Content - writer brand

Perhaps you’re a novelist. Do you write mysteries for young adults? Romance geared toward women?

Maybe you’re an inspirational writer. Do you write devotions? Parenting articles? Bible studies?

Editors, technical writers, agents, etc. each have a special niche in the writing industry. Determine your focus, create content, and share on social media’s Big 3—Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.

Remember to be generous and share quotes and links from a variety of sources. Edie Melson recommends sharing only 20% of your own material. Find other writers and industry professionals who have a similar focus and share their content as well.

Don’t hesitate to share occasional random posts, but be sure to keep it kind and clean. Tweeting at your favorite sports team or sharing a funny meme on Facebook makes you a more interesting person to follow.

LOOK

Do your social media accounts have the same (or similar) backgrounds and headshots?

Develop a background and format it for each social media account. Profile dimensions change on a regular basis, so check a reliable source like Mashable for the most recent image sizes. Select a headshot that is both current and suitable for your writing.

A writer with brilliant branding is Steven James. He wears several hats: writing & speaking instructor, keynote speaker, poet, master storyteller, and suspense writer. His social media profiles and his website represent him well, reflecting his friendly yet somewhat mysterious personality.

Platforming - Steven James profile, writer brand

Your website’s About Page should include the same content focus, headshots, and background images (if possible). A consistent online image will help establish your personal brand and help lay a solid foundation for your platform.

Shareables:

branding considerations

[bctt tweet=”Start building your #writer brand by answering 2 questions, via @A3forme @susanrstilwell” via=”no”]

[bctt tweet=”Top 2 considerations for developing your brand as a #writer, @a3forme @susanrstilwell” via=”no”]

Sites to check out:

Steven James
Mashable: Your social media cheat sheet for perfectly sized images