Are you looking for a free way to reach more readers with information about your book? One that lets you do more of what you’re good at — writing? And that lets you leverage what you’ve already written?

One of the most efficient ways to promote your book online is through “article marketing.” With this tactic, you write and share short, informative, bylined articles related to your book’s topic.

“Share” means publishing the articles on:

• Your website
• Article directory sites that others use to find content for their newsletters, websites, and blogs
• LinkedIn
• Blogging sites such as Medium
• Other websites as guest blog posts or site content

Why article marketing works

The articles you write for this purpose aren’t about you or your book. They aren’t overtly promotional. This is editorial content, not advertising. Think newspaper article, not advertisement.

Instead, you’re providing a preview of sorts of what people need to know from your book, whether it’s fiction or nonfiction.

As an example, here’s one of my evergreen articles published on the article directory site, Ezinearticles.com: “6 Surefire Ways to Promote Your Novel.”

Here’s what’s in it for you:

• Each article includes an author resource box — “about the author” — at the end. I recommend that authors include a one-to-two-sentence bio, website URL, book title, and a call to action. That might be “Learn more about the book on [retail site of your choice URL]” or “Sign up for my free and helpful weekly newsletter at [newsletter sign up (opt-in) page on your site].” When others use your article, they’re required to include that resource box.
• Links back to your site in the article or reource box help with SEO — search engine optimization — which relates to search engines finding your site.
• You’re helping your target audience see what they might get from your book, which could make them more inclined to buy it.
• The helpful information you provide in the article helps position you as an expert, which boosts credibility and makes readers more likely to buy your book.

Rather write than talk?

I’m a big fan of article marketing for a couple of reasons.

First, it’s a good fit for authors who would rather write a helpful article about a topic they know well than talk about it on a podcast or to a reporter. And it’s a solitary act that you can do on your own schedule, at your convenience.

via GIPHY

But I also love how it lets authors re-purpose existing content. Not only do you use your book’s content for inspiration and text (see below), but you can also alter an article several different ways and post it in different directories or offer it to multiple blogs or websites.

Don’t publish the same article in multiple places, though, because Google doesn’t like that. It won’t help your SEO. Instead, rewrite each article slightly:

• Change the headline
• Write a new first paragraph
• Reorder any bullet points
• Tweak the last paragraph so your conclusion has the same message but said differently

What to write about

Not sure what to write about? Let these five suggestions for identifying article topics inspire you. (WARNING: Once you get started, you might have trouble stopping).

1. Study the chapter subheads in your table of contents. 

How many of them would make good mini-articles? Most, probably.

For example, I can turn the subhead “Identifying what’s newsworthy” in Chapter 2 of my book Publicity for Nonprofits into a how-to article.

2. Review your sample author Q&A from your online press kit. 

Review your online press kit sample questions and answers. Which stand out as good instructional topics?

You won’t want to write an article answering, “Why did you write this book?”

But your answer to “Your novel’s characters have such interesting names. How did you decide what to name them?” could easily be expanded into an interesting piece on the significance of character names in fiction and how authors select them.

3. Think about the questions you get asked most when doing media, podcast, or blog interviews, or when speaking to groups.

Answer those questions in informative articles that will showcase your expertise and generate interest in your book.

If you’ve written a memoir, for example, people probably ask how you handle references to others in your book, especially if they’re depicted in an unflattering way. Turn your answer to that question into an informative and interesting article that also offers insights into your personal story and might intrigue readers enough to buy your book.

4. Find the nonfiction nuggets in your fiction and use them as idea springboards. 

What are the nonfiction gems in your fiction? Did you shadow a police officer while researching your mystery? Write about the essential steps law enforcement officers use to stay safe in dangerous situations and how the rest of us can incorporate them to stay safe, too.

Is your protagonist a black belt in karate? Write an article or essay about the advantages of studying martial arts.

The possibilities are almost endless if you’re open to seeing how your fictional elements can be helpful in the “real” world.

5. Convert your blog posts – especially those that generated lots of comments – into articles. 

It won’t take much more work, will it? Some of them might require little effort to become freestanding articles while others might need to be expanded.

I do this on Medium.com (and need to do more of it). Here’s one example: “The definitive guide to handling negative book reviews.”

Article marketing resources

If you’re not familiar with these types of articles, read through several at a syndication site such as Ezinearticles.com. You’ll see quickly what content is useful and what isn’t. (Type my name into the search box to see how I used this directory in the past.)

Not an article writer? I’ve included a template that guides you through the bylined article-writing process in my workbook for authors, Build Book Buzz Publicity Forms & Templates. It will help you get up and running with this process as quickly as possible.

Once you’ve got a few articles written, start the online submission process with a handful of the sites on this submission site list.

Don’t expect to see a sudden surge in book sales, though. Building reader awareness takes time and requires using multiple tactics consistently.

Article marketing, if it’s a good fit for you and your book, should be one of several tactics in your book marketing plan.

Are you using article marketing to promote your book? Has it helped? Please share your experiences by commenting below!

(Editor’s note: This article was first published in May 2012. It has been updated and expanded.)

Through that, I discovered a soon-to-be-published book that I immediately pre-ordered.

That single article was my introduction to the power of Medium, a publishing platform that everyone from a senior public relations pro at Amazon to the folks at OK Cupid use to make announcements or share opinions.

How do you get started there, what are the best practices for content providers, and how can you use Medium.com as an author?

Medium demographics

Before you do anything, make sure your ideal reader is using that site.

There isn’t much available about the platform’s demographics, but I did find specifics from 2015. The source, Ryan Huber, attributes this information to nativeadvertising.com:

“Medium’s audience is made up mostly of the sort of educated, upwardly mobile, and media savvy people who like to ponder the future of technology or the cultural significance of the Coachella music festival.

“A full 95% of Medium’s readers are college graduates, and 43% of them earn six figures or more. Even better, from an advertiser standpoint, these readers are also young, with half of them in the coveted 18–34 demographic and 70% of them being under the age of 50.”

Getting started

View what follows as something of a cheat sheet. I’ve curated links to the most relevant content others have written on the subject already. We can use them to learn together.

Digital marketing strategist Chloe Mason Gray shares best practices in “The Marketer’s Guide to Medium” on Neil Patel’s blog. It’s an excellent starting point once you’ve decided that Medium is a good fit for your book marketing plan.

She explains how Medium can support your business and how to use it effectively. Screenshots of examples are especially helpful.

In “So, you’re new to Medium…” by Justin Cox, you’ll learn about the basics as well as how to get paid for your content. (Scroll down in that article to “I Want to Get Paid for My Writing.”)

I learned about submitting content to “publications” — a smart move! — in Nicole Bianchi’s helpful “getting started” post, “How to Use Medium to Share Your Writing and Grow Your Email List.”

Bianchi’s article also includes the essentials for getting started.

How do authors use the site?

Authors might use Medium to connect with readers, showcase their writing skills, build influence, or build buzz for their books.

In “13 Ways for Authors to Engage on Medium,” Kate Lee offers examples as well as ideas that range from publishing an excerpt to hosting a contest.

“How to Use Medium to Promote Your Author Brand” by Derek Haines has several helpful suggestions. Like many other articles I’ve read about Medium, this one encourages you to repost your blog content on your Medium account.

While Haines says it won’t hurt your SEO (search engine optimization), I think I’ll still plan on tweaking my blog posts before re-publishing them on Medium. Every time I revisit something I’ve written, I can usually improve it.

Take the time to learn how to use it first

I strongly recommend reading these and other articles before starting to blog on Medium. The more you know before you get started, the fewer costly mistakes you’ll make.

Study how others are using it. Find examples of people who have figured it out and analyze why they’re successful.

Consider taking a class, too. Here are affiliate links to two courses on Udemy, “Medium Blogging for Beginners” and “Medium Blogging Masterclass.”

Finally, before incorporating Medium.com into your marketing plan, make sure it’s a good fit for your target audience, goals, and skills.

Don’t start creating content on the site simply because you’ve heard others are doing it. It needs to be a good fit for you and your book.

Are you using Medium already? Please share a link in the comments so we can see what you’re doing.