Marketing Primer: Parts of the Author Platform

An author platform is made up of several elements:

(We’ll cover these more in-depth over the next few weeks)

• Website
• Reach of social media accounts
• Email list
• Connections with other industry professionals
• Relationship with the media
• Community of readers
• Presence and interactions with the public

An author platform is measured by the ability to use a platform to sell books and boost your career.

Visual Elements of the Author Platform

When developing a website, graphics, and social media pages, make sure the visual elements paint a picture of your and your work. Considering how to best represent your personality, your writing style, and the genre(s) you write in.

Colors should match you and your genre(s). They should also be be consistent across platforms when possible. A thriller writer might lean toward darker, brooding colors while a romantic comedy writer may tend toward light and fun colors. If you write romance, but hate pink, consider other soft and inviting colors.

When choosing images, use the same author photo and logo on all platforms. This makes your image more reliable and can help readers feel more confident that they have the right account.

The style of your platform should match your personality as well. Are you a dark paranormal author who enjoys a good bit of humor? Find a way to add a few lighter elements through posts or the design. If you’re serious and thoughtful, posting funny memes about writing might not fit the style you’re going for.

When planning the overall design of your author platform, make sure websites and social media accounts are easy to navigate as well as give insight into personality. Most social media sites take care of this for you, but when it is possible to customize, add the most helpful and logical tabs or buttons to make it easy for readers to contact you or make a purchase.

Author Taglines/Slogans

A tagline gives readers a sense of who you are as a writer, or what your expertise/experience is. It’s NOT about genre only, but also about who you are as a person and as a writer.

Focus on recognition. Choose images and colors that stand out and are easy to interpret and remember. Give context to help readers remember you and your work through the use of word choice, color, symbols, or images. Make it memorable rather than just using your name or stating “genre” author.

Categorize you and your work with a short description of what you write and why you write it.