Publishing in Kenya Using social media to build a brand / sell books Masterclass by Kinyanjui Kombani A.K.A ‘The banker who writes’
Publishing in Kenya
Using social media to build a brand / sell books
Masterclass by Kinyanjui Kombani A.K.A ‘The banker who writes’
About Kinyanjui Kombani
Learning Facilitator, East Africa,Standard Chartered Bank
'The Banker who Writes'
Director (Strategy),Old Gold Solutions Ltd.*Winner, Enablis Launchpad 2010
‘The Banker who writes’
Study text at Daystar University
1st print run sold out in Day 1 after a
social media campaign
Recommended for teaching in schools by KICD (Kenya Institute of Curriculum
Development
Sold in Uganda only
Sold in Rwanda only
Study text at 4 Kenyan & 1
German University
Mentioned in PostGraduate
work at Harvard & Uni. Of
Sussex, UK
The publishing environment in KE
Traditional PublishingUse a traditional publisher who takes care of the publishing process: Editing, typesetting, design, printing, storage, distribution, marketing etc
You take care of the entire/part of the publishing process: Editing, typesetting, design, printing, storage, distribution, marketing etc
Self Publishing
The publishing environment in KE
Traditional Publishing Self Publishing
- The publisher takes care of the risk (the risk of not selling a single book is a reality)
- The publisher has the experience, resources & network to manage the process
- You can let the experts deal with the book as you do your core business : Writing
Pros
- You can take advantage of your own networks to guarantee sales.
- You are in charge of the entire process, so the publishing is done at your own pace
- You take 100% of the income!
Pros
- You are at the mercy of the publisher’s calendar, resources and priorities
- Some publishers are not very straightforward and may understate sales
- Some publishers are not very strong in marketing books / have too many authors
- The royalties you get are much lower than you expect
Cons
- It’s a heavy risk, and can lead to heavy losses/dead stock if you cannot clear the books you’ve printed
- Publishing requires skills in sales, negotiation, design etc which can lead to failure if not perfected
- Quality may be compromised (typos and poor printing work)
Cons
The publishing environment in KE
Emerging trends in Publishing
You can liaise with publishers to co-publish/share costs and revenue(‘smaller’ publishers are more flexible)
Online publishing
Useful links:1.www.alexandernderitu.com2.http://www.masterpublishing.co.ke
Using to build a brand/ sell books
Disclaimer:
I do not claim to be a social media expert. Like many other writers, I am still learning
In the next slides I only try to share my lessons learnt. Feel free to engage me on [email protected]
Why do writers need to have a social media presence?
Leverage on your network
The many social media platforms available give you a head start when spreading the word about your work.
Why do writers need to have a social media presence?
Social media helps you to:
Be Where your readers are
With billions on social media networks, if you do not have a presence there ‘you do not exist.’
Grow your brand
Social media gives you a relatively cost effective* way of making your brand and work known to the rest of the world.
Note: Not free
How do we go about it?
Approach
Source: https://www.newbrandanalytics.com/blog/2013/11/how-to-create-a-social-media-strategy/
What are your followers saying?
What do you want to say/do/achieve?
How will you know you are succeeding?
Where will you get more value?
Talk with, not to, your audience
Best times to post, etc
Prioritise
With scores of platforms available, you have to identify what works for you. You may not afford to be everywhere
(I am still trying to figure out Instagram and I feel like a socialite – my last post had a whopping 18 likes )
I get 90% of my sales and engagement from Twitter and Facebook, so I dedicate my efforts there.
Not 100% utilising the benefits of LinkedIn. Work in Progress
Good for presentations. I haven't seen this translating to sales. But it has potential
Your online brandCreate a consistent online presence that reflects your writer brand:
Good quality photo for avatar
Cover page that promotes you/your work
(resist the temptation to use your (low resolution photo of yourself chasing chickens at home)
Your online brand
Your bio should be succinct and relevant.
Create a consistent online presence that reflects your writer brand:
How I do it
Product placement?
Cover page
Because I write about social issues, I find this photo to be a good representation of society.
I sometimes change this when I have an event. I rarely put family photos here no matter the temptation, even if it is Day 1 of school.
Bio that talks about things I am passionate about
Metrics I look at
How am I benchmarked against others in the industry?
Am I doing the right thing?
Attracting the right connections?
This is by no means exhaustive. There are many other metrics that social media platforms give: locations, demographics, devices used to access your content etc
Let your readers do the talking for you
Do not blow your own trumpet. If your work is good enough, your readers will talk about it….
Twitter posts + Review on her blog that attracted other reviews
Twitter + Facebook posts + an interview on national TV and Radio
Let your readers do the talking for you
Some of them will be influencers….
420K followers
560K followers
Industry experts with CLOUT
The days after these tweets, the book sold out at bookshops
What is the impact of social media on my book sales?
‘Den of Inequities’ has sold 3 times more books in one year than ‘The Last Villains of Molo’ has sold in 7 years’
By the time ‘Den of Inequities’ was launched, we had sold over 1,000 copies via Pre-orders on twitter (what LVoM sold in 3 yrs)
‘Den’ is arguably one of the most reviewed books in 2014, featuring in major dailies and no less than 10 blogs.
Launched via a Christmas campaign on Facebook, ‘Lost But Found’ sold out before it was released.
Impact of social media on book sales
Other things I have learnt
Promote work by other authors as well.
They will also become your ambassadors.
Plus you are helping improve the reading culture
See, sale done!
(Now Ken Walibora owes me )
Other things I have learnt
80/20 rule
Talk about other people’s work 80% of the time
Talk to stakeholders
Get involved in literary events
Go to bookshops and engage sales people
(The shop attendant is your biggest ambassador. You can’t believe how many people walk to a bookshop and simply ask for a ‘good Kenyan book’
Other things I have learnt
Social media engagement is only one aspect.
You have to be ready to direct readers to where they can get your books. If they cannot go to a bookshop, find ways to deliver.
Most readers don’t mind paying extra for postage
Kinyanjui Kombaniwww.kinyanjuikombani.com
kombanithewriter
https://ke.linkedin.com/in/kombani
@kkombani @kkombani (I hope..)
http://www.slideshare.net/Kombani