I Tried TikTok, and...
My regular reminder that advice, like clothing, is rarely one-size-fits-all.
A couple weeks back, I wrote about how modern authors are, on some level, simply expected to care about TikTok. I’m not sure that TikTok will remain publishing’s platform of preference 5 years from now — in fact, I’m pretty sure it will not — but it’s relevant today for a very simple reason: TikTok influences book sales. The logic is clear enough. Authors who have bigger followings should sell more books. And TikTok seems to be a specific place where young people with buying power go looking for books. In today’s update, I’ll walk you through my personal experience applying standard platform-building advice to TikTok.
Topics Include:
The 4 pieces of advice publishing* gives authors
How that’s working out for me
My heavily streamlined, dubiously valid TikTok marketing plan
*—“Publishing” in this context is like “the universe.” We are all part of it, and we are all completely incapable of describing its exact dimensions.
Today’s Countdown Clock
It’s June 27th, 2024. Time remaining to get better at TikTok or delete the stupid app:
Click here for more about the countdown.
The 4 Pieces of Advice Publishing Gives Authors
I’m pretty sure that learning to market yourself as a commercial author is a laborious right of passage that each of us must complete on our own. It’s like a Spartan race — no one needs to soldier crawl under an electric fence, but once you sign up, that’s what you’re gonna do. For those of you who are too smart to try something like this “for fun,” here’s my summary of the social media marketing advice new authors typically receive:
You need a platform to succeed in this industry.
Don’t stress about it, though. Just have fun!
Check out what your favorite authors are doing.
Also, maybe start with a comprehensive, multi-page brand strategy?
I’ve always been one to do my homework, so here’s how each of these problem sets worked out.
1. You need a platform to succeed in this industry.
Initial Thoughts: Okay, if you say so. I have ZERO formal marketing or social media training, but I’ll do my best!
Outcome: TikTok was clearly an important place to build said platform, so in February 2023, @andieashdownauthor was born. Behold!
Wait, did you say February 2023? Yes. Yes, I did. I’ve technically had an author presence on TikTok for almost a year and a half. I invite you to further behold the massive following I have built!
2. Don’t stress about it, just have fun!
Initial Thoughts: Okay, whew! I don’t need more stress in my life, and building an audience at the rate of 1.5 people per month is definitely stress-inducing. No matter, I’ll see what looks fun to do on here and try that.
Outcome: Obviously, the most fun thing about TikTok is what other people are doing with it. I watched my fair share of choreographed dances to Texas Hold ‘Em, but feeling unlikely to uncover latent dance talent in middle age, I went in search of something more bookish. I found…
Book review adjacent content (Ex: 5 Books That Lived Up to the Hype and 5 That Didn’t) — Entertaining, but as an author myself, I don’t want to crap on anyone I hope to eventually view as a colleague!
Beautiful flat lays of books (with tea, dried flowers, artfully draped fabric, etc.) — Very pretty, but I don’t like tea and the only dried flowers I have are the weeds in my front yard.
Video editing tricks (like flipping through a book multiple times and having the cover magically change with each flip) — How am I supposed to find time to write, exactly?
Nearing desperation for an “easy” entry-point, I did finally find one fun thing on TikTok: filters and effects! These are the little micro-programs that kind of make a post for you. They identify your “celeb crush” or your “book boyfriend,” they show you what you’d look like as a man / fairy / Disney cartoon, etc.
The “Face Age” one, which purports to scan your face and tell you how old you appear to others is pretty popular.
Behold! I am a 17-year-old child!
Lesson learned. Filters and effects are not the path to success. They are, however, an excellent education in why AI tools should NOT be used for security or law enforcement purposes at this time. Yikes.
3. Check out what your favorite authors are doing.
Initial Thoughts: Good plan. I don’t need to reinvent the wheel here. Let’s learn from people who know what’s up!
Outcome: I started with one of my all-time favorite authors, who also happens to be generally acknowledged as the romance writing queen of TikTok: Tessa Bailey. What was Bailey doing different than me?
Let’s see…I have 30 followers, she has 250K.
I have 289 likes, she has 9.1M.
She’s also an NYT Bestseller and, if I’m counting correctly, has 53 published books. In addition to that insane productivity, she boasts a hilariously dry sense of humor, knows how to do green screen effects, and is tuned into current events and trends.
Okay, so Tessa Bailey was the author equivalent of comparing myself to Taylor Swift. What about someone still successful but just a tiny bit less…Taylor?
Enter Elsie Silver, a Canadian author who started out indie in 2021 and certifiably blew up on BookTok. Like Bailey, her writing output is insane (11 books since 2021? REALLY?), but she’s arguably a more reasonable role model.
Notice anything about this grid?
Dang, this woman has an eye for design. White shirts, denim, beachy waves, rich browns, and the odd Kung Fu Panda for variety. It would not at all surprise me if she has multiple Pinterest boards, insane decorating skills, and a background in fine arts or design. In short, this woman has natural talents I do not share.
Near tears — not really, but sounds good, doesn’t it? — I sought out an author who really feels like someone I would be friends with. (In a dream world, anyway.) Every time I listen to Nikki Payne on a podcast, I feel like I’m listening to a long-lost grade-school friend who magically got all the same geeky buttons installed. We both love Jane Austen, Star Trek, learning for learning’s sake, and not taking the world too seriously. She even grew up in Texas!
Get ready for my record-scratch moment.
I searched for Payne on TikTok using the recommended string “nikki payne author”. Here were the results:
I should perhaps mention that in addition to everything mentioned above, the real Nikki Payne is a Black woman of approximately my age.
And she definitely IS on TikTok. As @nikkipaynewrites. Which I guess is SO FAR off from “nikki payne author” that a well-developed search algorithm couldn’t find her? (I’m sorry, what?)
Granted, it looks like Payne may have last posted sometime in 2023, but she still has 8,000 followers and is mentioned regularly by other users. I’m not positing any theories — honestly, I worked in tech long enough that I wouldn’t be remotely surprised to learn this was something as dumb as a search tuning miss — but dang, those optics are TERRIBLE.
And regardless of “why” Nikki Payne is hard to find on TikTok, the reality of that fact is sobering. Here is a traditionally-published author who actively promotes her work, frequently appears in romance media, and has received glowing reviews from the likes of NPR and The Washington Post. If an author with that resume can’t get “discovered” on TikTok, even when I go actively looking for her, what chances are there for the rest of us?
4. Oh, and don’t forget to draft a comprehensive brand strategy!
Initial Thoughts: Clearly I was getting frustrated by this point, but fine. I said I was all in, so I’ll write out reader personas, define my target audience, select 5-7 things to feature in my content, build a posting calendar, and pay attention to the aesthetics of my grid.
Outcome: I started this. I really, truly did!
I decided I wrote primarily for women in their 30s and 40s who have seen some stuff and prefer laughing at the world to crying over it. They are motivated professionals who juggle many responsibilities and value their leisure team. They might have families, but they maintain space for themselves and their interests. They are well over any traditional gender roles, and they probably have an active group text with a close-knit group of friends...
Are you bored? Yeah, me too. And that paragraph didn’t take nearly as long to type as the 15-page marketing plan I got from one author webinar. I’m not saying that a good marketing plan shouldn’t be 15 pages (or more), this was just the point where I returned to my initial thesis:
Marketing is a discipline. I’m probably not going to become an expert on nights and weekends.
I mean, I say I’m “all in,” but there are limits. If my TikTok efforts get me nowhere, my next step isn’t going to be pursuing my MBA.
Which Gets Me to Today’s (Very) Streamlined Plan
Am I giving up on TikTok? Surprisingly, no. But I am giving up on a whole lot of that traditional advice we just walked through. Instead, I’m going to simplify the crap out of this.
Andie’s TikTok Marketing Plan:
Pick one thing that’s fun to do — For myself currently, that’s finding 15-second song snippets that give “romance vibes”
Do that consistently — I posted one last week and one this week. Success!
Don’t overcomplicate it — I’m not buying a ring light. I’m just not.
You’re welcome to steal this, because as you can see, it doesn’t really seem to work.
Anyhow, What Do You Do for Brand-Building?
Is it time to start working on my synchronized dance skills?
Resiiiiiiist the ring light! 😆 Loving your streamlined plan.