You have a product, you are not the product.

It’s pretty simple when you look at it from that perspective. To put it yet another way, you are the small business, your book is your product.

Why does this matter?

Identity is the foundation of your marketing efforts! If you identify your business as the title of your first book, which many authors do, then what happens when you write your second, third, fourth…? Chaos! Well, confusion at the very least. And confusion could cost you sales. When you think about it, it’s kind of funny. When you go to a party, do you introduce yourself as your book title or your name? Your name of course! Social media is a virtual reality where people want to meet the person behind their favorite book. You.

How do you identify?

As you. By branding around your name, you’ll be able to better market both your present and future work. Look at the work of an author who is where you want to be one day, to see what he/she has done. Google his/her name and check the results. Most best-selling authors today have a healthy social media profile, with the occasional (introvert) exception. These search engine results make up the author’s platform. They’ll likely include their website (authorname.com) and social media channels – all of which were established in their name, not the title of their books.

Is it too late to change?

It’s never too late to change! If you’ve already branded under the title of your first book you can certainly change your branding to your name. In fact, you’ve probably already realized this is an issue. Your web hosting company can move your site to your new domain. You can petition Facebook to change the name of your business profile OR you can set up a new, public figure page in your name and encourage followers to… follow. Instagram and Twitter are unique in that you have a name and a handle. Change your name, leave your handle. But if your handle is available, grab it!

It might feel strange at first.

But it shouldn’t. You wrote a book. You want people to read your book. Do everything you can to help them find your book(s).

As always, if you have questions, please feel free to leave them in the comment box below. If you’re feeling stuck and need a little help, click here to schedule a time to get “unstuck” in a free 30-minute consultation with me. I’ll do my best to help you get unstuck and provide as much value as I can to help you in your author marketing journey.