Email Marketing—Your Most Powerful Book Selling Tool
If there’s one book marketing strategy I wish I had taken seriously from day one, it was email marketing.
I used to believe social media was the best way to reach my readers. I spent hours crafting LinkedIn posts, engaging with comments, and trying to grow my following. But then I realized something: followers are not the same as subscribers.
Social media comes and goes, algorithms change, and platforms can disappear overnight—but your email list is yours forever.
I didn’t always understand this. When I first started writing, I put all my energy into posting on social media. But as I grew my Substack newsletter and saw how many actual book buyers came from my email list, I realized something:
Social media is great for visibility—but email marketing is where real connections (and sales) happen.
When I shifted my focus to my newsletter, everything changed.
Instead of chasing algorithms and hoping my posts got seen, I was sending emails directly to people who wanted to hear from me. When I launched my last book, my email list was responsible for most of my sales.
Email is the one place where you can talk to your readers without distractions—no ads, no competing posts, just you and them. And the best part? It converts better than any other platform.
In this chapter, I’ll walk you through:
Why your email list is more important than social media
How to start and grow your list (even if you have zero subscribers)
What to send your readers (without annoying them)
How to use email marketing to sell more books
Let’s dive in.