Platform: What it is and How to Create Yours

What comes to mind when you think of “platform”? If you’re a book author, or aspire to be, you probably already know that platform refers to your ability to sell a book—in other words, what your name and connections bring to a book project.

Platform is as essential to an author’s success as writing ability and a stellar idea. “First an author needs a platform to convince the publisher that he or she can muster up advance interest in the topic that will result in eager buyers for the book when it is released,” says Christina Katz, author of Get Known Before the Book Deal: Use Your Personal Strengths to Grow an Author Platform (Writer’s Digest Books, 2008). “In today's tight book publishing market, if you don't have that, it's going to be very difficult to convince a publisher to invest in you and your book concept.” Platform is just as important after your book is published, adds Katz; it helps you garner attention, interest, buzz, and sales.” 

However, platform isn’t just for book authors any longer. Freelancers of all stripes are finding that developing platforms helps set them apart from other writers, making it easier to market themselves. “In the ‘gig economy,’ every independent contractor needs a shorthand way to communicate the value he or she offers,” says Katz. “A freelancer's platform would emphasize value to the kind of client the writer is aiming to serve.”

A platform is more than a specialty. Platform encompasses not just what you write about, but who your readers are--and how many of them know who you are, and may do something (like buy your book, or read a blog post or article because you wrote it) as a result.

If you’re a freelancer without a platform, you can start building one by thinking about what your clients (both current and future) need, and what you can offer them. Freelancer Meagan Francis, creator of the blog www.thehappiestmom.com, says platform is important because she covers a specific topic that she has personal knowledge of and strong opinions about. “I'm a mom--I write about motherhood,” says Meagan Francis, author of The Happiest Mom: 10 Secrets to Enjoying Motherhood (Weldon Owen, 2011). “I know a lot of writers feel boxed in and limited by the idea of narrowing down to a specific focus. But for me—at least right now—it gives me much-needed structure and focus to my work.”

Francis has been writing about parenthood for eight years and says developing a platform has made her more focused. “I was always interested in mind/body, wellness, psychology, relationships and self-help, from a mother's perspective, but could never figure out quite how to make that work for me when I was trying to make a living selling one magazine article at a time,” says Francis. “At some point I realized that I actually wanted to be like the Martha Beck [a well-known life coach] for moms (speaking of platform!) and that helped it gel for me. For now, it works…in my case I am lucky enough that my platform actually encompasses almost all the other things I wanted to write about, anyway.”

Once you’ve identified your unique value to clients, you can start building your platform, continuing to grow the one you already have, or creating a new one. John Borchardt, a Houston freelancer who writes for magazines and corporate clients, developed a new platform to help him diversify his freelance work.

“Platforms are important to me in both writing for magazines and working as a technical writer for corporate clients. My original platform was writing magazine job-hunting articles customized to the needs of industrial scientists and engineers. I continue to write in this area. This builds on my work experience as an industrial scientist and engineer,” says Borchardt. “I developed a second platform based on this same industrial background: writing articles on various aspects of science and engineering: energy, recycling, the environment, global warming, etc. More recently I have drawn on my industrial background as a technology manager to write articles on business management.”

When you have chosen your platform, make sure you can describe what it is and what it means for clients. For example, my current platform is that I’m an experienced collaborator who helps health, fitness, and nutrition experts writebooks. That’s a short, specific statement that describes my value to potential clients.

Second, make sure that you’re spreading the word about what you do. Your social media presence on sites like Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter should remind people of your platform, as should your email signature. The same goes for when you meet someone online or in person. Ideally, everything you do should support and continue to build your platform, whatever it is. 

If you’re resisting the idea of limiting yourself to a specific identity, remember that your platform can always grow and adapt as your writing career does. A platform isn’t static; it can grow and change as your career does. The key is that it reflects your unique identity as a writer, and helps you reach clients who will want to hire you.

**This post was drawn from Secret #11: Create a platform, from Writer for Hire: 101 Secrets to Freelance Success. 

The 3 Questions Every (Successful) Book Author Must Answer

Earlier this week, I spoke at the Vernon Area Public Library about getting published--and paid--for your work. I talked about selling articles to print and online markets and the different options available to book authors today, including POD, e-books, and of course traditional publishers. I explained how traditional publishers work, the pros and cons of opting for POD, what platform is, and what an agent can (and can't) do for you as an author.

But possibly the most important point I shared with would-be authors was this. If you want to publish a book, you must be able to answer three critical questions:

1. Who is the audience for your book? (If you say "everyone," you've got a lot of work ahead of you.)


2. Why will readers buy your book? (Even if you plan to give away an ebook for free, you still have to attract readers. And if you expect people to pay for a book--which as an author, I think it quite reasonable--you've got to be able to give them reasons to shell out money for it.)


3. How will you, as the author, reach them? (This is the most challenging part of writing books--actually selling them. Traditional publishers expect you to have a comprehensive marketing and promotion plan, regardless of whether you're writing fiction or nonfiction. And if you're going it on your own, through POD, an e-book, or becoming a self-publisher, then all of the marketing falls to you.)

I know, you're thinking you just want to write your book and not worry about selling it. Well, dream on. Last year there were more than 3,330,000 books published (by traditional publishers, POD companies, and as ebooks) so you're competing against literally millions of other titles. You can't just publish your book, cross your fingers, and hope it sells. You've got to be willing to market it for months--more likely, years.

Look at it this way--I'll assume you don't just want to publish a book--you want people to buy it, or at least read it, as well. So consider these three critical questions as you write your book, and you'll be better positioned to sell it when it is published.

**Last call for survey responses...we're at 168 right now. If writing (and writing-related work) is your only source of income, I consider you a full-time freelancer. So please take the 2012 Freelance Income Survey...results coming soon! :) Thanks very much.  

Five Good Reasons--to Sell Reprints

According to my survey of fulltime freelancers earlier this year, only 2 percent of respondents are selling reprints to their work. I find that surprising and hope to convert some of the other 98 percent.

Sure, many writers say that selling reprints isn't worth the time or effort. I say, think again--and consider these five excellent reasons to jump on the reprint train:

1. Great per-hour rate. Let me give you an example--I have a local magazine that buys a reprint from me four times a year. She emails me, asking if I have something relevant, I send her the story, and she sends me a check. Total time invested? Maybe 15 minutes. Payoff? $75. That's a $300/hour rate...not bad at all.
2. Bigger platform. I've sold reprints to markets throughout the country, which helps build my platform both as a writer as a fitness/health expert. (In addition to freelancing, I'm an ACE-certified personal trainer and public speaker on topics including healthy habits and stress management, so I want my name "out there" as much as possible. And the bigger my platform, the better chance I have of selling my next book to a publisher, too.)
3. More book sales. When I sell a reprint about a health topic, I include a bionote ("Kelly James-Enger is the author of books including Small Changes, Big Results: A 12-Week Action Plan to a Better Life, with Ellie Krieger, R.D.). If it's a piece on infertility or parenting, I'll mention my book, The Belated Baby, which is for parents who experienced infertility. Not every reprint market will provide a bionote, but when they do, I get some free publicity.
4. More assignments. I just finished two original articles for a reprint market after the editor asked me if I was willing to write new pieces for her. The per-word rate wasn't as high as I'm paid by national magazines, but each story only took a few interviews and several hours to write, which made it worthwhile. And editors coming to me with work means I spend less time marketing.
5. Multiple sales--and free money. Sure, reprint markets may not pay that much--I have steady markets that pay only $35 or $50 for one-time reprint rights per story. Paltry, right? But almost all of those "low-paying" markets buy more than one story from me, often at once. One regional women's magazine requested about twenty stories from me earlier this year. I sent them in several batches so she could select the ones she wanted to use. So far, she's purchased eight of them, for a total of $520--and I haven't had to do any more work. I just find a check in the mail for $60 or $70 every month or so. That kind of "free" money is my favorite kind to get.

Of course to sell reprints, you need to retain reprint rights to your work. Next post, we'll talk about how to negotiate more writer-friendly contracts.