For years now I’ve been a big believer in the power of the “Blog” to sell books. But in truth, a blog is more of a platform building tool than a sales tool. An author’s platform is his/her credibility and audience. If you start a professional blog about your subject matter, you will begin to position yourself as an expert in your field. As you continue to blog, you will also create a following; a following you can track by the unique visitors to your blog.

A few months after I started my blog about publishing books, I had a Wall Street Journal reporter calling me about book publishing. That’s credibility. On my blog, I have a place for people to sign up for our community, Authors On The Net. With each sign-up, my audience is building. This, in my opinion, is the power of blogging. Credibility and Audience. Most authors will probably experience few direct book sales from their blog, but if done correctly, all authors can build their credibility and their audience for their book.

I am a strong believer that to publish and promote a book, an author should use a blog as the centerpiece for their book promotion. The key concept is platform. Selling books begins with a strong platform.