The current economic climate is tough on everyone, and businesses are feeling the pinch. As a romance author, you may be wondering how you can recession-proof your business. While there’s no one-size-fits-all answer, there are some general principles you can follow to help weather the storm.
Diversify Your Income Streams
One of the best ways to recession-proof your business is to diversify your income streams. This way, if one stream dries up, you’ve still got others to fall back on. There are a few different ways you can do this as a romance author.
First, consider self-publishing in addition to traditional publishing. With self-publishing, you keep a larger percentage of the royalties, so it can be a more lucrative option even in good economic times. And in a recession, people may be more likely to buy cheaper ebooks than expensive paperbacks.
Second, think about diversifying your genres. If you typically write contemporary romances, try branching out into historical or paranormal romance. Or if you write erotica, try adding some non-erotic romance novels to your repertoire. By writing in different genres, you’ll be able to reach new readers who may be looking for something different in these trying times.
Third, add downloadable digital content that your readers would happily sign up to your email list for. Your readers already love your books, imagine if they had a printable calendar or an editable journal (an online one) with your book cover as the theme! Offering online content where there’s no inventory to keep track of, is a simple way you can add extra content to your website while getting a few bucks into your pocket.
Fourth, think about adding tangible merchandise (also called swag products) to your author website. Your readers already love your books, imagine if they had a bookmark, or a poster, or a card deck with your book cover on the front! While adding a store to your site might be a huge learning curve, the return on investment might be worth the time and energy it would take to create one.
Go here to find content templates to make Website Extras that are sure to excite your readers.
Cut Costs Where You Can
In a recession, it’s important to cut costs where you can without sacrificing the quality of your work. If you’re used to hiring editors and proofreaders, see if you can find friends or fellow authors who are willing to trade services.
Or if you’re used to buying expensive software programs, see if there are any free alternatives that will meet your needs just as well. Every little bit helps when money is tight!
Keep Marketing Your Books
It may seem counterintuitive to keep marketing your books when people are cutting back on their spending. But the truth is that people still need escapism in difficult times, and your books can provide that escape for them.
Plus, with fewer authors promoting their work, now is actually a great time to get noticed! Just be sure not adjust your marketing budget too much; during a recession, it’s important to maintain a consistent presence so that people don’t forget about you when they’re ready to start spending again.
While there’s no surefire way to recession-proof your business, following these tips will help you weather the storm and come out ahead when things turn around. So don’t give up—keep writing those amazing romances!
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