If we, as indie authors, want to be taken seriously, we must stop employing "support" marketing over "substance" marketing. I did a long-form post on social media on this exact topic, but I’m sharing in blog form below for those who prefer that format.
First off, I want to make this abundantly clear:
I am not saying we shouldn't support (verb) indie authors.
I'm not saying we shouldn't purchase or promote each others' books for the sake of supporting them.
I'm saying this: we should be careful with the language we employ in our own marketing, lest it undermine our books and indie publishing as a whole.
What do I mean by "substance" marketing?
Marketing that leans on a book's substance as the primary selling point (as opposed to focusing on "supporting" the author).
What do I mean by "support" marketing?
Marketing that employs the language of "support" as the primary selling point. Support marketing is me pitching my book on the basis of helping me the author, rather than out of interest in the substance of my book.
So why is “support” marketing a problem?
While appealing to potential buyers' sense of charity might drive sales in the short-term, it erodes my brand. This is because word "support" has a charity connotations. We "support" noble causes or people in need. When I center my book's marketing around support, I imply that my books require an appeal to charity in order to sell.
Example: Let's say I make a carousel post hyping 3 of my peers' books. Below, I've created mock titles for the post based on "support" and "substance" marketing, respectively.
"Support" marketing: "3 Indie Authors you should support"
"Substance" marketing: "3 Indie Books for Your TBR"
The difference here is subtle, but important. The "support" marketing frames it as three individuals you should help out of a sense of duty or pity. The "substance" marketing focuses on the books themselves, and implies they're recommended simply because they're good.
Caveat: I am not saying we should never appeal to the identity of the author in book marketing. Author identity is important, especially when it's a marginalized author writing their own lived marginalized experience.
Posting a list of queer books by queer authors for pride month, for example, makes a lot of sense. It's important to lift up queer voices, whether or not we're a member of that community. In such cases, it's all about the framing: is that recs list framed as a celebration of queerness, or as a plea to please, please support these queer authors? The former lifts us up. The latter drifts uncomfortably close to pity marketing.
Am I being pedantic? Yes. But also, language matters. How we talk about our own books, as well as others' books, determines whether we're taken seriously by readers.
So what does this mean for me, practically?
I'm scrubbing "support" and related terms from my marketing copy. I'm doing the same for when I promote others' books. And if I'm promoting books based on a marginalized identity (e.g., queerness), I'm taking care to frame it as a celebration thereof, as opposed to an appeal to charity. I don't think this is the only way to do indie book marketing, but it's what works for me.
In Summary
Supporting (verb) indie authors is great. DO support indie authors.
Using the "support" marketing as your primary selling point is a problem. This is true for anyone marketing indie books, whether it's the authors themselves, booksta accounts, or readers.
Last point (I swear! and yes, it's important)
If you agree with this POV, even in part, please don’t go after folks who use “support” in their marketing. They might have legit reasons for doing so that this essay doesn't account for, & I won't start a witch hunt over a matter of preference.
I've considered this topic through a marginalized lens (queerness), but as a cis yt author, it's very possible I'm missing nuances specific to other types of marginalization outside of my own experience. To that end, please, PLEASE do not take this as dogma. Take what works for you; leave what doesn't.