In a previous post I suggested carrying a book wherever you go in case you have the opportunity to sell it and/or give it away. I realize, however, that it’s not always practical to lug around a book. But it is practical to lug around a wallet, which is why I also recommend getting business cards made with information about you and your book(s).

It’s easy to carry a business card around!

If you have just one book out, here’s what I recommend including on the card:

• Cover image of your book
• Brief tagline/description (this is good because it forces you to be creative and concise)
• Your name, followed by “author”
• Your website (if you have one–if you don’t have one, get one made soon!)
• Your email address
• Your twitter handle if you have one

If you have more than one book out, here’s what I recommend including:

• Your name, followed by “author” (could also include something like “author of books about XX” or “author of books that YY,” etc.)
• Your website (if you have one–if you don’t have one, get one made soon!)
• Logo of your website (see above if you don’t have a website)
• If you don’t have a website, include images of your book covers as long as they’re not too small
• Your email address
• Your Twitter handle if you have one

Business cards are easy to get made and not very expensive. Some resources include Vistaprint, Got Print, and Zazzle. These sites also include options for other marketing materials, such as postcards, bookmarks, etc.

As with any marketing effort, you’ll have no idea which of the cards you give out are going to end up in the recycling bin and which might lead to a sale. But at least you’ll be doing what you can to get the word out about your writing–and that’s what matters!

-Maria

This blog post originally appeared on CreateSpace.com. Reprinted with permission. © 2016 CreateSpace, a DBA of On-Demand Publishing, LLC. All rights reserved.