Marketing Your Next Book

When it comes to developing a marketing plan for your book its best to start the process early. This is because whether you know it or not the decisions you make at the start of the writing process will affect the sales results of your book.
When you write a book, regardless of the format, you are taking a leap of faith that there is an audience out there with a high level of interest in your book’s subject. You can however greatly increase the chance that your book will be noticed by this audience with some planning.


The following tips will help keep your marketing message clear and consistent:


Book Title: You may like the sound of your title but does it give potential readers an idea of the books genre and subject? Imagine your book has a blank cover and just a title – could you guess the genre? Do you need a subtitle? Is the title intriguing and catchy enough?


Story Summary: Summarize your book in 1 to 2 sentences. This is the description you will use to promote via e-mail, your website and when pitching your book for sale. Getting your summary right is particularly important as it is ‘the hook’ that transports your audience from being mildly interested to opening your book and having a read. Revise this and refine it based on reader feedback.


Cover: Despite the saying almost everyone judges a book by its cover. Make sure yours is professional and captivating.


Author Bio: Keep this under a couple of paragraphs and highlight the most interesting points that might appeal to your audience. This does not need to be merely a list of writing achievements but should also include elements of your life experience.


Author Photo: This should be appropriate for your audience. For example a writer of comedic books might dress casually while an author of educational books will generally dress more formally


Mailing List: Get started on this as soon as possible by collecting e-mail addresses of potential readers. An e-newsletter is a great way to have a dialogue with your audience about current and future projects.

Good luck!