Florence Osmund 

When it comes to marketing your book, one thing is fairly certain—people won’t buy it if they don’t know it exists.
A successful book launch will make people aware of your book so they will buy it and even help you promote it.

You can do many things to launch your new book so that it gets into the hands of as many readers as possible.
I’ve created the checklist that follows to guide you through the process, but I don’t recommend that you attempt
to do everything. Pick out the ones that make sense for your book and ones you’re comfortable doing.

Without promotion, something terrible happens…nothing!
                                            P. T. Barnum

What You Can Do Long Before Your Book Is Released

□  Create your elevator speech.
□  Develop an author website.
□  Start a blog.
□  Establish yourself in discussion groups on social media sites.
□  Start building an e-mail subscriber list comprised of people who are interested in your work.
□  Create your profile on Amazon’s Author Central page and Goodreads.
□  Create a list of book promotion and book listing sites.
□  Have business cards made.
□  Draft promotional handout materials (post cards, book marks, posters, etc).
□  Determine your target market and ways to reach them.
□  Check out your competitors – what are they doing to promote their books?

One Month Before Your Book Is Released

□  Compose a long, medium and short synopsis for your book.
□  Create or hire someone to create a press release.
□  Draft a media kit page for your website.
□  Put teasers out on your website, blog, e-mail list, and social media.
□  Participate in guest posts and online interviews.
□  Plan a launch party/event.
□  Set up a blog tour.
□  Start soliciting book reviews.
□  Investigate paid and free advertising on social media and other venues.
□  Consider creating a book trailer.

One Week Before the Book Is Released

□  Establish a list of people to whom you will gift a copy of your book. Draft a personal request asking them to help you promote
the book and write a review on Amazon and Goodreads.
□  Consider launching a social media contest with your book as a giveaway prize.
□  Promote your book by posting the first chapter on your website.
□  Repeat teasers on your website, blog, e-mail list, and social media.
□  Set up a Google alert for your name and book title.

Day of the Launch

□  Headline the book release on your website.
□  Go live with the media kit on your website.
□  Send an announcement to your e-mail subscriber list.
□  Post an announcement (better yet, pin it) on your social media pages, website, and blog.
□  Post an announcement on the promotional pages of your social media groups.
□  Update your author pages on social media and other sites.
□  Update your e-mail signature line.

Post Launch

□  Promotion can’t stop with the launch. Repeat any of the above that will keep your name and book title in front of readers.

All the Time

□  Have your elevator speech ready when people ask you what your book is about.
□  When people tell you they liked your book, ask them if they would write a short review on Amazon and Goodreads.
□  Whenever you post something about your book on social media, tell your fans, followers, and friends to feel free to re-post.

Here’s a link to an article that will help you target your audience for a book launch:

https://www.yourwriterplatform.com/how-to-target-an-audience/

More from Florence   on Marketing and Promotion