You have to believe, in the deepest part of your soul, that it is a good thing for readers to buy and read your book.
–Tim Grahl, author of ‘Book Launch Blueprint’
You will hear much about author platforms: this is simply a marketing term that means all of the ways you are going to connect with people and sell your book. Yours will be a growing mix of the following:
- your existing and new business clients
- increasing opportunities to speak at small and large events
- followers of your blog and/or newsletter subscribers
- Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Pinterest and Instagram followers, etc.
- online groups you manage or co-manage, e.g. LinkedIn, Meetup, Facebook
- social or business gatherings you attend
- exclusive VIP group events you run or co-host
- podcast and YouTube followers
- memberships of networks and professional organisations
- mutually beneficial relationships with others with leverage
- your increasing profile in mainstream media (radio, TV, newspapers, magazines, etc.)
Become active on the social media outlets which appeal and attract your target readership. If you are writing a cookbook with lovely visuals, Pinterest, Facebook and Instagram might work best for you. If you are writing a book for business, LinkedIn is ideal. On Facebook, find groups that revolve around your book message.
PRE-LAUNCH PROMOTIONS
Remember in Chapter 3 I asked you to work on your author self-image? Here are a few ideas that will help you put this into practice in your world. (If you catch yourself pulling back, listen to what your paradigms are telling you. That’s where you need to do some work.)
As you write your book, begin telling the world about it in various ways:
- Add your version of this statement – ‘Author of the forthcoming book, Write Winning Proposals’ – to your email signature, your LinkedIn profile, your website, your Facebook page, and anywhere else you can.
- Add that phrase plus your book’s sub-title to all printed introductions, your speaker bio, media kit, and more.
- Include your coming book title whenever you introduce yourself in a business context, whether requesting a first meeting, pitching for business or partnerships, or at business events.
- Add your book information when applying for awards, speaking segments at conferences, podcast guest spots, or guest blogging gigs.
- Plan a schedule of events that you will be holding and promote the event and yourself as host using the information about your coming book.
All of these simple methods can have a measurable impact on your client numbers, quality of clients, the fees you can charge, speaking invitations, media opportunities, sales conversions, and more.
BOOK LAUNCHES
Don’t feel you have to create one big, expensive live event for a book launch. It’s your book and your business, so promote and celebrate your book in ongoing ways (yes, plural) that honour your readers and reflect your business and style.
Firstly, celebrate over a meal with family and friends. It’s a big deal.
Then I suggest you plan several book launch events for different purposes and audiences. Here are just some opportunities to bring people together and gain some valuable visibility and traction for your business:
- Host a VIP dinner
Invite a select group of influential and well-connected people to a classy dinner, which you might pay for. Facilitate some valuable networking within the room, talk a little about the book and what you hope to achieve with it in business terms, and open the floor up to some informal brainstorming. You will be amazed by what transpires then and later.
- Run an information event
Invite large numbers to a breakfast, lunch or dinner where you deliver a valuable presentation based on the content in your book. Guests pay to attend, learn something of value to them, and receive your book as part of the package.
- Launch at a larger industry event
One client launched her book about alleviation of poverty at a UN Women event in Western Australia on International Women’s Day.
Another client launched her book supporting rural health practitioners at a national conference on rural and regional health.
Look out for forthcoming events where your ideal readership will be represented, and people of influence will be attending as speakers and presenters. Take the initiative and contact the organisers, and find a win-win situation where all will benefit from you launching your book there.
- Create an online launch
Find out more about virtual book launches by searching that term on Facebook, and joining or observing the many launch events that occur there. They may take place for an hour, a day, a week or a month. You set up the launch event and orchestrate the promotional activities, presentations and follow-up. Engage as many social media channels as you wish in the promotional process and follow-up; invite guests to join you and ask them to promote the event to their audience; prepare all materials you need in the promotional stage, such as digital book trailer, visuals, short video clips and more, all pointing people back to the launch event.
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This is the thirteenth of a series of articles taken from the book, ‘Smart Women Publish – Write the book that expands your world’ by Bev Ryan. Each article in this series will present some of the key ideas in its 15 chapters, from what a book can do for you, through planning, writing, publishing and leveraging your published book.
Bev is a certified non-fiction book coach (including memoir with a message) and book production manager, working with accomplished and interesting people as they write and self-publish their best non-fiction books.
Are you procrastinating or stuck in the planning or writing stages? Contact Bev to find out how she can help you with your book, and your publishing choices.