How to Develop a Marketing Plan for Your Self-Published Book

a book on a table in a library

How to create a marketing plan for a self-published book is an urgent question for authors who are about to publish their work on Amazon CreateSpace, Lulu, or a similar platform. Most platforms offer options to help get books into the databases of traditional book distributors. But you need a marketing program to help get book stores to buy copies and earn meaningful media coverage. None of these things happens by coincidence, which means a well-rounded self-published book marketing plan is essential.

Our Smith Publicity experts have years of experience in developing marketing plans for self-published books. Our experience shows that book marketing plans are the best way to map out the actions and strategies you need to take to accomplish your publicity and sales goals. A thoughtfully developed plan identifies your readership and competitors and includes budget and strategic techniques for reaching readers. Because authors have the responsibility for promoting their self-published books without the support of a publisher, a good plan is mandatory

5 Steps to Create a Publicity Plan for Your Self-Published Book

Know your audience – Before you can target readers, you need to identify what groups of people will be interested in purchasing your book. Chances are your book won’t appeal to everyone, so you need to determine your target audience. For instance, a book for aspiring accountants may appeal most to accounting students or recent graduates. Likewise, a teenage romance novel may appeal most to girls aged 13 to 16. It’s up to you do to your research to identify the age, gender, career, education level, and geographic location of your audience. It will help you create a book publicity strategy aimed at reaching your specific audience.

Identify the competition – With self-publishing, anyone can publish a book at any moment. With hundreds of books being published every day, it’s important that you understand your competition so you can set yourself apart via book promotion tactics.

Establish a marketing budget – Set a realistic marketing budget for the year and stick to it. Think about how much you can afford to spend, as well as what types of promotional and marketing services you will use. It’s best to overestimate the costs and underestimate revenue to ensure you won’t break the bank.

Target your audience – Once you understand your audience, you can target them. Based on your budget, outline what promotional tools you’re able to utilize for marketing your book. Examples include a press release, book giveaways, or a book trailer. Be sure to research different publicity options to determine which ones would be most effective for attracting your audience.

Create a definitive statement – If you’re marketing your book, people are of course often going to ask what your book is about. To provide the best answer to the question, prepare an interesting and concise statement – your “elevator speech — that summarizes your book and makes it stand out from others in your genre.

While it’s possible for some self-published authors to promote their books in a DIY manner, you may want to consider a professional book publicist. For further assistance in developing a marketing plan for your self-published books, contact the experts at Smith Publicity. Since our founding in 1997, we have grown into an internationally renowned book publicity agency highly regarded for helping self-published authors get the attention they deserve. Visit us online to learn more about our marketing services.