You’re an author, not a marketer. Can you really build a killer book marketing plan on your own? Can you carry out said plan to sell more of your books and generate buzz while also still enjoying your work as a writer? 

Hell yes, you can. We know that there’s a ton of conflicting, confusing book marketing advice out there for authors. That’s why we’ve compiled our best tips and advice to share them with you below. Let’s dig in.

What is a book marketing plan, anyway?

First things first: What is a book marketing plan and do you really need one for your book?

A book marketing plan is a strategy you’ll use to promote your book and drive sales. To start outlining your book marketing plan, you’ll:

• Determine your goals, audience, budget, and other important factors
• Choose your marketing tactics and platforms (a comprehensive list is below!) 
• Put your plan into action

Broken down into these three parts, we hope that makes the thought of marketing your book a little less overwhelming. 

What should a book marketing plan include?

While the platforms and type of marketing content you create is up to you, your audience, and your capacity, a strong book marketing plan might include:

• Email marketing
• Social media marketing (part 1 & 2)
• Virtual and in-person events
• Paid advertising (Facebook ads, digital screens, etc.) 
• Podcasting (hosting and guesting!) 
• YouTube and video creation
• Blogging
• Influencer marketing
• Local TV and newspaper spotlights
• Giveaways, special sales periods, or pre-sales discounts
• Search engine optimization for your author site
• Author branding  

Don’t worry; you don’t have to leverage all of these marketing tools. But we do think they’re all valuable in their own way! 

Create goals for your book marketing plan

Before you start planning TikToks, booking interviews, and tweaking your author page, we suggest you look at the big picture first. What’s your book marketing strategy for? What do you want to achieve? And how will you achieve those goals? 

It sounds obvious, right? “I wanna sell more of my books, duh.” However, there’s a surprising amount of nuance to book marketing goals. It’s not always about sales!

Here are some examples of more detailed goals for your marketing strategy:

• I’m a first-time author so I want to build a strong fanbase.
• I want to get rave reviews that influence my target audience and generate sales.
• I want to sell X books in X period of time so I can make X amount of money.
• I want to win awards/land on the bestseller list/get chosen for book clubs.
• I was told by a publisher than I need X,000 followers before they’d consider my manuscript. 

See the difference between “sell more books” and these goals? Your big-picture view of your book marketing plan will help you decide what actions to take later.

Develop your book marketing strategy

You’ve got your goals outlined and now have an idea of what a strong marketing strategy includes. Now, it’s time to put all of that into action — and build your marketing plan.

Research your target audience

The good news is, you already know some things about your target audience. You had them in mind as you plotted, wrote, and edited your book. You just have to define said target audience a little further for your book marketing plan.

Ask yourself: 

• Who is most interested in my book? 
• What’s my audience persona? Their age, location, education, gender, hobbies, interests, online hang-out spots, etc.
• What does my target audience like to read? What other authors/books/series do they enjoy?
• Why would they read your book? Why would they buy it?

Get nitty-gritty with your audience details here. “Young women who buy books” isn’t enough to make an impact on your marketing plan. Get real specific. 

For example: “My target audience is women ages 21 to 35 in the U.S. who love Twilight and ACOTAR, fun and spicy books, and talking books and sharing memes on BookTok and Bookstagram.”

The devil’s in the details here, folks.

Look at the numbers

We’re a team of writers and readers at heart, so we know the numbers side of business isn’t as fun or sexy. But it’s still super important for your book marketing plan. 

You’ll want to know benchmarks to aim for, like:

• Average email open rate
• Average ad conversion
• Amazon book listing conversion rates
• Average “touchpoints” before purchase (how many times a reader has to see your book before they buy)
• And so on

These benchmarks will help you set goals and help you budget for things like: 

• Email tools
• Ads
• PR help
• Time and resources spent on marketing
• Media outreach
• Creating promo materials 
• Outsourced content and copywriting
• Book cover art

Knowing your budget will help you decide on your overall sales goals, as well as prevent any poorly planned investments. 

Write down what makes you tick

Most authors overlook the most important part of their marketing strategy: THEM! You gotta know what sets you apart from other authors and why people should buy your book, especially in a highly competitive book space. 

So, think about your answers to these questions:

• What makes you unique as an author? What’s your USP (unique selling proposition)?
• How would you describe yourself in a few sentences?
• How would you describe your book in a few sentences?
• How do you stand out from the competitors in your industry/genre?
• What messages do you want to communicate?

In a sea of self-published romance or fantasy books, a compelling author bio or book marketing campaign can make a huge difference in attracting a new reader!

Map out your timeline

Mapping out a timeline for your book marketing plan will help you understand what actions to take and when, plus how they’ll bring you closer to your overall goals. You can put this all into a spreadsheet, break it down in a project management tool, or create events in a calendar — it’s up to you.

Phase One: Research (While You Write)	Phase Two: Planning(Writing and Editing)	Phase Three: Action(Pre-Launch and Release)
Outline your goals	Create content for your blog, podcast, newsletter, etc.	Distribute a press release
Research your target audience	Create promo material for social	Show up on BookTok and Bookstagram
Set your budget	Attend author events and/or interviews	Get book reviews
Define your USP	Network with other authors	Set up pre-orders
Develop the rest of your marketing plan	Get pre-publication endorsements	Launch your book!!!
Create your author website	Write your book metadata	Share content your audience resonates with
Hone your author brand	Create a strong book page and Amazon Author page	Track your sales and goals
Build your email list	Organize a launch party	Engage with your target audience online

The timeline for your book launch is looking pretty good! Once your book releases, check in with your goals. How’d you do? What might you do differently for your next book? What can you improve with your current marketing plan to reach your goals (or new goals)? 

Shortcut your book marketing plan

Creating a book marketing plan sounds overwhelming. For one, where do you even start? How can you actually plan it? Does everything go on your calendar? In a notepad?? Ugh.

We’re not here to overwhelm you with steps. We’re here to give you the tools you need to start planning and executing your book marketing TODAY. That’s why we’re sharing a shortcut: Our Book Launch Marketing Plan. Whether you’ve got a new book coming out or you want to find a way to hype up a current release, this book marketing calendar has you covered.

We show you exactly what to share, where to share it, and when with our FREE Book Launch Marketing Calendar. Grab it here and have readers itching for your release day.

You don’t have to market your book on your own! With Uncanny Unedited at your side, we’ll make promoting, content creating, and engaging with your fans fun — not extra work added to your plate. We’ll handle all the tough stuff and stick with you ‘til the (happy) end. 

Ready to learn more about the book marketing services we offer? Let’s chat. Schedule a call with us today!