"You can find a hundred things to stress out about during a book launch. Or you can choose to experiment, learn and adapt."
Myth: A book launch is a horrendous slog. I simply don’t have time to pay attention to it, so I’ll put my book out there and hope for the best.
I'm on a quest to shatter some myths around book publishing and launching. What makes me qualified to talk about this? I hope at least one or two things from this list below suffice. TBH, I’m not the best at “tooting my own horn.” I’ve been told this repeatedly throughout my career. And it’s still not easy, so here goes. . . At the time of this writing, I've worked with over 30 authors to bring new books into the world, with 6 more on the way. My most successful author achieved a spot on the coveted New York Times bestseller list. His book has over 16,400 customer ratings and has been repeatedly chosen by Amazon as a "Daily Deal" book. IMPORTANT: There were numerous other client success stories beyond "making a list."
They included:
using a book to launch a new community for heart-centered entrepreneurs;
getting over 20 speaker engagements in one year;
ending up on Good Morning America and The Today Show;
giving away a bonus course "preview" that successfully converted 50% of new leads to course buyers.
Would you believe many authors I meet have limiting beliefs that are holding them back? Myself included. Maybe you? For the next several blog installments, I'll share the limiting beliefs that I often hear from clients. Whether it's their first book or their tenth (and across a whole range of income levels), these are the common things that hold people back when it comes time to publish and launch their books. . .
Myth #1 - A book launch is a horrendous slog. I simply don’t have time to pay attention to it, so I’ll put my book out there and hope for the best. There's a belief out there that a book launch will "make or break" your career. It won't. It's not life or death. It's not brain surgery. But, let's face it, your book is a piece of YOU out there in the world. It's an extension of your thinking, your brand, and maybe your heart. That's a big deal. Yes, launching a book CAN be a lot of work. When I work with authors, I recommend planning their book launch to start as early as 6 months before the publication date. To many, that sounds daunting. However, there are book launch “must-haves” such as
Making a launch plan
Nailing your book cover and title
Optimizing your book's Amazon page
Writing launch emails
Asking others for help (fellow authors, beta readers, ARC readers, etc.)
Sharing about your book
But so often, I see a perfectionist mindset come into play. I hear things like, "If I can't do ALL the book launch ideas, then my launch might crash and burn." And with this VERY common limiting belief, I see one of two things happening: 1) The author hires a bunch of people to execute the book launch and try to do ALL THE THINGS. Result: this is expensive and often doesn't yield the best results because the focus is so scattered. 2) The author throws her hands in the air and would rather play it small. "I'll send a few emails and hope for the best. I don't want to bother people." Result: Later, she wonders why her book launch didn’t make such a splash and why she invested so much time in writing the book. Worst case–she sours on the idea of writing future books, and we miss out on books that would have helped a lot of people. So, how do we avoid this pickle? Is it ALL the things or NONE of the things? The truth is, launching a book doesn't have to be a slog. It can actually be joyful (and fun). What if you focused on the one or two launch activities that YOU love? The ones that resonate with you and your message. Then, create a plan that incorporates those (joyful) activities into your launch timeline. And focus on one or two activities every day. For example, maybe you’re someone who gravitates toward public speaking and is passionate about spreading your message on TV. If you want to secure media interviews, that could become your main focus. You spend 4-6 weeks honing your pitching skills, building media relationships, and doing radio interviews. Or consider: A client lit up when dreaming up ideas for Instagram reels that fit the topic of her book, so her main focus became 1) growing her IG following with branded reels posted consistently, and 2) launching an IG giveaway close to her launch date. Instead of chasing the ever-expanding list of book marketing tools and social platforms, directing your focus on the one or two strategies that are bringing you the most JOY, is a far more successful path. In my upcoming blogs, I'll share more about my favorite launch strategies, why they work, and how you might start planning your own book launch. I'm so excited about this topic, and I hope you get a lot of value out of it!
Question For You
1) On a scale of 1 - 10, how happy were you with your last book launch? What went well? What could have been better?
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