Writers often assume that writing a book from start to finish is the most challenging part of getting it published. However, the reality is that having a completed manuscript in hand only puts you at the beginning of the long journey it takes to get a book published successfully. If you have finished writing your book and are just waiting to get it published then now would be a perfect time for you to do some prep work and build a solid platform that will help make your book a success when it launches. So how do you go about it? Read on :
Here are 5 things you need to do before getting your book published
Market Research
A well-written book is only half the battle won. How you position your book in the market goes a long way in helping you get the attention of your readers which in turn determines the success of your book. The best way for you to understand how to position your book is to do some research on books that are already successful in the category or theme you have written in and analyse what made them successful in the first place.
You can start by checking out the top-ranked books and best-sellers in your category on Amazon and try to identify common strategies that have worked for them.
Here is a list of things you should look out for while analysing these books:
- The Book Cover
Try to see if there are common themes when it comes to book covers in your genre of writing. For eg., Crime Thrillers make use of bright colours like red that symbolize danger while self-help books are more minimalist in nature with more emphasis on the title and sub-title.
- Title & Subtitle
Fiction books generally don’t require a subtitle but non-fiction and business books generally have a detailed long sub-title that lets readers know what exactly the reader gains from the book. Try to see what strategies are being followed by successful books in your category.
- The Pricing Strategy
The pricing of a book can make or break a book. It needs to be aligned correctly to your target audience and their purchasing power. Pay close attention to not only the selling price of the book but also discounts and offers being used to aid book sales.
- Book Description
A description or pitch is one of the most critical aspects of a book that convinces readers to pick it up. You have to absolutely nail this. Check out the unique ways in which other successful authors are pitching their book is your category before conjuring up your own pitch.
Author Support Groups
Author support groups can be a great way for you to build your networks by connecting with other authors. These support groups consisting of other first-time writers, established authors, publishers, bloggers etc. gives you the perfect platform to learn, share experiences, trade advice, swap stories and find new opportunities together. Make a list of support groups that are relevant for the type of book you have written and start networking right away.
Click here to check out 5 Author Support Groups you can join right away: 5 Groups Every Writer Needs To Be Part Of
Build Your Street Team
Getting the word out about how your most passionate readers feel about your book can work wonders when it launches and that is what you need a street team for. A street team is a group of people who can come together and promote you and your book by spreading the word about it to their circle of friends and followers thereby increasing the reach of your book. An ideal street team should consist of at least 10-15 people who can strategize and implement different aspects of your book promotion strategy when your book hits the stores. You can put together a street team by recruiting people from your friends, family circles who have specific skill sets you are looking for and a good social base. Additionally, you can also tap into the networks you build using author support groups or even look at working with other micro-influencers and bloggers to grow the reach for your book.
Set Up Social Profiles
Being a published author is a huge deal. Which is why you need to let people know that you are in the process of publishing a book. Social media is a great platform for you to amplify your message to all your friends and followers at one go. Here is a simple way to boost the visibility for your book even before it gets published:
Set up a dedicated page for your book on social media and populate it with some posts about the book. Now go ahead and invite all your friends and contacts to like and follow the page. Let them know that you are getting a book published and you will be posting regular updates about it on the page. You can then request your friends to help you promote it when the book launches by purchasing it from the store or sharing about it with all their friends. You will be surprised as to how well this works.
Create a Marketing Plan
Some of the most well-written books have also failed in the market because of a lack of strategy when it comes to promoting it. Which is why it is critical that you have a well thought out marketing strategy in hand when your book is finally in the stores
Here is a simple way you can get started with the marketing plan for your book:
The first thing you need to do is to identify who your target audience is. It is critical that you remember to focus on the people who are most likely to pick up your book and not just everyone who could possibly pick it up. Try to build the perfect reader persona by defining factors such as age group, interests, purchasing power, time for reading etc.
Once you have your target audience defined, you need to figure out which platforms you can use to reach out to these readers. Which social platforms do they frequent most? Are they part of book clubs or poetry clubs, do they like buying from retail stores or online stores? Try to answer these questions about your audience.
Once you know where to reach them, you need to figure out what is the best way to reach them. What type of content do they most engage with? Are they likely to pick up books based on recommendations? Are there any influencers they follow? Try to find answers to these questions before you draw out your content strategy to reach them.
If you have finished writing a book, it is critical that you understand that now is not the time to take the foot off the gas. Doing the prep work and getting these things right can go a long way in helping you out with building visibility for your book when it finally launches in the market. So ensure you make optimal use of this time and set up your book for success.