Author Series
In today’s solo episode, I share tips and strategies to plan the PR for your book release at the start of the process instead of after you finish writing, to get the impact you want with your book. I discuss what this means for growing your brand, your audience, and decisions to make that can make a big difference in the success of your book and getting your message out to your audience.
Some top tips …
During this series I’ve interviewed a variety of authors who used different approaches (self-publishing, a hybrid approach, working with one of the world’s biggest publishers) and they each wrote in completely different genres. The most important thing for you to realize is that regardless of your approach, your genre, or topic, at the end of the day, you are the author and the one responsible for promoting and selling your book.
To grow your brand as you write your book, spend time sharing content about the big picture of what you want to be known for and the core message(s) of your book. Do not put this off until right before your book comes out.
Start focusing on your book promotion at least nine months before your book comes out.
Once your book is released, the promotion window is approximately six months. You want to have as much prepared as possible before the start of that six-month window. That is the time to execute all of the hard work you’ve done up front.
Start by thinking about how you want to brand yourself and how this book fits into it. You may want to start a podcast, a blog, or a YouTube channel to begin building the SEO around the core topic you want to be know for, which should include a core theme of your book. I share several ways you can share content to grow your brand on your topic without giving away any of your book’s content.
Book tours are now done almost exclusively on podcasts. I share how they work and what you need to do to prepare.
This episode at glance …
>> (2:45-3:30) It is up to you as the author to build your brand, your audience, and your sales. Don’t rely on the content of your book, publisher, or anything else to grow your brand and sales for you. You are responsible for promoting your book.
>> (3:40-4:20) A few ways to start growing your brand as you write your book.
>> (4:30-5:50) A mindset shift about thinking of writing your book as your side hustle and your full-time business is promoting your book and your brand.
>> (7:20-5:50) Start by thinking about how you want to brand yourself and how this book fits into it.
>> (8:30-10:25) Ideas of the types of content you can share to build your brand without sharing excerpts of your book.
>>( 11:55-) How to plan a podcast book tour
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