5 Steps to Create an Indie Author Marketing Plan for Your Book

According to WordsRated, over 4 million books are published each year. When the competition in the writing world is this fierce, most of the content gets lost in the noise of tons of published books.

Hence, writing a good book is not enough to make your mark. As an indie author marketing their first work, you also need to come up with a winning plan so that your book cuts through the noise and reaches the eyes of the audience.

If you are a new indie writer, intimidated by the staggering competition in the field, you have come to the right place. In this article, we are going to provide you with a 5 step outline to formulate a winning book marketing plan. After all, every writer deserves to see their work flourish.

Keep reading!

Stepping Stones for a Winning Book Marketing Plan

• Researching
• Setting up goals
• Knowing your audience
• Selecting right channels
• Tracking your progress

Why Creating an Indie Author Marketing Plan is Important?

There are different types of indie book writers in the world. Some write as a hobby and don’t care about how well the book does in the market. However, most of the writers write for a living. They want people to recognise and acknowledge their work so that it reaches heights.

If you belong to the former, hear us out. Your hobby can earn you big bucks, but to achieve that, formulating a marketing plan is the key.

For an indie author marketing their work, a well-thought-out plan helps you reach your goals. Whether it is selling the book or establishing yourself as a popular indie author, it provides you with a roadmap to guide your promotional efforts and reach your target audience.

If you do not have a plan, there is a great chance that your marketing efforts will be scattered and you will end up wasting time and resources on channels that won’t work.

5 Steps to Create a Winning Book Marketing Plan

Establishing a marketing plan might seem handful, but it does not need to be too complicated. It is just a step-by-step plan that you come up with to stay focused. It tells you where you stand and what your future should look like.

Let’s move on towards the key aspects of forming a winning book marketing plan:

Step #1: Do Your Research:

Before beginning anything, doing your research gives you a headstart. So the best way to form a marketing strategy is to start by researching.

Know where you stand:

First of all, know where you and your book stand. What is the genre of your book? Are you an established indie writer in that genre? If yes, some of your work is already done, you need to strengthen your current position now. If not, look at your competitors to see what they’re doing differently.

Know your competitors:

Look at other books similar to yours and figure out their marketing plan. How are your competitors promoting their content? You can also take advantage of their indie book reviews to avoid the mistakes they made. Also, learn how you need to differentiate yourself from your competitors. Bring something different to the table.

Stay updated about market trends:

Next, research the ongoing marketing trends. In the modern world, trends change by the day. What are the current bestsellers in the market? If some of them belong to the same genre, that is probably the trending genre. However, if that is not your cup of tea, try sticking to the classics. Follow social media platforms and magazines to stay connected to the advancing world.

Set the budget limit:

The last factor to research beforehand is your budget expectations. If you do not estimate the marketing budget beforehand, you are most likely to spend on the wrong outlets, which might not yield great results. Know your budget limits beforehand, and if it is tight, stick to the options that guarantee success with less investment.

Step #2: Set Achievable Marketing Goals:

The next step for an indie author marketing their work is to set achievable goals. This helps you stay focused on your path. However, make sure these aims are not too unrealistic, as they may exhaust you. Knocking off some goals from your to-do list will keep you motivated and prompt.

Be precise:

Make sure that you are not vague while setting up the targets. For example, instead of writing, “sell more books”, write “sell 1000 copies in the first three months.” Being precise will help you keep track of your progress.

Set a long-term goal:

The correct way to reach somewhere is to decide your destination first, and then take steps to get there. Long-term goals are your destination. They help you sustain momentum and grow your platform to make a lasting impact in your genre.

Following are some examples of how long-term goals might look like;

• Maintain monthly book sales of 500 books per month.
• Establish a consistent blog in a certain niche.
• Publish two more books in the next year.
• Become a recognized name in a certain gene.

Set short-term goals too:

Once you have your destination in front of you, now it's time to make your way towards it. Short-term goals are the small steps that you take to reach your destination. They keep your hopes up by bringing you closer to your dream.

Following are some examples of what realistic short-term goals might look like;

• Sell 250 copies within the first month after launch.
• Collaborate with influencers in your genre to promote your book during launch.
• Start working on the next book after 2 months.
• Work on the feedback to understand what the audience wants better.

Step #3: Know your Target Audience:

Once you have set your goals, it is now time to move on towards the people who you want to influence. Ideally as an indie author, you should know your target audience before even writing the book. It helps you cater to their likes and refrain from their dislikes.

Identify your audience:

Start with the key demographics. What age, gender, location, or profession your book targets? What type of content would they prefer? For example, if your book is a fantasy novel, your primary audience would be 13 to 18-year-olds. If it is a professional guide about digital marketing, it would most probably interest a mature audience of about 18 to 35 years.

Analyze them:

Once you know the demographics, move on towards their interests and preferences. What subgenre do they enjoy the most, or what platforms do they access to get new reads? For a younger audience, build a social media platform, while for a mature one, connect through newsletters or journals.

Step #4: Choose the Right Marketing Channels:

Now it’s time to move on towards the most active step of our book marketing plan, choosing the right channels. There are a lot of options as to how and where you should market your book. Depending upon your circumstances, include as many elements as you can in your plan.

Create an official website:

Creating an official indie author website, although not imperative, builds a sense of authenticity with your name. If you want to brand yourself as an author in that genre, building an official website is a great first step.

Plan a launch strategy:

If you take the prelaunch period seriously, you can build enough anticipation for your book in readers' minds even before the launch. Get reviews by handing out Advance Reader Copies (ARCs). Collaborate with “bookstagrammers” who have a big following of readers of your genre. Offer pre-order bonuses to readers who sign up. Release teasers and cover reveals to build anticipation.

Utilize the power of social media:

Promote your book on social media platforms like Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and TikTok. It is advisable to focus on one or two platforms mostly which your target audience is most likely to access.

You can also connect with local influencers to read and review your book on social media before launch to build anticipation.

Sell in events:

Organize promotion events and talk about your book there. Share its message and how it can make a difference in people’s lives. If they connect with your book, it will help the sales.

Effectively advertise:

The last component is advertisements. This is what we set up our budget for. Run ads on Facebook and Amazon to boost the visibility of your book. Make sure you invest enough in advertising that creates enough buzz to make people notice your work.

Step #5: Track, Analyze, and Adjust:

Lastly, tracking your progress while implementing the plan is extremely important. If you don’t track your path, how would you know what worked and where you failed?
Review analytics on platforms like Instagram, Facebook and Twitter. Monitor post engagement and reach. Analyze which platform is working for you better and create more content for it.

Keep a check on what is upping the sales and do more of it. Note what is not benefiting you much and avoid it. Use tools like google analytics to track website traffic, and specific actions. A/B testing ads help you experiment and keep the content updated. Keep modifying your marketing plan till you achieve your long-term goals. And then, set the bar higher to become a popular indie author.

Bonus Step: Utilize Book Brackr:

Although these five steps are a lifesaver for someone who’s new to book marketing, we saved the dessert for later!

If your goal is to market your book to the right audience while generating some earning, utilize Book Brackr. This all-in-one self-publication platform allows you to upload your ebooks so the readers can purchase subscriptions and engage with your content.

On top of it, Book Brackr also offers easy management of the reader subscriptions and allows you to explore suitable marketing strategies for your book, such as email marketing, group promotions, and such.

All-in-all, having a sorted marketing plan is a game changer. It makes all the difference when it comes to the visibility and sales of a book. Understand the importance of a winning plan and start implementing it soon after writing your book. As an indie author marketing their first work, this plan is your key to success.

Do the needed research, set realistic long-term and short-term goals and analyze your intended audience. Include all the necessary elements in your plan and keep tracking and adjusting your progress. Stay focused and keep working according to the plan.

Even if you fail, learn from your mistakes and keep moving forward till you achieve the success you intend to. And don’t forget to try out Book Brackr. It will help you build an email list, maintain contact with your clients on a personal level and capitalize your work through subscription tiers. So visit Book Brackr now and you’ll thank us later!