The Difference Between Book Release and Book Launch
Many authors dream of a book launch party complete with champagne and crowds of eager readers. However, a successful book launch is about more than just throwing a party for your friends and family.
It’s about reaching the right readers and giving your book the boost it needs to rank high on Amazon. The following tips can help you make it happen.
1. Book Cover Design
A book cover is more than just an image. It is the cornerstone of your author brand, and a critical component of a successful book release. When hiring a designer, make sure they offer multiple design options for you to choose from. This is not something that can be done in a phone call – you need to send them the images you like, plus the elements you want to include (everything from the title font, to the background color).
When designing your cover, it’s important to remember that it is not an artistic endeavor; it is a commercial one. It has to be designed specifically to attract readers and convince them to click on the book. It also must adhere to the cover conventions of your genre – stray from them at your own peril.
Your designer will also likely create a few 3D mockups for you to use for digital ads, social media covers, and your author website. This will give you a sense of how your final book cover will look on a physical book, which is important because it makes it feel more real and professional. It’s also a great way to get honest feedback from your target audience and make sure the book cover you choose is right for them. Use an online tool like PickFu to split test your cover options and see which one your audience resonates with the most.
2. Publicity
Hitting Publish on the book you’ve spent months (or years!) writing is a moment you want to meet with a bang, not a whimper. The key to that is making your book as discoverable as possible.
Publicity is a non-paid form of mass communication which includes free placement of news about company’s products, activities or services in media like radio, newspaper, TV, stage, etc. It helps to increase the credit or fame of the company and builds the trust of its customers.
Generally publicity involves the name of company, its goods and services, history, outstanding achievements, social contribution, etc. It also highlights its employees’ achievements, pollution control measures, any missionary work of the company, or any other such information that appeals to common people.
Start reaching out to reviewers, bloggers and other influencers well ahead of the release date. This will give you a jumpstart on getting positive reviews that can encourage early sales. Whether you’re self-published or traditionally published, this is an important step to take.
3. Marketing
Hitting ‘publish’ on a book you’ve spent months (or years!) writing is a moment you want to meet with a bang, not a whimper. But publishing your book is just the beginning—if you want it to be a success, it’s your responsibility to promote the heck out of it!
The period of time before your official book launch is known as pre-release marketing. Some authors go all out with big events, giveaways, pre-order incentives, livestreams and podcast roadshows. Others choose a more modest approach, depending on their definition of success and available budget.
Prior to your release date, it’s important to build an audience and grow your email list, particularly by focusing on social media outreach. It’s also a good time to reach out to bloggers who write about books, as they can reach audiences that your own social media may not.
On your actual release day, it’s a good idea to set aside a few hours to make sure that all of the details of your book are perfect—particularly the metadata and Look Inside. It’s also a great opportunity to encourage your friends and family to leave reviews, as those will help boost the book’s ranking in its first week of availability. If you have a dedicated book launch email newsletter, be sure to send it on release day.
4. Sales
The book release process is an exciting time for authors, whether they are working with a traditional publisher or publishing on their own. To make the most of this opportunity, authors need to start generating buzz about their book well before launch day. This can be done by reaching out to bloggers in the author’s genre and offering to write a guest post or interview about the book.
Once the book is released, it’s important for authors to continue marketing the book, especially in the first few months of its availability. This is the best window of time to pitch national broadcast media, newspapers around the country, and indie bookstores and libraries. It’s also a great time to update the website and begin sending out chapter teasers or excerpts.
Many people get hung up on how many books are sold during the book’s launch week, but it’s more important to focus on the long-term marketing efforts that can sustain an author for their entire career. It’s far better to sell millions of books over the course of your lifetime than it is to rely on a short, frantic launch period.
