My first book arrived on my doorstep and I felt like a stork dropped off a baby! It has a glossy finish, the red cover makes it stand out and when you fan the pages, you can almost taste that “new book” smell!
After my wife and I jumped up and down for a good three minutes, we shared our joy on Facebook and you have been so amazing to share your support. Thank you!
I want to write this article to help published authors, or those looking to publish, know what to do once they get their book in hand so they can sell more copies, help more people and continue to grow as an author.
Here are 6 things to do after you publish your first book
1) Celebrate!
Seriously, this is the first thing you should do. Take time to reflect on what it took to get that book in your hand. Go get a drink. Go get fro-yo. Shoot, go do both! You spent so many months or even years of your life writing, editing, researching for this book, it is now time to go and celebrate with those you love!
2) Send copies to influencers
Before your book comes out, make a list of all the people you know who will be able to help market your book to their lists. Send them a free copy once you receive your book (or ask your publisher to send the copies with a note on their letterhead). Ask them to share it with their fans, friends and/or family to help get word of mouth promotion and social credibility.
3) Get reviews on amazon.com
On a continual basis, have those you know who have enjoyed your book and have reached out to you if they would consider writing a review on amazon.com about the book. The more reviews you have, the more social proof you build for those who don’t know you as an author but are interested in purchasing your book. It just might be the tipping point for them to press buy now!
4) Write handwritten thank you letters
Books are not written alone. In fact publishing one book can take a team of up to fifty people. You can have editors, line-editors, copy-editors, researchers, assistants, agents, publicists, co-authors, marketers, designers and whole lot more people behind the scenes helping to make the book a success. Remember you wouldn’t have a book if it was not for them! Take time to write handwritten letters to everyone who has been part of the team and share with them how thankful you are they were part of the project. Remember to always be building your relationships!
5) Promote it
Before your book launches, you should put together a promotion strategy. How many interviews do you need? How often will you post on social media and what will the content consist of? Are you going to have a giveaway? Multiple giveaways? Can you get on TV, the radio, in your local newspaper? Are you reaching out to companies, organizations and associations who could benefit from your book? Create a strategy that has a pre-launch, first week and post-launch promotion plan.
6) Package a keynote, workshop, community based off of your book
Your book should not stand alone. Create a keynote, workshop or even a community around your book that you can sell, market and help even more people. Don’t let your book be the last interaction they have with you. How can you write a speech that enhances your book but they still want to read it? How can you teach a workshop that teaches what you say in your book but they want to buy a hard copy for their friend, family member or co-worker? How can you build an online community around your book that brings like-minded people together to continue to work on what you are passionate about? Package these items together and promote them on your website, LinkedIn, word of mouth and start serving even more people with your words!
Follow these 6 things to do after you publish your first book and watch your sales go up, your reach broaden and the offers to keynote at conferences come in. Congratulations on your first published book- you are one of 0.05% of American’s who write a book each year! As always…
Dream BIG,
Ryan
