Writing a book is hard enough, but when you’re planning how to launch a book and you have so much going on (like a life!), it’s not always easy. Your job, family commitments and whatever else in your daily life don’t have to prevent you from book marketing– or from being a successful author.

Be Honest with Yourself

How much can you honestly get done and how much do you want to take on? Because the sooner you have this conversation, the sooner you’ll be able to outsource or get rid of things you simply don’t have time for. Remember that lots of authors don’t write full time, so you’re not alone in this struggle.

Also, be careful what you believe online. There are a lot of claims from authors that they “sold a million books with this one strategy!” It’s been my experience that it’s never one thing that sells books. It’s always a collection of many things that gets you in front of more readers.

Yes, some authors are absolute rock stars, but most authors are like you — trying to find time for book marketing and still have a life.

Commit to Learning New Things in Snackable Increments

I’m a huge fan of learning. Even if you don’t want to do something yourself (like designing your own book cover or doing your own social media), it’s still worth familiarizing yourself with the various tactics and strategies. And you can do this in snackable increments as you have time.

Going on a walk or a run? Tune into a book marketing podcast so you can learn while you work out. (Here’s a shameless plug for our podcast: https://amarketingexpert.com/podcast/)

Tee up articles you want to read on book marketing and save them to your phone, then when you’re waiting to pick the kids up from school, or waiting in line at a grocery store, you can grab a few minutes to read.

Learning is important, and if you can take three days to attend a writer’s conference that’s great – but many of us don’t have that kind of time. That’s why I love snackable learning moments. Grab the knowledge when you can!

How to Launch a Book: Planning and Scheduling is Key!

When we launched our book marketing planner, we had no idea how successful it would be. Plan for promotional activities for the month leading up to the release, and then the first six months after launch – yes six, because releasing a book is like starting a business.

Create realistic goals for yourself. Let’s say you have one hundred bloggers you want to pitch; why not break down that list to pitching 5-10 a week? If you have more time than that, pitch 5 a day.

The idea is, if you create a plan, and a roadmap, you can start to divide up the tasks by starting with the timeliest ones. Chunking down big goals makes them more attainable and more likely to actually be completed.

Planning, and then giving yourself realistic touch points, is really key to staying on track with your book launch marketing.

If your book is already out but is lagging in sales and attention, plan out some marketing strategies that you feel you’ll have the time to do – even some that can be executed in advance, like social media content.

Don’t Get Sucked Into (Too Much) Social Media

Of all the things authors will do to market their books, social media takes the most time. If you’re strapped for time (or easily get looped into endless scrolling), be really selective about where you want your social media message to be and then focus just on that one outlet. Yes, I said one.

You’re far better off doing great on one social media outlet than dividing up your time across three or four platforms.

Once you master one and feel like you know what your readers like and respond to, you can go into other social media sites and start to build an audience there, too.

Starting on a smaller scale will not only help you stay focused, but if all of your energy is focused on one outlet, you’ll grow your base much faster than if your time is diluted across multiple platforms.

You’ve Launched Your Book, What Now?

If you have a book that’s been out for a while, or you’ve already passed the book launch window, there’s still a lot you can do and plan for that won’t take up a ton of your time.

Strategies like eBook promos, reviving your newsletter, setting up Amazon ads, doing a Goodreads giveaway, pitching bloggers and the like can all be done incrementally. The point is, break down what you want to do into smaller increments and set more realistic goals for yourself so you can keep your book marketing going long-term.

Book promotion and marketing takes time, but it doesn’t have to take all of your time. When it comes to how to launch a book, planning is key, as well as being honest with yourself about how much you can do, or want to do. Tackle the things you love and outsource the rest. If outsourcing isn’t in the budget, then plan to spend some time learning, or set the strategy aside for now until you have time.

While the first 30-days of your book’s life is important (especially when it comes to Amazon), you don’t have to do every single book marketing strategy on day one. The best book marketing is done over time, meaning that you plan to do a few things a month to keep your book in front of new readers, and keep your book promotion alive.

Good luck!

Resources & Free Downloads

Are You Ready for Big Media Coverage?

Monthly Book Marketing Planner

How to Launch a Book Without Looking Like an Amateur

How to Launch a Self Published Book: Timing Is Key!

Check out the Alliance of Independent Authors for news and resources