Book Launch Timeline: How to Launch a Book

Guest Post by Heather Erdmann

After months, or even years, of hard work and dedication, your book is finally published! Now, you need to get that book out into the world and in the hands of your future readers. Whether traditionally published or self-published, a book launch is the best way to do that. Yet many of us aren’t even sure where to begin. This article will show you how to launch a book with several book launch ideas to get you started!

Setting Up a Book Launch Marketing Plan

If you are a Christian author, the most important thing you can do before setting up a book launch is to pray and ask the Lord for wisdom, guidance, and favor so that He will reach whomever He wants to with your new book.

Then, you can begin your book launch marketing plan. The first things to decide are how much time, money, and effort you are willing to invest. Many authors take several weeks or months to carry out a book launch, and some take up to an entire year.

Next, decide how much money you are willing to spend. If finances are limited you may want to keep your book launch simple and only promote it to free sites like your website, social media platforms, and email list. Otherwise, if you have money allotted for your book launch, you can order merchandise to promote your book, use paid ads, and plan more elaborate events like a book launch party or a book signing complete with food, decorations, and giveaways!

Book Launch Activities

The main goal of a book launch is to get as much visibility as possible while your book is still new. Getting exposure and book reviews should be your primary focus, as more reviews lead to more exposure and potential readers, which leads to more reviews. This is the cycle you want to begin at your launch and continue in your ongoing book marketing.

There are several book launch ideas to choose from to successfully launch your book into the world including:

Create an author website if you don’t already have one
Add a separate page for your book to your website that allows readers to learn about your book and offers a link to order
Start an email list if you don’t already have one, and if you do, send email list announcements to your current subscribers
Set up a Book Launch Team (ask friends, family, social media followers, email list subscribers, etc.) and decide what you will have them do, and what you will offer them for participating
Use social media promotions on your existing platforms (You can use a free site like Canva to create eye-catching social media graphics to promote your book launch.)
Use paid ads on social media and/or book promotion sites (see below for resources)
Announce your book on social media groups and pages
Set up author profile pages on book sites like Amazon and Goodreads
Make an author page on Facebook and other social media sites to interact with your readers
Consider collaborating with other authors and content creators with similar niches to cross-promote your book to their social media followers or email subscribers.
Set up collaborations for guest blogging, podcast interviews, and in-person speaking events
Host a Book Launch Party at a local venue and/or do a Book Signing Event at a local bookstore or library. (Contact them for possible hosting options and pricing.)
Plan a giveaway for one or more of your signed books and any related swag you may want to include to get potential readers to sign up for your email list
Put your e-book for free or .99, and your print book for a discounted price during your book launch. (This will help to increase sales, organic traffic, and book reviews.)

Once you know your book’s release date, you can start working backward with your book launch timeline.