Writer Biz #14 – The Review, Part Three

Now that you have your goals set, and a timeline to reach them, let’s get to an action plan. Who is going to help you reach the desired outcome?

That would be your target market. Preferably more than one. For the sake of short blogs, let’s keep it simple. One market would be your current readers, another perhaps perspective readers. Think about who else in the publishing world has the ability to influence the sales of your book. I’m sure you can come up with a few more. Remember, the better you define your markets, the more effective your plan will be.

Once you’ve decided on your target market, it’s time to let them know about your great new story. Preferably about three months before the release date. The way you let them know, is by promotion. How you choose to promote is up to you. You’re savvy. If you’re reading this, you are probably already aware of several ways to reach your markets. Pick the ones that work best for you.

And remember, selling isn’t about telling people how great your book is, it’s about building relationships.

Last but definitely not least, is ROI. Return on investment. Once you’ve spent some time working your plan, you need to decide if it’s working for you. And don’t wait until you’ve reached then end of your timeline to check ROI. You need to check regularly. That way you’ll know if things are moving toward the goals you’ve set. Are you getting a good return for the time and money you’ve spent, or not? If not, you need to make adjustments to your plan.

One way to help gauge ROI is analytics. We’ll talk about those next week. They really aren’t as bad as they seem. And don’t worry, there won’t be a test.

That should bring you up to speed on Writer Biz.

Hope today is good to you!