Like anything, book marketing takes time. I see authors all the time who start to grow impatient after a few months, wondering where their success is. How long will it take?

That depends. But you might not be the best person to determine that. If you’ve been marketing your book for a while and can’t figure out why nothing has taken off, spend an hour with a professional who can tell you if you’re on the right track.  The people at the print on demand publishing companies in your area have great insight into the marketing and steps that you need to take to see success so make an appointment and speak to them about what you could do to improve your results. It may be that you are right on track and do not need to do anything.

Do this before you decide to throw in the towel. You might be inches away from success; don’t give up before you do your research.

Making headway in marketing is as much about the good decisions, as it is avoiding the bad. Best success in your publishing  journey!

Now that you have all of the steps that might cause a problem and know what to do to correct them you can rinse and repeat the process on your next book. It will go so much faster when you have a straight line to your goal.

Remember that applied knowledge is power so now it is time to put these steps into action.

When someone asks me if all authors should have a website, I respond: does your book need a cover?

Every author should have a website and when possible get a domain name of your title so it can be a direct match to the content you are delivering in hard copy or online. It is the best way to build credibility online and it is a 24/7 sales tool for you.

In addition to building your credibility, you can have an ebook of your manuscript that can be delivered after you receive payment for the book. The person making the purchase can have access to your book immediately which many readers like.

You can also allow them to order a hard copy for those readers who prefer to hold a real book while they are reading it. Set up a way for the shipping to be added to the price and send the book to their address when the payment is completed or have a fulfillment house do the shipping for you.

Stop back by tomorrow for the next step.

Often nothing happens immediately in book sales. The sales process for books can be lengthy, especially when you’re dealing with multiple reporting agencies. Most authors don’t know that places like Amazon, Baker & Taylor, and Ingram don’t all pay on the same timeframe. They all have particular cycles to how they pay.

For example, Amazon might pay 90 days after the sale, whereas some folks have said that Baker & Taylor sometimes lags five months behind. What this means is that if you are pushing your book in December and hope to see the fruits of your labor in January, that timeline isn’t realistic. Be sure you clarify with each avenue you are selling your book what the time is for their payout so you can stay on top of your sales and revenue.

One of my friends had a best selling book and never received a penny from the company that published the book and was distributing it for her. Just be aware that all of these details need to be clear to you if someone else is publishing the book and distributing it. Get a report of sales and profit and when you can expect to be paid.

Don’t end up disappointed if your royalty statements aren’t reflecting the promotion you’ve done. It could be that the agencies just haven’t caught up with your sales.

You can self publish and sell the book yourself and have a much faster payout for your effort so just be aware of that as an additional option.

Stop back by tomorrow and get the next step.

What kind of experience do you want to give your reader? If the answer is a great one (and it likely is) make sure the work you do on your book mirrors that. Your book is like your resume; not only that but it’s your reader’s experience of you as a writer as well.

Your work should always be professionally edited, no excuse. But, before you turn it over to an editor, you can learn from an editor about the things to address and do a preliminary self editing yourself of the draft before you give your manuscript to the experienced professional editor.

If you don’t have enough money to get the self-editing ebook or have your writing edited by a professional, then ask yourself if publishing this book is really a good idea. Perhaps waiting until you have the funds to get the book released the right way is a better idea.

Stop back by tomorrow for the next step.

One corner you shouldn’t cut is on your book cover.

Your cover is important because it’s the first impression your audience has of your book. Don’t shortcut your success by creating a cover that doesn’t sell. Find a graphic designer that works in the publishing field and have them help you with ideas, colors and images that have sold so you have a place to start your design idea.

Often a print on demand company has the software for you to see your cover design on an actual book so you can evaluate the image and adjust as needed. The software gives you the image on the front, back and spine to help you decide the final look that is a match for your content.

In the long run, the money you save not getting a cover design could cost you in book sales.

Stop back by tomorrow for the next step.

If you were going to open up a store in a mall, let’s say a bead shop, would you ever consider opening a store without doing the proper research? Probably not. Yet every day authors publish books and haven’t done market research.

This research, while it can be tedious, could save you hundreds of dollars in promotion and/or cover design.

It is so easy to do with your online tools, the search engines, keyword tools, and traffic for your topic that you can check in the search engines. Visit forums online and get an idea of interest in your topic.

Do an ask campaign and get information from potential readers about their area of interest in the topic you are writing about. Take a poll locally and get feedback about what kind of questions people have about your topic and then in your writing answer those questions.

See what is on the best seller list for your area of writing and topic.

Stop back by tomorrow for the next step.

In the event you decide not to do the print on demand route or get a small number of books printed with your print on demand source, there are several things to consider. If your research is giving you a clear direction that your topic is in demand and you are confident that you will sell or you have local bookstores that will purchase copies from you then look into having more copies printed.

In order to get large printing discounts, authors will often print huge numbers of their books. I’ve seen ranges from 10,000 on up. Generally I recommend a run of no more than 2,000 for your first run.

If you get a good response and you decide to do another print order you can increase the number for the second printing run. Before you do, you may want to make changes to the book, possibly adding new testimonials, endorsements, and reviews. Monitor the comments you have heard from your readers on the first run editions and adjust or add content if you feel it would increase the value to your readers.

Use wisdom when you are ordering large quantities so you don’t get over stocked with your book(s), you have better things to do with your marketing dollars than spend them on storage space.

While it’s nice to think that most of us do our shopping online and via Amazon, bookstores (especially local stores) can really help or hurt your marketing efforts. If your book isn’t going into bookstores, then you’ll want to get to know your local area stores to see if you can present your book to them for consideration and/or do an event in their store.

Having a local presence in bookstores is important, especially if you are doing local events and local media. If the bookstore doesn’t stock the book, then make sure at the very least that your book can be ordered.

You don’t want people walking into your neighborhood store and being told “Sorry, we can’t get that book.”

This is where the 100 print on demand copies can really work for your marketing and if the local bookstore sees that you are getting a following they may re-consider carrying your book.

Stop back by tomorrow for the next step.

While social media may seem confusing to most of us, it’s important to know that it can sometimes be a make or break situation when it comes to marketing your book. If you can’t make heads or tails out of Twitter vs. Facebook, then hire someone who can help you or guide you through your choices.

There are many local people in your area who can help you sit down and map out a campaign and get it started several months before the book is at your launch point. This will help you get a buzz going about your topic, your direction with the topic and connect with many new people who might be interested when the book is ready for them to purchase.

Stop back by tomorrow for the next step.

Who else is writing about your topic? If you’re not sure, then you should do your research.

Getting to know your fellow genre authors is not only important, but it can really help you with your marketing. How? Because most readers don’t just buy one self-help book, or one dating book, they will generally buy in multiples.

So getting to know others within your market can not only help you market your book, but it could also help you connect with fellow authors.

Who else might be looking for information about your topic?

Do research in the search engines and see what is coming up when you type in different words or phrases that describe your topic. There may be things that you find that you want to add more information about in your book.

Google keyword tool will also give you how many people are typing in the words or phrases that are what are most often used that describe your topic. It will let you know how many people might be looking for your new writing.

Stop back by tomorrow and get the next step.