How to Promote and Sell Your Book

The Excitement of Writing a Book— and the Disappointment of Getting No Results

By: Vince Pannullo

Working with authors for more than 20 years, I have heard just about everything when it comes to writing, publishing, printing, and promoting a book.

One of my greatest strengths is working directly with authors and helping them understand what they have created and, more importantly, what they should do next.

I educate authors about the entire publishing process—from choosing an ISBN, selecting the right trim size, deciding between paperback and hardcover, preparing their files, printing their books, and, most importantly, understanding how to promote and sell their books.

Why Authors Struggle to Promote and Sell Their Books

What I have learned over the years is simple: writing your book is only the beginning. For some authors, it can take years to complete their manuscript. They have spent countless hours writing, editing, rewriting, designing, and thinking about every detail, then comes the exciting moment when the book is finally uploaded to a website and made available for sale.

I have seen how excited authors are when they finish their manuscripts and then again when they finally hold their books in print. However, their excitement grows by leaps and bounds when people are finding, buying, and leaving reviews for their books.

The author thinks:

“I’ve done it. My book is finally available. Now people are going to buy it.” Then the waiting begins, the author sends the link to friends and family,  they post it on social media, and then nothing happens, a few days go by then a few weeks maybe a few months, the author checks again and discovers that very few—or perhaps no—books have been sold. That can be heartbreaking, uploading your book is not a marketing plan. One of the biggest misconceptions I see is the belief that putting a book on a website automatically puts the book in front of buyers. It doesn’t. There are thousands upon thousands of books available online. Your book is competing for attention with books from major publishers, established authors, celebrities, influencers, and thousands of other independent authors, simply uploading your book does not create an audience It does not create demand and it certainly does not guarantee sales, publishing makes your book available marketing gives people a reason to buy it, those are two very different things.

Get the Basics Right Before You Promote Your Book

Start with this ISBN. The ISBN is an important part of publishing a book. It identifies a specific edition and format of your book.authors should understand where their ISBN comes from and who is listed as the publisher of record before purchasing one, there are companies online that advertise inexpensive ISBNs, sometimes for substantially less than purchasing directly from the official ISBN agency. The problem isn’t simply the price. The important question is: Who owns the ISBN and who will be listed as the publisher?

In the United States, Bowker is the official ISBN agency. Authors should understand the difference between purchasing their own ISBN and receiving an ISBN assigned through a publishing or distribution platform.

An ISBN is much more than a 13-digit number that you put on your copyright page and barcode, before purchasing one, understand what you are buying, who owns it, and what name will appear as the publisher. For authors who want to build a long-term publishing business around their books, these details matter.

Publishing Your Book Isn't the Same as Selling It

Don't confuse availability with success. Another common mistake is believing that once a book is available online, the hard work is finished actually, that’s when another part of the work begins.

Think about it this way:

You can build a beautiful store, fill it with products, unlock the doors, and turn on the lights. But if nobody knows the store exists, you shouldn’t be surprised when nobody walks through the door. Your book is no different, your book needs a reason for people to notice it It needs an audience, It needs a message, It needs a marketing strategy and it needs consistent promotion.

Know Your Audience Before You Promote Your Book

What should authors look for? Before you publish, ask yourself some important questions, Who is my book for? If you cannot identify your audience, it will be very difficult to market the book, why would someone want to read it?

What problem does it solve? What does it teach? What experience does it provide? What emotion does it create? What makes my book different? There are many books covering similar subjects. What makes yours worth someone’s time and money? How am I going to reach my readers? Don’t wait until the book is published to think about promotion.

Create a Plan to Promote and Sell Your Book

What is my marketing budget? Even a great book needs some investment in getting it in front of the right people. What am I going to do after the book is published? This may be the most important question of all.

Avoid Common Book Marketing Mistakes

Don’t make these mistakes, after working with authors for two decades, I have seen some common mistakes repeatedly. Don’t assume that uploading your book means people will find it. Don’t assume that your friends and family will be your primary customers.

Don’t spend all your money creating the book and have nothing left for marketing. Don’t choose a publishing service simply because it is the cheapest. Don’t purchase an ISBN without understanding who owns it and who will be listed as the publisher. Don’t believe someone who promises that simply putting your book online will make it a bestseller.

And perhaps most importantly: Don’t give up because your first few weeks don’t produce the sales you expected, building an audience takes time.

Your Book Needs a Marketing and Promotion Plan

Your book deserves a plan. I have tremendous respect for authors because I know how much work goes into creating a book. I’ve seen authors spend months and even years bringing their ideas to life. That’s why it bothers me when an author finally finishes a book, uploads it to a website, and then waits for something to happen. Your book deserves more than that. It deserves a plan. The publishing process should begin long before you upload the final PDF. You should be thinking about your ISBN, format, trim size, cover, pricing, target audience, distribution, marketing, and promotion. And you should have a plan for what happens after the book is published. Because finishing your book is an accomplishment selling your book is a different challenge, after 20 years of working with authors, my advice is simple:

"Don’t just publish your book. Build a plan for your book." ~ Vince Pannullo

Your story took too much time, effort, and dedication to simply upload it to the internet and hope somebody finds it.

Get Help Promoting and Selling Your Book

At SelfPublishingUS, we want to celebrate your milestone. We offer free author features on our blog and website for our independent writers. Simply send us a photo of yourself holding your finished book and your direct purchase link, and we'll help get your book in front of our community.