Before you publish checklist:
Start these at least 1-2 months before your next book comes out.
1. Email List: This is your single most important resource for marketing your work. I’m currently favoring Mailerlite because it’s free up to 1,000 subscribers, is overall much cheaper than mailchimp, and has a really handy auto-resend campaign.
Setup an “Automation Campaign” that sends a string of at least 3 emails to engage new subscribers. Emails should be sent 1-2 weeks apart, contain free gifts or stories, and be warm and personal with direct questions to the audience.
Setup a free giveaway: Bookfunnel is the ideal way of offering a free incentive to build your mailing list. Share it everywhere until you’re afraid of being obnoxious.
Drive traffic to your mailing list landing pages. Best way to do this is to utilize existing high-traffic sites such as social media or websites in your genre, and contribute something of real value such as articles or stories.
2. Website: Here’s a good guide on how to do this from scratch. If writing is your hobby then this isn’t required, but if you have long-term goal as an author then it’s worth the effort. A simple, clean website that you learn to do yourself will cost less than $10/month.
Keep it simple. This isn’t the place to tell people your life story. You want a landing page that focuses on encouraging visitors to sign-up to your mailing list.
(Optional) Authenticate your mailing list with your domain for higher delivery rates.
(Optional) Install a Facebook Tracking Pixel for visitor data.
3. Author Central Account: Setup an author central account for amazon. Complete the information sections on your profile, and link the RSS feed from your blog if you have one. Add niche keywords related to your genre in your description.
4. Goodreads Author Program: Also connect your blog here. Join groups and bookclubs in your genre.
5. Network in your Field: Start being socially active with people related to your target genre. Join social media groups and begin making a list of all their contact information. Reach out to influencers in your field such as bloggers, YouTube channels, podcasts, etc. Don’t be pushy or ask for anything – just get to know them and visibly support their work.
6. Social Media Accounts: Don’t overcomplicate your life. Pick one of these social media options and focus on branding it as your author platform. You aren’t trying to sell things to these people. Engage them with contests, giveaways, and interactive content with the continual aim of growing your mailing list.
My current favorite for this purpose are:
Facebook: Once all-powerful, but now they continually restrict the organic reach of business pages. You’re probably better off building a group around your brand instead. Let’s be honest here though – Facebook sucks.
Tumblr: Good option if you post lots of regular content like blog posts or short stories.
Pinterest: Increasingly powerful tool with pins that can get visibility for months or years. This is most powerful when linked with a website to drive traffic.
Reddit: This isn’t the place to sell your book, but it’s a great place to join a passionate community who will support you throughout your career. (See my article on how Reddit helped me get a #1 Best-seller).