Author Topic: New Release Check List?  (Read 1800 times)

The Masked Scrivener

New Release Check List?
« on: January 22, 2020, 02:07:10 AM »
As a self-published author there comes a moment when you have to forget about being an author and you have to focus on being a publisher. Last year was my first year and I published 5 books. As I am now working on my next series I want to be better organized in managing my new releases. There are numerous tasks we need take care of to make sure our books are available and promoted properly.

My list starts after the book is done and uploaded to KDP. Then the fun begins...
  • Bookbub Listing
  • Goodreads
  • Storyorigin
  • Bookfunnel
  • Bookbrush graphic - 3D book cover
  • Bookbrush graphic - Release announcement
  • Newsletter Announcement

Does anyone use a checklist of tasks they perform for each new release? If you do, would you mind sharing your check list items?

I'm hoping this will help everyone have a complete list of tasks so we don't miss anything.
 

TimothyEllis

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Re: New Release Check List?
« Reply #1 on: January 22, 2020, 02:08:41 AM »
Claim on Author Central.

Until you do that, you don't get a followers email sent.
Genres: Space Opera/Fantasy/Cyberpunk, with elements of LitRPG and GameLit, with a touch of the Supernatural. Also Spiritual and Games.



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shadcallister

Re: New Release Check List?
« Reply #2 on: January 22, 2020, 09:21:11 AM »
I think you baited your line here to catch a minnow, but the answer is at least whale-size.

Like, if the entire publishing and book marketing industries could be boiled down into a repeatable checklist... I mean, there are $1000 courses that try to outline this process in a useful way, with mixed results. Let alone an ebook, let alone a humble forum thread.

The trick is that no two authors are alike, even within the same genre-- different goals, different experience levels, different resources. Pick any given tactic/platform/tool (including ALL of the ones you put forward to start off the conversation), and you'll find 100 authors who say it's a complete waste of time, and 100 rebuttals from other authors that are making it work, and probably 1000 of us that are somewhere in between and trying to figure it out.

Also, new tools become available every month. Hence 2,000,000+ posts on kboards over the years, and 60,000+ here so far, just trying to hash out what works and what doesn't and how and when and why.

The best we can hope for in terms of a checklist is "here are some things you could try if you wanted to". And to get at some of those, google "book launch plan" and be prepared to sift through 95% chaff for the 5% that applies to your situation.
 

shadcallister

Re: New Release Check List?
« Reply #3 on: January 22, 2020, 09:22:38 AM »
In the spirit of sharing, though, here are some things I try to make sure happen very soon after my product page goes live, for a simple ebook launch:

- Update backmatter for entire series (hyperlinks)

- Test email signup and autoresponders

- Get into the right Amazon categories

- Get 10+ early reviews

- Start some AMS ads and highly-targeted FB ads (to train the algos and populate also-boughts)

- Reduce price and advise mailing list that the new book is on sale

- Stack some discount promos (schedule these way in advance)

- Price back up and start spending more on ads (FB, BB, AMS)

- Expand publicity efforts (social media etc.) now that also-boughts are set and algos trained
 
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The Masked Scrivener

Re: New Release Check List?
« Reply #4 on: January 23, 2020, 12:50:46 AM »
Hi Shadcallister. To be honest, I was not thinking along the lines of marketing strategy for the list, just the manual processes we have to do for new book releases. Like TimothyEllis pointed out, even though we publish the book on KDP we still need to tell Amazon on Author Central that the book is ours.

I hope I didn't give the impression I was being shady with my question. I've taken several courses on marketing, read too many books to count, and have done plenty of research on the marketing stuff. I'm still afraid that I will miss some crucial website listing that I need to manually update when a new book is released. Definitly not looking for a "formula for success" but more of a "To Do List" of information updates.

I have a piece of paper next to my computer with a list that I formed after the first series was done. Hopefully this will keep me from missing something during the publication of my second series. I thought that others might do the same and if we pooled our lists together here we could help each other.

To be honest, I had forgotten Author Central on my list... thank you TimothyEllis. Of course I feel like a moron for that one, since it should have been obvious and at the top of my list.
 

shadcallister

Re: New Release Check List?
« Reply #5 on: January 23, 2020, 03:16:31 AM »
Got it. Your question just got me thinking and I tend to zoom out and consider the big picture right away. I would pay a lot of money for a highly effective and useful book launch/marketing checklist!
 
But yeah, as far as online venues where you'll want your book listed for general availability and discoverability, here are a few more to think about.

- Backmatter of all your other books (linking to the new book's product page)
- Update your personal author website/blog (you can link this to AuthorCentral so it will show up on your Amazon author page automatically)
- Ensure Smashwords listing looks good (if you're wide), especially ahead of their holiday sale
- IngramSpark if you're distributing through them at all (they do ebooks as well as print)
 
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C. Gockel

Re: New Release Check List?
« Reply #6 on: January 23, 2020, 03:59:54 AM »
The previous suggestions are good--although I release at full price now, and don't discount. I am wide though, not in KU, and I'm never going to be at the top of the lists.

In addition, I like to have a preorder of at least a week so that I can :

1) Get paperback up and linked to ebook and early reviews
2) Get new release added to the series page

Also I think having a few images formatted for Facebook is a good idea.


I write books about Change, Chaos, and Loki
C. Gockel | facebook | tumblr | website
 
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