Book Marketing Planning Worksheet for Authors
A book marketing plan helps turn scattered promotional ideas into a clear strategy.
Before choosing advertisements, social platforms, or promotional services, authors should understand who they want to reach, what makes the book relevant, and what success should look like.
Define Your Book
Write down:
Book title:
Genre:
Primary audience:
Main theme or promise:
What makes this book distinctive?
Define Your Marketing Goals
Examples may include:
Building awareness, generating initial sales, growing reviews, attracting media attention, developing an author platform, increasing speaking opportunities, or supporting long-term readership.
Identify Your Audience
Consider:
Who is most likely to read this book?
What problems, interests, experiences, or topics connect them to it?
Where do those readers spend time online and offline?
Choose Your Marketing Channels
Possible channels include:
Social media, paid advertising, email marketing, author website, book trailers, interviews, podcasts, events, review campaigns, Amazon content, media outreach, and partnerships.
Set Your Budget
Determine what you can realistically invest and prioritize activities according to your goals.
Create a Timeline
Divide your strategy into:
Pre-launch
Launch period
Post-launch
Long-term promotion
How to Build Your Book Marketing Plan
A strong book marketing plan begins with a clear understanding of your readers and what you want your campaign to achieve. Start by defining your target audience, genre, positioning, and the main message you want readers to associate with your book.
Next, choose the marketing channels that best fit your audience and budget. These may include social media, email marketing, advertising, author websites, review campaigns, book trailers, media outreach, podcasts, events, and partnerships. You do not need to use every channel. Focus on the ones most likely to connect your book with the right readers.
Your book marketing plan should also include a realistic timeline. Separate your activities into pre-launch, launch, post-launch, and long-term promotion. Decide what content will be created, who will manage each activity, how much you can invest, and which results you want to measure.
Finally, review your plan regularly. Reader response, campaign performance, reviews, and sales activity can help you decide where to continue investing your time and marketing budget.