You can’t measure the success of a book launch until you’ve identified all the ways your launch can support the customer journey you’re designing. A great launch leads people through the first step into the second, and from there to the third, setting up a clear path to your ultimate goal. Here are 7 ways to measure the real value of a book launch.
1. Target Your Own Best Metrics
It makes sense to desire benchmarks by which to gauge the success of your book launch. That instinct is excellent. Just keep in mind that depending on your ultimate goal, different metrics will matter. The best metric is NOT book sales for the majority of authors. It’s more important to encourage customers to begin the customer journey you’ve planned. That could be:
- Signing up for your newsletter
- Taking advantage of your free sales funnel
- Following you on LinkedIn
- Joining your Facebook group
- Or something else of your own design
Whatever you choose to track must make sense for your own marketing strategy. Other illustrations include:
- Signups for your free webinar
- Soundbites and video clips you can use in your marketing plan
- Social media engagements that hone your next round of pitches
- Podcast subscribers
- Affiliate links and referrals
- Website or blog traffic
- Social media followers
- New customers and clients
Whatever matters to you, pay attention to THAT — drive THAT — and use your book to get it.
2. Endorsements, Graphics & Soundbites
The “as seen on” content that media placements offer for your author ecosystem is one of the most crucial things. This includes:
- Logos
- Endorsements
- Graphics
- Soundbites
- Video Clips
While creating a media page for your website is wonderful, you should also spread this information out within your author ecosystem. On landing pages for products and services, use it as social evidence. Utilize it to make a highlight reel to aid you land interviews and speaking engagements in significant markets.
To keep readers interested in your content, including them in your social media feeds and monthly newsletter. To your LinkedIn profile, include them. Everything you do becomes a fresh technique to support and enhance that journey once you intentionally construct it and comprehend its flow.
3. Media Placements
Your customer journey is being built as you secure media placements within the first three months after the publication of your book, but they are just the beginning. Even if some of those actual interviews take place later, you’ll be doing well if you can land 15 media opportunities in the first three months.
Similar to reviews, media placements frequently don’t result in quick sales. Their “role” in your customer journey is not to do that. In actuality, the worth of each media opportunity for public relations is only around 15%. What you do with it accounts for the remaining 15%.
Do you intend to lead them to a training? Prospect mining, perhaps? You want people to sign up for emails, right? How do you want to foster a long-lasting connection with the media host? And after you have each position, how will you use it? For example:
- Leverage early media placements to land new opportunities.
- Use quotes, graphics, soundbites, and short video clips from them on your social media and website.
- Learn what people respond to in determining future blog and newsletter content.
- Use early placements to build your portfolio for increased credibility & authority.
Keep in mind that media placements are ongoing activities. They are chances to enhance your client experience and create enduring media relationships.
4. Amazon Reviews
Amazon reviews are obviously valuable, but the majority of authors mistakenly believe that launch-week reviews will lead to rapid sales. That is incorrect. Your email list, friends, and relatives will be the sources of your initial Amazon reviews, not chance purchases. They’ll be frank comments from people who actually appreciate your work, aiding you in promoting it to future clients.
In the first month, you should aim to build 15–30 reviews. Consider this procedure an element of the infrastructure-building for your customer journey. These early evaluations not only assist customers in their purchasing choices on Amazon, but they also offer quotes for your website, newsletter, and social media.
5. Social Media Messaging
You’ll start to see which posts resonate the most when you add content from your media placements to your social media feeds; these are the posts that receive the most likes, comments, and shares. Additionally, the time leading up to the publication of your book is ideal for producing social media posts and images that feature quotes from it.
Utilize the comments on these posts to find out what resonates with readers and how to promote your book. That’s a MASSIVE win for the release of your book, demonstrating the finest approaches to use when pitching your book, your goods and services, your speaking engagements, and new media placements.
6. Posts & Articles That Resonate With Your Audience
The same rules that apply to your book launch’s social media posts also apply to long-form content, like:
- Blog posts
- LinkedIn posts
- Guest blogs
- Podcasts
- Facebook Live videos
- YouTube videos
Always keep an eye out for the most popular posts. Use that data when creating courses, submitting speaking proposals, and even when submitting your next round of media placement proposals.
7. Newsletter Signups & Lead Generation
Almost everything you do during your book launch, if you’re a nonfiction author, should encourage readers to sign up for your newsletter. Why? Since the well-known “rule of seven” indicates that consumers require an average of 7 interactions with a company before they are likely to make a purchase. As consumers progress through your customer journey—from knowing about you to taking the next step—your email offers these interactions.
Provide readers with stuff that they will actually find beneficial. Use your newsletter to track which headlines visitors click on the most and which articles they wish to read. That provides a great window into what your audience is looking for.
When you’ve found a solid location for your target audience—and where you want to build long-term relationships—you’ll be able to tell by the amount of email signups you receive from that particular guest post or podcast. Use your newsletter to share information, stay in front of your readers, and learn more while continually improving your message.