It's been 2 days since I released Ashes, Ashes, and the response has been utterly overwhelming. I sold 13 books on launch day, and my Twitter account absolutely blew up over this number. A lot of people have asked me to share my marketing secrets, so I decided to put my thoughts down as to what I believe worked for me.
What I Did Right
I wrote a great book. Yes, I'm biased, but I've gotten a lot of good reader feedback, and people are really excited to read it.
I hired a professional to design a kick-ass cover. I've gotten so many compliments on it, but all I did was make decisions. Eugene Smith crafted an amazing design with eye-catching colors that pulls people in, and it's getting noticed.
I talked about it. A lot. I told everyone in my family, and because they're all super supportive, come launch day they bought copies.
I pursued 2 avenues of reviews. I sent out ARCs to people who agreed to read my book and leave reviews on launch day. I also paid for professional literary reviews.
I tweeted with positivity. This isn't a humble-brag, but when people started buying my book I tweeted about how exciting it was. Twitter responded with overwhelming encouragement and support, and my followers jumped 400+ in less than 2 days.
What I Didn't Control
The Twitter community absolutely blew me away with responses to my launch. My original tweet was about how amazing my birthday/launch was and how much I love my life. I could not have imagined how big it would become. As the attention grew, people from Twitter started buying my book, and my sales grew.
My family members started receiving their paperbacks in the mail today. They've been posting about them on their own Facebook pages and advertising to people I never could have reached on my own.
One of the literary reviewers absolutely LOVED my book. She's been sharing it, tweeting about it, and tonight she's highlighting it on her Fantasy Friday podcast.
The moral of this post is that I don't have any marketing secrets. I put everything I had into this book launch, and I'm going to do my best to promote it where I can. If you want to get in touch with me there is a Contact button at the top right of this page, or you can find me on Twitter @JessicaGoeken. Thank you all for your encouragement and support. It's because of friends and readers like you that I may actually have a shot at this.