The BelieversPress blog features Q & A sessions with the experts we work with, answering questions that you’ve asked. Have a question? Send it to info@believerspress.com and we’ll get you an answer! You asked:

My book is scheduled to arrive from the printer next week… when should I schedule my release date?

Getting ready to launch your independently published book is exciting. You’ll want to rush. But, there’s no more important time to your marketing plan than the lead up to the official launch. There are reasons that big publishers start their marketing push long before the book is scheduled to become available to retailers and customers. Jonathan Acuff, writer of the popular blog Stuff Christians Like, just launched his book, published by Zondervan. You should read his launch day post. More than that, though, you should read backward through his archive and see the various things he did to generate pre-orders for his book. Jon wrote guest posts for any blog that would have him. He ran giveaways (including eReaders, the new Apple iPad, several mp3 players, and a MacBook pro). As a result, he’s trended well on Amazon, listed first in several categories, and created a lot of buzz for his book. How does that help him? Well, as a result of the buzz and the preorders, bookstores will be more likely to a) stock it, and b) stock it in larger numbers. More importantly, the readership was primed for the release — they’d been waiting for it. When they finally received their pre-order (or went to a store to buy it), they probably rushed to read it. They likely told their friends about it. The model can (and should, I think) scale down. Maybe you only have 100 readers waiting for your book. What a great opportunity to get them talking! You could send out “early release” copies to them. People like an exclusive. You could ask those of them who have any sort of platform (blog, reading group, church library) to write / distribute a review. You can get positive feedback for your own website. You can build your Amazon preorders, so that Amazon will stock your book in greater numbers. Make a marketing plan. Make it for 4 weeks, 6 weeks, 8 weeks. Talk about your book. Build the anticipation you can where you can. Then launch your book! Most authors have been waiting for years to launch their book to the public. Another month or two of waiting now won’t hurt — especially if you use it well!