Book Marketing Simplified
Marketing consultant Jenn Hanson-dePaula sits down with her partner, Marcus to chat about marketing strategies and processes that can help authors connect with their readers and sell more books. Save time with marketing and spend more time writing!
Episodes
Not sure what to do first when it comes to book marketing? You’re not behind—you just need a plan. In this episode of Book Marketing Simplified, Jenn shares a straightforward three-step strategy to help authors get unstuck and start marketing their book with clarity and confidence. Whether you’re staring at a blinking cursor or feeling scattered by too many options, this episode will help you find your footing and build a mark...
Feeling overwhelmed by scattered book marketing strategies that aren’t helping you sell books? In this episode, Jenn breaks down why most author marketing feels frustrating and what to do instead. You’ll learn how to create a simple system rooted in clarity, connection, and consistency to finally start seeing results. Perfect for fiction and non-fiction authors who want to market smarter, not harder.
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Hate writing emails? Feel like you're just bothering people when you hit "send"? You're not alone and you're not doing it wrong. In this episode, we’re flipping the script on email marketing and showing you how to write simple, reader-friendly emails that build trust and sell books. By the end of this episode, you’ll have everything you need to write one email this week that actually works.
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Publishing a book is an exciting time. But with so many options (traditional, hybrid, and self-publishing) and so much conflicting advice, it’s easy to feel confused about which path is right for you.
In this special episode (and our first-ever interview!) I’m joined by bestselling author and publishing strategist Elizabeth Lyons. With decades of experience helping authors publish with clarity and confidence, Elizabeth is pulling ba...
If you feel like you’re constantly marketing but still not seeing book sales, you might be pouring your energy into the wrong strategies.
In this episode, Jenn & Marcus discuss how you can stop spinning your wheels and start focusing on what actually moves the needle for you and your book.
You’ll learn:
- Common marketing tactics that waste time and money (and how to avoid them).
- Which analytics and metrics matter the most when ...
There’s nothing more discouraging than pouring your heart into a book… only to watch sales stall or never take off at all. But before you assume your book is the problem, let’s take a closer look.
Because chances are, it’s not your writing. It’s your marketing.
In this episode, Marcus and I walk you through a 5-step Book Sales Audit to help you pinpoint exactly where things may be going wrong.
You'll learn what to look for, what to ...
Is it luck? Timing? Maybe. But when you peel back the curtain on authors who consistently sell books and grow an audience, you’ll find they’re playing a different game entirely.
In this episode, we’re breaking down the 5 habits that separate successful authors from the ones still spinning their wheels (and no, it’s not just about being good at Instagram).
You’ll learn:
- Why showing up (even when you don’t feel like it) matters more...
Feeling overwhelmed by all the marketing platforms out there?
You’re not alone. Many authors burn out trying to be everywhere at once—but the ones who thrive know exactly where to focus their efforts.
In this episode, we’ll break down how to choose the right platforms for your book marketing based on what actually works for you.
You'll learn how to:
- Cut through the noise and focus on what truly moves the needl...
Finding the time and energy to create social media posts for marketing while you're writing your book can be one of the biggest challenges authors face. Jenn has a couple quick tips to help you maintain those connections with your readers online without taking too much time away from your writing.
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A lot of online advice about book marketing includes hiring a Public Relations specialist. But what do PR agencies and publicists do, and at what stage of an author's career is it a good idea to hire one?
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If you're toying with the idea of hiring someone to do your social media for you, there are some important things for you to first consider. Many times we think that just handing off our social media for someone else to manage will give us the results that we want. But that isn't always the case. Here are some things that you should do FIRST before hiring someone to manage your social media accounts.
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Another frequent question I get from new authors leading up to their new book release is: “What should my expectations be?” Having a long-term marketing plan, paired with reasonable expectations, can keep us from getting discouraged and keep our sales rolling in well beyond the launch.
Not sure where to start with creating your long-term marketing plan?
Download our free author resource...
I can teach you all of the book marketing strategies and show you everything that you need to do to sell your books, but if you are struggling with this particular mindset, you won't see the success that you're looking for.
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Once authors have addressed the visibility problem we covered in part one of this discussion on why our book isn't selling, the next big factor is how to convert that engagement into a sale.
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Whether you are a new or established author, once the book is done and released, getting people to buy your book is often a challenge. Effective book marketing starts with visibility.
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Must authors have tons of social media followers to be considered by book publishers? What are publishers specifically looking for? I've been bombarded with these questions for the past few weeks, so I figured we should talk about it! In this episode we will discuss what you need on the marketing and social media side of things to get the attention of a publisher.
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Amazon isn't the only place where reviews can have an impact on book sales. So where can authors get more authentic reader reviews and how can we put them to work in our marketing efforts?
We’ve already heard how having an email marketing strategy is essential part of converting social media followers into book buyers. But how do we actually get our ideal readers to subscribe?
Links
“How Authors Can Promote a Book Through Newsletters”
“How to Grow an Author Newsletter”
“Three Things Authors Need to Start Their Newsletter”
A question Jenn receives a lot in her DMs is if it's possible to revive your book sales years after the launch. Absolutely! In this episode we will outline a strategy to help you breathe new life back into your previously released books.
You're probably seeing a lot of disturbing information about AI (ChatGPT, Bard, etc.) in the news and on social media. But is there a way for authors to put it to work for us in an ethical way that can help with weekly book marketing tasks?
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