296. How to Plan a Successful Book Launch with Danielle Mendoza

Bestselling author and podcast host Danielle Mendoza talks about the best places for a book launch, the details you need to consider, and insider tips about how to make it a success.

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Connect with Danielle on LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/danielle-mendoza-3059788a

Follow her on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/danielle.dietlinmendoza

Transcript

Jennia: Hello, I'm Jennia D'Lima. Welcome to Writing and Editing, the author-focused podcast that takes a whole person approach to everything related to both Writing and Editing. There's a lot to think about when planning a book launch, but where should you start and what should you think about? And when should you start? Podcast host and international bestselling author Danielle Mendoza is an expert on this topic and has helped many authors with this exact issue. And she's here to help us plan a successful book launch.

Jennia: Well, welcome to the show, Danielle!

Danielle Mendoza: Thank you so much for having me! I'm excited to talk about my favorite thing, getting books out into the world.

Jennia: Yes, it's such an important topic too. So how many authors have you helped through this process so far, if you had to estimate?

Danielle Mendoza: Yeah, so I would say it's probably like 40 or 50, if you count my multi-author books as well. So I've done a couple of volumes of multi-author book, and then I am actively working with 13 authors at the moment.

Jennia: Oh wow!

Danielle Mendoza: So yeah, super exciting stuff.

Jennia: That is exciting! Well, how far ahead do you think people should begin thinking about their book launch or planning it?

Danielle Mendoza: I mean, with my clients, I start that conversation before we even get into the writing of the book, to be completely honest. Because I think it's best if you think to yourself, like, "Okay, here I am. I'm published. Now what?"

Jennia: Right.

Danielle Mendoza: In that "Now what?", in the answer to that question . . . It can really inform ways that you want to go about writing your book. Things that should be embedded into the writing of the book, and informs the rest of the process thereafter as well. Because, you know, marketing is so much more than just telling people about your book. It's the cover, it's the title, it's the subtitle, it's the back cover copy. Even in the book itself is marketing you and your thought leadership and the impactful message that you have to share. So we think about that very early on in the process with my authors. But I do have people who are published and come to me and are like, "Okay, now what?" Right? And we'll answer that question together at that point as well and help them craft, you know, as powerful a launch event or, you know, following book events as we can.

Jennia: Yeah. So you bring up an important part of this, too, and it's advice I've seen in other forums online, which is to always think about your audience and to have identified your audience. So I was hoping you could elaborate on that and why it's such a key component.

Danielle Mendoza: Absolutely. I mean, knowing your reader is everything because you are speaking to them in the book. And, in fact, one of the biggest mistakes I see my authors make—and this happens to like every single one of them, myself included, when I write a book—is you have it in your mind, you're, like, "Okay, I'm talking to this person, and this is what their life might look like. This is their psychographic, their demographic." And then we start writing the book, and somehow we find ourselves talking to everyone.

Jennia: Ahh.

Danielle Mendoza: Like, somehow in the absence of a conversational partner—because there is that kind of one-sided nature to a book conversation—we find ourselves just really veering off the track of who it is that we're actually wanting to talk to. And then the number one thing I hear authors say that tells me that they've encountered this problem is, "This book is going to be way longer than I ever thought it was going to be. This could—this is going to need to be, like, five books." And that's always a good clue that they've started talking to everyone or they really broadened that conversation to a wider audience.

Jennia: Yeah.

Danielle Mendoza: And instead we reel them back in—you know, like I said, myself included—and say, "No, I'm focused on this one specific segment of the market, this specific reader." Then all of a sudden we're back in that clarity, focus and saying, "Okay, this is what my book is about. It's at this level in terms of discussion." Like, a great example is a book on spirituality. If you're writing to an audience who's at the 101 level, it's going to look very different than if you're writing to an audience who's at the 301 level of understanding. And it's common when we're speaking to a higher level of expertise to want to go back and explain things in the one on one. Because we think, well, if someone's reading this and they don't know this already, they're not going to understand. And we have to trust that that's okay.

Jennia: Mhm.

Danielle Mendoza: Right? There's lots of resources. If someone doesn't understand, they can either go learn, they can reach out to you to learn, or they can just put the book down and walk away. Because maybe it's not the book for them. And I think that's where we really get into our own ego as writers and authors. And we think—Like, the most devastating thing could be someone picking up our book and going, "This is not for me," and putting it down and walking away. When in truth, just like anything else that we sell, we want to focus on that 10% of the market who is the exact right fit for us. Which means 90% of people are going to go, "Nah, that's not my cup of tea." So to get really comfortable in that egoic space of saying, like, "It's actually good when people self-identify out of my book."

Jennia: Oh yeah!

Danielle Mendoza: And that helps us to keep that focus on the ideal, correct reader as well.

Jennia: I would think, too, even for a book launch, once you get further along and you're picking venues, for instance, whether they're in person or online, that's going to better help you find places where your readers actually are.

Danielle Mendoza: A hundred thousand percent. And it's going to help you identify better places where you get to shine too. Because oftentimes I think the most common thing is people say, "Okay, I want to have a book launch event or a live event," is a great example. And they're like, "It's got to be in a bookstore, let me find the bookstore." And that is actually completely backwards to what I usually teach people to do. Because why put yourself into a room where you're one of many? You want to put yourself into a room where you are the one. Right? So back to that kind of spiritual book example. If you're teaching on spirituality and meditation, maybe you partner with yoga studios and you launch your book events in yoga studios. So you're capitalizing on an audience that's into the thing you're into that you're talking about. But it's a very, kind of ad-free space where they're not being constantly advertised other books about the same thing. If the whole focus is on you and your book and you get to have this really nice, kind of more intimate experience because you are the only one in the room.

Jennia: That's such a novel idea. And yes, that pun was intended, but because we do see that even when we're looking at, like, Threads, or Instagram, or something like that, and people are sharing their advice. And all the events they recommend, I would say, like, 90% of the time it is these other book events. And so, yeah, you are one of hundreds or even thousands selling a book. So do you ever have to convince some of your clients to get out of that mindset that a bookstore is the place to do it?

Danielle Mendoza: I wouldn't say I have to convince them. Once they see what's really possible outside of the bookstore, then they understand the power of it and they naturally want that. Right? We all want to show up in the most powerful way that we can so that our message isn't lost and we're impacting people. And that doesn't mean don't ever do a bookstore event. They can be amazing. Right? You can do a bookstore event very much in the right way. There's book conferences, right? Like author and publisher conferences where you get to meet other authors, link arms with people, kind of exchange audiences in that way. So there's powerful visibility there. But when it comes to actually focusing on selling your book, you want to make sure you're giving yourself, you know, 80% of the time that you're the one in the room that they're paying attention to. And then maybe that other 20% of the time is really about building your author network and building up that credibility of, like, "Here I am in this bookstore, presenting my book," you know, and having those photo opportunities that you can leverage.

Jennia: Do you think those types of events are more important early on in an author career or do they stay pretty stable throughout as far as their level of importance?

Danielle Mendoza: As far as, like, the book centric events and conferences, I think it really is a matter of ongoing. Like, it's something that you want to continue to build your community of fellow authors and publishers in an ongoing way because that is going to create partnerships and collaboration opportunities that will give you a new level of visibility. But you want to be really strategic about it. So a lot of these conferences that are sold are actually run by a company who's pitching you something the entire conference. There are some that are super credible where it really is about building that community, so you just want to make sure you understand what you're getting into, what you're paying for. Is it worth paying for?

Jennia: Right.

Danielle Mendoza: What are you going to get out of it, right? What's your expectation there? And knowing ahead of time like, "This is what I'm going into. I know this publisher is putting on this conference, they're going to pitch me their services the whole time. But I'm going to walk away with, you know, 10 other authors I can link arms with." I always say any time you're attending an event or putting on a book event, whatever venue you head to, you want to think of it as a brand partnership—

Jennia: Ahh.

Danielle Mendoza: —Is this a brand I'm willing to partner my brand with? Even if you're an author by trade, you have your personal brand.

Jennia: Mhm.

Danielle Mendoza: And so is that something that's going to connect with your audience and lift you up, or is it something that's going to kind of reduce or damage your reputation and make the decision accordingly?

Jennia: And we do see people doing that. And I know, even just personally, I have felt inclined to say yes to something when it was presented to me. Not because I necessarily felt like I aligned with it even 75%, but there's that feeling of, "What if I say no to this and then, you know, someone else decides not to invite me for whatever reason because I declined?" But yeah, I do think that that authentic branding and making sure that it matches your authentic branding, especially in the long term, is going to be more important.

Danielle Mendoza: Yeah. And like you said, you know, sometimes you say yes to things because it's more about the relationship you're building with the person who invited you than it is about partnering up with whatever brand space you're going to step into. And that can be okay too. Like, that is strategic as a decision as well. So just knowing that, you know, you're not kind of in the tide of authorship and you're just flowing wherever it's taking you, because that's a fast way to go broke. I'll be completely honest. But if you're being strategic in these decisions, you're cultivating real relationships—Like, be a human. Go in these rooms and be a human. You're not there as a book sales machine. You're not there only for your own benefit, but to serve and give value as well. So I say, "Just stick with that, stick with your authentic self, and be a real human in the room with other humans, and it will always work out in your favor."

Jennia: Well, so apart from thinking about audience as an example, what are some of the other pieces that authors should think about before their launch?

Danielle Mendoza: So every book event, or even your initial book launch, requires marketing. Right? You have to give yourself that 6 to 12 week marketing runway because that's what it's going to take to get people in the room. So even if you partner with, let's say, a yoga studio, and you know that they're going to market your event, they're going to bring people in, you should be marketing to bring people in just as much, if not more so than they are. Right? So it's this mutually beneficial reciprocity of both your brands marketing the event, and you're both bringing people in. And you might bring people who come for your book and decide to join the yoga studio. Right?

Jennia: Right.

Danielle Mendoza: —The yoga studio brings people who are members and students, and then they want your book. So it's a beautiful kind of mixture of people in the room. So giving yourself that space for marketing so that you can kind of ramp up toward the event, and don't just plan an event two weeks out and assume because you said something three times people are going to show up. It takes, like, 20 to 40 touches now for people to make a decision to attend or take, you know, advantage of something. And so you have to feel like a broken record. You have to feel like all you talk about is your book and your book event. But that means other people are going to hear about it just enough to make the decision and come join you.

Jennia: Yeah. So what then about people who maybe go too far in the other direction, and it just begins to feel like you're being spammed with reminders about this event? How do you find that balance, then, in between?

Danielle Mendoza: I think it's leveraging what's naturally happening as an opportunity to talk about the book and the event. So I teach this to all of my clients. I call it leveraging before publishing, because we can start leveraging the book before it's even on the market. And the way we do that is by talking about the natural experience of the process of writing and publishing this book. First, there's this announcement of, like, "You know what? I'm going to write this book, and here's who it's for. And here's the conversation I'm having with these people in the book. And here's why this matters. Here's why this matters, not only to me as the person who's putting it together, but to the person who is the ideal reader. This is how this book can impact their life." And then sharing, you know, "I just finished chapter one. I talked about this idea, which is like the foundation of understanding this thing that I'm discussing in the book." You know, "Chapter two is done, and I was just talking to my sister on the phone about it, and she had this really good input about XYZ idea. And it just made me think. Like, yes, that's it. She's got it." Right? So you have all these ways to have this conversation and continue to say, "My book, my book, my book," without being like, "My book, my book, don't forget my book, my book, here's my book."

Jennia: Right.

Danielle Mendoza: You know, it really is more about the deeper idea and the deeper meaning behind it. And that's what's going to emotionally tie people into the interest anyway. So it becomes an authentic way to stay top of mind without being annoying.

Jennia: Right. Plus, there's not that repetition then that way too. So you're still talking about the same topic, but in a different way. And it's not just, you know, that same reminder about this event being sent to your inbox or whatever it is, you know, 100 times in three months.

Danielle Mendoza: Exactly. And, you know, highlight the venue that you're having your event in. Again, it—back to the yoga studio idea. Why did you partner with this yoga studio? What do you love about what they offer? How do you know the owner or one of the teachers there? What is it that you love about them? Have you taken classes there? What did you enjoy? Or have you never taken a class there, and you're super excited to get to check out their space and sign up for some classes, right? Make it about them as much as it is about you. And that's another way to remind people about the event, but not necessarily be like, "Me, me, me" in the entire promotion of it.

Jennia: Right. So what are some different steps that people need to take if they're planning an in-person versus a solely online event?

Danielle Mendoza: So running an in person event versus running a virtual event are very different. You have to hold the space in very different ways. So, of course, when it comes to an in-person event, you have to curate the space a bit more. You have to think, like, what are the small touches around the room? Are there flowers around the room? Am I bringing crystals with me? Am I bringing, you know, 30 copies of my book that are going to be sitting on a table? Or am I going to have like three or four different tables with maybe some books and other merchandise that I can promote for my business? And then in terms of virtual, how am I keeping people engaged? How am I communicating that I want people there, cameras on, mics on, ready to lean in and engage in this conversation? How do I make it a community event and not just an event where I'm sitting up front talking about my book the entire time? And then also thinking about, like, what is the additional benefit? So, yes, they're coming to get to know you deeper, to hear about the book, but is there an additional benefit for them to attend? Is there some kind of discount on the book? Is there a bundle that goes with the book as a thank you for attending? You know, what is the benefit there, and how are you going to work those in to the conversation with the community so that they're aware of it, but it's not, like, "Thanks for coming, buy this other thing"?

Jennia: And do you think that having reviews for the book before your launch is necessary? And if so, how do people then get those reviews?

Danielle Mendoza: Yeah, so when we're talking like the initial launch of the book online, like, the very first sales of it, I think what you can do is—what I teach my people to do is to build out their launch team. And the launch team is people who already believe in you, they're excited about your book, they're like your raving fans. And you give them a digital version of the book about three weeks ahead of launch so they have the opportunity to read it and formulate their own ideas about it. Then you can activate that in different ways. So, number one, the day of launch, you want them to go purchase a copy and leave a review right away. So they're a verified purchase and they're leaving an honest review because they've had time to take in the book. The other way you can activate that is you can say, "Hey, you know, it's a week until launch. Can you go on social and share something about the book? Maybe do a live or post a picture of yourself"—

Jennia: Mhm.

Danielle Mendoza: —"and talk about something that you took away from the book?" And you'll get really profound personal insights from people. It's always a lot of fun for me as an author to hear that what people took away from my book. Because as much as I put intention into it to deliver something to them, people are so much smarter than we give them credit for. And they connect dots that I'm, like, "I didn't even connect." Like, that—Like, it blows my mind to hear that what they took away. And so it's a lot of fun for you and for them. And then making sure that there's a hashtag for your book that they can all use, especially on social, so that you've got this consistent kind of brand focus for the book itself. And then leveraging those reviews is great. You can screenshot things from Amazon, you can share the posts that people share about your book. And it does get people excited to read the book. And then when it comes to book events, after the initial launch of the book, same thing, share those reviews. You know, when I published Manifest Success, one of my reviews I still share to this day, and that was three years ago, was, "It's the perfect combination of woo and practical." And I just love that. I'm, like, that is what I intended for this book. And it lets people know that they're going to get that spiritual side of things, but in a really practical way that's not confusing or elusive. And so, if I were to host the launch event for that in future times, I would bring that up, like, come experience that blend of woo and practical and be in the room.

Jennia: Yeah. I went to a marketing event with Bryan Paone, who's also an author, and he had said something then about using something from the reviews as your elevator pitch. Because just like what you were saying, that they'll sometimes pick up on something that never even crossed your mind, and yet it's so succinct and just really narrows it down to exactly what it is. So, hey, why not?

Danielle Mendoza: Yeah, exactly. And, like, I can tell you the book is a blend of woo and practical because that's my intention. But when someone else tells you that's what they got from it, now there's more truth to it because it's not just me promoting my thing, it's someone's lived experience of that book.

Jennia: Well, speaking of socials, what are your thoughts about the author needing a social media platform?

Danielle Mendoza: There's a lot of ways to be successful without social. I'm going to be probably kind of, like, counterintuitive for people here, but, you know, if you love social, like, if you're a social person and you want to be social—Like, again, always be a human, be genuine. Don't get on Facebook or Instagram and just start, like, blasting things because you're supposed to. Because the energy behind that is going to be dull—

Jennia: Mhm.

Danielle Mendoza: —People are going to notice. But think of it like a house party. You know, like, how would you interact with people at a house party that's, like, very large, with lots of people? And use social in that way. And if you're excited about that, if you're comfortable with that, if you love that, go for it. If you absolutely despise it, if you're, like, being on social makes me want to vomit, I never want to do it a day in my life, please, for the love of God, don't do it (both laugh). Like, just don't. There are so many other ways to get seen. You can do a podcast tour. You can do, you know, local city book tours where you travel around. Different networking groups are always welcoming to authors. And so if you get plugged in with a specific networking group that has many city chapters, you can travel around that way. There's lots of different ways to leverage the SEO from your author website, to leverage Goodreads, even leveraging Amazon. So there's so many ways to focus on your book without being on social that if you don't enjoy it, just don't do it.

Jennia: Well, I read something else that talked about using your book launch to begin the momentum for continuing to market your book. And I wanted to know what you had—if you have any suggestions about that or how to do that?

Danielle Mendoza: Yeah, the launch is just the beginning. I mean, that's really our agency belief is publishing is just the beginning. Once your book is published, it's continuing to leverage that wave of energy that comes anytime you do an event or a launch around the book. And you start off with the book launch the day it's published, and your goal is bestseller and so you're selling copies. And then after that, your goal is to engage those people who have read it.

Jennia: Mmm.

Danielle Mendoza: Engage them for photos on social media, tagging you for reviews. You might even run a review campaign where you're, like, "Hey, we've got 57 reviews. When I get to 100, everybody who sends me a screenshot of their review is going to get entered into this raffle for this prize," right? And being able to continue to leverage the attention and the interaction around the book in different ways so that you go on to continue selling books, to continue selling your service or product, and continue being top of mind in your market. Because it's a community activity, it's a community interaction. Again, it's not just spamming them with, "Read my book, read my book, read my book." Because then you're always looking for new people, right? These people already have your book. So how are you continuing to engage with them around the book using the book as a vehicle to fuel that engagement versus just focusing on book sales alone?

Jennia: Well, are there any common mistakes that you see people make with book launches that you would advise listeners to avoid?

Danielle Mendoza: I think the number one mistake you can make is not building a launch team. Your launch team is your group of people who are going to be your marketing linchpins. So building a really intentional launch team of people who you know are not only excited about the book, but are just excited about you, about your success, you know, that want to see you win, and you have a genuine connection with them in a relationship. And so they become part of the catalyst for that book success and for your own success because they're happy to do it. Like, they're celebrating alongside you just as much as you're celebrating yourself. That is the key. And forming it early enough that you can engage them, get them the book, give them a chance to read it, you know, continue to engage in that conversation with them so that when launch day comes, it's, like, a no brainer activity. Because they've been waiting and they're just as excited as you are.

Jennia: Any suggestions on how to do that? How to find people for a launch team?

Danielle Mendoza: So I think it comes down to leveraging your existing network, which means we all need to be working on building relationships and rapport with the people around us. And again, in a very genuine human way. It's not about, like, "Well, I know I have a book coming up in a year, so I'm going to go out and build these relationships." But just building the relationships for the sake of relationship first and foremost—

Jennia: Mhm.

Danielle Mendoza: —And then focusing on, how can I serve them? Like, I know I'm going to make an ask of them at some point, whether I have a book or not. That's the natural reciprocity of human relationship, especially surrounding business. So how can I serve them? What do they need from me right now? Maybe my book is coming out in six months. They've agreed to be on my launch team. So I'm, like, "What are you promoting? What can I share on your behalf?"

Jennia: Aww, I love that. I just love that it makes more of that feeling of community too. And not, like, you know, you're being used for a review or all that matters in this relationship is whether or not you do leave that four- or five-star review. But it goes so far beyond that.

Danielle Mendoza: Absolutely, absolutely. And, you know, I appreciate nothing more than an honest review. Like, even three stars. Like, tell me what was missing because that will make me better as an author in the future, right?

Jennia: And beyond [saying], "I didn't like it" (laughs).

Danielle Mendoza: Yeah. So I welcome all of it. And I think every author should. It's—Sometimes people are just nasty and you're like, "Okay, like, giant grain of salt, we're moving on." But most of the time people are really well intentioned. So are we willing to, you know, let our ego step aside and say, "I can be better?" It can be a beautiful process of growth.

Jennia: So, so true. Well, so where can listeners find you and learn more about you and your services?

Danielle Mendoza: So I'm on LinkedIn. I'm also on Facebook. I'm super active on both of those platforms. And on LinkedIn, I have my own show called "Brainstorm Your Bestseller Live," where I talk to aspiring and existing authors all about, you know, all things book. How are we leveraging it? What are our book ideas? How do we tie those into our business so that it makes sense for us economically? All that good stuff. And I would love to see everyone over there!

Jennia: That sounds fantastic already. Well, thank you again!

Danielle Mendoza: Thank you so much! And thanks to everyone for listening.

Jennia: And thank you for listening and be sure to check out the show notes for additional information. And please join me next week when author Alyssa Hazel visits to share her strategies for achieving work-life balance as a writer. Thanks again!