Julie Broad critiques generic, broad 'blast to our network' book-marketing promises and argues for targeted, audience-fit strategies. She warns that feel-good activities (press releases, social posts, TV appearances) often don’t move sales unless they reach the target reader, and emphasizes precision — likening good marketing to a sniper, not a cannonball — and recommends focusing support and activities during the critical first 90 days after launch.
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What specific marketing services are included? Pr, social media, podcasts, tours, email strategy, bookstore outreach. You do not want the answer to be we'll issue a press release, design a bookmark, and blast out on a wire service. That sounds good, but honestly, it's about as effective as stapling your book to a telephone pole and hoping someone like Oprah walks by. And if a company tells you, oh, we'll share your book on our social media or website, you better be asking, do the people who follow you actually match my target reader? So because if not, it's just noise. It's not going to sell books Good book marketing is like a sniper, not a cannonball. A cannonball shot into the ocean might look impressive with a splash, but it almost never hits anything. But a sniper. That's precise. It's targeted. That's what moves books and builds your brand. And remember, some activities look good, even feel good, like tv, but they don't actually move the needle on your bigger goals. That's not always bad. It's fine to do things for the feel good factor. Just be clear on the outcome you're expecting. In other words, don't expect thought leadership or big book sales from something that isn't set up to deliver that. You can also make this question even more specific to be how do you support authors in the first 90 days around their launch? Most of the buzz, the media attention, and the sales momentum are going to happen in that window. So understanding how a company plans to support you during that time, or what you will need to do because do it is really important.
