Excellent (and successful) book promotion campaigns don't happen by accident. Instead, they're the product of careful planning that includes identifying target readers. Marketing plans can encompass many things, from selling copies to attracting the media's attention. The industry term discoverability covers all the things you want to do to help people find out about your book and want to read or cover it. Because of marketplace competition, promotional plans have become more extensive over time. Leaving your book without one puts you at significant risk of falling short of your goals.

Book promotion pros advise you to begin sketching out a promotional plan long before your publication date and refine it as you go along. You might even have specific promotional needs in mind as you finalize your book's content. Making your work easier to promote will help you in the long run, and no one regrets success. Your entire book writing process needs to begin by identifying your target reader – who will benefit from the information or enjoy the story? When you're clear on your reader, and some books have multiple target audiences, it helps align everything from writing to marketing campaigns. 

Your book won't be sold and promoted in a vacuum, so it is also vital to know and understand your competition. It's also why veteran marketers remind authors to use opportunities to tactfully make the point that their books are better than others. If you only talk about your book's topic without playing up its unique and hopefully superior aspects, you will miss opportunities. The self-publishing revolution has brought a flood of books into the marketplace to join the titles of traditional publishers. In the sea of competition, you need to be regarded as offering more exciting content.

Book promotion campaign planning also needs to include a budget. Deciding on how much you can spend and allocating the funds will help accomplish your goals and prevent overspending. You can also have a calendar in your plan with rollout dates for each element. Making sure they happen on time and increase visibility is crucial. Each book is unique, so you'll want to adapt the promotional plan to its needs and target readers. As the program gets underway, you'll make adjustments after seeing which things work best. It's impossible to predict how the media and readers will respond.