Steps of a Nonfiction Business Book Marketing and PR Campaign

Intro

In June 2024, Alison Nissen of Florida Writer Podcast and Ella Ritchie of Stellar Communications Houston discussed nonfiction book publishing, marketing, and PR. They covered information in Ella’s blog post, “Rock Your Nonfiction Book Launch.” 

Show notes: 

• Differences Between Marketing and PR for Nonfiction [01:02]
• Defining and Aligning Your Mission [02:12]
• Taking a Book from Idea to Publication [03:23]
• Creating a Marketable Manuscript [06: 40]
• Launching Your Book [09:09]
• Navigating the Publication and Distribution Process [13:00]

Overview of the steps of book marketing & PR

Step 1: Build a Buzz-Worthy Book

Step 2: Reach Your Circle of Influence

Step 3: Prep Your Online Presence

Step 4: Navigate Print & Online Media

Step 5: Launch Your Book 

Step 6: Keep the Momentum

Q&A with Attendees

Transcript of the webinar

Alison: Hello and welcome to another edition of the Florida Writer Podcast with your host, Alison Nissen. Today, I am lucky enough to be with Ella Ritchie. Ella, could you give us a 60-second elevator pitch about who you are and what you do?

Ella: Yes, thank you, Alison. I’m really excited to be here. My name is Ella Ritchie. I am the founder of Stellar Communications Houston.

We are a nonfiction book publishing, marketing, and PR company for self-publishing authors, which means memoirists, business book leaders, nonprofits, corporations, and families. 

Alison: That’s amazing. Can you tell me what the difference is between marketing and PR for nonfiction versus fiction?

Ella: Well, we are solely a nonfiction team, so I can speak to nonfiction. We are best for people who really want one of two purposes: they either want to leave a legacy or they want to leverage their books as tools for their businesses.

So all of our marketing and PR efforts are about aligning their business goals or their personal goals with their book as a tool.

Alison: And if they’re aligning their book as a tool, one of those things might be trying to get speaking gigs. Is that true?

Ella: Speaking is a big part of it, yes. Most of the people who approach us for a book project are not quite set up for speaking. Part of our role is getting their mission in order and their message in order so that they are not only ready for a book but also for speaking engagements.

Alison: All right, let’s go to mission. How do you define mission? How do you recognize that somebody’s mission is a little fuzzy?

Ella: It’s usually a little fuzzy at first, but a good ghostwriter, book coach, or publisher will ensure that your mission is fully defined for the book. The mission can be any purpose, either personal or business. Most people have a very lofty vision, a lofty mission, which I love.

Our job is to connect the dots from where they are to where they want to be, and a book can absolutely help you get there.

Alison: Right. I meet so many people at meetings and conferences who have nothing to do with writing, but they say, “Oh, I want to write a book.” What does that person start with? They have the book idea in their mind and a vision of what that book can do for them, but they don’t know what the dots look like.

How do you take that person from “I want to write a book” to “Let’s write that book”?

Ella: Good question, because I get that a lot. Many people say they have a great book idea, but most of them never actually take the time to get it in writing. My first piece of advice is accountability. If you are serious about any goal, particularly a book goal, you need some kind of accountability in place right off the bat. That separates the dreamers from the doers.

When someone is willing to put accountability in place from the start, that’s when I know they’re serious. It can be in the form of a public deadline for their book. I’ve had authors post their goals on Facebook, which is very humbling. A book coach or a ghostwriter can also help keep you accountable and ensure it gets done in a reasonable timeline.

Alison: So let’s talk about the timeline. I’ve written a book, and now you’re going to help me publish it, market it, represent me, and help me get my mission and goals oriented in the right direction. What happens now? 

Ella: It’s a fairly long process. It can be sped up, but for best quality, you want to give it the space it deserves. Publishing is a five-step process. First, you need to get it written down, which can take about a year to two years, depending on if you have help or not. Then, there are several more steps: graphic design, which takes a few months; printing, which takes a couple of months; distribution, which takes time to get in order; and the marketing process, which has six aspects to it.

Marketing efforts start at the very beginning of the process and extend throughout the lifetime of your book, but the most concentrated efforts are from the writing process through launch day and for another six months past launch day. But then of course it’s an ongoing effort over the lifetime of your book.

Alison: So we need to build a buzz-worthy book. What’s a buzz-worthy book? 

Ella: That’s step one. It’s very important to start with a marketable manuscript. Most manuscripts I receive are not quite marketable yet, but that’s okay. Our job is to make it marketable, meaning your readers will be compelled to read it, want to read it, and tell others about it.

To make your manuscript marketable, we focus on fundamentals: your mission, target audience, promise to the reader, calls to action, goals for your launch, how to measure success, and lead magnets that align with your marketing efforts. When you tie these things together, you have a really marketable book that stands out.

Alison: That is such great advice. By the way, that was perfect for fiction as well as nonfiction. 

Ella:  Yes

Alison:  There’s really not much difference. One thing I see with fiction writers is they don’t approach the book as a business. They don’t approach their writing as a business. When you have a nonfiction book, particularly from a business author, they understand the business side of things and can get into that mindset faster. But embracing the idea that you are on an entrepreneurial journey when you are a writer is crucial. 

How about a book launch? What’s the big secret for a book launch? With so many people online, what do you see as the leading edge of a book launch?

Ella: I want to start with expectations because everyone wants to be a bestseller. There’s a lot of talk about being a bestselling author, and most clients want to have a bestselling book. I start by discussing what it means to be a bestseller. There are misconceptions today. I appreciate a writer who recently published her book on Amazon and got on LinkedIn to say, “I am listed as a hot new release. I’ve sold four copies.” Most people don’t realize that selling four copies can earn you that categorization on Amazon. 

The truth is it’s very difficult to make sales on Amazon or anywhere. Being a New York Times bestseller would mean about 3,000 sales in one week, which is challenging. But it is possible. You can also be an Amazon bestseller with very few sales. A successful launch means understanding your goals and how to accomplish them so you feel satisfied. It’s about giving to your audience. We usually discuss whether a hard launch or a soft launch is right for you and your audience.

Alison: That’s great advice. For me, the hardest part is the writing, getting your butt in the chair, holding yourself accountable, and getting words on the page. It’s not easy. You’re writing to a void on a computer screen or pen and paper, and it feels surreal that it’s there. Once you can write “The End,” you’re like, “Wow, now I need to do all this stuff.” But it’s about building from the beginning, right? You’re building your audience from the beginning. So, we have print and online media markets. How do people navigate that in publishing?

Ella: When we talk about publishing, we talk about distribution. We have incredible empowerment as authors with huge distributors at our fingertips who can get our books on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Walmart, Target, and more. It’s actually a pretty simple process to use this technology and reach far. 

Alison: Yeah, it’s fantastic. We have people who stick with Amazon and others who use other avenues like IngramSpark. Do you, as a company, use those services or do you do everything independently? 

Ella: I use those services, and I’m a big advocate of wide distribution. I pair Amazon with IngramSpark for wide distribution so we can reach our readers in every format best for them. For audiobooks, we use ACX, the Amazon audiobook company, and Findaway Voices for wider distribution.

Alison: Audiobooks are something I haven’t even scratched the surface of, other than podcasts. Ella, what else are we missing? What can you leave our listeners with?

Ella: I want them to know that book marketing is as lengthy and involved a process as book publishing. It’s very important to give it its own budget, space, energy, and time. Our five steps of publishing are well outlined, but marketing also has its own steps.

In marketing, there are six aspects: building a buzzworthy book, reaching your circle of influence, prepping your online presence, navigating print and online media, launching your book, and keeping the momentum. All of these aspects need to tie together and coordinate for a successful launch.

Alison: Ella Ritchie, this has been an exciting conversation. How can people learn more about you and Stellar Communications Houston?

Ella: We are based in Houston but work with authors all over the States. You can find out more at stellarwriter.com. If you go to the blog section, you can subscribe to my monthly book marketing and publishing tips.

Alison: That’s exciting. Someone else to add to my rotation. Love it. Ella, are you ready to switch to our rapid-fire questions? 

Ella: Let’s do it! 

Alison: Do you like to go fishing?

Ella: I like to watch people go fishing.

Alison: It’s like sitting in the golf cart watching somebody else play golf. Are you an index card fan? 

Ella: Not only am I a fan of them, I was actually published in Parents Magazine for a parenting tip where I had maps and directions on a little index card ring. Obviously this was before our cell phones and Google maps and all that. But yeah, I was actually published for my love of index cards. 

 Alison: That’s great. Do you have a favorite pen that you like to use?

Ella: I do. I got it at a nonprofit event and I’m obsessed with it. I talk to people about it in meetings. It’s a very unhealthy obsession with my one pen.

Alison: All right, super fun. Any clue? What is it? Is it a specific type of pen?

Ella: It’s just this little, beautiful, very elegant pen actually. I’ve Googled it and found it. I plan on buying a bunch of them for me and my clients. But yeah, it’s just a very smooth ballpoint pen.

Alison: Awesome. Well, Ella Ritchie, thank you so much for stopping by.

Ella: Thank you, Alison.

Alison: You’ve been listening to another edition of the Florida Writer Podcast with your host, Alison Nissen. Alison out. We’re all done.

Ella: That was wonderful. Thank you so much.

Alison: Ella Ritchie is the founder of Stellar Communications Houston, a premium nonfiction book publishing, marketing, and PR team for self-publishing nonfiction authors. She’s been delighted to publish and promote memoirs, business leaders, nonprofits, families, and corporations.

When she’s not on Zoom calls with her spectacular team, you can find her scribbling strategy, sipping black coffee, and listening to jazz music. Discover more about Ella at stellarwriter.com. 

For more information about the Florida Writers Association, visit us at floridawriters.org. Until next time.