by August Isley 2025
Creating an email marketing campaign can be a highly effective way to promote your new book. Here are the first steps to get you started:
1. Define Your Goals
- Identify Objectives: Determine what you want to achieve with your email campaign. Examples include increasing book sales, building a subscriber list, or driving attendance to a book launch event.
- Set Metrics: Decide on key performance indicators (KPIs) to measure success, such as open rates, click-through rates, and conversion rates.
2. Build and Segment Your Email List
- Collect Emails: Gather email addresses from your website, social media, events, and networking. Ensure you have permission to contact these individuals.
- Segment Your List: Divide your email list into segments based on criteria such as interests, location, or engagement level. This allows for targeted and personalized emails.
3. Choose an Email Marketing Platform
- Research Options: Select an email marketing platform that suits your needs. Popular choices include Mailchimp, Constant Contact, and ConvertKit.
- Sign Up and Set Up: Create an account, import your email list, and configure your email templates.
4. Design Your Email Campaign
- Craft Compelling Content: Write engaging and relevant content for your emails. This includes a captivating subject line, an introduction, the main message, and a call to action.
- Use Visuals: Incorporate high-quality images of your book cover, author photo, and any relevant graphics to make your email visually appealing. (Cara Evelyn cautions you to adhere to proper citations.)
- Add Personalization: Personalize your emails by using the recipient’s name and tailoring the content to their interests.
- Don't be Mercenary: Make sure your emails do more than just sell your books. Let your readers get to know you. Toss in a well-loved recipe, photos of your cuddly cat, gardening tips, even cautionary tales! Think of your audience as your friends, not your meal-ticket.
5. Plan Your Campaign Schedule
- Determine Frequency: Decide how often you will send emails. Be consistent but avoid overwhelming your subscribers - or yourself!
- Set Timing: Choose the best time to send your emails based on your audience’s habits. Experiment with different times and analyze results to optimize your schedule.
6. Test and Optimize
- A/B Testing: Conduct A/B tests to compare different subject lines, content, and visuals to see what resonates best with your audience.
- Analyze Results: Monitor the performance of your emails using the metrics you set. Adjust your strategy based on the data to improve future campaigns.
7. Launch and Promote
- Send Emails: Launch your campaign by sending your first email. Ensure it is mobile-friendly and free of errors.
- Promote Campaign: Use social media, your website, and other channels to promote your email campaign and encourage sign-ups.
- Offer them a customized discount coupon for signing up. The coupon can be for your book or just the shop in general. See Cara Evelyn for more details.
8. Respect Declinations Graciously
- Make sure there is an Unsubscribe button on each email.
- If such a request comes in, delete their email address as soon as possible. No reason to argue or feel betrayed. They have their reasons; consider it their loss.
By following these steps, you'll be well on your way to creating a successful email marketing campaign that effectively promotes your new book.
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