Except, not quite\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Believe it or not, the risk of burnout doesn\u2019t end once your book is published.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Building your author platform, promoting your latest release, or gaining new readers is a constant worry for authors. For self-published authors especially, the pressure couldn\u2019t be higher. All of this creates the perfect recipe for burnout\u2014specifically, for book marketing <\/em>burnout.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Burnout is something many writers are familiar with, but it\u2019s also something you might struggle to admit. It\u2019s easy to make excuses for why you\u2019re feeling exhausted or worn down\u2014especially when admitting you\u2019re burnt out means facing the fact that your marketing efforts aren\u2019t working.<\/p>\n\n\n\n So, how do you know when you\u2019re experiencing burnout, rather than just getting sick?<\/p>\n\n\n\n Well, burnout (no matter the specific type) is defined as a feeling of intense emotional or mental exhaustion. This is usually a result of extreme stress. Many things can trigger this stress, but some common causes are:<\/p>\n\n\n\n Whatever your trigger is, this burnout manifests as a lack of motivation, feelings of depression, and an inability to get excited about things you used to enjoy. You might even start to hate your books or avoid writing altogether.<\/p>\n\n\n\n There are physical symptoms of burnout too:<\/p>\n\n\n\n All of these are signs that you might be burnt out\u2014and, as you can hopefully see, this goes beyond normal stress. Feeling stressed by your work (even your beloved books) is to be expected on occasion. However, that stress should always have an end in sight. Being stressed because of an upcoming book launch is normal. Having that stress linger for months afterwards is less so.<\/p>\n\n\n\n NOTE:<\/strong> Burnout and writer\u2019s block may sound similar, but they\u2019re actually very different things. For more on those differences, check out this article.<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n With the symptoms of burnout in mind, you might be wondering: \u201cWhy does book marketing<\/a> lend itself to burnout in particular?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n As most authors know, marketing is vital to a book\u2019s success. After all, you need to reach new readers to sell more books<\/a> (hot take, I know)! This means making the most of everything from ads to email marketing, social media, podcast interviews<\/a>, guest appearances, and more.<\/p>\n\n\n\n On their own, these tactics are a great way to expand your audience. However, they can also become overwhelming very quickly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n There\u2019s a ton of pressure on self-published authors to be everywhere and do everything\u2014so much so that many authors spend more time marketing than writing. It\u2019s easy to tell yourself that, because the authors around you are doing it, you have to too. Otherwise, you fear you\u2019ll fall behind.<\/p>\n\n\n\n All of this creates the perfect storm.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The intense pressure to market your book and the dozens of ways you can do so pile on until your brain shuts down. There simply aren\u2019t enough hours in the day, and eventually you burn out.<\/p>\n\n\n\r\n See why Publisher Rocket users love our support team.<\/p>\n Check It Out Here<\/a> <\/div>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n<\/section>\r\n\r\n\n\n\n Though it\u2019s sometimes difficult to admit, I spent most of 2020 suffering from severe burnout (creative, marketing, and everything in between). Obviously, a lot was going on that year, but I can still remember how hard book marketing felt in particular. I was juggling so many different tasks that, eventually, it just became too much. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Fortunately, after a lot of self-reflection and some helpful advice from other authors, I was able to get my act together. So, here are the tactics I used to overcome book marketing burnout and develop a healthier relationship with my writing life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Before you do anything else, start by hitting the brakes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Though you might try to tell yourself otherwise, burnout is a sign that your current marketing tactics aren\u2019t working. Even if you\u2019re selling tons of books and making a solid living (which, hey, good on you!) being a happy, healthy writer<\/a> requires a balance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Burnout is not<\/em> that balance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n So, before we can talk about goals or automation, give yourself some time off. Take a weekend to rest. Heck, take a whole week! You\u2019ll come back once that time is up with a clearer perspective and a better grasp on what you want for the future.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Once you\u2019ve taken a break from book marketing and started to recover, it\u2019s time to figure out where you\u2019ll go from here. You obviously don\u2019t want to end up burnt out again, so\u2026 what\u2019s next?<\/p>\n\n\n\n Well, this is a good time to assess your efforts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Grab a sheet of paper and write down everything you do to market your books<\/a>. This might be obvious things like posting on social media or running a newsletter swap, but it could also be:<\/p>\n\n\n\n Whatever your book marketing looks like, get it down on paper. Then, write down how much each of these tactics costs, both in terms of your money and time. Finally, record your results. On a scale of 1-10, how successful would you consider each tactic? Is it producing the kinds of results you want? If you have hard numbers, include those here as well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Alongside your list of marketing tactics, you\u2019ll also want to understand your goals:<\/p>\n\n\n\n For this step, saying \u201cI want to make more money,\u201d or \u201cI want to sell more books,\u201d isn\u2019t enough. Instead, make your goals specific, such as \u201cI want to make 30k this year from my author business,\u201d or \u201cI want to sell 200 books every month.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n From there, you can take this one step further. Ask yourself\u2026 What does success mean to you?<\/p>\n\n\n\n This can be tricky to answer, because success is unique to each individual author. Still, understanding what being a successful author<\/a> means to you will go a long way in helping you understand your goals, as well as ensure they\u2019re in alignment with what you truly want.<\/p>\n\n\n\n If they aren\u2019t, don\u2019t be afraid to change them!<\/p>\n\n\n\n Burnout is often caused by feeling overwhelmed, unable to finish your to-do list without a herculean effort. While you might be able to handle that on occasion, no one can deal with that level of stress for weeks on end.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This means one of the best ways to handle book marketing burnout is to reduce your marketing efforts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Now, I know what you\u2019re thinking. That sounds crazy! If you reduce your marketing, you\u2019ll lose sales, miss out on new readers, and maybe even fail <\/em>as an author\u2014right?<\/p>\n\n\n\n Well, no, not really! Remember that tactics list from earlier? If you followed my advice, you wrote down not only the tactic itself, but also how much it cost and how effective it was. Was it creating the results you wanted? Was it worth the time and energy you put in? If you answered no to either of these questions, it probably warrants being crossed off your list. Though it might feel scary now, you\u2019ll be better off focusing your efforts where they\u2019re most productive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Of course, even after you\u2019ve crossed items off your book marketing to-do list, you\u2019ll probably still have a lot left on your plate. There are tons of excellent marketing options out there, meaning lots of ways you could be spending your time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This is where doubling down on the things you enjoy becomes helpful. All writers have strengths and weaknesses, whether in writing, marketing, or anything in between. Perhaps you love design, and thus enjoy platforms like Instagram or Pinterest. Or, maybe you communicate best via video, and love to connect with readers through interviews and livestreams.<\/p>\n\n\n\n With your strengths in mind, consider these two questions:<\/p>\n\n\n\n Whatever your favorites are, this is where you should spend most of your time. If you\u2019re enjoying yourself, that positivity will shine through! Not only will this improve your results, but you\u2019ll also be less likely to feel overwhelmed too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In the age of social media<\/a>, most authors feel like they need to be on every platform. From Twitter to Instagram, Pinterest, and even LinkedIn, a lot of us are dealing with serious social media overload.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This trend needs to stop. As I\u2019ve said many times now, there simply aren\u2019t enough hours in the day, and trying to be everywhere inevitably leads to burnout.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Because of this, marketing your book in a few targeted places should be your goal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n To do this, find the overlap between where your readers hang out and where you actually enjoy being. This particularly applies to social media, but it works with other platforms too. If most of your readers are on Kindle, Amazon ads are probably worth focusing on, while Google ads might not be\u2014just as one example.<\/p>\n\n\n\n No matter where you spend your time, home in on the one or two platforms you truly benefit from. Then, don\u2019t hesitate to ditch the rest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Authors are incredibly fortunate these days. Even ten years ago, a lot of important writing tasks were completely analog, whereas now there's a whole suite of excellent tools available to simplify our work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n If you\u2019re suffering from book marketing burnout, these tools become especially valuable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Perhaps you need to help managing your author newsletter, in which case a platform like Convertkit is a great option. Maybe you want a way to schedule social media posts in advance, such as with a program like Tailwind. Or, perhaps you\u2019re trying to boost your visibility with stronger keywords, making Publisher Rocket<\/a> worth its weight in gold.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Which of these options is right for you will depend on what you\u2019re struggling with\u2014and, like your book marketing efforts themselves, you don\u2019t need to use every tool available.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Still, automating parts of your marketing is a great way to not only reduce your daily workload, but also give yourself the space to take time off. Even when you\u2019re relaxing, these systems will chug away, ensuring your book is reaching the right readers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n One key cause of burnout that\u2019s often overlooked is a lack of social support. Having a supportive network of friends and family who both encourage us and<\/em> tell us when to take breaks is vital to our happiness. However, family and friends don\u2019t always understand the specific challenges authors face\u2014which is where finding other self-published authors becomes important.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Because of this, one of the best ways to combat book marketing burnout is to find your peers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n These peers are other authors who are at a similar point in their writing journey. Their audience is about the same size as yours, they write in a similar genre, and they\u2019ve likely been at this for about the same amount of time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n While you certainly shouldn\u2019t limit your network<\/a> to only these peers, having a few author friends who are in your same shoes is invaluable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n For starters, you can help each other with your book marketing efforts, such as through newsletter swaps or social media shout outs. More importantly, you can also provide moral support. Having someone to go to for advice and camaraderie is perhaps the best way to mitigate the stress of the writing life. So, as intimidating as it may be, don\u2019t be afraid to reach out to your writing peers. You never know when a lifelong friendship will form!<\/p>\n\n\n\n Finally, no one is perfect, and trying to be<\/em> perfect is a recipe for misery. Ask me how I know\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n Unfortunately, in the world of book marketing, perfection is often the goal. We\u2019re constantly told that our marketing needs to be perfect in order to compete in such a crowded industry. Thousands of books are jockeying for readers' attention, meaning we have to get everything just right in order to \u201cwin\u201d that top spot. No matter what our goals are, there\u2019s a constant pressure to succeed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Quite frankly, this pressure is bogus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Everyone fails, whether that\u2019s a full on \u201ccrash and burn\u201d or simply a minor misstep. Trying to avoid this is fruitless and only exacerbates the stress of being an author.<\/p>\n\n\n\n So, to avoid getting trapped by burnout in the future, allow yourself to make mistakes. Forgive yourself when something goes wrong, and learn from it when you can. Above all, don\u2019t treat taking a break like admitting defeat. If your book marketing efforts start to feel overwhelming again, press pause! Return to the parts of writing you deeply enjoy, whether that\u2019s crafting a vibrant protagonist<\/a> or outlining your next story<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When you\u2019re ready to dive back in, your books will be waiting for you.<\/p>\n\n\n\r\n\n
Table of contents<\/h2>
The Symptoms of Book Marketing Burnout<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Why Marketing Is So Overwhelming<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Nine Ways to Overcome Book Marketing Burnout<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
1. Stop What You're Doing<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
2. Assess Your Efforts<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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3. Get Clear on Your Goals<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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4. Trim the Fat<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
5. Play to Your Strengths<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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6. Don't Be Everywhere<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
7. Automate What You Can<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
8. Find Your Peers<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
9. Take the Pressure Off<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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