How to Organize a #Successful #BookLaunch

It may not be the end of summer, but with school around the corner, it's the end of MY summer... And though I had a rocky start, it's finished out fantabulous! I turned bad news into an opportunity and published my 6th book with more re-publishings on the way. With the Windy Hollow Release Tour complete, it's time to talk about results and PRIZES!

First, I'll give it to you by the numbers...Over the 45 days of my release tour:

• 563 likes, tweets, posts, and chat participants from my awesome volunteers!
• which averages to: 80 shout-outs per week!
• 7 average number of #WedWrant participants per week -- a big hit! (more info in a min)
• 1073 views of my blog posts

Not only did I reconnect and strengthen relationships with established friends, I also made several new ones!

• Many new followers on social media
• New subscribers to youtube channel and newsletter
• Lots of new connections via guest post comments

And for today's IWSG post, I'm sharing my process.

Success is a relative term. Many people judge success by how many books are sold. And I am pleased to say that the first books in each of my series are always good sellers at events, with previous readers asking for the sequels when I return. But for this release tour, my previous books were whisked away and it's up to me to re-publish them...

As a loner with many responsibilities, and the setbacks I've had to deal with lately, I consider gaining exposure and building connections a big success. Here's how I did it:

1. Put out Feelers--I asked my friends way in advance if they could help me. Then I asked them how and when they'd be able to help, like:
• host a guest post
• shout-out on social media
• read an ARC for review
• make a video! like this one Sheri Larsen and I did...It was so fun! We really put ourselves out there--and now that we've tried it, I'm looking forward to more!
• I also offered a prize drawing for my helpers (see below for winner)
• An online Form is the way to go!
2. Organize--I use a calendar and I set reminders. It's the only way I can keep up with everything.
3. Get Social! Besides the regular guest posts, I took this Release Tour a bit further:
• Mon - blog posts
• Tues - Insta/FB/Twitter
• Wed - CHAT day-#WedWrant

• #WEDWRANT - we had a blast with this and we WILL GO ON! I had a tremendous response to keep it going. So I will continue to send reminders to those who responded. Feel free to let me know if you'd like to be added to the reminder list!
• Thu - Insta/FB/Twitter
• Fri - Videos and misc
• I planned topics, used old and created new graphics/images, and posted my butt off!
• Hootsuite made it so easy to schedule posts.
• And to help my helpers, I sent out emails of things they could post
4. Challenge the people - I hosted a mini-meme (haha) challenge. It was spur of the moment, so not a lot of participants, but I got tons of visitors!
5. Offer Gifts--I usually do a Rafflecopter, not sure if they draw attention as well as they used to, but I got some new views that way too.

All in all, I had a hugely productive summer and hope to continue to gain more ground, if at a slower pace. With school about to start, I will have to cut way back to my normal once a month post for a while. But I plan to nourish the new connections and keep promoting, or I'll be forgotten. That's how it is in today's fast-paced world--go and keep going or get left behind. The more active I was, the more attention I received. If you have time, go for it!

This is all thanks to my awesome writer friends and helpers. I couldn't have gotten this extra exposure without your help. Everyone who helped is getting some personalized note stationary! Like these:

And the BIG WINNER of my Helpers Raffle is:

And lastly, here are the winners of my giveaway...

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Thank you! And I'd love to help YOU!