How putting your own effort into book marketing can save you time and money

// By Steven Blackburn

Book publishers can take months to successfully promote manuscripts and marketing professionals are expensive

After months and maybe even years of hard work, you have finally finished your book. Congrats! But now you need to promote your book and get it out into the hands of your future readers. This requires book marketing, a process that involves a good amount of effort. For that reason, many authors choose to either hire a marketing professional or find a publisher that will first publish and then market their manuscript.

Even though publishers and marketing professionals have many connections and resources, that doesn’t mean any less work is involved for them. Far from it. To promote your book, publishers undergo a long process that involves contracting, releasing and marketing, which can take a long time, according to Rachelle Gardner, a literary agent who has worked in-house at two publishing companies and has edited books published by Harper Collins, Simon & Schuster and Penguin Random House, among others. So while you won’t have to promote your book yourself by going with a publisher, you probably won’t see any results for months if not longer.

Hiring a marketing professional is another option that can fast track this process but can cost upwards of $1,000, according to Reedsy, a network of publishing professionals that have helped produce more than 10,000 books.

So altogether, authors can choose to circumvent doing the extra work themselves by either spending a grand or by getting their book published, the latter of which requires first getting their manuscript accepted by publishers before waiting an extended amount of time before their manuscript is even marketed.

Without any additional help, marketing a book can take between six months to two years, according to CEO and Founder Penny Sansevieri of Author Marketing Experts, a 30-plus leader in the publishing industry that develops book marketing campaigns. Luckily, there is another option if you want to promote your book quickly and avoid putting a major dent in your wallet. But it means having to do most of the heavy lifting yourself: Storiad.

Storiad puts all of the tools needed to successfully market books at the authors’ fingertips, from numerous media kit templates to an extensive email database consisting of over 40,000 verified book publicity contacts at little cost. Authors just need to use these tools to customize and send their press kits to bloggers, for example. Luckily, these tools save hundreds of hours of research and compiling alone.  

In conclusion, authors can:

  • Rely on a publisher and wait a considerable amount of time even after getting published
  • Spend upwards of $1,000 with a marketing professional

Or …

  • Obtain all of the materials needed to successfully market a book
  • Put in the effort of marketing books for considerably less money

Try Storiad free.

Watch an introductory video on Storiad features.

Read Next

Author Marketing OS Series - #20: The Author Marketing Operating System Era

Author Marketing OS Series 20

Author Marketing OS Series - #19: Why Authors Without an Operating System Will Struggle to Compete

Author Marketing OS Series 19

Author Marketing OS Series - #18: What Successful Authors Do Differently Even If They Do Not Realize It

Author Marketing OS Series 18

Author Marketing OS Series - #17: How AI Becomes Truly Useful Inside an Author Marketing Operating System

Author Marketing OS Series 17

Author Marketing OS Series - #16: From Campaign Thinking to Career Thinking

Author Marketing OS Series 16

Author Marketing OS Series - #15: Why an Operating System Matters More Than Any Single Marketing Channel

Author Marketing OS Series 15

Author Marketing OS Series - #14: How an Author Marketing Operating System Replaces Chaos with Clarity

Author Marketing OS Series 14

Author Marketing OS Series - #13: The Core Components of an Author Marketing Operating System

Author Marketing OS Series 13

Author Marketing OS Series - #12: What an Author Marketing Operating System Is Not and Why That Matters

Author Marketing OS Series 12

Author Marketing OS Series - #11: What Is an Author Marketing Operating System?

Author Marketing OS Series 11

Author Marketing OS Series - #10: The Turning Point (When Marketing Becomes an Operating System)

Author Marketing OS Series 10

Author Marketing OS Series - #9: Why Book Marketing Should Compound Over Time (But Rarely Does)

Author Marketing OS Series 9

Author Marketing OS Series - #8: The Rise of the Independent Author as a One-Person Media Company [Spoiler Alert: It’s YOU!]

Author Marketing OS Series 8

Author Marketing OS Series - #7: What Software Did for Businesses + What Authors Are Missing

Author Marketing OS Series 7

Author Marketing OS Series - #6: Why Authors Need Systems, Not Just Strategies

Author Marketing OS Series 6

Author Marketing OS Series - #5: Disconnected Tools, Disconnected Results (The Hidden Cost of Fragmentation)

Author Marketing OS Series 5

Author Marketing OS Series - #3: From Writer to Marketer Overnight (The Unspoken Burden Placed on Authors)

Author Marketing OS Series 3
March 18, 2026

Author Marketing OS Series - #2: The Myth of “Just Do More Marketing” in the Modern Publishing World

The Storiad Team

Author Marketing OS Series - #4: Why Book Marketing Advice Is Everywhere and Still Doesn’t Work

Author Marketing OS Series 4
March 16, 2026

Author Marketing OS Series - #1: Why Author Marketing Feels So Overwhelming

The Storiad Team
March 10, 2026

Introducing StoriA: Your AI-Powered Book Promotion Assistant (Part III)

The Storiad Team
March 4, 2025

Counterpoint: Why Published Authors Embrace AI for Book Promotion (Part II)

The Storiad Team
March 3, 2025

Point: Why Published Authors Hesitate to Use AI for Book Promotion (Part 1)

The Storiad Team
March 3, 2025

Why the best first editor for your book is YOU

Krystal Craiker
September 1, 2020

How to promote your book while saving time and money

Steven Blackburn
November 5, 2020

Why authors need a book press kit to successfully market their books

Steven Blackburn
November 5, 2020

Getting started on Storiad and maximizing the tools to sell more books!

Lily Halstrom
November 24, 2020

The debut of Storiad’s brand new feature. Your dedicated Author Page!

Lily Halstrom
November 24, 2020

How putting your own effort into book marketing can save you time and money

Steven Blackburn
December 9, 2020

Why You Should Submit Your Books For Awards

Lily Halstrom
February 9, 2021

Mastering the Economics of Book Promotion: Empowering Authors with StoriA

Lily Halstrom
March 28, 2024

Writer’s Associations and Organizations

Lily Halstrom
February 10, 2021

How Do I Sell My Book? An Answer in Four Parts

Ramzi Hajj
April 21, 2021

Marketing a Real Book on a Real Book Marketing Platform

Ramzi Hajj
May 10, 2021

Help Storiad Build Next-Gen AI-powered Software for You & Your Authors: A Survey

Ramzi Hajj
May 1, 2024

Boost Your Book Promotion Campaign with Storiad & StoriA: 20 Ideas for Authors

Ramzi Hajj
April 26, 2024

Elevate Your Strategy: Partner with Storiad for Book Marketing Success

Ramzi Hajj
April 23, 2023

Storiad Features: Harnessing Storiad’s Author Website Generator for SEO Success

Lily Halstrom
April 10, 2024

Crafting an Effective Book Marketing and Promotion Plan: A Comprehensive Guide

Ramzi Hajj
June 27, 2023

Find the Author Group That’s Right for You

Lily Halstrom
February 9, 2021

Storiad Features: Using the Storiad Media Contacts Database

Lily Halstrom
December 21, 2023

Introducing StoriA: Storiad’s AI Book Marketing Assistant for Authors (Part One)

Lily Halstrom
March 12, 2024

Storiad Affiliate Program: Empowering Authors, Rewarding Partnerships

Lily Halstrom
August 29, 2024

The Power of Organization: Preparing Authors for Effective Book Promotion

Ramzi Hajj
June 26, 2023