Apricot Services is excited to be working alongside you to bring your launch team together. We’re here to do the heavy lifting with administration, but there are a few things we’ll need your help with to get the best results from your readers.
We recommend starting with your fans and followers who are the most committed to your
message and working out to those who are engaged, but may be less committed. This often starts with your email list subscribers, followed by your social media followers, and finally the friends and followers of any endorsers who may be willing to help you recruit.
Posts do not have to be overly long for folks to understand and get excited. Draft an email to your subscribers and social posts for each platform that announces that you’re recruiting for your launch team. Include the following information:
If you have any endorsers who would like to help you recruit, be sure to send them the information correlated with your recruitment talking points so they only have to copy and paste.
In TITLE, I hope [WHAT YOU HOPE READERS WILL GET FROM YOUR BOOK]. [SHORT BOOK SUMMARY].
I am gathering a book launch team for my new book TITLE (releasing RELEASE DATE). Would you consider joining me in this journey? Pre-order TITLE and apply to join.
Here’s the link for more details and to apply: APPLICATION URL
Launch team members are more willing and excited to engage in the team and their launch tasks when they feel more connected to the author. We want to connect you with your team in the best way possible, and video is a great way you can connect with the team as they help promote the book. Facebook Live gives you an opportunity to interact with your team in real time. You can also pre-record your videos and your Apricot Services admin can post them to the group as necessary.
We usually suggest at least these 3 videos:
The welcome video is especially critical to have in the Facebook group as it is a great piece to have present as people join and begin to learn about you and the book. In this video, welcome the team, introduce yourself as the author and the launch team admins, and what members’ participation in the launch team means to you. You can then share what the team can expect on this journey, how the book will be delivered to them, and what we’d like them to do (that is, read the book, recommend the book, review the book). Feel free to address any special announcements you might have, and build excitement about the pre-order offers. Don’t forget to mention the release date!
Today’s the day! Build excitement for team members. Share a story of how the book is impacting those who have read or been a part of this book’s journey. Thank the team for their help. Get them excited about any special media happening during launch week. Most importantly, invite them to post reviews of the book on e-retailers—especially Amazon.
Share a final thank you to the team. Tell a personal story of how their effort impacted you. Let them know that they can still review on Amazon if they have not already. End with your vision for the life of the book.
These three launch team videos will go a long way to building community and excitement around your book. Outside of these videos, there are always more chances to “go live” in the Facebook group to build a deeper relationship with the team and galvanize their actions to share or review.
Outside of the Welcome, Release Day, and Wrap-Up videos, there are a multitude of topics you can discuss when you go live in the Facebook launch team to build a deeper relationship with your team and galvanize their shares and reviews.
Here are some additional ideas to use in the launch team on a weekly, biweekly, or convenient basis:
Some authors guide the launch team through a reading plan together and discuss the book along the way via Facebook live. This also gives the launch team opportunity to send in questions or meaningful topics that they’d like to discuss and you can respond personally to them as they read through the book. Here are some tips for running a successful book discussion in the launch group: