You need to find unconventional marketing methods to promote your book. The results don’t happen over night but the end goals do manifest with time.

The most important step in unique book marketing is to establish a business plan, something too many authors fail to do when trying to promote a book.

Establish a business plan

Aside from initial printing, shipping and design, you will also need money for travel, book promotion and online book marketing plans.

First steps

a. Outline your goals and either research or estimate how much you can spend to achieve your book marketing ambitions.

For example, my friend wrote, Francesca of Lost Nation, and decided to publish it under her own business, luckycinda. A business license, at least in California, is pricey. We also had to pay for a web hosting site and a domain name – there are free services but I still think it is best to have your own.

b. How far can you travel? If it costs more to drive, get a hotel and eat out than how much profit you made from book sells, then you might need to readjust your book marketing strategies.

c.Traditional advertising if you have lots of money is still a good method of promoting your book but the competition is fierce. If you don’t have a name people recognize you will be buried in the “book” pile. So you have to starting thinking of unique angles you can draw from your story to promote your book.

For example, Francesca of Lost Nation’s main character is a 59-year-old woman who is known as a county fair car race driver. In the story, she meets up with a man who owns a Duesenberg and she convinces him to let her drive in a race.

The story, however, isn’t about that. It is a novel that takes place in the late 1940s in Iowa where Francesca and her doting granddaughter team with barn-storming pilots to capture a wanted felon.

However, I could use the storyline subplots as angles to pitch the book. Here’s some “unconventional book marketing” ideas using the Duesenberg angle:

a. I could contact Duesenberg enthusiast by looking up clubs, blogs or organizations online and offering the book directly.

b. Maybe a car club would be interested in buying the books and offering them as gifts to new subscribers or club members.

A good business plan will outline each of the ideas mentioned in detail. The costs of these ideas will determine how much you can and can't do until you make a profit. That's why you should also consider online marketing to promote your book. The advantages of this is because a lot of online promotion is free. However, if you want real traffic, the Internet book promotion, book selling and book advertising will also cost money.

Plan now and you won't go broke trying to get your book noticed and use unique book marketing ideas to get started.