Increasingly, people are turning to self publishing as a way to get their books out to the masses. In fact, Bowker reports that there was a 21% growth rate in self publishing between 2014 and 2015, and since 2010 there has been a 375% growth in the number of ISBN registrations for those who are choosing to publish on their own. With more people choosing this route, it’s important to know what some of the common mistakes are and what can be done to avoid them.

The last thing that people want to do is put a lot of time into preparing a book only to see it do poorly once it becomes available for purchase. Here are 5 of the most common mistakes to avoid and what can be done to avoid them:

1. Marketing. Those who put their book out there and simply assume it will sell itself will be in for an eye-opening experience. Before launching the book, it is important to have a plan of how it will be marketed. Any book that is going to succeed is going to have to have a good marketing plan that is followed.
2. Professionalism. Overlooking professionalism can kill a book in a heartbeat. When it comes to things like proofreading, editing, and cover design, there is no compromising on quality. These are things that will be noticed immediately and can help give the book a boost or make it go bust. It’s important to hire professionals who know how to do each of these things well so that the book looks and reads professionally.
3. Naming. Choosing an ineffective title can sabotage book sales. While people shouldn’t always judge a book by its cover, they often do. This goes for the title as well as the cover design. An effective title can be a hook that gets the book noticed and drives interest.
4. Building. Not taking the time to build up an audience before launching the book can lead to a huge disappointment. Long before the book launches, it is important to begin building an audience through a blog, social media, or other outlet. This provides an immediate targeted market to launch the book to and start getting sales.
5. Focusing. Turning the focus to constantly looking at sales records once the book is published can be a big mistake. Too much energy goes into that, and if the sales are not immediately there it can be crushing. Keep the focus on marketing the book and continuing to write the next one.

There are many people who have great success with their self publishing, and there are others who are held back. Often times, the ones who are held back are so because they have overlooked one or more of the common mistakes. By knowing about these pitfalls up front, it’s easier to plan around them in order to increase chances of success. Everyone today has the opportunity to get their book out to the public, but only those who plan carefully will increase their chances of seeing nice sales figures.