In the second of my creative business planning blog series, this time I’m covering the growth goals I’ve put in place for 2022. The last one covered production, and the next will cover development.
I really feel like this is one of the biggest parts of my creative business at the moment, because, it’s still early days. I’m still learning the ropes of owning a company, and I’m still building up a bank of customers from my Premade ebook covers over on Payhip.
But for now, let’s get into the growth goals.
Growth Goal for 2022
High Level
Sell 3 ebook covers (1 x series or 3 x standalone) by the end of September 2022
Macro steps and why
Financial wins and internal desires
- Utilise social media scheduling tools that allow for more posts per month, or find one that has a lower monthly investment compared to Later. If this isn’t possible, then invest in the current programme and utilise effectively
- Reach out to authors in groups for feedback on covers, but be strategic in questions.
- What is the first thing you notice about the cover?
- What appeals to you as an author and a reader about the cover?
- Make use of promotional threads in Facebook groups that allow this sort of thing (e.g. Rebel Authors, 1st and 15th of each month)
- Review hashtags used on Instagram and adapt scheduled posts accordingly
- Define my target audience e.g. authors on lower income who’re looking for affordable covers and publishing solutions
- Analyse which covers have had most views on Payhip and promote these on social media first
- Increase promotion on social media from 3 times per week to 5 times per week
- Search groups for people asking for cover help/more affordable covers
- Develop a social media strategy to increase awareness and drive traffic directly to Payhip
- Are there websites where I can upload my covers to?
- Start interacting with authors on Instagram and in the community
- Focus primarily on gaining followers and increasing web traffic to Payhip
- Research what other places I can promote the Payhip store that aren’t solely on Instagram e.g. Pinterest
Scheduling
Be strategic and plan properly
- It should only take an hour to put in all social media posts now I have a template
- Add in time each week to interact and engage with authors on social media platforms
- Put time into developing clear goals and establishing a main “Why” for social media. Then, add in time to use new scheduling tools. Last, schedule in time to actually use said social media
Remember
- Overwhelm is real, in the digital world as well as the physical. Social media is a tool that I can use as a creative entrepreneur. It doesn’t define my business. Research is key. Just because I post doesn’t mean it’s the right place for my ideal audience and customers
- If people are referring or asking for recommendations, I could get involved. Stop being so afraid!
In summary
As you can see, there’s a helluva lot going on up there. It’s great for me to get it out of my head, mainly because it’s the way I focus my thoughts and plan my next steps.
Some of it’s social media related, but the rest has the primary aim of helping indie authors and other creatives step into the publishing industry with my design work.
Publishing an ebook can be hard, and when I first started planning my series, the overwhelm of the financial commitment was real. Like, really real.
I don’t want others to feel like that. So that’s why I’m focusing so hard on the growth side of my business. We should all have a chance to achieve our goals and dreams, and publishing shouldn’t be a cost compromise.
So, what do you think? Is there anything you’re planning on doing for the rest of the year you want to share? Have you got any advice that you think would help others? Let me know in the comments below, or reach out to me on Instagram.
Speak to you soon!
Robyn
