The Gravity of Goals: Geting It Right From The Start

 I often write about having clear goals for your Indie publishing journey. Doing so allows you to clarify which self-publishing path will most likely help you reach them. Generally, I find that self-publishing authors have one of three primary goals: Personal, Revenue, and Business.
A writer with a Personal goal doesn’t necessarily focus on generating revenue from their book. It may be a memoir, a family history, or even a novel. Getting the book out into the world is the primary goal, even if just among family and friends. Cost may be a factor, but recovering those costs or making money from sales is not likely to be a high priority, so the budget depends upon the author's preferences for the end product's result, rather than reader or industry expectations.
A writer with a Revenue goal means every choice is directly related to book sales, and the author focuses on the income their book(s) will generate.
Business goals can vary with desired results, but help to further the author’s business, even if that business is writing. The outcome might be a lead-magnet book, which establishes your expertise and convert leads into clients, or a perma-free one that hooks readers into a series. While revenue may be a secondary goal for this group, the primary focus is how the book contributes to the success of the author’s business.
Personal goals often have a significant emotional component. Because the target audience is often private or very narrow, we don’t hold the author to the same standards as writers publishing a book for a public audience. The self-publishing journey for personal goals can vary greatly depending on an author’s available resources and personal preferences.
Creating a family genealogy doesn’t require high-end printing, but if the intention is to have the book persist as a family heirloom, passed on for generations, printing a high-quality book may supersede the need for cost-effective, volume printing. If resources are limited, and your personal goal is to get your story out into the world but sales aren’t important, there are many free or low-cost options for your journey. Achieving success can be as simple as holding a copy of your book in your hands.
Revenue and Business goals require a much more significant investment. While the end goals are different, each requires a high level of professionalism...

Read the entire article in the July/August 2022 issue of InD'Tale magazine.

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