| name | launch-sequence |
| description | Plan and execute a 4-phase 30-day book launch with review services, promo sites, social media formats, and pricing transitions. Use 4 weeks before publish date. |
| type | decision |
| source_chapters | ["ch-11"] |
| source_speakers | ["Sean Dollwet","Dale L Roberts","Dave Chesson"] |
Launch Sequence
Plan and execute a structured 4-phase book launch that maximizes Amazon's 30-day new release boost. Includes review service setup, promo site scheduling, social media video formats, and pricing transitions.
Usage
/launch-sequence --publish-date 2026-04-15 --formats "ebook,paperback"
/launch-sequence --relaunch --asin B0XXXXXXXX
Prerequisites
- Book uploaded (or ready to upload) via
/upload-checklist
- Pricing strategy set via
/pricing-strategist
- Amazon Ads ready to deploy via
/amazon-ads
- KDP Select enrollment decided (determines free promo eligibility)
Why Launch Matters
"When you first launch your book on Amazon it has a 30-day new book boost or like a new release boost that Amazon gives you. You get extra exposures for your book. So Amazon will place your book in more categories, more keywords, just have people view your books more than usual in the first 30 days."
-- Sean Dollwet, "Complete, No BS Guide to Book Launch - Mastering Amazon KDP"
But perspective matters:
"It's not like your book will forever fail if you don't do a book launch or if you don't do it successfully. And it's not like your book will be very very successful if you do a proper book launch. So it's more of a long-term ongoing marketing that's important."
-- Sean Dollwet, "Complete, No BS Guide to Book Launch - Mastering Amazon KDP"
The launch gives you a head start. What you do afterward determines whether you keep it.
Amazon's Five Built-In Promotional Slots
Before spending a dollar, understand what Amazon gives you for free:
| Slot | Trigger | Duration |
|---|
| New Release | Best-selling new titles | 30 days |
| New and Noteworthy | Strong performance in first 30 days | Up to 90 days |
| Most Wished For | Wish list adds from readers | Ongoing |
| Gift Ideas | Algorithm-selected, seasonal | Holiday peaks |
| Frequently Bought Together | Co-purchase patterns | Ongoing |
"The new release feature gives new books a fighting chance where established books dominate the top of the bestseller charts."
-- Dale L Roberts, "How to Promote Your Book with 5 Free eBook Amazon Promotions"
Your job during launch: feed as many of these slots as possible with real buyer activity.
The Four-Phase Launch Sequence
Phase 1: Pre-Launch (4 Weeks to 2 Weeks Before Publish)
Objective: Collect review commitments and schedule promotional support.
Review service setup (4 weeks out):
| Service | Monthly Cost | Standout Feature | Best For |
|---|
| PubBy | ~$20/mo | Largest member database | Review volume |
| Bookbite | Varies (3 tiers) | Audible/ACX support; verified purchase reviews | Multi-format |
| Get Books Reviewed | ~$15/mo (annual) | Lowest cost | Budget-conscious |
"You sign up, you start reviewing other people's books, collect some points, and then whenever you're ready, you use those points to get reviews for your book. I use these services daily along with other five, six, seven figure publishers and we all get hundreds of reviews for our books."
-- Sean Dollwet, "The EASIEST Way to Get 100s of Reviews for Amazon KDP"
- Sign up for 1+ services and begin reviewing to bank points
- Target: minimum 15 review requests ready for launch day
ARC reader collection (2 weeks out):
- Email list: "My book launches on [date]. Who wants a free copy for honest feedback?"
- Facebook groups: Engage genuinely, then offer free copies
- Wording for compliance: "consideration to leave a review" (never mandatory)
Promo site scheduling (2 weeks out):
"Most of these book promotion sites have collected a giant list of emails or social media following that are willing to read books. All you have to do is submit your book's information for the promotion and they'll blast it out to their so-called followers for free."
-- Dave Chesson, "Free Book Promotions - Insanely easy strategy to promoting your books for free"
Use a vetted directory (like Kindlepreneur's curated list) to identify promo sites that produce real downloads.
Phase 2: Free Promotion (Days 1-5)
Objective: Collect initial reviews and generate organic downloads.
Activate the 5-day free KDP Select promotion on publish day.
"You can set your book on a free promotion on Amazon, which is a 5-day free promotion you can set. And while you do that, you can request for a verified review. So have people download your book on Amazon during the free promotion and leave a review which will show up as verified reviews."
-- Sean Dollwet, "The EASIEST Way to Get 100s of Reviews for Amazon KDP"
During this window:
- Deploy PubBy/Bookbite points to request reviews
- Follow up with ARC readers
- Coordinate promo site blasts for the free listing
- Place email opt-in at beginning of book (not just the end)
"Place your offer at the beginning of your book and throughout your book so as to increase the chances of them seeing it, because let's face it, people who are downloading these books for free usually don't make it to the end."
-- Dave Chesson, "Free Book Promotions"
Phase 3: The 99-Cent Period (Days 6-20)
Objective: Maximize sales volume to drive BSR as low as possible.
"Price your book a little lower than normal. On Amazon's eyes we want to achieve as low of a BSR as possible, and how do you do that? Well the best way is to gather as many sales in terms of volume, and obviously if your book is priced lower then it's easier to sell."
-- Sean Dollwet, "Complete, No BS Guide to Book Launch - Mastering Amazon KDP"
During this phase:
- Start Amazon Ads targeting researched keywords (see
/amazon-ads)
- Run promo site blasts for the 99-cent deal
- Continue requesting reviews through exchange services
Duration: 1-2 weeks maximum.
"How long should you do the 99 cent period? Well, one week to two weeks is around the best... nobody really does 30 days of launch. That's too long. There's no scarcity."
-- Sean Dollwet, "Complete, No BS Guide to Book Launch - Mastering Amazon KDP"
Accept the loss:
"You're probably not going to be making profit in the first one to two weeks because your book is priced very low and you're making very little royalties, and that's okay because it's normal. You're investing in your book's future success by ranking your book higher."
-- Sean Dollwet, "Complete, No BS Guide to Book Launch - Mastering Amazon KDP"
Phase 4: Full Price (Day 14-21 Onward)
Objective: Harvest the ranking you built and run profitably.
- Raise Kindle price to $2.99-$4.99 (or higher for books with 100+ reviews)
- Continue Amazon Ads at profitable margins
- Maintain organic visibility through the momentum built in Phases 2-3
"After my promotion is over I then start to do Facebook ads and Amazon Marketing Service ads, known as AMS. By doing this it keeps my book and kind of the download momentum and keeps Amazon happy with it."
-- Dave Chesson, "Free Book Promotions"
Launch Pricing by Format
| Phase | Kindle | Paperback (High Content) | Paperback (Low Content) | Duration |
|---|
| Free Promo | $0.00 | N/A | N/A | 5 days |
| 99-Cent Period | $0.99 | $9.99 | $5.99-$6.99 | 1-2 weeks |
| Full Price | $2.99-$4.99 | $12.99-$14.99 | $7.99-$9.99 | Ongoing |
Note: Paperback cannot be set to free. Paperback launches rely more heavily on Amazon Ads from day one.
Social Media as Free Launch Multiplier
Seven video formats that work:
- ASMR-style reading with text overlay (no talking needed)
- Teaching something from the book's topic on camera
- Showcasing the cover (one such video reached 10 million views)
- Flipping through interior pages (no talking needed)
- Reading the book aloud (one video reached 70 million views)
- Coloring page time-lapses (for activity/coloring books)
- AI-generated carousels with tips, images, and background music
"The videos that did the best for him are the easiest ones to create. How easy it is to just film yourself for 10 seconds, put a text on it?"
-- Sean Dollwet, "How to Sell More Books on Amazon KDP WITHOUT Paid Ads"
Social media is a volume play:
"A lot of the videos only get couple thousand views. So most videos only get that, but once in a while you get these videos that just takes off."
-- Sean Dollwet, "How to Sell More Books on Amazon KDP WITHOUT Paid Ads"
Post consistently across TikTok, YouTube Shorts, and Instagram Reels.
Audiobook Launch (ACX/Audible)
- ACX provides 50 promo codes per title (split US/UK)
- Each redemption counts as a sale in Audible's ranking
"Every time people redeem a promo code it counts as a sale. So if you have people redeem 50 codes, that's 50 sales, which is enough to typically rank your book on page one."
-- Sean Dollwet, "Complete, No BS Guide to Book Launch - Mastering Amazon KDP"
Upload codes to BookSprout for automated distribution and review reminders.
Reviving a Stalled Book
"You can also relaunch your book later too, right? By just putting it on the free promotion you can republish a book if you update the book, get that new release boost again."
-- Sean Dollwet, "Complete, No BS Guide to Book Launch - Mastering Amazon KDP"
Re-ranking playbook:
- Set underperforming book on 5-day free KDP Select promotion
- Use free window to collect new reviews
- Re-enter at $0.99 with Amazon Ads
- Raise price gradually as momentum builds
"Your competition is running Amazon ads consistently and they're consistently getting sales and reviews and they're sending Amazon that good signal."
-- Sean Dollwet, "Complete, No BS Guide to Book Launch - Mastering Amazon KDP"
A launch is not a one-time event. Every book needs periodic re-investment.
Amazon TOS Compliance
- Review exchanges permitted; paid reviews are not. Offer copies for "consideration" of a review. Never require, pay for, or incentivize specific ratings.
- No fake account schemes. Multiple Amazon accounts for reviews = account termination risk.
Output Format
Launch Timeline
## [Book Title] -- Launch Plan
### T-28 Days: Pre-Launch Setup
- [ ] Sign up for [PubBy/Bookbite/Get Books Reviewed]
- [ ] Begin reviewing other authors' books to bank points
- [ ] Target: 15 review requests ready by launch
### T-14 Days: ARC + Promo
- [ ] Send ARC copies to email list / Facebook groups
- [ ] Schedule promo site blasts
- [ ] Verify all upload assets ready (see /upload-checklist)
### Day 1-5: Free Promotion
- [ ] Activate 5-day free KDP Select promotion
- [ ] Deploy review service points
- [ ] Follow up with ARC readers
- [ ] Run promo site blasts
### Day 6-20: 99-Cent Period
- [ ] Set Kindle price to $0.99
- [ ] Launch Amazon Ads (see /amazon-ads)
- [ ] Continue review requests
- [ ] Post daily social media content
### Day 14-21+: Full Price
- [ ] Raise to $[target price]
- [ ] Continue Amazon Ads at profitable ACOS
- [ ] Schedule Kindle Countdown Deal for Day 30-37
### Ongoing
- [ ] Weekly ad optimization (2x30 min)
- [ ] Monthly review service maintenance
- [ ] Quarterly price pulse check
Related Skills
- pricing-strategist -- Set prices for each phase (run BEFORE)
- amazon-ads -- Campaign setup for Day 6+ (run BEFORE or in parallel)
- upload-checklist -- Ensure everything is ready before launch
- listing-optimizer -- Description/categories must be finalized before launch
Related Frameworks
30-day-launch-sequence.md — The full 4-phase launch timeline with day-by-day actions, pricing transitions, and review service setupfreelancer-hiring-workflow.md — If outsourcing launch tasks (social media, ARC management, ad management), use this to find and vet freelancers
