Previously in this space I’ve stressed how important it is to track your marketing efforts to help you stay organized and conduct critical follow-up when necessary. Today I’d like to discuss another reason to document your hard work: It will be helpful when you write your next book!

Daunting as it may sound right now, it is entirely possible that you will write another book one day—maybe even one day soon. So why reinvent the wheel when it comes to getting the word out? Here are some examples of how recording your marketing efforts now can help you generate buzz for another book down the road:

• You can reach out to bloggers who reviewed (and liked) your first book and offer them an advanced copy of your latest work.
• In the above vein, you can also offer yourself up for author interviews—book bloggers love to interview authors!
• You can announce the book’s publication date via your newsletter/Facebook page/Twitter account/etc. and take pre-orders from fans for signed copies.
• Using the above channels, you can ask your existing fans to spread the word about your latest work to their friends.
• You can reconnect with book clubs, alumni groups and other organizations that responded positively to your first book.
• If you have a launch party, you can easily alert your local press.

Researching people, groups and organizations to contact about your book takes a great deal of time and energy. Why do all that work again if you don’t have to? Granted, lists will need updating as things change and people switch jobs, etc., but starting with something is a whole lot better than starting from scratch.

-Maria