How to Publish a Planner
Want to publish your own journal or planner this year? You might have a lot of questions like:
How can I self-publish my own planner?
Where can you publish planners online?
Will there be a bunch of overhead expenses to get started?
How can I get my planner in front of enough people?
How much inventory will I need?
Do I need to use confusing and time-consuming software to format my pages?
These were all the questions I had before I self-published my first planner in 2018 and there was hardly any information online!
Don’t worry though, I’m going to walk you through all of these questions today and get you on your way to publishing the planner, journal, or workbook of your dreams!
What are your options for self-publishing a planner?
You have a couple of options when it comes to manufacturing and publishing your own planner:
OPTION A) Find a reputable printing company, design your planner, and pay an upfront fee to order the minimum amount of planners you want to sell. Sell the planners straight from your website using Squarespace, Shopify, WooCommerce, or another selling platform. This won’t include traffic to your site, fees and logistics for shipping to customers, point-of-sale taxes, or international shipping.
OPTION B) Start a Kickstarter campaign to fund your planner idea and have people essentially pre-order your planner. This will give you more resources and cash to find a manufacturer that
OPTION C) Use Kindle Direct Publishing to list, sell, and ship your planner on demand for ZERO dollars and get your planner on the Google of retail websites without having to pay for an Amazon Sellers account.
That third option is looking pretty sexy, isn’t it?
Of course, no option is perfect.
Going with KDP means you won’t be able to create a gold foil, spiral-bound planner with custom stickers and personalized tissue paper (😭😭😭) but let’s talk about this for a second….
The journals and planners that have changed my life (and by “changed my life” I mean have been ones I actually stick with and get something out of) weren’t life-changing because they were spiral bound.
They were incredible because of the content INSIDE the planner itself.
I see a LOT of journals out there that focus on the aesthetic alone, cost more because of tabs and fancy stickers, but do they help me to actually be more productive or improve my goals? Not really.
If stickers could do that then all of my problems would already be solved. ::stares at a drawer full of Lisa Frank stickers with tears in eyes::
I think what stops a lot of creatives from creating their own journal or planner is perfectionism.
We have this incredible idea that we want to share with the world.
We have a system, solution, or practice that we know can help thousands of people…
But we get caught up in thinking that if it isn’t “perfect” (aka all of the things we see planners being) then it won’t help people and they won’t buy it.
IT’S A BIG FAT MYTH!
I know this because in 2018, I decided to create my first planner anyway using KDP and Canva and I made 475 planner sales that year! (and this was from talking about the planner on my blog, podcast, and on IG with less than 2000 followers at the time)
(I talk more about this entire process in my on-demand Planner Publishing Masterclass here)
Plus - I LOVE the quality of the planners and journals I’ve created! I use my Daily Productivity & Brain Dump Book every single day!
Why I love using Kindle Direct Publishing for Self-Publishing Planners
1) KDP is free to use
Apart from any creative elements you purchase in the design phase, you don’t have to pay any upfront costs to publish and sell your planner! It’s truly amazing!
2) You don’t have to worry about inventory
When you use Kindle Direct Publishing to publish your planner, you don’t have to order or pay for any inventory ahead of time because everything your customer’s order is printed on demand and shipped directly to them!
3) Your Planner is listed for FREE right on Amazon!
Typically, if you want to sell something on Amazon, you need to create an Amazon Seller’s account and pay a monthly fee to list your products. When you publish your planner with KDP, Amazon gives you a free listing that people will be able to find while they are looking for their next planner.
4) You don’t have to worry about point-of-sale taxes, shipping, or international sales
When customers purchase your planner off of Amazon, you don’t have to worry about collecting sales tax, Amazon does that for you. Not only does KDP allow your planner to be printed on-demand but your planners will also be eligible for Prime Shipping and can be shipped around the world! That means that someone can find your planner, order it, and have it shipped to them within 2 days without you pausing your latest Netflix obsession!
Of course, we all know that passive income isn’t truly passive.
There ARE some things you’ll need to do in order to make sure people consistently find your planner and make sales.
If you want to learn more about self-publishing your own journal or planner on Amazon, make sure you watch my free Planner Publishing 101 Workshop here!
