What Publishers Expect You To Know About Your Audience

I was in a meeting with a client and their future literary agent when the agent said something that made my ears perk up.

The publisher is going to expect you to take leadership of how to reach your audience.

And this reminded me, instantly, of a question I recently received.

Do traditional publishers expect me to know all the contours of my intended market/audience?

The short answer is obviously yes. But here’s a more complex breakdown of that.

When you consider your book’s audience, you’re actually thinking of three different audiences.

Primary

Secondary

Tertiary

Your primary audience is exactly that. The main folks who will buy your book. For most of you, that’s your direct fans and followers. This could also be a broader demographic — i.e., educators of color, senior leaders in management roles, runners in their 40s.

To be clear: You need to be able to reach these people directly, have sold to them successfully in the past, and have the ability to market your book to them in the future.

Your secondary audience is an extension of your primary. For example, my client Ellie Diop teaches business…