free quick start guide
THE ACX PARTNER PLAYBOOK / QUICK-START GUIDE
An audiobook needs more than a launch
You've written a book. Or you've narrated one. Perhaps you've entered into an ACX Royalty Share agreement with someone who shares your enthusiasm for the finished audiobook.
Then comes the question neither partner can afford to ignore:
Who is going to help listeners discover it?
An audiobook doesn't automatically find an audience because it's available on Audible. And a Royalty Share agreement doesn't automatically create a marketing partnership.
Yet the author and narrator may already possess something more valuable than either realizes: two sets of relationships, two collections of experience, and two different ways of connecting with potential listeners.
What if they approached marketing as partners rather than as individuals hoping the other person would handle it?
That's the central premise of The ACX Partner Playbook.
A word about experience
I'm Michael Bridges, an ACX Approved Producer and narrator of more than 60 audiobooks available on Audible.
Across the US and UK marketplaces, my narrated titles have accumulated more than 3,000 five-star ratings.
I've worked with independent authors and publishers, produced fiction and nonfiction, and participated in promotional campaigns that taught me a great deal about the opportunities—and limitations—of audiobook marketing.
I don't claim to have discovered a magic formula for selling audiobooks. I do believe I've learned some practical lessons worth sharing.
One of the most important is this:
A narrator and an author working together may accomplish things neither would attempt alone.
This guide offers a starting point.
The partnership most people overlook
In a traditional Royalty Share arrangement, the author contributes the written work, the narrator contributes the production, and the parties share royalties under their agreement.
But what happens after publication?
Often, very little has been decided.
The author may assume the narrator has an established audience. The narrator may assume the author has a marketing plan. Both may hope Audible's marketplace will do the rest.
Hope is not a marketing strategy.
Consider a different approach.
Before publication, the partners agree to discuss the audiobook's potential audience, identify resources they can contribute, and coordinate reasonable promotional efforts.
This doesn't mean that both partners must become full-time marketers.
It means recognizing that Royalty Share can be more than a financial arrangement. It can be a working partnership.
Your first action
Ask your current or prospective Royalty Share partner:
“Once our audiobook is available, what could we realistically do together to help the right listeners discover it?”
Don't worry about developing a complete plan yet. Start the conversation.
Everyone is not your audience
One of the easiest mistakes in audiobook marketing is assuming that everyone who enjoys audiobooks is a potential customer.
Technically, perhaps. Practically, no.
Consider two hypothetical audiobooks.
One is a memoir about caring for an aging parent. Another is a science fiction adventure exploring the ethical implications of artificial intelligence.
Both might appeal to audiobook listeners, but the reasons people become interested in them—and the communities where those people gather—could be very different.
The first may resonate with caregivers and families facing difficult decisions. The second may appeal to readers who enjoy speculative fiction, technology, and philosophical questions.
Neither audience is defined simply by age or gender.
The useful question is not merely, “Who might buy this audiobook?”
It’s “Who has a reason to care about the experience this audiobook offers?”
When authors and narrators explore that question together, they may discover possibilities that conventional advertising categories overlook.
Your second action
Complete this sentence for your audiobook:
“Someone who has experienced, wondered about, or enjoyed __________ might have a particular reason to listen to this audiobook.”
Write down two or three possibilities.
You aren't trying to identify every potential listener. You're looking for a promising place to begin.
Give the partnership a reasonable commitment
Even a promising marketing idea can disappear beneath everyday obligations.
Authors have other writing projects. Narrators have auditions, recording sessions, editing, and production deadlines.
That's why I recommend that Royalty Share partners consider a 90-day coordinated marketing commitment following publication.
Not 90 days of expensive advertising.
Not 90 days of daily social media posts.
And certainly not a promise of 90 days of sales.
Instead, imagine 90 days during which both partners agree to remain involved, communicate, undertake manageable promotional activities, and consider what they’re learning.
The details will vary according to the book, the people involved, and the resources available.
But the principle is simple: a partnership benefits from a defined period of shared attention.
Three actions you can take this week
1. Start a partnership conversation. Ask what each person is willing and able to contribute after publication.
2. Identify one promising listener group. Look for people with a meaningful reason to be interested in the audiobook.
3. Agree on one small action. Choose something both partners can realistically complete, then decide when you’ll discuss the result.
None of these actions requires a marketing budget or a sophisticated website.
They require communication, a little imagination, and a willingness to work together.
These first steps are deliberately modest. The book develops them into a more complete process, including audience discovery, partnership planning, promotional materials, launch coordination, and practical ways to assess progress.
The next chapter belongs to both partners
Audiobook marketing is changing.
Under ACX’s May 2026 royalty changes, promo-code redemptions and listening to the resulting complimentary copies no longer generate royalties. That makes it especially important to understand the difference between distributing a complimentary audiobook, earning a listener’s attention, and generating royalty-bearing activity.
But the underlying challenge is older than any change in royalty policy:
How do we help the right people discover an audiobook they might genuinely enjoy or benefit from?
There is no single answer that works for every title.
That's one reason I wrote The ACX Partner Playbook—and why I'm developing The Royalty Share Community.
Continue with the book
The ACX Partner Playbook expands the ideas introduced here into a practical approach to author–narrator marketing partnerships.
It includes examples, planning methods, campaign considerations, and a Companion Toolkit containing worksheets and templates to help readers put the principles into practice.
Kindle publication targeted for October 31, 2026. Purchase link to be added when available.
Continue the conversation
The Royalty Share Community is being developed as a free, member-led gathering place for authors and narrators interested in working together more effectively.
Its purpose is to encourage the exchange of practical experience, questions, ideas, and lessons learned.
Membership won't require purchasing the book. Nor will the Community replace the more structured instruction and resources contained in it.
The goal is to create a place where partners can learn from one another while doing the work.
Community access details will be announced after setup and testing.
One final thought
You don't have to know everything about audiobook marketing to begin.
You need a partner willing to have a conversation, a listener worth understanding, and a reason to take the next step. That's where the partnership begins.
Michael Bridges
Author, The ACX Partner Playbook
GET ON OUR EMAIL LIST for updates about this title's availability, and participation in THE ROYALTY SHARE COMMUNITY where ACX authors and narrators can discuss, share and learn audiobook marketing tips, tricks and techniques.
You can listen to an audio sample from this title on Michael's ACX Narrator Profile.