Ten Things on Outside-the-Box Marketing
1. Guest speaking: Author Samuel J. Alibrando is using radio talk show interviews to promote his book on intelligent design, Nature Never Stops Talking.
2. Matchmaking: Authors @ Your Library helps connect publishers and libraries to schedule author events.
3. Readers love free stuff: Authors such as Holly Lisle offer free e-book versions of their work for readers on their web sites. You can make e-books for free as well; check out some of the pdf file services I posted links to here.
4. If you build it, they will come and read: Create an ezine by pooling your resources with other writers or flying solo. Builder sites like EZine Director offer free help and services to get you launched.
5. Getting it out there: Using services like MediaOffer.com to distribute free product while recipients provide marketing and contact info in return, as seen with this comic book giveaway.
6. Pick a peck of podcasts?: Podcast lovers might want to check out the services offered over at Podcast Pickle, the "first podcast and vidcast community."
7. Cooking up a storm in sales: PublishingTrends.com has an old but still interesting article on how Chefs Shake Up the Cookbook Market.
8. The good news and the bad news upfront: Advertising for Kenneth R. Timmerman's book Countdown to Crisis included both positive and negative blurbs under ad headers of "Who Likes It" and "Who Hates It."
9. Art as marketing: Douglas Clegg teamed up with artist Caniglia to create unique artwork for his first Vampyricon novel, The Priest of Blood, which he then used for special edition covers, free screensavers, and other collectible items availble for purchase to his readers.
10. Play to read: Online advergames like Young Bond help interest the gaming generation in print books. Popular advergames have the potential to reach more than 40% of internet users.
If you know of any unusual or non-traditional methods of marketing books, please post something about it in comments.
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You could take out low-cost Google ads on your work directing them to your author site.
ReplyDeleteOne local author I knew went door to door dropping off leaflets with his book details, internet site address, etc.
Or you cold hire a sky-writer to fly over a major city during a writer's convention and sky-write your web page address and book title . . .
Okay, I'm getting a little silly now.
And box? What box?
Vickie Stringer sold books out of the trunk of her car.
ReplyDeleteI think Chris Paolini's parents drove him from bookstore to bookstore with a load of books.
Now, the radio talk show circuit need not be limited to high-minded beard stroking National Book Award candidates. Indeed, it's a great chance for authors or, perhaps, publishers, to wax on about the entertainment value of commercial fiction.
I know about those advergames. And don't think they are only for fantasy or action books! VC Andrews fans have been playing mock characters from the books for years.
ReplyDeleteVery entertaining!
I Love your blog. Some handy tips, here. Thanks
ReplyDeleteI can't imagine doing half these things. I'm sure I'll get to the point where I'll have podcasts on my site. Until then, I put up a blog about a recent vampire book I'd read. (wg) Pretty darn good, if I do say so myself. ;-)
ReplyDelete