Today's promotion tip wasn't on my original list. I find that I'm learning a great deal as I move forward on this journey as a promoter as well as an author of children's books.
For some reason I've always been reluctant about contacting local media to promote my books or appearances. I've stopped being reluctant. It works!
When my local independent bookstore informed me that I was in charge of planning my own book signing/event--as well as promoting it--I was a little taken aback. I'd had those two great Princess Parties I wrote about a couple of weeks ago, both of them planned and advertised entirely by the booksellers, and I'd thought that's how it was done. I'm so glad now that I had to spend some time planning an event of my own--and especially glad for the ideas those two excellent booksellers gave me.
I didn't have the time or resources to plan as elaborate an event as the ones I've previously described, but I understood from those two events how much little girls love to dress up in princess costumes and how thrilled they were to have their pictures taken with me dressed as a queen. (I was never a princess-girl myself, and I never had a daughter of my own, so this was somewhat of a revelation to me.)
I decided it was enough to read my books and host a costume party and a parade through the store, and then to give prizes (books from my backlist, which I supplied) for Best Princess and Best Snowman costumes. It was a plus that Miss Whatcom County showed up in her beautiful gown and tiara, and I shamelessly handed off to her the difficult job of slecting the winners.
But how did Miss Whatcom County end up at my Princess Party? Inviting her wasn't something I'd have thought to do, and neither had the bookseller. She had actually called the store the day before and asked if it would be okay to make an appearance. The bookseller called me to ask. "The more the merrier," I said.
And how did Miss Whatcom County know about my Princess Party? I didn't get a chance to ask her--she was surrounded by star-struck little princesses the whole time she was there--but she might have heard about it from several sources. And we come back to the bookseller's request that I promote my own event.
One of the things I was most grateful for from my mentor-booksellers' marketing was a press release that one of them had sent out to media in her area before my book event. Using it as a template, I wrote my own press release and emailed it out ten days before my local event--which I'd learned was the optimum timing--to every publication and radio and TV station in the county. A local news-and-events blog responded with a request for an interview, which took place entirely through email. The blog posted a lovely article with several photos.
Miss Whatcom County might have learned about it there.
Or she may have seen one of the half dozen posters I created in Photoshop and posted around town: one at the bookstore, two at libraries (one of which offered to make copies to disperse to other branches), and three at busy stores that have large community events bulletin boards.
Or she may have learned about it through social media--though it would have been indirectly, as I'd never met Miss Whatcom County nor even knew of her existence. I'm not tech-savvy (or tech-interested) enough to use Twitter or Instagram or Google Plus, but I do have a basic Facebook page, and I announced the event there several times. Afterwards, I heard from one of my Facebook friends, an old highschool classmate, that Miss Whatcom County was his niece--so who knows?
The point is that with the push from my local indie bookstore I promoted the event on my own, and a lot of people, including Miss Whatcom County, showed up. I was fortunate that Village Books provided me with a list of local media contacts, so I didn't have to spend time doing that research--and I also have the list for future promotional opportunities. My guess is that my local Barnes and Noble has media contacts as well, and if I were promoting an event there and offered to send out a press release--easy to write now that I have one under my belt--they would be happy to provide a contact list for me or even send my promotional piece out for me.
One last note about sending out a press release: make sure to include a high-resolution photo (300dpi) along with it. Media usually want a standard head shot, but I also send a picture of a book cover and sometimes a more casual shot of myself, perhaps in costume or holding the book I'll be signing.
Tune in next week for some ideas about offering "something more" at your book signings to help the people who come to your event remember you for next time. Make yourself and your book memorable!
Barbara Jean Hicks is a regular guest contributor to Tales From the Rushmore Kid. She is a credentialed teacher in K-12 English/Language Arts and the award-winning author of seven picture books for children, including her most recent, AN AMAZING SNOWMAN, which along with A SISTER MORE LIKE ME is based on characters from the 2013 Oscar-winning animated feature film from Disney, FROZEN.
Comments