One of the biggest surprises since my book was released a month ago has been discovering how ineffective traditional marketing and media has been.
The stuff that traditional publishers do to market books, doesn’t work in the same ways for indie authors. In fact, we would argue that some things you should steer clear of all together.
Press releases, newspaper outreach, and radio show appearances haven’t worked…yet. But I’ve been able to sell the most books through one tool:
Live Events
I’m not talking about book signings, although I’ve had one and I sold a nice number of books. But, I’m talking about a live event that you host very soon after your book is released. It can look any number of ways: a panel discussion, a public reading, or book club event. My first live event was the Indie Author Summit and I sold more books here than I have anywhere else.
Here are some tips to for launching an event that will help you sell more books:
1. Invite others to share the stage
Instead of trying to host a huge event and draw everyone to hear and see you, invite other experts and/or other authors to speak also. Your guest speakers will help you promote the event, your event will be multi-faceted, and other experts raise the caliber of the event overall. Tip: The bigger the event, the more likely you are
2. Include your book in the ticket price
A conference I (Dara) recently attended sent the hostess’s book ahead two weeks prior to the event. I loved this because it added excitement to the conference and there was no pressure to buy something once I was there.
3. Provide tangible value
Your book is of course a value add to your event, but try to include more than your book. Hosting a book club? Come prepared with questions that would enrich the discussion. As a bonus you could bring a list of other books on the topic that your audience would enjoy, a tips sheet, and resources list. Your motto should be to under promise and over deliver!
So once your event is planned and you’re prepping, here are your action items:
- Notify all of your networking using Evite, Eventbrite, Meetup, Constant Contact, Mail Chimp, etc. (For the Indie Author Summit, we used all of these except Mail Chimp and Meetup)
- Contact organizations or groups that might be interested in attendance (I reached out writer’s groups and networking groups)
- Prepare your speakers (Send notes, panel questions, and your book in advance)
- Choose a space that nurtures and is convenient for your audience
- Prepare your talk in advance, don’t wing it
- Plan to have a table for your book
- Have an email sign-up sheet on the day of the event
- Recruit a few friends or colleagues to help with the planning, set up, and clean up
- Use social media to promote the event and post your pictures on your book’s Facebook fan page (tip: create a hashtag for the event for Twitter)
So here it is! What are your thoughts? Are you planning to include live events as a way to market your book?
