You’ve just written a sure to be award winning book on the history of ducks in television. Hundreds of copies of it sit on your desk and you’ve sold one to your mom, one to your best friend, and another to your dog. How in the world do you get word out about your epic tome?
Internet Word of Mouth
The first thing to do, if you haven’t already, is set up a Facebook and Twitter account for yourself and your book. On Facebook you can also set up a fan page for the book itself and recommend it to your friends and others. On Twitter, converse with other authors and get some buzz going about your book.
Also, send a few of those copies to book review websites. If you have a book in a specific market, like a book on ducks in television, send some of your books to sites that specialize in that area. Even sites that don’t necessarily review books might make an exception since it’s in their specialty.
Bookstores
Set up a book reading and signing at your local bookstores. Sometimes the larger chains like Barnes & Noble do this as well, but it’s best to start locally as they will be more receptive to your independent release. At the reading, make sure to have copies of the book available for folks to buy. And stay late to sign and talk with anyone that came! The long hours will be worth it.
These same bookstores might also be interested in carrying your book. Talk to the manager and they might buy a handful of your books for purchase. If people like it, they’ll buy more, which is easy word of mouth in your community.
Print Ads
Spend the money to put an ad in newspapers and/or magazines. Again, since your book is a specialized market, organize your campaign around that. Look for duck or television magazines to promote the book in. If it has a community flavor, try local newspapers or a trade magazine.
Also, try sending these places copies of your book for review.
Pound the Pavement
Get out there and mix it up! Go to writer meetings and shows. Send out business cards or postcards. See if there’s any room at the annual Duck & TV Convention and get a booth. Do whatever it takes to show people you mean business when it comes to your book!
One note: if you’re publishing through a company like Lulu.com, then for a price you can sign up for their promotional packages. If you’re really unsure about your skills, then it’s worth the money; but if you have a solid plan and PR background, you more than likely will not need it.
How have you successfully gotten the word out as a self-published author?
Mickie Kennedy is the founder and president of eReleases, the online leader in affordable PR distribution since 1998. Download the free whitepaper Beginner’s Guide to Writing Powerful Press Releases, a must-read for the PR professional. Follow eReleases on Google+, Pinterest, Facebook and Twitter.
