Book promotion 101 – relationships are key

 (Author Patti Murphy (L) talking with Amanda Turner, host of Radio Boise’s Writer’s Block show)

A lot of writers hate the idea of having to do self-promotion. Trying to pitch someone on why they should do a story on you and your book can sometimes feel uncomfortable. For me it conjures up the words of my grandmother, “No one likes a braggart. Just work hard, and people will notice.”

Sorry grandma, I have to disagree.

How do I know? Because I’ve been a public relations consultant for more than 30 years. People hire me to promote them, their businesses and their achievements because they aren’t sure how to do it and they are uncomfortable doing it themselves. It’s my job to get them in the news so they can tell their story, and its always easier to have someone else (your PR rep) talking about how great you are than to try and do it yourself.

But, guess what? Even with three decades in PR, marketing, media relations, and news reporting, I still squirm at doing self-promotion. Fortunately, I can simply fall back on the same tactics and philosophy I use to promote my PR clients.

If I had to point to one thing that is key to good media relations and promotion, it is developing personal relationships. Promotions are no longer about sending out your news and having reporters clambering to cover your story. Today there is a 24 hour news cycle with stories pouring in every second. We need to stand out in some way. A personal connection, followed by a good story, is a good start.

Go. Do. It.…

Here are a few ideas:

1. Define your target audience. That’s key to helping you figure out who to contact in the media. My book Mother Knows Best – Wit and Wisdom from Idaho Moms, a collection of funny “momisms,” was written with moms and women in mind, and secondarily for men who would purchase it women. Knowing our target audience made it clear that our media contacts should be feature writers, “lifestyle” reporters, writers who typically follow stories about families, kids, women. 

    “I just got a news release from someone in Arkansas announcing they just published a book. Why would I care about that?” ~ Idaho newspaper editor

2. Can your book be hooked onto a holiday or special occasion? If so, you can use that holiday to promote it. For example, if your book is about the historical roots of superstitions, you could promote it prior to a Friday the 13^th.  If it’s a novel about vampires, you could launch your promotion in the weeks leading up to Halloween. We launched the Mother Knows Best book just prior to Mother’s Day and promoted it as a perfect gift for moms, daughters, teachers, etc.
3. Consider partnering with a charity for your launch and announce you will be donating some of the proceeds to that charity. A book about pets could benefit the Humane Society. A children’s book could benefit a local school. We teamed up with the Women’s and Children’s Alliance, and will be presenting them with a check within the next month or so.
4. Launch your book with a signing at a venue that is connected to your topic. My wonderful friend and author Gretchen Anderson wrote a book called The Backyard Chicken Fight , How keeping chickens in your back yard is ruffling feathers across the nation. She partnered with Zamzow’s, our very popular local pet, garden and feed store, to carry the books as well as host numerous book signings. The book was a perfect fit for Zamzow’s and vice versa.
5. Create a digital media kit that can be sent to editors and writers via email or can be easily printed out and mailed or faxed.  Include: Your bio, your photo, news release, book cover art, Q&A about you and your book, news clips, endorsements.
6. Target:  Don’t just send your info to any reporter or editor. Figure out who writes about your subject. If you aren’t sure, make a call to the media outlet and ask who on their staff would likely cover your topic.
   -Newspaper reporters often have “beats”  like sports, lifestyle, business, music, community or even general.
   -Radio: There are talk radio stations that book guests all day long, and others that book short, in-studio interviews with the on-air personalities, often during morning drive time. Send your release to the producer and/or the on-air personality.

   Never fall prey to the idea that just sending a news release will get media scrambling to your door. 

   
   -Television is trickier — It’s a visual medium and stories must have something to show. A book signing is not generally news. But, if you hand over a check for $1,000 to a local charity based on book sales, that could be of interest. Other good segments to try and get booked on are the in-studio interviews with the anchor which are designed to cover community news topics. Find out the name of the show’s producer and send them your news release.
7. Follow up with a phone call or email. You can’t call them all, so select the most relevant reporters / editors and follow up with them. Talk to them personally about your book, why its important. Give them some interesting info that makes them want to do a story.Connect.
8. It’s all about relationships.  Do you know anyone in the media? Do you have friends who know people in the media? Ask them if they could connect you with an appropriate reporter or editor.

A final word…

Never fall prey to the idea that just sending a news release will get media scrambling to your door. Media relations is all about making personal contacts and building relationships. The news release delivers the initial idea but a personal follow-up phone call to select media is important for your success. Create a good “pitch” that will get your idea across quickly and succinctly.

Don’t ignore your local media. You will have a better shot at getting local publicity than getting on the Today Show. I once had an Idaho newspaper editor tell me, “I just got a news release from someone in Arkansas announcing they just published a book. Why would I care about that?” There are many small community newspapers that are looking for local news and will gladly print your story.

Be flexible and available for interviews, even if they’re at the last minute or inconvenient.

Don’t forget to keep all your clips!

Although this is a long post, it certainly is not all-inclusive, but I hope it provides you with some ideas. Here are a few links with additional thoughts on book promotion.

www.writing-world.com/promotion/index.shtml

www.lifehack.org/articles/communication/ten-great-ways-to-promote-your-book.html

www.bookbuzzr.com/blog/book-marketing/10-ways-to-promote-your-book-in-your-own-backyard/