This report summarizes a two-hour talk I gave at the PMA Publishing University several years ago. I tried to include marketing ideas that I hadn't covered extensively in the Book Marketing Update newsletter or in 1001 Ways to Market Your Books. I hope these ideas will help you think of new possibilities for promoting your books.

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1. Book Excerpts

To promote an upcoming book to bookstores, libraries, or readers, print an excerpt from your book in pamphlet or booklet form and mail it out to your major customers (or potential customers).

To promote Gloria Steinem's new book, Revolution from Within, Little, Brown reprinted Bibliotherapy, a chapter that describes the books the author found helpful in writing her book and living her life. They sent 50,000 copies of this pamphlet to 1,000 of their major bookstore accounts who, in turn, passed them out to customers.

2. On-Line Ordering via Computer

David Unowsky, former owner of Hungry Mind, once a major independent bookstore in St. Paul, Minnesota, encourages smaller publishers to find a way to offer online ordering for bookstores. This process makes it much easier for bookstores to order your books. Of course, this suggestion is only valuable if you have a line of books that are popular with booksellers (and you don't already have a distributor who offers such an option).

3. Offer Your Sales Reps Push Money

Whether you have a distributor or work with your own sales rep groups, you might find it useful to offer your reps push money—that is, some monetary incentive to push a new book, line of books, or display. For example, if you want your reps to push a new line of books, offer them an extra $5.00 or $10.00 when they sell a set amount of books into one retail account.

While push money is not common among book sales reps, it is common in other retail fields. If you do offer such an incentive, arrange to send the check directly to your reps. Don't let the money come through your distributor. Make sure the reps know that the money is coming from you because they sold your books. Thank them for their good work.

By the way, if your books are distributed by another company, be sure you have the names, addresses, and phone numbers of the sales reps representing that company's line of books (which includes yours). Then communicate directly with your reps to let them know about new titles, breaking publicity, rights sales, major special sales, and other noteworthy events.

4. Preprint Review Copy Envelopes

Woodbridge Press sends all review copies bulk rate inside envelopes that are preprinted with their address and the legend: “New Book: Review Copy.” This message gets the attention of reviewers.

Also, because they send the books bulk rate (using their meter imprint), they save money without affecting delivery compared to book rate.

5. Stay Alert to Media Opportunities

Watch for news items that you can use to promote your own books. Also watch for news items about other books that could tie into your own books.

At one time, Leonore Fleischer's Talk of the Trade column in Publishers Weekly asserted that How to Profit by Setting Up Your Own Corporation “holds the record for being in print longer than any other book in its class [non-text business book] in history.” She noted that the book had sold 300,000 copies in 6 editions over 13 years.

Well, I knew a book on the same subject that had sold more and been in print longer: Ted Nicholas's How to Form Your Own Corporation without a Lawyer for Under $75.00, which was originally self-published in 1972 and has sold over 900,000 copies.

I called the author as well as the new publisher, Dearborn Trade, and alerted them to the error. They followed through and received a notice several weeks later in the same column of Publishers Weekly .

6. Feature Booksellers in Your Ads

For a full-page advertisement for Alice Hoffman's novel, Turtle Moon, Putnam featured the following headline: “From Moorestown, New Jersey, to Beaverton, Oregon, booksellers are falling in love with…” and a photo of the book jacket. The rest of the ad featured laudatory quotes from major independent bookstores as well as buyers from Waldenbooks, Barnes & Noble, and several wholesalers.

7. Promote Your Differences

When publicizing your books, look for ways that your books are different not only in content, but also in form. For example, Westcliffe recently promoted their line of calendars by pointing out that their calendars were the first nationally distributed line to be printed on real recycled paper (using at least 14% post consumer waste) —thereby keeping 2,925 pounds of air pollution out of the atmosphere, saving 829 trees, and preventing 147 cubic yards of paper from reaching the landfills.

They worked with their paper supplier, Conservatree, to promote the news to the media. Westcliffe also invited booksellers to a free seminar during the ABA Convention on “Why Recycling Is Better than Sex.”

Finally, they also promoted the fact that their monthly format was the largest of all calendar publishers—14" x 12".

8. Provide Booksellers with Displays

If you are publishing a book with major bookstore potential (be honest in judging its potential), provide booksellers with posters, displays, shelf-talkers, or other in-store point-of-purchase material. Provide this material before publication date.

The publishers of Sue Grafton's alphabet mystery series sent bookstores a cardboard easel announcing that her latest book in the series, “I” Is for Innocent, would be arriving on April 6th. The easel featured a full-color reproduction of the book's cover. Since Sue has an avid fan club for the series, the display would draw immediate interest. I'm sure many bookstores displayed the easel.

9. Cut Costs with Postcards

When promoting a new title to your customer list, try sending a postcard. At 23¢, first class postcards are often less expensive than bulk mail—and you get address corrections returned for free! Have one side of the postcard feature a cover of your book, while the other side features your sales copy and a space for the recipients name and address.

To promote the new edition of Creative Cash, Barbara Brabec mailed out 5,000 postcards to a customer list that hadn't been cleaned in 18 months. Her cost: $180.00 for printing plus $950.00 for postage. As a result, she received 153 orders (over $2,500.00 in sales) as well as 964 address corrections at no extra cost.

10. Market with a Greeting Card

In promoting books to your customers, especially stores and wholesalers, try different formats to get their attention. Most stores are inundated with catalogs, brochures, and media kits, but how many receive greeting cards, calendars, pop-ups, or other unusual formats?

Why not try a Valentine card when promoting a book during February. Or a Mother's Day card during May? Or a flag on the 4th of July? Such items would stand out from the clutter on their desk. Just keep it simple so your card stands out (in other words, don't stuff the card in with your catalog or a bunch of flyers; send it by itself).

11. Adopt a Library

To commemorate its 25 years in business, Jossey-Bass adopted the San Francisco Public Library by making a commitment to give them a copy of every new book they publish during the coming 25 years. Of course, they made sure other people knew what they did—and received local as well as national publicity for the effort.

12. Get on Oprah!

I realize that most of you already have a great desire to get your authors on Oprah Winfrey's television show, but many of you obviously don't do enough—or you'd be on the show. Be persistent. Send them info at least once every two months. Make sure your news releases and author information target the the needs of the audience. Relate the book to a current crisis, problem, or news event that would appeal to Oprah. And keep in touch.

One know one author who took a year to get on Oprah, but she kept her name in front of them so that one day out of the blue they called and asked her to appear on the show in two days. Could she make it? Of course, she could.

Note that Oprah's show still sells books. I know one self-published author that credits the show with selling 50,000 copies of her book. When Marianne Williamson, author of A Return to Love, appeared on the show in February, HarperCollins took in backorders for 35,000 copies of her book by the end of that day. By the end of the next day, backorders had risen to 120,000 copies.

Not only do readers respond to Oprah's show, but bookstores and wholesalers do as well. And sometimes in a big way, especially with the new Oprah Book Club selections which all have sold more than a million copies.

13. Sponsor a Contest

One way to get publicity is to sponsor a contest. You can even charge a small fee for entering the contest. How about a muffin-baking contest to promote a new cookbook? Or “your most romantic moment” contest to promote a romance novel or a book on relationships? Or the best photo of the Grand Canyon for an Arizona travel book?

The Wall Street Journal recently publicized a contest sponsored by Delia's restaurant. Delia's offered a chance to win a fully equipped Manhattan restaurant and one year's paid rent to the person with the best concept for a fantasy restaurant. The entry fee for the contest was $50.00. Delia's owners expected to have 5,000 entries (that's $250,000 in application fees), but reserved the right to cancel the contest if that goal wasn't reached. What did Delia's get out of this contest? Well, they might make some money on the contest fees, but they also will get 5,000 new ideas for trendy nightspots.

14. Create Your Own Radio Network

Zondervan formed its own radio network to promote its books and authors. It offered radio stations a chance to receive regular audiotapes containing well-produced segments ranging from 60-second news items to 27-minute interviews. More than 250 stations have already signed up for this service to supplement their news and public affairs programming.

15. Create Your Own Promo Newsletter

As a supplement to their network, Zondervan also publishes a monthly newsletter of interview ideas called Producer's Report. Zondervan's 600 authors can speak not only on religion, but also on parenting, health, abortion, literacy, business, sex, politics, and current events. If you would like to see a sample of their newsletter, call their media relations department at 800-727-8004.

16. Create Your Own Speakers Bureau

One way to make your authors more available for speaking engagements with associations, groups, and businesses is to form your own speakers bureau. You can fund the bureau with your commissions from paid speaking engagements for your authors. Matthew Bender, a legal publisher, has formed a speakers bureau for their authors. Not only do they book their authors for seminars and conferences, but they also book them for media interviews.

17. Offer Free Copies to Radio/TV Shows

To promote his self-published book on financial planning, The Wealthy Barber, Dave Chilton sent 20 free copies to major radio and TV shows. In the letter that accompanied the books, he told the stations to give the copies to their camera people, receptionists, and other employees. As he wrote in the letter, “I guarantee that once they read the book, you'll want me on your show.” And he was right. As a result to these media appearances his book became one of the top bestsellers in Canada for two years running.

18. Sponsor a Column in Library Journal

If you have a number of books that would appeal to libraries, you might want to sponsor a full-page column in Library Journal. Baker & Taylor, for example, sponsors the Literacy Clearinghouse, which features new books for getting people to read. Gale Research sponsors Ready Reference, which features submissions from librarians on techniques that work for them. Gale pays librarians $50 for each tip used in the column.

19. Publish a Newsletter for Librarians

Another way to promote to libraries is to publish a newsletter targeted to them. For example, Random House publishes Random Revelations, a newsletter targeted to librarians and written by a former librarian. This newsletter gives libraries advance notice of Random House's top titles.

You don't have to hire someone full time to produce a newsletter. You could work with your local librarian to publish a quarterly or semi-annual newsletter featuring reviews of your books from a librarian's perspective.

20. Have Your Authors Read in Libraries

While many publishers already have on-going programs where their authors read and sign books in bookstores, libraries can also be an excellent place to spotlight authors. Baker & Taylor is developing a state-by-state directory of libraries that have author readings (including the library name, address, library contact, auditorium size, and areas of interest). Mary Shapiro edits the directory. For more information, contact the library marketing division at Baker & Taylor, 652 E Main Street, P O Box 6920, Bridgewater NJ 08807-0920; 908-218-0400.

21. Promote Your Authors in Bookstores

While some publishers don't have much luck with author signings in bookstores, some do. Of course, you're much more likely to have sales of books if the author does a reading or talk in the bookstore as well.

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22. Dated recommendation now deleted

23. This Brochure May Be Photocopied

When sending out order forms and brochures, you could print a handwritten or typeset notice that “This brochure may be photocopied.” Verbal Images Press does this on their order forms and has found it to be very successful in getting pass-along orders for their books. You might do the same with your catalog order forms for libraries, your news releases, and any other promotional literature.

23. Form a Fan Club for Your Authors

It is estimated that there are over 1,000 fan clubs in the United States. While most of these fan clubs are for movie stars and musicians, some authors have fan clubs, especially among the romance novelists (Lewis Grizzard, too). Here are a few tips on forming a fan club:

• Make it clear that your club is the official club, sanctioned by the author.
• Give the members their money's worth in the form of quality pictures, imprinted materials, and news.
• Provide opportunities for members to exchange information and trade memorabilia via a newsletter and/or pen-pal program.

24. Encourage Bookstores to Read Your Reading Copies

If you send out advance reading copies of your books to booksellers, make sure they read them. How? Here's one way:

When Bantam published The Original Sin by Marius Gabriel, it ran a full-page ad in American Bookseller announcing a booksellers-only contest with the prize being a trip to Barcelona, Spain, and dinner with the author. How could booksellers win the trip? Well, they had to read the advance copy so they could answer a specific question: “Mercedes was forced to defend her virginity with a pistol. Against whom was she defending herself?” The question alone was sure to spark a lot of interest. The contest just made sure that the booksellers followed through. Bantam advertised an 800 number so booksellers could quickly and easily request their reading copies. And, if Bantam organized their operation properly, they also gathered information about the stores when the stores requested the contest rules and reading copy.

If you can't afford to run a contest, spark booksellers interest by offering a premium with the reading copy. For example, accompany a travel book with a small item crafted in the region.

25. Explore Different Technologies

One dominant formats for information has been CD-ROMs. CD-ROM's capacity and format is very appropriate for many books, but indispensable for directories, manuals, and other reference works. Many libraries offer access to CD-ROM readers. Nowadays the new popular formats are DVDs and MP3s, but that will change to as technology changes.

Also explore the Internet. It is now the major way to promote your books. The new Sixth Edition of 1001 Ways to Market Your Books features an entire chapter on selling books via the Internet.

26. Print 800 Numbers Your Books

A good number of publishers are reporting great success with printing toll-free order numbers in the backs of their books so readers can order additional copies or other titles published by the publisher. If you do offer this option, however, you must also accept credit cards.

Printing an order form, other ordering information, or a toll-free number in the back of a book is especially effective in getting sales from people who first see the book in a library. Indeed, it is such sales that make library sales so profitable.

27. Talk

Don't be afraid to talk to your customers, or to major buyers or media, or to strangers on the plane. If you talk about your titles with the pride and passion you have in publishing them and if your authors do the same, you will attract a surprising amount of attention with very little effort. But you can't be afraid to talk. And you absolutely cannot be afraid to feel strongly about your books and to act on that conviction.

Word of mouth is the most effective way to market any book. And how do you create word of mouth? Very simple. It has to start somewhere. Why not with your mouth? And your heart?

28. Promote to Media with Free Offers

One of the most effective ways to get ongoing media notice is to offer their audience something free. It is difficult, almost impossible, to get media to feature a book more than once. But they will feature free offers as often as you come up with them. Plan to start a new promotional campaign at least four times a year for each book you publish.

How do you find something to give away free? Easy. Your books should be full of valuable information that you can excerpt in short 2-page or 4-page brochures that you can offer free to anyone who sends you an SASE or $1.00 to $3.00 for postage.

For example, a travel publisher could offer a list of the ten most exciting places in Iowa (if their book was about Iowa). Three months later, the same publisher could offer a report on holiday happenings in Iowa. Three months later, a report on how to plan your next vacation in Iowa. And three months later, a list of 10 major historical sites in Iowa. And three months later….

29. Call Early

If you want to reach decision makers (for example, buyers at major chains or catalogs, try calling them at 8:45 a.m., or earlier. This strategy still works. Why? Because secretaries normally arrive at 9:00 a.m. while many bosses come in earlier to get work done before the hustle bustle of the day begins. If their phone rings, there's a good chance they might answer it. And listen to you—if you keep your call short, sweet, and to the point.

30. Promote to Stores in the Boondocks

If your books are handled by a distributor, chances are that their sales reps only cover a small part of their territory. Most commissioned reps only cover bookstores in major cities (and those stores in towns on the road between those major cities). How should you reach these other stores?

Woodbridge sends these stores catalogs enclosed in large envelopes. On the outside of those envelopes, the following is printed: “New Catalogs. New Titles. Please order from these materials. (No Sales Rep will call in your area this season.)” It is important to alert these stores that no sales rep will call. Even major publishers who have reps promote to small town stores primarily through catalogs.

31. Offer Media More Information

Make it easy for media to get more information about or from your books. Besides preparing a fact sheet to accompany your news releases, you might offer other options as well (for example, a background sheet about your company or a bio sheet about the author or a list of questions and answers for interviewers). Also, let media know that review copies are readily available just for the asking.

Or follow Pacific Travellers Press. Besides enclosing a postpaid return postcard, they also make this offer: “If you ever plan to do an article on Santa Barbara, we have a lot of data available on a PC floppy disk that you would be free to use in return for a mention of our book.”

32. Get Their Attention Fast

When ICS Press promoted The Politics of Auto Insurance Reform to media and major buyers, they always enclosed a bumper sticker with any news release, review copy, or brochure. The bumper sticker read: “Hit Me—I Need the Money!” An attention getter if I've ever saw one. The front of the bumper sticker also featured the title of the book, the author's name, and ICS Press's 800 number. The back of the sticker reproduced the three best paragraphs from the news release for the book.

33. Set Up Special Bookstore Programs

When children's book publisher Candlewick Press announced its first list, it offered booksellers an irresistible deal—50% discount, free freight, double co-op merchandising points, and a visit from a local professional storyteller. All the booksellers had to do to become a Candlewick Corner Dealer was to order three copies each of 25 different titles from that first list and display them all in one place. Candlewick also provided these stores with sample newspaper ads and bag stuffers.

When Candlewick promoted its new list direct to consumers via magazine ads, they featured a toll-free 800 number. The publisher, however, promised not to take orders over the phone. Instead, they directed interested readers to local bookstores that are Candlewick Corner Dealers.

34. Provide Ad Slicks to Bookstores

When promoting specific titles to bookstores, also enclose camera-ready ad slicks that the bookstores can insert into newspapers with their own address. You might also provide them with photos or sample reviews to use in their store newsletters. Or perhaps a quiz that features information from your title.

35. Be the First or Be the Best

As Scott Flanders, president of Macmillan Computer Publishing has noted, “We say that there are two successful books on a subject: The first one out and the best one.” My preference is to be both. That way there's no confusion in the minds of buyers.

36. Send Advance Copies to Readers

If you have a big book and want to generate advance word of mouth among the people who count, try sending advance reading copies not only to booksellers but also to some of their best customers. That's what William Morrow did for one of their lead titles this spring.

When they sent out 5,000 galleys of their new novel Morning's Gate to booksellers, they also enclosed a letter asking those booksellers to return a postcard giving the name and address of a favorite customer. 600 booksellers responded to that offer. Morrow then sent those 600 readers autographed copies of the finished book. Not only did this program excite the readers who received the books, but it also pleased the booksellers who were able to do something nice for some of their best customers.

37. Make Your Company Name Known

When promoting your books, be sure to also promote your company. Name recognition is crucial for ensuring that future titles will be treated with respect. Make sure major buyers and media know that good books come from your company. In a recent survey conducted by ABC-CLIO, they found that the key factor in getting librarians to open your promotional mail and place an order was whether or not they recognized the company name.

38. Tie into Special Events

One effective way to promote your books to schools, stores, libraries, and the media is to associate your book promotions with the 4,000 special days, weeks, and months celebrated every year.

How do you find out about these special days, weeks, and months? Order a copy of Celebrate Today (available for $14.95 postpaid) or the Special Events Data Files (available for $35.00 postpaid) from Open Horizons, P.O. Box 2887, Taos NM 87571; 575-751-3398. Email: info@bookmarket.com. Web: http://www.celebratetoday.com. The book features 3,300 events. The data files, as of February 2000, feature more than 12,400 events.

To celebrate Black History Month, the Schwartz Bookshops in Milwaukee, Wisconsin discounted twenty African-American titles by 15%. Many other bookstores and libraries featured special displays as well during this month.

39. Test Your Titles

Your book's title is the first thing most consumers see when they first become aware of your book. Make sure the title works. When Garden Way changed the title of The Squash Book to The Zucchini Cookbook, sales rocketed from a paltry 1,500 copies to over 300,000 copies.

Fisher Books found that sales picked up considerably after changing the title of one of their cookbooks from Cooking for Compliments to Dairy Food Cooking.

40. Sell to the Home Shopping Networks

These networks sell books—lots of books. The first time that the QVC Network featured a full hour of books, they took in $360,000 in sales. A single pass across the screen resulted in 400 copies sold for a book about Harley Davidsons (a $39.95 retail value that was discounted to only $29.95 for those few minutes).

If these networks are uncertain about your book, they will ask for returnable terms at a 50% discount, net 30 days, F.O.B. your dock (they pay the freight). If they are sure they can sell all the books they order from you, they will want nonreturnable terms of 55% discount.

Note that they like to do themes. Find out what themes they are planning to do, and then suggest books in your catalog that would complement those themes.

41. Advertise in the Yellow Pages

More and more manufacturers are advertising direct to consumers via the Yellow Pages. For example, one food company is advertising cents-off coupons for their frozen pizzas under the Pizza listing in the phone book.

Note that some Yellow Pages publishers offer per inquiry deals or split runs to encourage national advertisers to run an ad in their directory.

If you publish a foreign travel guide, why not test advertising it in the Yellow Pages under Travel Agencies. Or how about an ad for dog or cat care under Veterinarians. Or an ad for the Directory of Book Printers under Book Printers (that's an advertisement I always meant to try but never got around to).

42. Actively Market Subsidiary Rights

When I published Mail Order Selling Made Easier, I actively promoted rights sales. As a result, I sold foreign rights to McGraw-Hill in England, book club rights to Newbridge's Executive Program and Fortune Book Club, serial rights to Income Plus, and finally reprint rights for a new trade paperback and hardcover edition to John Wiley & Sons (which are currently publishing the book as The Complete Direct Marketing Sourcebook). Total income from rights sales: $12,000 plus.

43. Advertise in Holiday Bookstore Catalogs

If you publish a title that you think will sell well during the winter holiday season, you might place an ad in one of the holiday book catalogs published by some of the bookseller associations as well as Baker & Taylor and White Bridge Communications (a sister company of Ingram). The cost to be in one of these catalogs ranges from $3,750 to $5,000 for distribution of 100,000 to 500,000 copies (e.g., White Bridge charges $3,750 for a standard unit sent to 500,000 readers). If interested, talk to B&T or White Bridge. Their holiday catalogs close by late June (if not earlier).

44. Cater to Your Audience

For example, when publishing a catalog for library sales, list your books by subject category. Also include an author and title index. Address mail to the Collection Development Librarian not the acquisition librarian (who simply processes orders).

One of the primary questions that all librarians have when they hear about a book is: “Do we already have the book?” To help them answer that question, be sure to provide them with all the elements that identify the book, including title, author, copyright date, and ISBN number.

45. Get Feedback

No matter who you are promoting to, try to include some way for them to give feedback. Librarians especially are looking for ways to let publishers know what they need. To facilitate such communication, publishers are now including response cards or survey cards in their catalogs and/or books. Such cards can be a very effective and inexpensive way to find out what new books you should publish and, more importantly, how you can change the books you already publish so they better serve their target audiences.

46. Provide Waiting Room Copies

The Children's Reading Institute sent copies of Germs Make Me Sick, to doctors around the country. The book's cover had a special imprint saying, “Waiting Room Copy. Please Do Not Remove.” Most doctors, of course, would be happy to display such books if of interest to their patients. What did the Children's Reading Institute get out of the offer? They bound in 20 tear-out postcards that promoted their Let's Read and Find Out science book series.

47. Do It Once and Sell It Forever

Don't publish for the short term. Publish books that will last. Then sell them and sell them and sell them. The longer you keep a book in print, the greater chance you have of finding the right audiences for the book—and the better chance you have of generating word of mouth, the most effective selling tool any book has.

When I Am an Old Woman I Shall Wear Purple put Papier-Mache on the map. Indeed, it sold better last year than it did in 1987 when it was first published. Why? Because it has found its target audiences and generated incredible word of mouth. In fact, booksellers chose it as one of the first runner-ups for the Abby Award, given to books that booksellers most enjoy selling.

48. Do Something Every Day

Each day, take some marketing action on every active title on your list. Write a letter. Make a phone call. Create a new ad. It need not take much time, but these small actions can keep your books actively selling for years to come.

If you devote just ten minutes of focused marketing time every day on each book you published, I guarantee you will make more sales.

49. Repeat, Repeat, Repeat

I once read that it takes an average of 14 media impressions before someone will take the initiative to buy. I've been publishing valuable information for book publishers for fifteen years, yet I still find people who have not heard of me or my books. And, believe me, I've left few stones unturned in alerting publishers about my books.

50. Make Everything Work for You Twice

Whatever you to, always make sure you get double duty out of it. That's how to do a whole lot less and accomplish a whole lot more. For example, when traveling, don't just visit family or friends. Instead, also take time to make important media contacts, do some interviews, visit booksellers, visit wholesalers, talk to librarians, explore alternate markets, and sell your books.

Another example: This report was once a talk I gave at a PMA University. It then became the basis for a feature article in my Book Marketing Update newsletter. I then turned the written points into this inexpensive report (which I’ve sometimes used as a free giveaway to attract publicity). Finally, I have sold tapes of the talk. And, of course, all of these points have found their way into the newest edition of my 1001 Ways to Market Your Books.

51. Always Give More Than You Promised

If you make it a habit to give your customers more than they expected, they will continue to buy from you. This one piece of advice is the most important of the 50 I've thus far shared with you. Don't underestimate the power of quality products and service. If you publish great books, offer unsurpassed service, and stand by your guarantee, you will attract and keep great customers.

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