Marketing 101 for Children’s Book Authors

by author Emma Walton Hamilton

The role of a children’s book author in the marketplace is dramatically different today than it was even ten years ago. From picture books to YA, manuscripts are now acquired as much on the basis of an author’s perceived “platform” as on the merits of the writing, and authors are expected to take equal responsibility for the marketing and promotion of their releases.

The good news is that technology makes it considerably easier today for writers to chart their own publishing course. It’s also fun – strategizing promotional ideas to support a book can actually be as creative as writing the book itself.
Here, then, are ten ways a children’s author can position a book for success in the marketplace:

1. Know the Market – Get familiar with the current as well as the classic styles, trends and approaches, so you can see how your book fits in. Research the competition, and consider how your book is unique. Some resources:
• Weekly trade publications, like Publishers Weekly and School Library Journal (subscribe to their e-newsletters)
• The KidLit Blogosphere (see item #7)
• Conferences, festivals and trade shows (see item #8)
• The children’s sections of libraries and bookstores
• Hanging out with – and reading to – kids. There’s no better way to learn what works, what doesn’t, when you’ve got them, and how quickly you can lose them!

2. Have a Web Presence - Hire a website designer or create your own, but you must have a website… preferably one for you, and one for each of your titles. Consider including:
• Your current bio
• A media kit, with jpeg photos of you, plus any press releases and/or interviews
• A “Frequently Asked Questions” page
• Your blog – connected to the theme of your book(s), or your niche
• Fun stuff – games, downloads, coloring pages, activities (see item #4)
• Educational materials/teacher’s guides
• A link to your mailing list (see item #10)
• Calendar of upcoming events – pub dates, signings, appearances
• Links to buy your books
• Related sites of interest
• Book Trailers (or links to them via YouTube)

Additional ways to have a presence on the Web:
• Write articles on subjects related to your book(s). Publish them via sites like www.ezinearticles.com and www.goarticles.com. Always include the name of your book and a link to your website in your by-line.
• Amazon.com author pages/programs
• Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and other social networking sites (see item #3)
• Guest posts and comments on related blogs
• Virtual Book Tours (see item #9).

3. Social Networking - If you’ve been using Facebook or Twitter to tell your friends what you had for breakfast, STOP. Start viewing these sites as the powerful marketing tools that they are. Once you start using them correctly, you won’t want your followers looking back at random posts or embarrassing pictures. The prime sites these days are Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. The real power comes from connecting them to each other (or to your blog), so that you need only post information to one place, and it goes out to all of them simultaneously. Jacketflap.com is another social networking site exclusively for children’s book authors.

4. Create products and promotional materials - You can no longer rely on a publisher to supply these for you. Get creative! Consider designing bookmarks, postcards, posters, flyers, brochures, bookplates, downloadable coloring pages, games, teachers guides, mp3’s, t-shirts, note pads, balloons, crayons, pens, pencils, rulers, bubbles, stickers, craft items, toys, coloring books… anything related to the theme of your book, and the more kid-friendly, the better. These giveaway items are invaluable at book signings, school presentations, book fairs and any other promotional opportunity/event. They attract people to your table and speak for you long after you have gone. Good resources are cafepress.com and zazzle.com. You can print your graphic, logo or message on items you can buy at cost and give away at your events. You can also create your own virtual “store” that you can link to from your website. Modernpostcard.com is another first-rate resource for cards, brochures and posters.

5. Look for cross-promotional opportunities - Is your book about dogs? Consider approaching pet associations, pet stores and kennel clubs. Does your book celebrate gardening? Explore national gardening organizations, nurseries and florists. Like-minded organizations, groups or individuals may be interested in obtaining books for their donors, staff members or for special events, and may provide opportunities for guest blog posts, speaking engagements or other forms of sponsorship.

Friends and colleagues can also help you cross-promote. Ask them to post reviews on Amazon.com. John Kremer has a great blog post on how friends and family members can help an author they love: http://bookmarket.com/loveawriter.htm

6. Cultivate signings and author visits, and make them memorable. Don’t wait for your publisher to set these up. Approach local bookstores, libraries, schools, toy stores, specialty stores, clubs, fraternal organizations and charities (see item #5) to see if they would be willing to host an author visit and/or signing. Do the same whenever you travel. Then, make each signing or author visit an event. Bring display materials and giveaways (item #4), and build in fun, hands-on components such as book-related crafts and activities. Always offer to autograph extra copies for the store – signed books can’t be returned! Consider raffling off a book, or set of books, in return for business cards for your list (see item #10.)

7. Connect with the KidLit Blogosphere - A formidable force in the children’s book industry, these bloggers devote their content exclusively to children’s literature. Their posts encompass reviews, industry trends, news, rants and raves and more – but always relative to the world of children’s lit. Mostly comprised of librarians, educators, booksellers and authors, the KidLit Blogosphere has become so powerful that many publishers feel a good review from one of them is as important as one from the New York Times. The Cybil Awards (http://www.cybils.com) honor the best in KidLit blogging, and their website provides links to all of them, as does School Library Journal.

8. Attend book fairs, festivals, conferences - There are essentially two different types:
1) Sales and marketing conferences, at which booksellers, librarians, educators, publishers and authors gather to promote their books. Among the most significant:
• BEA/Book Expo America – Once a year, in May. www.bookexpoamerica.com
• SCBWI/Society of Children’s Book Writers & Illustrators – 2 major conferences a year, in the spring and fall, usually in NYC and LA. Local chapters exist throughout the USA and internationally. www.scbwi.org
• ALA/American Library Association – One important annual fair, attended by librarians, educators and authors from all over the country. www.ala.org
• Bologna Book Fair – Primarily about international sales/rights www.bookfair.bolognafiere.it/en

2) Professional development/educational conferences, at which authors and illustrators gather to learn from and network with one another, as well as with editors, agents and publishers.

I’m the director of the Southampton Children’s Literature Conference, sponsored by Stony Brook Southampton’s MFA in Writing and Literature (www.stonybrook.edu/writers), which I’m proud to say is rapidly becoming one of the best in the industry. There are a number of other statewide children’s lit and writing conferences that can be found by entering “children’s literature conferences” or “writing conferences” into the search engine of your choice.

9. Virtual Book Tours - Not long ago, with the release of a new book, authors went out on “book tour.” This involved traveling across the country to sign, speak about and otherwise promote the book via radio, TV and newspaper interviews, in conjunction with public appearances and book signings. In recent years, as publishing budgets have shrunk and the digital world has gained a more powerful footing, the book tour has been redefined. While some major authors occasionally still go “on the road”, the new pr vehicle of choice is the Virtual Book Tour. The “stops” are websites instead of cities, stores or other real life venues, and authors connect with readers online, via websites, blogs, podcasts, vlogs, teleconferences, chats, web-based articles and reviews, Internet radio and TV, and YouTube, Facebook, and other social networking communities. Sometimes the author throws a ‘book party’ at his or her own website, but generally speaking s/he is visiting other people’s sites over a period of days or weeks in a structured, co-ordinated effort.

Just as with ‘real world’ book tours, in order to be successful, the Virtual Book Tour must be carefully organized. There are some individuals and organizations who have made names for themselves exclusively in the Virtual Book Tour market. Among the better-known are Alex Mandossian (VirtualBookTour Secrets.com), Kevin Smokler (BookTour.com) and John Kremer (BookMarket.com.)

10. Build your list! Probably the single most important thing you can do marketing-wise, even before you get published, is to develop a growing database of people who are interested in your work. In order to build your list, you must have a system to capture names and contact information (www.ConstantContact.com is a popular one that includes newsletter templates), as well as an ‘opt-in’ link to that database on your website. Some other ways to build your list:
• Swap lists with like-minded friends, colleagues and fellow authors
• Include mailing list information in your books and related materials
• Have a sign up sheet at all public appearances
• Include links to your website in all your emails
• Provide special offers/incentives, such as free downloads, raffles, etc. in exchange for joining your list (also known as “ethical bribes.”)

The bottom line is that promoting your books need not be a chore. It’s simply a question of applying the same level of imagination to the marketing plan as you do to writing your stories.

Emma Walton Hamilton has co-authored over twenty books for children, seven of which have been on the NY times bestseller list (three at #1). She is the host of the Children’s Book Hub (www.childrensbookhub.com), a center of resources and information for children’s book authors, and offers freelance editing services as well as online courses in writing for children at www.emmawaltonhamilton.com.

THE VERY FAIRY PRINCESS by Julie Andrews and Emma Walton Hamilton: While her friends and family may not believe in fairies, Geraldine knows, deep down, that she is a VERY fairy princess. From morning to night, Gerry does everything that fairy princesses do: she dresses in her royal attire, practices her flying skills, and she is always on the lookout for problems to solve. But it isn’t all twirls and tiaras – as every fairy princess knows, dirty fingernails and scabby knees are just the price you pay for a perfect day!