Publicity heaven...

This week I have been thinking about publicity...when and how you go about letting people know that you are here.

This all came about because an organisation I know decided to have an open day....

This is a wonderful opportunity to show people what happens in our building was the internal memo to all the building residents.

“But who will come to the open day,” I asked innocently to an inmate of this building.

People who are interested in what people in this building do.

“But this building is ugly. You can’t find the front door because it is on the opposite side of the building from the car park. There is no reception. There are three floors of doors to national offices and a communal lunch room at the back on the second floor,” I said matter of factly.

People might still be interested.

“What is your publicity hook? What’s in it for them? Why would someone bother to come into the middle of the city where you can’t get a park (coz you won’t get one outside your building with the two visitors car parks which are never empty) to visit you?” I asked belligerently this time...because this was looking like an exercise in futility.

People might still be interested.

“Who is this people? Who are your target audience?” I asked pointedly

Um not sure. Anyway we’re having it. The general manager has already advertised it (without telling anyone beforehand) None of us knows what we are doing on this day so we’re just going to be working and prepared to speak to anybody who wants to talk to us in our capacity of national organisation.

“Yeah right.”

There will be pancakes....I think...

Can you see some of the problems here in this attempt at raising a profile.
No targeted audience.
No onboard involvement from the people it directly affects.
Nothing new to tell anyone.
No carrot to bring in the people....there were free pancakes as it happened...the buildings inmates enjoyed a nice lunch and some waifs and strays did too...courier drivers...the odd person who had to be there for an appointment...and discovered an open day.

Plan your publicity carefully. Have a reason. Why do you want publicity? It could be a new book...a reprint...a book launch... Your best friend, visiting author, minor celebrity, really interesting person... is coming to town and you want to celebrate with an event.

Let everyone in your target audience know...many times...make it a must be there event...

Generate gossip, if you have no publicity budget.

Think creatively.

Have a definite hook and involve everyone in planning and promoting from the beginning.

Have a timeline and work backwards from the event so that you allow yourself plenty of time to generate buzz.

Giveaways, competitions, free food, buskers...all add to the atmosphere...

Authors can write their own publicity packs. They can involve their target audience...head for the library and offer to do something public...Design a tee-shirt to promote my next book...signed copy and free food prize...then get the library to promote it by telling the local papers...win win...

Here is a sample of the different things you can do. Read Marcia Yudkin on how to get started.
Read Vocalist on the nuts and bolts of putting something together...(if you have a budding muso in the house this site is great) and go here if it all gets too hard and you want to throw money at the problem to make it go away.

In geek news I had a sneak peek at the inside of Carter Observatory today. Carter reopens in March with a brand new planetarium...even tho the builders are working, I felt like I was on the set of Star Trek...aaaaaaaahh geek heaven. (they just need to add the sound effects on the doors...)

maureen
pic is from foxnomad. com...they have a cool quiz to see what kind of star trek crew member you travel like....

Celebrating The Brilliance...

I have been contemplating publicity over the last couple of days...in the light of the NZ Post children’s book awards shortlist coming out.

First there was The DomPost, Wellington’s newspaper only printing the Wellington finalists...how parochial is that...we should be celebrating our collective national brilliance...then there was The Herald, Auckland’s newspaper making a right hash of the shortlist putting the wrong illustrators with the wrong books and leaving poor Melinda out completely.

I have passed several bookshops lately none of them have the list displayed in the window...ok they are chain stores but come on....celebrate the brilliance people!

So feeling a little disheartened about it all I started looking on the web at my usual link sites for some inspiration and to feel better as I broke my toe on Wednesday....

The lovely Madeleine of The Buried Editor came to my rescue with a brilliant post on author publicity from an editor and publishers perspective. She has her own little imprint at Blooming Tree Press called CBAY (Children’s Brain’s Are Yummy.) Here is a little snippet of what she has to say.

Besides, your book will never be as important to your publisher as it is to you, especially with your first book. Your book is most likely the only one you have coming out that year. Even at the smallest of presses, this is unlikely to be the case. With the big houses, you could be literally one book out of dozens being produced that month, much less over the year. And even at the small houses where your editor may have read the manuscript dozens of times, he/she still has not put in the kind of time, effort, or love that you have. And the house publicist may not have read the book at all. You are the best advocate for your book. You should take this responsibility seriously.

So, here are some things you can do to market your book:

Go and read the rest of her post Here.

This morning I heard our esteemed patron and all round good keen man, Jack Lasenby, speaking on National Radio, the interviewer asked him only question about his book, Old Drumble. I thought to myself ‘huh DomPost, I bet you want that interview I did for you on Jack now....’ They didn’t run it because they didn’t have space last June when Old Drumble came out. But it was an attempt to celebrate the brilliance...

I thought that I would post the book trailer that Brian Falkner has made for The Tomorrow Code because I think it is brilliant and he is shortlisted and really just to celebrate the brilliance...

maureen