Marketing Tip: Reach Out to Book Clubs

Posted by CreateSpaceBlogger on May 13, 2014 5:02:52 AM

Book club organizers are always on the lookout for what to read next, so why not throw your hat in the ring? Offering to attend a book club in person is a great way to spread the word about your work and establish a personal connection with your readers. Plus it’s a lot of fun! Most of the book clubs I’ve attended have never met an author in person before, so they’re just as excited as I am about the whole experience. A win-win!

 

Here are two great ways to find book clubs:

 

1)    Do a search on www.meetup.com

 

I love this site! You can search for appropriate book clubs within a specified radius of where you live, then send the organizer a friendly note about your book and yourself. (Note: This is why it’s good to have basic marketing materials prepared – you don’t want to have to reinvent the wheel every time you reach out to a potential reader.)

 

2)    Contact local college alumni chapters

 

Go to the national alumni page of your alma mater, which should link you to the pages of local groups across the country. Many chapters have a book club and include the contact information for the person in charge. As a fellow graduate, you already have a legitimate connection, so send a note and introduce yourself. Don’t be shy!

 

As with any outreach strategy, it’s important to attack your book club “campaign” realizing that not everyone will respond to you – in fact, most people won’t. But if you contact enough groups with a compelling, targeted pitch, you will get some replies. Just like sales (and dating!), book marketing is a numbers game. You just have to keep at it until you find the right match.

 

-Maria

Maria Murnane is a paid CreateSpace contributor. She is the award-winning author of the romantic comedies Perfect on Paper, It’s a Waverly Life, Honey on Your Mind and Chocolate for Two, and Cassidy Lane. She also provides consulting services on book publishing and marketing. Learn more atwww.mariamurnane.com.