During a recent workshop, a participant named Michel asked: “If you had to place your marketing resources in one area, where would you concentrate?”
It was a great question because it made me think about all the ways I’ve marketed my children’s books – and where I think authors should focus their marketing efforts.
There are so many effective ways to market your children’s picture book, and I encourage you to consider each one. In the end, though, the marketing method you choose should be the one that works best for you.
That being said, Michel asked where I would place my marketing resources if I had to choose one area. For me, the answer is easy: school visits.
I love visiting schools to market children’s books for a lot of reasons, not the least of which is being able to interact directly with my audience.
It’s fun to talk to children about being an author and to answer their questions about my books. I feel good knowing I’ve contributed to their love of books by sharing mine.
Of course, children aren’t the only people in your audience. Visiting schools also connects you with teachers and librarians – both of whom can promote your book by word-of-mouth.
I’ve had a lot of success marketing my children’s books through school visits, and many of the authors I work with have also effectively marketed their books this way.
Get The Most Out of Your School Visit
I’ve talked about hosting effective school visits for children’s authors in a previous blog. Now I’m going to tell you ways you can make your visit memorable.
The key is to deliver an engaging presentation that gets children excited about your book and makes the visit entertaining. I always read my book aloud to the children during my visits, but I also came up with fun activities related to my book that made the experience playful.
Here are a few examples of activities you could do:
Play a drawing game: Have the children draw scenes or characters from your book that they liked the most. Then set up a picture gallery where their drawings can be put on display.
Set up a scavenger hunt: Create a scavenger hunt around the classroom or school based on your book. Have the students work in teams (or as an entire group) to find clues and solve puzzles.
Lead a storytelling game: Play a collaborative storytelling activity where each student adds a sentence to a story. Write each sentence on a smartboard or oversized sheet of paper so you can watch as it develops. At the end, you’ll have a one-of-a-kind story written by the entire group.
Workshop new characters: Have the students help you create a new character for a story. Have them decide on the character’s appearance, personality, and abilities.
Q&A with the Author: Invite the children to ask questions about your book, the writing process, or what inspired you to write a children’s book.
Choose activities that are age-appropriate, or modify them so they’ll work for the age you’ll be speaking to.
Take advantage of school events to promote your book, too. Many schools have book fairs, literacy days, and career days. These are great ways to introduce your book and connect with teachers and parents.
One more thing about school visits: Bring copies of your book to sell, or arrange for pre-orders before your visit. You could also offer a discount to schools that purchase your book in bulk for their libraries.
Other Ways to Market Your Book
Social media
For most people, social media has become a part of their daily lives. It just makes sense to use social media to market your children’s book.
I started with only a Facebook page to promote my first book. Instagram, Pinterest, and TikTok are great platforms, too. It doesn’t matter which social media platform you focus on, as long as you can reach the audience you want and you post consistently.
What I love most about social media is the ability to share visuals with your audience, such as photos or videos. When people can “see” what you’re doing, it makes a stronger connection.
Goodreads
Aside from social media, there are a number of ways to market your book online. One is to join online book clubs or groups like Goodreads.
If you aren’t familiar with Goodreads yet, it’s a free social cataloging website under the Amazon umbrella. It’s the world’s largest site for book recommendations. Any published author can join the Goodreads Author Program at no cost. Once you claim your profile page, you can use it to promote your book and engage with readers.
Online
You can also market your book online by collaborating with parenting bloggers or child-focused influencers. By having access to their established audience, you can reach more people to spread the word about your book.
And what about marketing your book in person?
I’ve already told you how much I love to bring my books to schools, but here are some other places you could go:
Local bookstores: Host a book signing event or do a reading at a local bookstore. Most are happy to support local authors.
Public libraries: Offer to do a storytime event or a book presentation.
Children’s centres: Children’s activity centres often host special events for children. Ask to be a part of one where you can read your book or do an interactive activity related to your book.
Community events: Festivals, farmers markets, and community fairs rent out space to vendors looking for exposure. These events often attract families looking for new books and activities.
Why School Visits Top My List
As I mentioned, my favourite way to promote children’s books is by visiting local schools, but it’s not the only way I’ve marketing my books.
Social media, book signings, and setting up at community events are all things I’ve done to get exposure for my books, and I’ve had success with each of them.
It doesn’t really matter which marketing method you use, as long as you get your book in front of as many people as you can so it can reach as many children as possible.
With school visits, you bring your book directly to the audience it’s written for, and you get to see how children react to your book. Plus you can engage the children through fun activities. I loved that part. I think you might, too.
FAQs
Q: Is it possible to recoup the costs of publishing a book?
A: Yes, you can recover the costs of publishing your book. Book sales are one way. You could also make money through author visits and book signings, or by collaborating with bloggers and influencers.Q: How long does it take to make your money back?
A: There is no set time, but many of the authors I’ve worked with have made their money back within a year. It all depends on how effectively you market your book.Q: When should I start marketing?
A: As soon as you decide to write a book. Tell friends and family that you’re working on a children’s book, and set up a Facebook page where you can share the journey. Marketing is really just sharing!TL;DR
- My favourite place to market children’s books is school visits, because they allow you to directly engage with your target audience, while also connecting with teachers and librarians.
- Engage students with fun activities like drawing games, scavenger hunts, storytelling games, or character workshops to make the visit memorable.
- Use school events such as book fairs and career days to promote your book, and consider offering bulk book sales to schools.
- Other marketing strategies include social media (Facebook, Instagram, TikTok), online book clubs like Goodreads, and collaborating with parenting bloggers or influencers.
- In-person promotion can also happen at local bookstores, libraries, children’s centres, and community events.