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How to be a Hit at Your Local Bookstore

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smith publicity
How to be a Hit at Your Local Bookstore

Author appearances and signings are among the oldest and best-known aspects of book promotion. As covid fears subside and people are willing to do more in person again, bookstore appearances are rising. If you're an author planning to make appearances, it's always helpful to interact with readers and fans. While signings can work well, today, they are nearly always preceded by a brief talk, presentation, or question-and-answer session. They set the tone for the personal appearance and make it more interesting for the fans who attend. Bookstores need your help in drawing a crowd and selling your book.


Chain book stores are open to author events, but local independent booksellers can be more enthusiastic. Most want every opportunity to engage with the community of readers who shop their stores. PR pros say it's crucial to sweeten the offer with a talk or presentation (it doesn't need to be more than a few minutes to augment your proposed book signing. If you're making the arrangements yourself, make sure you have enough books on hand to sell. It might sound obvious, but in a rush to set up the event, it's something that people can overlook. You'll want your event to maximize sales.


The most successful events are well attended, and you'll need to team up with your local bookstore to promote your event. If you have a large and active social media following, promoting to them will help create interest. But you'll also want your store to use its email customer list and do media outreach in the local community. There's nothing wrong with adding a few old-fashioned touches, such as posters in the store, handing out flyers at other events, or adding notes to town calendar listings. You want to promote your event the same way you sell books online and with traditional methods. 


When you hold book promotional events in your local area, don't be shy about asking friends and family to attend. They'll bring the enthusiasm and energy that you'll want. Pictures make excellent social media, website, and blog content. Use them liberally in all your channels, and one of the reasons to hold events today is for their content generation abilities. Starting a buzz about your book often begins locally and then gradually builds to a larger area. Only a few authors can have a national book release with a large media footprint. It's common to begin locally and then expand to a regional and national approach.

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