THE MAKING OF A BOOK
Click HERE to read from the beginning.
PART 48 A Consignment Deal
The Christian author’s target audience is in the church. Many churches allow books to be sold in their church. But images of Jesus driving money changers out of the temple make me uncomfortable selling product in a church.
While the manuscript was in production, I decided to give copies away, hoping to start word-of-mouth marketing. Someone is more inclined to buy a book recommended by a friend than a stranger. Even though I was at peace with that idea for months, when the book was released, I never felt at liberty to give it away, aside from a few elderly friends and key people in the publishing industry.
I brought copies of Faith’s Mystery to the Gospel Book and Gifts store to sign a consignment deal. Easter was approaching, so I told the manager Faith’s Mystery would make a great Easter gift. He agreed and put it at the front door with the Easter display.
The following Saturday, I set up the Southern Christian Writer’s monthly meeting, then checked to see if any books had sold. Not one. After the meeting, attendees of SCW purchased all the copies except one. I replenished the stock and walked out the door with my share of the consignment deal.
Faith’s Mystery sat by the front door, in a prime place for a week without one sold. It did not escape my attention that the only people who bought the book knew me. I knew from marketing my previous book, which is no longer in print, if I spoke to a group, an average of 10% of the audience would buy. My previous book comprised short stories that included many pastors who allowed me to promote my book to their congregations.
Making a connection with people is the best way to sell a book. At one time, social media was an excellent venue to market books, but changes in their algorithms have muddied those waters. Today, the best way to market is public speaking. Unfortunately, churches are justifiable leery of inviting a speaker that is not already known. A television interview on a local station is possible if your book has value to the community, but not generally available to religious books unless it’s a Christian show and your theology does not conflict with theirs. The proliferation of online radio and podcasts hungry for guest to interview are easier. Most can be contacted through their websites and social media. Marketing is the hardest task for most authors. While it is difficult, it’s not impossible to break barriers that open the doors to exposure that sales books.
Leave a Reply