How Do Books Become Best Sellers?
November 9th, 2011Books become best sellers when… Oh, wait. Exactly, how do books become best sellers anyway? Is there a certain way to do this? Or do we just hope and pray that our books become best sellers? Let’s discuss.
So, you’ve written a book. Naturally, you want it to sell. Preferably, like diamond-studded hotcakes. Any number of factors can rocket a book to the top of the bookseller’s chart. A best-seller does not necessarily mean it is read by everyone who purchases the book. It does not even necessarily mean it has to be good. And sadly, the reverse is also true; it is altogether too easy for a good book to go unnoticed. So what kind of fuel does it take to thrust a book to the top of the bestseller’s list? How will your books become best sellers?
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Traditional marketing is considerably expensive. A comprehensive marketing strategy utilizing traditional media would involve developing advertisements to be placed in magazines, on television and radio, on billboards, in public transit shelters, stations, and on the sides of buses. The Internet is even less kind to advertising. Banner ads and pop-ups are automatically blocked by most browsers. Paying Google and other search engines might put your book at the top of a related search, but that takes the deep pockets of a dedicated marketing department. Hiring the creative staff to develop appealing ads would be expensive enough without the purchase of time and space using these media, and no publisher would be willing to undertake the expense unless an author was already established.
Books become best sellers because of the F word (Fame)
Fame itself often translates to instant marketing. Name recognition for some authors is enough for their books to become instant best-sellers. The names of many of the reading public’s most cherished figures are publishing gold. There are waiting lists of eager fans ready to snap up the latest release from authors like Margaret Atwood or John Grisham.
One need not even be a writer for their book to top the New York Times list. Just ask Andre Agassi (the tennis pro), or Keith Richards (the rock star). You don’t even need to be a celebrity, if you happen to know one well enough, as evidenced numerous sales of tell-all biographies like Crazy Days by the ex Mrs. Jude Law, Sadie Frost. Don’t forget the ex Mrs. Dean McDermott, Mary Jo Eustace, who wrote the mouthful of a memoir, entitled Divorce Sucks: What to do when irreconcilable differences, lawyer fees, and your ex’s Hollywood wife make you miserable. If legitimate or borrowed fame are out of reach, in terms of garnering notoriety, sometimes crime does pay, as it did for Heidi Fleiss’ bio Pandering.
So you’re not a celebrity, a Hollywood wife, or even a Hollywood Madame. You can still get some of that celebrity magic to rub off on your book if you have the luck of getting an A-lister’s attention. Actors like Patrick Stewart and Nicolas Cage have contributed to the sales of books by narrating audio books. Even German film director Werner Herzog launched an edgy parent’s book to viral status with his reading of Go the F*** to Sleep when a bootlegged recording of the performance hit YouTube.
Some books can get unexpected notoriety by touching on taboo subjects. J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter series made news by riling up Christian conservatives who condemned the book for allegedly encouraging children to practice witchcraft. Other authors who have come under fire from religious leaders include Dan Brown, whose international action novel set in the Vatican, Angels & Demons, brought forth criticism from the Catholic Church. Of course, it helped to have a feature film adapted from his earlier work, The Da Vinci Code, based on the tantalizing mysteries of the Illuminati.
Timing is essential to catch social phenomena while it’s a selling point. Kid-wizard novels sprang up everywhere to feed the demand created by the Harry Potter books. The efforts of Stephenie Meyers ensured the perennial vampire novel a new home in the lockers of teenage girls everywhere. Unfortunately, there’s still no sure-fire formula for viral media. It takes a combination of talent and luck to become the cool thing of the nanosecond. When a market reaches saturation, trends can reverse.
Will recommendations help books become best sellers?
There’s still much to be said for good old-fashioned footwork. Books become best sellers with the help of Facebook, LinkedIn and other social networks which can spread word of mouth for free. It is a possibility, I tell you. Many publishers put their authors on the road. Visiting bookstores for public readings and book-signings are good ways to rub elbows. Starting locally, authors can make appearances on local radio stations to promote their books. In 2008, Michael Chabon read a thrilling excerpt of The Yiddish Policeman’s Union on NPR. Podcasts are also great sources of free publicity. Local news stations will occasionally feature guests on their daily morning shows, and with enough charisma and/or connections, local television can lead to national appearances. Daytime talk shows should not be underestimated, particularly with the power of Oprah’s book club to consider. If you’re interested in a more hip audience, Comedy Central’s Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert frequently feature authors as well as the late night talk shows.
As we know, endorsements from Oprah Winfrey, Conan O’brien, or Howard Stern are hard to come by. The best places to start are with newspaper and magazine book reviews. The covers of countless paperbacks are routinely plastered with praises from The Chicago Tribune or The Denver Post.
It all boils down to making as much contact with readers as possible. Build your fan base by building relationships. Whether you make contact with one person at a time, or blossom your sphere of influence by reaching a media source with a built-in audience, the best promotion will involve relentless outreach. Promotional campaigns in the physical world are not replaced by the modern methods of online social networking and multi-platform, multi-media accessibility – yet. For now, both forms need to be utilized. Authors need to be involved and engaged as soon as they begin typing. Just remember this: passive promotion is a paradox.
So, I invite you to put your two cents in. “Books become best sellers when _______________” – feel free to comment here.
