Become a Local Celebrity with Your Book

How to Become a Local Celebrity With Your Book for Increased Visibility and Sales

Perhaps you have written a book and have run out of ideas as to how to sell more copies. As is typical for most new authors, once your family and friends have purchased copies for themselves and to give away as gifts your book sales may come to a complete standstill. Here are my ideas on selling your book, based on my decade of experience in writing, publishing, and selling many, many books on a variety of topics. It involves knowing how to become a local celebrity with your book to better connect with your readership and others who may be influencers in your area of expertise.

Even if you are not known in your community for the topic of your book, local marketing must not be overlooked. In addition to your online marketing efforts through social media and on Amazon, promoting your new book locally can bring you “local celebrity” status while increasing your fan base and significantly increasing your sales.

Keep in mind, these ideas may not bring in a massive number of sales initially but they will go a long way to expanding your name recognition within your local community. And instead of book sales in the numbers you aspire to, you may gain some new friends and clients and you will definitely gain more social media fans. Authorship has its advantages. Let’s get started.

1. Hold local book signings at libraries or book stores. A book is quite an accomplishment not everyone can claim, so toot your own horn to the people who know you best. Meet and greets at any locale allows you to promote your book while also growing your fan base. In both of the communities where I live we have several incredible libraries and bookstores to choose from. Visit all of them and inquire about their book signing events. I recommend attending one or two to see how they are run and to have the experience of meeting other local authors. Purchase one of their books and have the author sign it for you in person so you know what that feels like from the other side of the table.
2. Appear at community events. Most communities host many of these type of events throughout the year, depending on your weather patterns. Check our community calendars well in advance and be prepared to invest a nominal fee to set up a table with your book available for purchase. Print out bookmarks or other handouts that include your social media handles so they can connect with you after the event; or be proactive and connect with people instantly at your booth.
3. Speak at local schools about your path to becoming an author. Many middle and high schools hold career days so watch for those events or call the schools directly to inquire. This isn’t so much a chance to sell your book but to tell about your path to becoming an author. Carry handouts with your name, book title, and social media handles so the students can pass them along to their parents. This is also a great opportunity to leave information at the schools for the faculty. You just never know where your next client or book sale will come from!
4. Volunteer locally with your Chamber of Commerce, service organizations such as Rotary, or other business networking groups. Many Chambers have different committees on which to serve and other business groups (such as BNI) have executive officer positions available every year. Again, these types of positions are not about selling books but offer you the chance to give back to your community while expanding your name recognition. I love the monthly “Lunch and Learn” classes held at my two local Chambers and also at the Boards of Realtors in each city I live in.
5. Use your book as a fundraiser. Choose a cause that’s close to your heart and dedicate a percentage of sales to be donated. Donating to a local charity or a local branch of a national charity may stir more interest because of the hometown roots. Or donate a copy or two of your books to auction events held by local PTAs, scouting troops, or religious organizations. Very often these organizations will distribute a list of their benefactors, so that’s yet another way to increase your name recognition and future book sales.

Marketing your book should be a continuous cycle, both online and offline. The more people you can reach through the differing avenues, the more likely you’ll see increases in sales, new clients, and social media fans. Authorship is a worthy goal that can change your life in a relatively short period of time. Become a local celebrity and see what is possible with your authorship endeavors.

Be sure to take a look at my popular training “Become a Local Celebrity” for more ideas on how you can reach the people in your community who are a part of your target audience of prospects and clients.

I’m author, publisher, and entrepreneur Connie Ragen Green and would love to connect with you. If you’re new to the world of online entrepreneurship please check out my training on how to sell yourself at Sell Yourself and Your Stuff and learn how to gain an unfair advantage when it comes to building a lucrative online business.