A Two-fer: Holiday gifts made easy, plus promo ideas
By Writer Unboxed | December 19, 2009 |
This is pretty cool. Seeing as Writer Unboxed readers are keen to learn more about the the book publicity space, we thought you might be interested in a homegrown, zero-budget, author-fueled project that WU contributor J.C. Hutchins recently coordinated. It was a cross-promotion that was so savory, it snagged the participation of several New York Times bestselling authors.
J.C. concocted the idea of a free “holiday sampler” PDF that would feature excerpts from great 2009 fiction and nonfiction books. The concept: Designed to expose these books to new readers, the PDF would roll out on participating authors’ sites. This multi-site distribution ensured that all author excerpts would be seen by engaged fans beyond the author’s individual sphere of influence, and generate interest and sales from these newcomers.
Purchasing opportunities were easy via in-PDF links to online retailers, and a printable order form that customers could present in brick-and-mortar bookstores.
The best part: The PDF was created at no cost to the participating authors or their publishers. With a concept that benefitted everyone involved (and some teamwork and “zero-budget” elbow grease), J.C. snagged the participation of bestselling writers…
• Laurell K. Hamilton — Divine Misdemeanors
• Seth Godin — Tribes
• Joseph Finder — Vanished
• Cory Doctorow — Makers
• Chris Brogan & Julien Smith — Trust Agents
• Robert J. Sawyer — Wake
• Cherie Priest — Boneshaker
• Scott Sigler — The Rookie
…and others. The PDF is now live on these author sites and beyond (other blogs posted the PDF as noteworthy news items), and within hours of its release, generated thousands of downloads, which will result in increased exposure and books sales for all authors.
It’s a pretty snazzy product, and it’s free. You can download the “In the Nick of Time!” holiday sampler here (direct PDF download), and share it with friends by sending them this link: https://JCHutchins.net/holiday .
The sampler PDF shows that with some cooperation, authors and publishers can benefit from “outside the box” cross promotional projects … and need not spend a dime in the process.
Writer Unboxed began as a collaboration between Kathleen Bolton and Therese Walsh in 2006. Since then, the site has grown to include ~50 regular contributors and a variety of guests on rotation throughout a given year.
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Write on!
Great idea for a last minute gift for anyone who enjoys a good book to read on a cold winter day or night.
.-= Mia Bella Candles´s last undefined ..If you register your site for free at =-.
Thanks for posting this. IN THE NICK OF TIME gives people a ton of book samples (well, twelve of them isn’t a “ton,” but you know).
.-= Scott Sigler´s last blog ..FDO™ invades Australia in 2010! =-.