Welcome back to another Open Book Blog Hop!

Today’s topic is: Do you attend book selling events? (Can be local events such as craft shows and festivals.) What is your best tip to sell books at one?

And remember to visit my fellow writers to see what they have come up with. You can find their works here!

Few topics for Open Book Blog Hop have been as timely for me as this is. In a few weeks, on the 18th of May, I’ll be attending a semi-local book fair, the Herts Book Festival. This will be the second time I’ve been on a stall with my books.

The first stall was at a creative/craft market. Overall, that didn’t work out for me too well. In the first instance, I only had one book to my name, so not a lot to talk to potential customers about. I was a newly minted author, so had no idea what I was doing. One thing I quickly learned was that most people at a creative/craft fair weren’t there for books, but handmade products. I also realised I didn’t know how to market my books beyond the cover and blurb. To the point one customer quite aggressively told me not to just read the blurb, but tell them why they should buy my book. I also had no way for people to think about and connect with me after the event, beyond a QR code on my banner. Other issues also included lack of branding and a display that consisted of a few piles of my books.

It taught me a few things. This time, I’m working on some short form descriptions for my books to summarise them for interested customers. This will help me engage customers. Secondly, I’m actually at a book festival – visitors will be there for books. I’ve gone one step further and actually have a new book, a collection of short stories, that’s releasing on the day! If I can get the tech to play with me on the day, I’ll do a Facebook live to launch it.

I have an improved roller banner this time, including new branding, which I’ve tied in to other elements including a banner for the table. I’ve got character art cards and bookmarks for my two novels, and business cards with images of all three of my books on the back and my core contact details on the front with my new branding that you can also see here on the website. I’ve worked hard on consistent branding now. I have the means to take cash and card payments which will make it easier for people to buy my books. I’ve also got stands to prop up a copy of each book to display it clearly. I’ll also have prices clearly displayed so customers won’t be shocked by this.

My main goal is to present an appealing looking stall that looks neat and professional, and draw people in.