By Erin Mitchell
Before you panic, I’m not suggesting anyone create a flash mob to promote her or his book. I mean, I think flash mobs are spiffy, but I can think of plenty of marketing activities that could use that energy in more fruitful ways.
Today I’m participating in what might be described as a marketing flash mob. That is, the celebration in many different (online) venues of one particular book. It looks a little messy, perhaps (this is our first one!), but like any good flash mob, there was planning behind it. Here’s the story…
A couple of weeks ago, in talking with Crimespree magazine Pooh-Bah of all Things Grand (aka, Editor in Chief) Jon Jordan, we hatched an idea: What if we could combine all the online resources available to us and direct them at one book on a specific day? We could, we figured, raise awareness of a book that everyone should be reading. So we decided to give it a go. The book we picked is Val McDermid’s THE RETRIBUTION.
First, Jon spoke with the good folks at Grove/Atlantic, who agreed to supply some copies of the book for a giveaway, which was very smart on their part, especially given that we have quite a broad reach online, and also since while many of the people we interact with are already fans of Val’s books, many more are not…yet.
Then we looked at how we could set up the giveaway to reach the most people—and drive the most traffic—within our ecosystem, which includes the Crimespree site and blog, my blog, the FridayReads Facebook page, and our respective Twitter feeds. We created a tab on the Facebook page, which directs people to a post on the Crimespree blog from which they can enter. So now we had a place for people to start.
But we knew, too, that just as a flash mob doesn’t work without an excellent song, in order to sustain giveaway entries and increase the book’s visibility, we’d need great content. Part of the reason we chose THE RETRIBUTION for this first foray is that it has lots of great online content, including reviews from smart and influential bloggers (here, here and here), video, and pieces Val has written about her books as well as an interview with character Tony Hill.
Just like a flash mob, we didn’t warn anyone—not even Val!—that this was coming. This morning (well, technically, last night), we just started unleashing it on our online communities. So far, it has been well received. Giveaway entries are pouring in. Retweets and shares, too. People are talking about what they’re reading. Val’s fans are chiming in, and it’s all helping new readers learn about her books.
This isn’t a thoroughly slick marketing endeavor, but we’re reaching readers. And in the end, isn’t that the only book marketing measurement that matters?
