Delia Latham: Reviving an Old Title

New cover (2014)

Your book is old news. It may have been a “new release” two years ago…or four…or even longer. That particular novel’s time is over and done. No point marketing it anymore, right?

Wrong.

Why do certain books “make it”? Why do some fail to gain the attention they deserve? Explanations vary as widely as the north is from the south. Sometimes, however, it’s simply a matter of timing. Yours, your publisher’s, your readers’…God’s.

A couple months ago, my publisher informed me Goldeneyes would be listed in “Ereader News Today.” What? I was shocked. Goldeneyes was one of my first published titles, and remains the book of my heart, being set in Weedpatch, California where I grew up. But it released in 2008. Six years ago! I was sure it had done all it was going to do. I would treasure it in my own library, but certainly didn’t expect to see much more activity as far as sales.

But I jumped on board. On the day the book was mentioned in “Ereader News Today,” I also conducted a Facebook event, “Celebrating Goldeneyes.” I invited everyone on my friends list.

Old cover (2008)

No one showed up.

That’s what you expected to hear, right? But it isn’t true.

The turnout was unbelievable. By end of day, Goldeneyes had reached #1 in its category on Amazon. I watched the book climb from somewhere in the millions all the way to the top as the day progressed. Seeing that “Bestseller” ribbon beside my cover felt amazing!

Goldeneyes remained at number one for almost a week. Today, over two months later, it’s still hanging in the Top 100 in the Kindle Inspirational Romance category. And all it took was a little marketing.

You can do it too. Pull out one of your old releases and see what happens when you spotlight it again, as if it just released today.

1.      If you can get the book listed in a popular online reading/writing magazine, all the better. Ereader News Today has a readership of over 200,000. That helps tremendously. Do your part. Submit the book for consideration. Mine was given a simple listing, and my publisher dropped the eBook price to $.99 for that day and the next.

2.      Start talking about the book again. A lot of times, we promote our books only for a certain timespan…then forget it. Start posting to Facebook and Twitter: quotes from your book; snippets from reviews; things readers have shared with you that they gleaned from your book, or its impact on them. Start putting the cover out there in front of folks again. In other words, start a buzz.

3.      Choose a day to conduct an all-out promotion, featuring that book alone. Invite everyone you know, and ask them to do the same. Then talk up the event for at least a week prior to D-day, and offer giveaways during the event. I don’t suggest giving the book—you’re trying to sell that. But something that correlates with the book’s content.

My heroine has striking golden eyes. I sought out tiger-eye jewelry on eBay – things I could purchase at really good prices—inexpensive, but still good quality. (No one appreciates receiving an obviously low-grade gift.) An angel moves through the storyline, so I also gave away angel-themed items. You’ll figure out something that works for your own book.

I did give away a few of my other titles in eBook format. This allowed a bit of promotion for those titles and let readers know that my writing career didn’t end with Goldeneyes.

4.      Be accessible during the event. Chat it up with attendees. Share short excerpts from the book. Have quote graphics made, or make your own. They provide visual impact and a peek into the storyline. Keep the event active, so attendees don’t get bored and go away. Give them a reason to stick around—and a reason to purchase your book. Aside from the giveaways I announced during the event, I also had a drawing at the end using the names of all those who purchased the book that day. (They simply ordered on Amazon and forwarded their purchase confirmation to me.)

This was the “biggie,” where the prize was something nice enough to make them want to be in the drawing. You don’t need to break the bank, just make it something worthwhile. I offered a $15 Amazon gift certificate.

5.      Keep the excitement going after the event. I made sure to repeatedly thank everyone for helping my book make it to #1—and kept them informed of its current status on Amazon. As it dropped lower in the Top 100, I still kept them informed and let them know they were appreciated for keeping Goldeneyes “up top” for such a long time. Even now—two months later—I share the Amazon ratings every few days, along with quote graphics, new reviews (and I’ve had several since the big event), reader comments, etc.

You can do it. Pull out that old title—the one that deserved more of a “day in the sun” than it actually received—and let the sun shine on that awesome novel once again.

Delia Latham

© 2014

Tweetables:

Give new life to an old release. @DeliaLatham tells how she did it for her 2008 release, Goldeneyes. http://tinyurl.com/knd8cyt

Create a new buzz for an old title. @DeliaLatham did it for Goldeneyes, a 2008 release. See how on Write Right! http://tinyurl.com/knd8cyt