Last week my daughter and I received a special guest in the mail…Flat Stanley. For those of you who haven’t met Flat Stanley yet, he is a character from a children’s book series that began back in the 1960’s by Jeff Brown. It was about a boy named Stanley Lambchop that was flattened when a bulletin board fell on him as he laid in bed. Flat Stanley goes on to help catch art thieves, retrieve his mom’s ring that fell through the grate and he took a trip to California by being mailed to the final destination.
This book took on a whole new dimension in 1995 when Dale Hubert, a third grade school teacher from Canada used the concept from the book of mailing this flat boy to different locations around the world. This was a brilliant idea in utilizing the expanded network of the kids in the class to teach the kids and help them explore the world in a new way. From a marketing perspective, this is a BRILLIANT way to market a book. Just think about it – people all over the world are talking about and taking pictures of a character in a book that was written over 50 years ago!
The other blessing in this project is it has given my and my daughter an “assignment” that has allowed us to experience some great “together time” exploring our state. So, it has been a multi-fold blessing!
So, as an author, in marketing your book, how can make a concept or a character in your book “flat” – allowing it to easily slip into the hands of more people? Keep in mind, not all of these suggestions below will work for all books. Think about the message of your book and work from there!
Book Marketing Ideas to make your message “flat” so it can slip into unusual places
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- Create cards with encouraging sayings for people to post or give to others
This can be either a page they would remove from the book or it can be a digital download from your website. Make sure it is branded with at least your book title. If there is room, include the author name and website, and possibly the ISBN number as well.
- Create cards with encouraging sayings for people to post or give to others
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- Start a “Selfie/Hashtag Campaign”
Think the “Ice Bucket Challenge” or a “Where’s Waldo?” type promotion. For example, if your book is about taking risks, have people take pictures of themselves taking risks and posting it with a specific hashtag. Utilize social media and the power of friends to get your message out! - Create a character cutout
Similar to what has been done with Flat Stanley, create a character that people can cut out, color, dress up…anything to interact with it. Have it fall in line with the message of the book.
- Start a “Selfie/Hashtag Campaign”
As a writer, the main goal of our book is to have it speak to our audience in a way that it impacts their lives. By creating additional ways for your readers to interact with you and your book will help you achieve the impact you are looking to have on their lives, as well as make it easier for them to share it with their friends!
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Join the conversation!
Do you have a great interactive marketing idea for your book? Share it below!
