Skip to main content

Why Do You Need a Book Trailer


Many writers and illustrators ask me, "Is it really important to have a book trailer for my upcoming book?" My answer is "YES!" Book and Event trailers are a lot like movie trailers. They catch viewer interest if done right. I don’t know if you have noticed, but many BIG publishing houses have discovered the importance of book trailers. They believe in them so much that you can catch them as television commercials. Something you didn’t see 20, 10 and even 5 years ago!
Book and event trailers are fast becoming the future in marketing, promotions and school events. Similar to a movie trailer, a book trailer is a marketing tool to assist authors, illustrators and publishers in promoting their work by creating a viral marketing campaign online. You may even have noticed event trailers or home videos making it on the home pages of places such as Yahoo.com. Why is this? Because people are spending more and more time online, and they are looking for entertainment. Who knows, if you do your book or event trailer right, you may reach an audience you might not have been able to reach before from your hometown.
Okay, so now you understand you need a book trailer, but how do you go about making one. Many companies online offer these services. Some of them are publicity firms, your publisher (tradition and self-publishers) may offer this service, you can hire a freelancer/company to make one for you, or if you think you can…do it yourself. There are many online sites that offer software (free or for a small fee) to make trailers. 

Here are a few places to check out who offer trailer services. Some are free others charge a small fee. I have worked with them all so I know they are fair and do a good job.

SFC Book & Event Trailers
You Tube.com
One True Media
Yahoo Video
Blazing Trailers
TrailerSpy
Vimeo

The thing to keep in mind is a book or event trailer is a low to no cost way to spread the word and create buzz about your book. Trailers are the perfect tool for marketing on your site, social media sites, book review sites, blogs, online magazines, etc. 


Stories for Children Publishing will be touring award-winning author VS Grenier and her book, “Babysitting SugarPaw” a picture book about friendship and telling the truth all month long in June 2011.

You can find out more about VS Grenier’s World of Ink Author/Book Tour schedule at http://storiesforchildrenpublishing.com/BabysittingSugarPaw.aspx. There will be giveaways, reviews, interviews, guest posts and more. Make sure to stop by and interact with VS Grenier and the hosts at the different stops by leaving comments and/or questions.
In addition, come listen to Blog Talk Radio’s World of Ink Network show: Stories for Children at http://www.blogtalkradio.com/worldofinknetwork. The hosts VS Grenier, Kris Quinn Chirstopherson and Irene Roth chatted about Grenier’s picture book, writing, the publishing industry and experiences with virtual tours. Grenier will also be sharing writing tips and trials, and tribulations of the writer’s life.

The show will be live June 6, 2011 at 1pm EST (12pm Central, 11am MST, and 10am PST). You can tune in at the World of Ink Network site at http://www.blogtalkradion.com/worldofinknetwork. You can listen/call in at (714) 242-5259. (Note: if you can’t make the show, you can listen on demand at the same link.)

To learn more about the World of Ink Tours visit Stories for Children Publishing at: http://storiesforchildrenpublishing.com
Labels:

Comments

  1. T. ForehandJune 14, 2011 at 4:30 PM

    Good information, a book trailer sure can't hurt.
    Thanks for sharing your views.

    ReplyDelete
  2. VS GrenierJune 14, 2011 at 4:31 PM

    Thanks Terri for stopping by and leaving a comment. I'm glad you found the information useful.

    ReplyDelete
  3. BarbaraBJune 14, 2011 at 6:01 PM

    I definitely want to get a book trailer for my upcoming picture book. I don't know when it's coming out, but I plan to do it a month or two before publication.

    Thanks, Virginia, for the info and the encouragement.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Connie ArnoldJune 14, 2011 at 6:43 PM

    Thank you for sharing the information. I had asked that question about book trailers too and finally got one made for my children's book. It's fun to have!

    ReplyDelete
  5. VS GrenierJune 14, 2011 at 9:48 PM

    Thanks for stopping by Barbara and Connie. I'm glad my little post was helpful.

    Barbara, if you email me your link or post it here...I'll favorite to the Storiesforchildren Channel at YouTube. We get some great traffic there.

    Also, I hope you both keep me in mind when you're touring your books for kids. Stories for Children loves helping to spread the word on new books for kids...http://storiesforchildrenpublishing.com

    ReplyDelete
  6. Sarah AllenJune 15, 2011 at 10:14 AM

    Great post! I've been working on how to make successful trailers, and this is some great advice and some awesome examples.

    Sarah Allen
    (my creative writing blog)

    ReplyDelete
  7. ShaundaJune 15, 2011 at 1:07 PM

    Great post, and so true! Kids have loved seeing my book trailers at school visits. It definitely catches their attention, and sparks an interest in the book. I had luck with making mine with One True Media. Anyone who wants to see an example can check mine out at my blog

    ReplyDelete
  8. AnonymousJune 15, 2011 at 1:33 PM

    Wow, this is a fantastic idea! I love it and I will definitely make use of it as I prepare to publish my first book.

    Also, thank you indirectly for the "Irresistibly Sweet" Blog Award. Dallas Woodburn passed on the award to me after you gave it to her. And now it has led me to your lovely blog!

    Keep up the great posts!

    Keep shining,
    The Sunny Girl, Lauren Cook
    http://www.thesunnygirl.com

    ReplyDelete
  9. VS GrenierJune 15, 2011 at 5:09 PM

    Sarah, Lauren, and Shaunda thanks for stopping by and leaving a comment. For all of you who have left a comment, your names will be entered into my contest to win a FREE copy of my book Babysitting Sugarpaw.

    All the best.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Thank you for visiting my blog and for leaving a comment.

Popular posts from this blog

The Time to Start Writing is Now! (1st published on Utah Children's Writers)

I teach writing for my local college's continuing educational program. I love meeting with beginning writers each week and sharing the basics. However, I'm always surprised to find many of them haven't even sat down to write the story building inside them or at least log the ideas they have for story lines. So my advice to you today if you want to start down the road of becoming a writer...The Time to Start Writing is Now! Some Idea Starters For beginning writers (and something I learned when I studied at the Institute of Children's Literature), I have found using visual aids to spark an idea is always a great way to begin the process of writing. You can do this to draft an actually short story or book for submission to just using it as a writing exercise.  Study the pictures I have below or pick one of your own from a magazine, old photo album, etc. Study the pictures and select one that appeals to you most.  Also, keep in mind your target readership with pi...
1 comment
Read more

The Multiplied Benefits of Journaling

Do you keep or have you kept a journal or diary? If so, you probably already know some of the benefits of journaling because you've experienced them. You know that your journal helps you make sense of the senseless side of your life. A journal can be an emotional lifesaver when you go through a hard time. But did you know that scientists believe journaling can even keep you physically healthy? The release of pent-up emotions you pour into your journal every day actually helps reduce the symptoms of arthritis and asthma, and strengthens your immune system. This really makes sense if you consider that much illness is exacerbated by stress, and a journal is one of the best stress reducers out there. Journaling gives you a record of your emotional growth like no other. While it can be useful at times to be able to look back and see just when your neighbor moved in or when you started suffering from headaches, the intangible changes in you can be even more fascinating to look back...
3 comments
Read more

Is Research Really Important in Fiction Writing?

In a lot of the writing groups and conferences I've been to the topic of research has come up from time to time. There are many different opinions on the subject, and many will tell you research is only necessary when you are writing about something you know very little to nothing about. But is this really the case and if it is, does your writing suffer from not doing research all the time? After writing many short stories and picture books for young readers, my opinion on doing research might be very different from yours. I have always felt research is critical no matter how much I know or don't know about a certain subject. There is always something I learn each time, even on topics I know a lot about as things are always changing, and changing fast sometimes these days. However, I thought I was just one of the weird writers out there feeling this way until I took a research workshop with James Patterson, who had this to say about research. "Research really he...
3 comments
Read more