Market your book free with publicity stunts

Self-publishers know that great book marketing campaigns start off with a bang. And there’s no better way to grab the spotlight than a publicity stunt.

The best publicity is free publicity. Think big. We’re not talking press releases and news conferences here. We’re talking about something outrageous that gets grandma talking.

For example, when TV personality Paris Hilton last month signed copies of her book Confessions of an Heiress, "protesters" were also there, drawing media attention. It was no secret that the hubbub was staged, Hilton’s publicist admitted as much to onlookers. After all, how else can you get the evening news to cover a book-signing?

This stunt wasn't as buzzworthy as the time Hilton's "stolen" nude video popped up on the Internet, just days before the premiere of her TV show. Coincidence or publicity stunt? Get real.

Meanwhile, church groups keep burning Harry Potter books on grounds the books supposedly glorify sorcery and wizardry. Skeptics to wonder which side wants the attention, and the Potter series hardly needs promoting.

In another recent Potter ploy, a former British cleric was expelled from a school after insisting that Potter is "gay." Media watchers accused the man, also a children's author, of trying to juice sales of his own book, Shadowmancer.

Countless hucksters have gotten free ink by running bogus auctions on eBay. When eBay yanks an auction off its Web site -- like the recent case involving the "Virgin Mary" potato chip -- newspapers and TV repeat the story for weeks, generating the kind of hype no ad budget can buy.

But be responsible. Book publicity stunts should be harmless fun that captures the imagination. The dark side of publicity stunts, hoaxes, can backfire. When Penguin Books allegedly publicized a book by spreading rumors of a “deadly” computer virus, it didn't enhance its reputation for truth-telling.

When you’re ready to launch your publicity stunt, alert the local media such as morning radio talk shows and TV news as explained here.

Don’t have time to dream up your own publicity stunt? One enterprising self-publisher offers to engineer a stunt for your benefit through this offering on Lulu.com, the self-publishing service provider.




New in paperback: The Home-Based Bookstore: Start Your Own Business Selling Used Books on Amazon, eBay or Your Own Web Site (by Steve Weber)