Marketing Children’s Books 101: Essential Techniques

Marketing children’s books are of utmost importance for several reasons. It helps make children’s books more visible in a saturated market. With numerous books competing for attention, marketing makes sure that your book stands out and reaches its target audience.

Marketing plays a crucial role in driving book sales. When you promote your children’s book through various channels and platforms, you can generate interest and attract potential readers. As a result, it will ultimately increase book sales.

How is Marketing Children’s Books Different?

There are three factors that differentiate marketing children’s books from other genres:

1- Customer

Children’s books are unique because when it comes to marketing, you are not targeting the readers but the customers. Since children don’t typically purchase books on their own, your marketing efforts need to be aimed at adults instead. It means you should do your book positioning keeping adults in mind rather than focusing solely on children.

2- Reader

Even though you are primarily targeting adults with your marketing, your book must resonate with the children you wrote it for. As an author, your task is to create children’s books that captivate two distinct groups:

• The child, i.e., your intended reader.
• The adult who will be buying the book, i.e., your intended customer.

3- Publisher

The children’s book industry has its own specific distribution channels or book publishers, which are distinct from other publishing avenues. For example, schools and children’s libraries.

Ways to Marketing Children’s Books

Many authors just focus on writing but not marketing books. In contrast, it is as essential it is to market your book as to write it perfectly. There are many authors that promote their books for readers to discover their books. However, the successful ones let readers find them. They actively seek out their audience and connect with them directly.

When it comes to marketing children’s books, it is not as complex as it seems. Let’s discuss key ways to promote a book that is written specifically for children:

1- Identify Your Target Audience

The basic concept behind marketing a book is relatively simple. Identify your book’s target audience, determine where they can be reached, and promote and sell children’s books online in those spaces. When it comes to marketing a children’s book, the principle remains the same, with one crucial difference.

In the children’s book market, the primary audience consists of adults and guardians who purchase books for children. These may include parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, or teachers. Once you understand what these adults look for in a children’s book, you will discover that they make excellent target customers for several reasons:

• Their essential desire is simple: to find a book that the child will love.
• Children frequently go through numerous books, so there is always a demand for new titles.
• Once they find a writer they like, they are likely to explore and read everything that they have written.
• It is pretty simple to find online spaces where parents, teachers, and similar people gather.

2- Build Your Brand

You need to establish your author brand. It will be helpful not only in marketing children’s books but also in helping you make money writing a book. It connects with your target audience.

Create a distinct author persona that aligns with your target audience. Consider factors such as your tone, style, values, and interests.

Do you have a playful, curious, or informative nature? Show these qualities consistently in your:

• Writing style
• Online presence
• Interactions with readers

Write a concise and engaging author bio that highlights your:

• Expertise
• Experience
• Passion for children’s literature

Include any relevant credentials or awards to establish credibility. Display it on your:

• Author profile
• Author website
• Inside the book or on the back cover

Build an author website that showcases your brand and book. Ensure to include a professional photo of yourself along with a link to your website. As a children’s book author, you have the freedom to play with words and add a touch of whimsy to your bio. Write it in the third person, incorporate brief anecdotes, and let your unique personality shine.

3- Utilize Social Media

As of today, most of the guardians of young children are millennials. Therefore, they look for book recommendations on the Internet. So, run book advertisements on digital platforms. Some popular forums that you can benefit from are:

• Instagram
• Facebook
• Reddit
• Twitter
• Blogs

When searching for Facebook groups, you might come across specific groups relevant to the theme of your children’s book. For example, suppose your book focuses on cars. In that case, you can look for a Facebook group dedicated to discussion about vehicles, many of whom likely have children.

To increase visibility, share pictures of your book on all social media platforms. Use relevant hashtags on Instagram and Twitter to enable your book to be found by the right audience. If your book deals with the topic of cars, you can use # like:

• #carsenthusiasts
• #carsforkids

Have you taken the step of claiming your books on Goodreads? If not, you must do it as soon as possible. Goodreads is the most extensive social network specifically designed for sharing books. Ignoring its potential when it comes to marketing children’s books could be a severe mistake. To maximize your chances of success, make sure to establish your presence on Goodreads without delay.

4- Distribute Your Book to Libraries

Libraries offer a significant opportunity for authors. Many parents borrow books from their local libraries rather than purchasing every title for their children. If you can place your book in the children’s section of a library branch, you are likely to attract readers. If parents and kids enjoy your book, they may become interested in your other works and even be willing to buy them.

To get your book into the library system, you need to convince librarians of its value and make it easy for them to order it. Here are a few steps you can take:

• Make sure your book has a good number of positive reviews.
• Make sure it is easily available on major wholesalers like Ingram or Baker & Taylor.
• Introduce yourself to the librarians.

It feels challenging to approach librarians. However, many libraries are open to hosting story hours with authors. Take the initiative to call nearby libraries and inform them about your book. Consider offering to do a reading or storytelling session. On the day of the book launch, bring several paper copies for selling children’s books. It allows you to offer signed copies to interested readers.

5- Visit Schools

Schools often allocate budgets for author visits. It presents a fantastic opportunity for promoting your brand and marketing children’s books. To make the most of this opportunity, you should be organized and have a solid book marketing plan before reaching out to schools. Start by communicating with them and providing information about the age range your book is intended for. Share cover images, links, and synopsis to help them understand your book better.

Once a school agrees to your visit, share the details of your planned visit with them. In some cases, schools may allow you to arrange book sales with parents. You can offer incentives like a free visit to the school in exchange for sending home order forms for signed copies. It is a great way to generate interest and potential sales.

6- Participate in Book Awards

Getting an award for your book is a great way to increase children’s book sales and gain recognition. It can make your marketing efforts much smoother. Many awards are available specifically for self-published books, although they often require an entry fee. However, winning one of these will set your book apart from the rest. Some notable awards for children’s books include:

• Mom’s Choice Awards
• The Golden Kite Award
• Readers’ Favorite
• Royal Dragonfly Book Awards

7- Write Guest Posts and Articles

Guest blogging involves creative blog writing or article writing on another person’s blog, website, or magazine. It is a fantastic marketing strategy that allows you to reach your target audience directly. It can take up some time to find suitable blogs or magazines to craft a thoughtful article. However, it proves highly effective in promoting your brand and spreading the word about your work.

8- Get the Amazon Page Right

In 2024, Amazon remains the largest retailer for self-published authors. Since the internet is now the main marketplace, your Amazon product page serves as your virtual storefront. It is crucial to optimize it effectively to attract potential readers and sell an ebook on Amazon.

To achieve this, you should focus on:

Your Author Page

Use Amazon Author Central to edit your public profile. It is an excellent opportunity to establish your brand. Ensure your author bio is compelling and include a link to your author’s website.

Your Book Description

It is a crucial component of your product page that can convert browsers into buyers. Craft a gripping headline and a snappy blurb.

Your Amazon Keywords

Amazon employs algorithms to recommend books to readers. Mastering this aspect is key to enhancing your book’s discoverability on the platform.

9- Reach Out to Children’s Book Reviewers

Check out the reviews of children’s books similar to yours on platforms like Amazon, Goodreads, or other websites. If you can find the contact info of those who have posted reviews, reach out to them. Then, ask if they or their children would be interested and can review your book.

Explore Facebook groups and local community sites. In addition, use Google to find children’s book groups. These are usually communities of adults who enjoy reading or discussing children’s books. Contact those groups that target children’s books. Inquire if anyone would be interested in receiving a review copy.

10- Make Use of Video Marketing

It is crucial to show people what they buy, especially children’s books. Video book trailers are excellent for showcasing your work and marketing children’s books. You don’t need fancy equipment – most smartphones can record high-quality videos these days. Simply shoot a short video where you talk about your book, share its storyline, and explain what inspired you to write it. Don’t worry about the video length. Even a 2-minute video can attract thousands of views. Upload your video to YouTube and watch the views start rolling in.

Remember to include info on how viewers can purchase your book and provide a clickable link in the video description. The great thing is that YouTube is a search engine, so if you give your video a relevant title, people searching for content related to your book’s topic might stumble upon your video. Best of all, YouTube is free to use, so don’t let your fear of videos stop you from leveraging this powerful marketing tool for your children’s books.

FAQs

Conclusion

When it comes to marketing children’s books, there are various effective methods you can employ. It is crucial to prioritize techniques that offer the best results within your budget and time constraints. Try different strategies that resonate with your target audience and align with your overall marketing plan.

However, you need to focus on what works best for you. As a result, you can maximize the impact of your efforts. Well, if you need book marketing services to improve your ability to children’s books for sale, Authors Breeze can help.