The 12 Commandments of Selling Books at Book Fairs, Conventions and Fairs and Festivals

As with book signing events, your goal for fairs and festivals is to draw a crowd to your booth, sell books and “create the demand” for the book.

1.      Register for the event as early as possible

1. Contact the event organizer
2. Find out the cost of the booth or registration
3. Register for the event and inform your marketing representative

2.      Spread the word about your appearance at the event

1. Church bulletin
2. Online newspapers free event calendar listings
3. Free online listing at Craig’s List http://www.craigslist.org/about/sites.html
4. E-mail  invitations to your address book
2. Share expenses
1. Split the cost of the booth with another author, if festival organizers allow booth-sharing
2. Decorate the booth with a banner and tabletop posters announcing that the author is available to sign copies of books.  Make the booth as attractive as possible!
3. Establish a family member or friend to help you during the event
4. Items you will need for your booth:
1. Books.  You will need to determine how many books you will need to have available for the event.  You can always keep extra copies in your car, if needed. 
2. Giveaways.  Just like at trade shows, attendees are always looking for free items.  Have a supply of bookmarks, business cards and push cards on hand to help promote your book if people don’t buy a copy on the spot.
3. Décor.  Most festivals will give you a table and a chair, and not much else.  Find out if you’ll need table coverings, a tent or awning (if an outdoor event), or a power supply for any video or audio needs you may have.  Also make sure you have pens and posters to advertise who you are and why you are there, preferably with a photo of your book cover on it.  You may even want to have a banner made for your book that you can re-use at future events.  You’re only limited by your imagination.
5. Be prepared with conversation starters.
1. “How did you hear about the event?”
2. “Are you an avid reader?”
3. “Do you live in the area?”\
4. Have a one-minute pitch ready to go that tells people who you are and what your book is about.  Practice it so that it seems natural and not forced.
6. Have a guest-book on your table for people to sign their name and e-mail address. By doing this at every event, you can create a large mailing list for e-blasts or newsletters about your book.
7. Practice good booth etiquette.
1. If you are sharing a booth, be considerate and polite to your fellow authors.
2. Don’t complain to your fellow authors if the event isn’t going well and you aren’t selling many books.  Attitude is contagious! 
3. Work out ahead of time how you will approach customers at the booth so you aren’t overwhelming them and pressuring them to buy books.
4. Be friendly and approachable.
5. Don’t just sit at the booth and wait for people to come to you.  Engage passersby in conversation and offer them any giveaways you may have.  Use the opportunity to tell them about your book.
8. Arrive early, allowing plenty of time to set up for the event.

10. Have book ordering information available in case you run out of books.   Business cards and push cards can be used for this purpose.
11. Send a thank-you card to the organizer after the event. If the event was especially successful, send a letter of commendation to the event organizer.  They may ask you to be a featured author next year.
12. Book early for next year’s event.