Powerful Promotional Strategies for Photography Books
By Shannon Wilkinson, President, Cultural Communications

The following text was adapted for use in ASMP Professional Business Practices in Photography (Fall 2008) from an article by the author (edited by Jill Waterman) originally published in the ASMP Bulletin.

Photography books are a major career-building tool. No other instrument launches, revives and sustains a reputation like published books. They can turbo charge exhibition opportunities and sales for photographers. Dealers and museum curators who have passed over a promising photographer’s work often take a second, more serious look when his or her book crosses their desks. For commercial photographers, a new book can double or triple assignments.

But unless a well-thought-out promotion and marketing plan is in place several months before your book is released, it will die an early death. So it is essential that you create a comprehensive plan at least six months in advance of publication, either independently or in conjunction with your publisher (if you have one).

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Publishers: Not in Business to Promote Photographers
When creating this plan it is important to realize that publishers are in business to sell books, not to promote photographers: They may not market your book the way you want (or expect) them to. Publishers invest in publicizing a book based on expected sales goal and a break-even point. They know which marketing actions are required for them to reach that goal while still turning a profit. Unfortunately, actions that may help a photographer’s career -- a launch party, a speaking tour or other activities often used to promote books -- may not help a publisher meet its specific goals.

To minimize disappointment, schedule a meeting with the publisher's marketing department well in advance of your book's publication. Find out what they will be doing to promote it...and what they won't be doing. Avoid putting them on the defensive. Since the marketing department may not be thinking about your book's promotion at this point, it is vital to explain to them before promotional activities begin that you’d like to know how you can help make the book a success.

The time and resources publishers are willing to dedicate to publicizing your book is limited by their profit margin, which is often quite narrow. In order to maximize exposure, and sales, of your book, you might consider hiring your own publicist. When deciding whether it is worthwhile to make this investment, analyze the amount of publicity a publisher has garnered for similar projects. If you’d like a greater amount of publicity, it might be in your interest to bring in an outside resource. An effective publicity campaign isn’t just integral to the success of your book. It will promote your career as well.

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Using Outside Consultants
Publicists, public relations firms and event firms are the most commonly used outside resources for book promotions. Event firms specialize in parties and can often add celebrities or socialites to an existing guest list. Most PR firms and publicists (independent operatives who usually have past experience working for top firms) specialize in niche areas. Matching their niche to your target audience is an important consideration in selecting the best person or firm to represent your work.

The most important clues as to a publicist’s potential are his or her publicity clips for other projects in your field. These clips will demonstrate which outlets and media figures the publicist routinely deals with. When you interview potential publicists, review their clips to assess their prior success in promoting photography books and to ensure they have cultivated relationships with photo editors.

Publicists maintain close contact with their clients once a campaign begins. In addition to regular updates, it is standard to receive periodic written activity reports from a publicist, with details of inquiries made and reactions of each journalist contacted.

For book promotions, these consultants charge a project fee, which usually spans three to six months of work. Clients typically pay incrementally throughout the period covered (most publicists invoice on a monthly basis). Out-of-pocket expenses are estimated in advance and billed separately, with half or more being paid up front.

A publicist will generally use the first four weeks of the campaign to develop comprehensive publicity materials. Then he or she must initiate media contacts three to four months before a book’s release. Monthly magazines require this much or more lead-time for articles. The two months immediately preceding a book’s publication are used to approach blogs, weekly magazines, daily and weekly newspapers, online 'zines and, if appropriate, television and radio. That is why it is absolutely vital to contact a publicist five or more months before your book's release. Waiting a month before its launch guarantees a major loss of publicity opportunities. Even the most well connected publicist cannot fight those odds.

Before a campaign begins you should expect to see a list of the names, with titles and media affiliations, the publicist plans to contact. Then you should receive written activity reports on a monthly basis (supplemented with weekly email or verbal reports).

Publicists work on a “no guarantee” basis. That is, they cannot promise that their work will result in publicity coverage. You are paying for the time they spend on your book’s campaign—and for their expertise. The good news is that no publicist wants to take on a project with the likelihood of attaining little publicity. Most are candid with their opinion of a book’s prospects. I ask potential clients to describe their media goals and decline the project if I do not feel my work will support this. However, the most common reason a publicist will decline a project is that the timeline is too short to allow for magazine deadlines. Once you miss those, you've lost many of your best opportunities.

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Keeping a Book Alive
Keeping a book “alive” becomes the central goal three to six months after its publication. Start thinking about how to keep your book alive as soon as you sign a contract.

One way is to mount a multi-city exhibition tour. This creates new publicity at every stop, even after the book has been out for months. A frequently overlooked alternative to commercial galleries is university galleries. These venues are plentiful, and many are dedicated solely to exhibiting photography. They will sometimes help with resources such as shipping, framing, special events and promotions.

If you set up an exhibition tour well in advance, the exhibition venues can be included in the press release your publicist sends to the glossy, high-circulation magazines. The level of publicity these magazines can generate is a tremendous sales tool for your book, and for the galleries.

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Exhibitions, Panels, Discussions and Book Signings
Galleries generally plan their exhibitions up to two years in advance. But many have some flexibility and can shift their schedule around, especially for a show that will add to their stature, potentially make them a profit or help them gain new clients, which include your friends, clients and collectors.

Some books are appropriate for panel discussions at nonprofit organizations, where signings can be held. Institutions and special-interest groups have their own mailing lists that will reach new audiences. It may be worthwhile to donate books to charity auctions and other events, if they can guarantee the book will be prominently displayed and credited. Displays in retail shop windows can also serve as a good source of advertisement for new books and photographs. Look beyond the major bookstore chains to seek out stores that cater to your book’s audience.

Book signings are increasingly difficult to arrange unless you can guarantee an audience, so include as many friends, family members and clients as you can on the invite list. Bookstores are fighting to attract crowds for nightly signings. When considering a signing, some stores check their sales database to see how similar books have sold. If sales have been low, they don't see an opportunity. So it is important to convince them you can bring in a crowd. The same is true of speaking engagements

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No Publisher? Self-Publish
New technology and low digital printing costs have resulted in scores of self-published books. Self-publishing may be an effective solution for photographers who have a niche body of work that reaches a small audience. It is also worthwhile for photographers with built-in audiences, such as instructors and those running seminar businesses. Self-publishing in very limited editions can also be a powerful promotional tool, if you can afford to create them solely for that purpose.

In today’s economic climate, book publishers are less likely than ever to publish a book that doesn’t have a high probability of commercial success. If industry professionals (and the all-important bookstores) don’t react with interest to a prospective book, it is unlikely the buying public will. But you may still want to print a book for your own reasons.

There are many downsides to self-publishing. Most mainstream publications will not review books that are self-published. Distributors are hard to find because self-published books generally aren't profitable. And without a distributor and publicity, it is almost impossible to break into bookstores.

There are also upsides to consider. A self-published book will greatly increase your visibility if you are willing to send it to leading photo editors, dealers, curators and photography critics. (Don't expect it to be returned.) Think carefully about how a self-published book may help you attain your professional or sales goals, and whether having your book showcased on amazon.com and other online book vendors will translate into sales, commissions and more opportunities.

Before taking this route, decide if you can afford to implement the promotional program that will generate these and other positive results. Your investment is not only in money, but time.

Comments or questions? Send an email to Shannon Wilkinson