Get Your Author SWAG On...

Recently, author Dana Claire of BookBrush did a presentation on SWAG (Stuff We All Get) for our Sisters in Crime chapter. She’s fabulous, and if you haven’t already, check out all that BookBrush offers authors. It’s a tool that you need to add to your marketing and promo kit.

She talked about all kinds of creative ways that authors can connect with readers for giveaways and prizes. She made me think about my SWAG and some advice that I’ve picked up over the years…

• Your items need to tie into your brand (your style, color scheme, etc.) Readers need to know what to expect. A publicist told me to use pastels for my colors because my writing style was light and humorous. (I used to have my website design in black and red, and she said that projected more of a suspense/thriller/gothic vibe.)

• Find creative things that you can easily mail. Mugs and larger items are cool, but if you have to ship them, you may incur costs that you didn’t bargain for.

• I think bookmarks are a must. I do a new design for each book. Make sure to use the back and the front. Include your website and your books’ ISBNs. I always give everyone I talk to a bookmark, and I am often surprised after an event at the spike in audio and ebooks. Not everyone wants a paperback or a hardback.

• Pens are great items. They can always be used, and they often get passed on to others. I made one batch up like they were from my character’s business. It was a fun conversation starter when folks read them.

• My very first novel had an 80s music theme to it, so I bought a ton of small buttons with 80s throw-back sayings on them. I filled a candy dish at my events, and readers had the best time finding the one the wanted and strolling down memory lane.

• Candy is always good but be careful. I had a lot of chocolate candy for an August event (in the south). That meant that I had mushy, messy candy.

• I do a lot of online Facebook parties and take-overs, so I like to have gifts that are fun and easy to mail. I order all kinds of bookmarks on Etsy (e.g. Nancy Drew, Agatha Christie, Sherlock Holmes, etc.). These make fun gifts to add to prize packages.

What type of SWAG has worked (or didn’t work) for you?

Winner! Winner! Choosing Prizes and Gifts - Tips for Authors

Everyone loves free stuff. And everyone loves to win the prize. You can use your author swag to create interesting prizes for giveaways. Here are some ideas (and what I’ve learned).

Gift Baskets: People love baskets filled to the brim with goodies and lots of ribbons and bows. I build several each year for charity auctions that I support. Come up with a theme and look for fun items to add (e.g. Tea and Books, Mysteries and Chocolate, etc.). Don’t forget to add your swag (e.g. pens, pencils, bookmarks). Make sure to autograph the books you include.

Buy a cute or useful basket or container to use as a base. Make sure it’s the right size for your give-away. A small, overflowing basket looks more appealing that a giant one with three things in it. Arts and craft stores (or Amazon) sell rolls of clear plastic cellophane wrap for gift baskets. Top it with ribbons or a big bow. Flashy baskets draw lots of attention at silent auctions. One year, our Sisters in Crime - Central Virginia chapter made one for the Friends of the Library’s fundraiser. We had over twenty-five books in the basket. And one of the gals made a big bow from yellow crime scene tape. A mystery reader’s dream!

Keep receipts and records for your taxes for charity donations. Talk to your tax advisor for details and specifics.

Social Media Giveaways: Facebook Hops, Facebook Parties, and Twitter Parties are great ways for you to meet readers and build up your audience. A lot of authors give away ebooks, and that often doesn’t bring the excitement or responses that a physical prize does. If you can, think of ways to incorporate small things in your prizes (e.g. small gift cards, fancy bookmarks, themed wine charms, etc.). I like Etsy, and I often find pins, wine charms, and notecards. Search Agatha Christie, Sherlock Holmes, or Nancy Drew gifts, and you’ll be surprised at all the creative ideas that pop up.

You want your item to be able to be mailed easily. Tina Glasneck gave me the best advice. Make sure your prize fits in a standard business envelope. When you do online contests, follow the terms and conditions of the site and specify where you will mail the gift to. One author friend bought really cute mugs, but they were expensive to wrap and ship. Also, postage jumps considerably when it is out of your mailing area/country.

I keep a shelf of swag and prizes in my office closet. Instead of throwing unused gift cards in a drawer, add them to your collection and use as a prize.

Swag Bags: I ordered a box of small purple bags with ribbon ties. (I found them on Amazon under birthday or shower gift bags. They come in all colors.) I make small swag bags (e.g. pens, bookmarks, pins, notecards) for people I meet with. These are like hostess gifts for the coordinator when I do events for libraries, schools, or senior community events.

Notes: I always add a “I hope you enjoy this/It was great to meet you” note with the prize. I had postcards made with my book covers at Vistaprint. The back is blank and perfect for a personalized note.

Contests and prizes are fun ways to excite readers and draw them into your social media sites. You don’t have to spend a lot of money, and a thoughtful gift is always memorable.

What I Learned about Navigating Writing (or Fan) Conferences

I returned from a fabulous weekend at Malice Domestic. I had so much fun networking, seeing friends, meeting readers, and being a fan girl. (I got to meet Anne Hillerman and Chris Grabenstein this year.)

Here are some things I’ve learned to help navigate these events — whether your a writer or a fan.

Comfort

• You are going to do a lot of walking. Wear comfortable shoes.

• Dress in layers. Conference rooms are notorious for being frigid.

Be Prepared

• Make sure you have a bag for things you’ll need: bookmarks, business cards, promo materials, a notebook, and something to write (or sign books) with.

• Have your elevator speech (1-2 sentences) ready about your book in case you’re asked.

• Print a copy of all your registration confirmations and take them with you to make sure there’s no confusion.

• Keep all of your receipts for meals/expenses for your taxes.

• Read the conference agenda and plan what you want to attend. Some provide “conference at a glance” booklets to help you navigate, and others have an app for your phone.

Swag

• Bring an extra bag or leave room in your suitcase for all the swag and books that you’ll collect. I went to the Kensington Books give-away and signing. They were so generous. My TBR stack tripled.

• Many conferences have shipping centers, so you can send it all home if you need to.

Etiquette

• Be professional always! You never know who is sitting next to you.

• Check out the conference’s website for past pictures to get an idea of the dress code for the events. Some are casual, and some dinners are black tie.

• Don’t start every conversation about your book. Be genuine. Be part of conversations. They’ll be plenty of time to talk about your book.

Swag for Book Promotions

Everybody loves free stuff! What do you give away at events or as prizes? There are so many items out there that you can personalize. Here’s what I’ve learned along the way.

Shipping - If you are mailing your swag, be careful that what you buy is easy (and cheap) to ship. My author friend bought cute mugs with her book cover on them. But the cost to wrap and ship was outrageous.

And if you’re mailing prizes, make sure that you specify the mailing area. It’s costly if you have to mail items overseas and complete custom forms.

My author friend, Tina Glasneck, said to make sure that your prizes always fit in a standard envelope.

Themes - I try to theme by give aways to match something in the book. I’m part of a dog-themed cozy mystery collection (To Fetch a Thief), and I try to have things that will appeal to dog lovers.

Candy - Candy (the good stuff) is always a hit at events. Just be careful of the temperature. I took chocolate to a summer event, and it was squishy.

Personalized Swag - I had pencils made for my private eye’s company. They also had the book title, my name, and my website. People like pens and pencils. My author friends, Mary Behre and Kristin Kisska, always give away pens with purple ink. People tend to keep them because who doesn’t love purple ink?

I always have bookmarks made for each of my books and short stories. After many events, I’ve seen my ebook sales spike. Some folks prefer ebooks. I always include the cover, my picture, the ISBNs, and my contact information for each book. And don’t forget the back of the bookmark. You can include your other books that the reader may like. Keep a stack with you always. You never know when you’ll run into a reader.

I had notecards made with my book covers on them. The back side is blank. I use these to write notes for just about anything.

I use Vista Print and Next Day Flyers for business cards, note cards, and bookmarks.

Prizes - I use Etsy to find cool give aways that my readers would like. I’ve found wine glass charms, stickers, magnets, pins, and jewelry. (My Delanie Fitzgerald series has an 80s theme in the first book, so I often give away 80s pins instead of candy.) I also give away gift cards because they are easy to mail and fit in a standard envelope. Amazon and other sites have egift cards that you can email to winners.

What kind of swag do you like to give or get? Let me know what you’d add to my list.