The Best Video To Sell Books

While vacationing beachside in Grenada recently, I came across several young women being photographed and videotaped by their assistants, putting together content that they hope will get them clicks, likes, and shares. The life of instafluencers was bared before my eyes.  

These women are similar to authors, both desperately in need of followers, seeking to create viral content that woos people to look, watch again, share, and even make a purchase decision based on what was viewed.  

The influencers on the beach represent one of today’s most desired professions for Gen Z. It is a career with the biggest payoff for anyone lacking experience and education. Anyone with a great ass and a pretty smile can do this — and it seems many do. But these wannabe influencers have a lot of competition for eyeballs, and without a large and loyal following, they can’t commoditize their tit-and-ass, sunset-on-the-beach snaps.  

After scrawling through no less than 1000 videos over the past week, I can make a few conclusions as to what gets my attention. I am drawn to attractive women in beautiful settings, comedic situations and comedians, baseball history, unusual physical feats, anything with dogs, funny plays on words, anything 1980s, and philosophical insights that inspire. Others may enjoy travel scenes, cat porn, foodie stuff, and cultural jokes. And others will be drawn to images of whatever things that they enjoy or that they believe define them.  

What I like is not what everyone likes. It may not even be what the majority likes or even a significant minority. So how do authors know what will draw more views? And how do we know what will convert into book sales, transitioning a free video watcher into a book-buying consumer?

Let’s start with what you are seeking to accomplish: What do you want people to see, hear, feel, and think when they watch your video? Why?  

I always tell my author clients to filter their content through a self-defined prism of defined standards, so that they can have a certain quality control in place for the videos that they post. 

Who is your target or ideal follower? Ask: 

* What are their demographics, interests, needs, and desires? 

* How do your videos compare to what others in your space put out? 

* What type of brand voice or consistency do you seek out?

* How do the visuals align with your words? 

Ask yourself: 

* Why do I like what I like?

* Is it share-worthy?

* Does it involve a key attention factor: sex, emotion, politics, religion, animal, natural beauty, artistic, funny, wisdom, memory lane, or a universal starting point like love, freedom, winning, etc?

* What would my book’s targeted reader want or need to see? 

I am partial to things that make me laugh, feel, or think… or are visually arresting. The real test: is it something I think worthy of sharing with others?   

I look for a certain kind of message. I am always seeking the formula of understanding it all, where everything can make sense and have a purpose.  We all work from some kind of foundation that grounds us and then we act from that vantage point. But what if our foundation is wrong, weak, based on lies, or simply not what is best for us? 

But that’s me. Others want some other style or subject in the message or the visual images. So, dear author, what resources, tools, or ideas do you have to work with? How will your video posts manage to be different, memorable, interesting, and useful? 

Keep watching what others put out. See what is worth mirroring while putting your own spin on it. Experiment. See what sticks and what doesn’t. And hope to get lucky! 

 

Do You Need Book Marketing & PR Help?

Brian Feinblum, the founder of this award-winning blog, with over four million page views, can be reached at brianfeinblum@gmail.com  He is available to help authors like you to promote your story, sell your book, and grow your brand. He has over 30 years of experience in successfully helping thousands of authors in all genres. Let him be your advocate, teacher, and motivator!

 

About Brian Feinblum

This award-winning blog has generated over four million pageviews. With 5,000+ posts over the past dozen years, it was named one of the best book marketing blogs by BookBaby  http://blog.bookbaby.com/2013/09/the-best-book-marketing-blogs  and recognized by Feedspot in 2021 and 2018 as one of the top book marketing blogs. It was also named by www.WinningWriters.com as a "best resource.”  Copyright 2024.

 

For the past three decades, Brian Feinblum has helped thousands of authors. He formed his own book publicity firm in 2020. Prior to that, for 21 years as the head of marketing for the nation’s largest book publicity firm, and as the director of publicity at two independent presses, Brian has worked with many first-time, self-published, authors of all genres, right along with best-selling authors and celebrities such as: Dr. Ruth, Mark Victor Hansen, Joseph Finder, Katherine Spurway, Neil Rackham, Harvey Mackay, Ken Blanchard, Stephen Covey, Warren Adler, Cindy Adams, Todd Duncan, Susan RoAne, John C. Maxwell, Jeff Foxworthy, Seth Godin, and Henry Winkler.

 

His writings are often featured in The Writer and IBPA’s The Independent (https://pubspot.ibpa-online.org/article/whats-needed-to-promote-a-book-successfully).

 

He hosted a panel on book publicity for Book Expo America several years ago, and has spoken at ASJA, BookCAMP, Independent Book Publishers Association Sarah Lawrence College, Nonfiction Writers Association, Cape Cod Writers Association, Willamette (Portland) Writers Association, APEX, Morgan James Publishing, and Connecticut Authors and Publishers Association. He served as a judge for the 2024 IBPA Book Awards.

 

His letters-to-the-editor have been published in The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, New York Post, NY Daily News, Newsday, The Journal News (Westchester) and The Washington Post. His first published book was The Florida Homeowner, Condo, & Co-Op Association Handbook.  It was featured in The Sun Sentinel and Miami Herald.

 

Born and raised in Brooklyn, he now resides in Westchester with his wife, two kids, and Ferris, a black lab rescue dog, and El Chapo, a pug rescue dog