BEA Book Expo America: Good for Independent Publishers?

'Tis the season for publisher and authors near and far to be asking . . .

Should I go to BEA?
How do I make the most of the show?

Over the next few days, I'll post some tips to help authors and publishers decide how BookExpo America fits into their marketing plan.


TRADE SHOWS

As in all aspects of marketing, repetition is the key. Customers may have
to hear about your book 7-10 times before they decide to buy it for themselves
or make it available to their customers. Trade shows are one more option
to create repetition.

Book Industry Trade Shows
Purpose:
Book industry trade shows are all about creating a buzz in the book industry.
Getting your book into the minds of booksellers and librarians so they
will place orders for your book.

BookExpo America
This premier event in the bookselling industry is held in May or June
each year. BookExpo America (BEA) is where most of the large publishers
and many smaller presses conduct a bulk of their business with book stores.

Not only are book stores available and searching for the titles they will
carry that Christmas selling season, major media contacts can be made
as they scope the aisles in search of their next big story. Even if you
don’t exhibit, you should attend at least once.

Exhibiting at BEA can be a costly proposition. A 10x10 booth on the main
floor is more than $3,000. Getting a small press booth is much less expensive
(around $1,000), but drastically reduces your exposure due to the nature
of how the Small Press Booths are laid out.

This is excerpted from:

MarketAbility's Book Marketing Profit System

Up next:
Your best option for BEA . . .