I’m
here to talk about a no-longer new concept writers are using to help promote
their books in this day of so much new material for readers to choose from. “Street
Teams” are dedicated groups of readers and writers who form a club of sorts
centering around one author and her books. These teams take lots of different
forms: review crews where the members’
only tasks are to review the author’s books; physically mobilized teams who go
out and put bookmarks in books on the shelves and talk to book store owners,
librarians, and other readers; social groups who only meet online and chat;
combinations of the above.
I
have very recently taken the plunge to start a Reader Fun Group. (Triple L –
Lizbeth’s Loyal Legions.) In the last ten days I’ve gathered nearly 50 readers
to join my Facebook group and they’re starting to help me share announcement
posts on FB and Twitter. Soon they’ll write some reviews for my newest release.
I’m
super excited about trying this, and I love all the members of the group—we’re
beginning to share pictures from our home lives so we get to know about pets
and hobbies and other favorite authors—among other things. I don’t know how
long everyone’s fresh excitement will last, but I hope we can continue having
fun and create some really interesting promo moments!
I’d
like to have your take on all of this. Are you familiar with the street team
conept? Does anyone here belong to one? (I know some of my Triple L’s frequent
GLIAS!) Do you have a great time on the team, or do you feel pressured to over-promote
for your authors? What kind of perks
have you gotten for being a team member? What’s your biggest motivation for
joining?
I
know I’m babbling questions, but this is a big deal to authors. We’d really
like to give our readers what they want, and with so many of us out there
handing out everything from mints to hand sanitizer, it’s important for us to
know what YOU want from us!
I
have a choice of any of my currently available books in e-format for a
commenter today. I’d love to have your thoughts on street teams and promo in
general.
Also—I’m
super excited about my new release just around the corner. Don’t forget to go
and pre-order “The Bride Wore Starlight” from any of your favorite retailers.
