There are many ways to market your book using ad campaigns and social media, but have you considered creating a book trailer? You might be surprised how easy to create they are. But can they be effective in marketing?
I’ve created book trailers for three of my books and I’ve found they have generated a few more sales when I’ve pushed these. By adding a visual and audio aspect to your marketing, you will appeal to a wider audience. Some people react better to these than reading a normal advert and it can really enhance your entire campaign.
Creating a book trailer is fun and simple. First, you’re going to want some music that fits the mood of your book. There’s no point having a comical tune for a very dark horror. Imagine the trailer to the Exorcist using Benny Hill music! You also have to remember whatever music you use, you have to make sure you have the rights to use it. There are plenty of royalty free music you can find to fit your novel. In most cases, you only have to credit the creator of the music in your descriptions. You can find a lot of royalty free music on YouTube. Once you’ve found the perfect match for your book and checked the rights if you can use it, then the creator normally has a download link. If they don’t, there are plenty of YouTube converters online where you can paste the link to the video and convert it to just audio in an MP3 file.
You now need some visuals. Again, YouTube can provide royalty free images. There are also videos you can find to add into your trailer. If there’re no download links, then find a YouTube video converter and it’ll make it into an MP4 file for you. Like your music, make sure your images match the tone of your book.
When you have your music and visuals, you’re going to want to edit them together. I use iMovie on the Mac for this, which is a free editing software and is very easy to use. There are plenty of free guides on YouTube to help you with the basics, but all you have to do is edit the images in the order you want them and overlay the music track.
Now you need to create a hook for your book. You can use snappy lines from your book blurb, but also lines from the book. Use anything to get the viewer’s attention and pace them out through the images. If you’ve a good voice, why not record it as a voice over? Think of those Hollywood movie trailers and ask yourself what attracts your attention to them. What’s the pull?
Finally, make sure you show your book cover in the trailer and details of where to buy it. If people are pulled in by your trailer, they’re going to want to know where to buy it.
Creating a book trailer is simple and fun. If you’re an indie author, you need to think of as many different ways of marketing. If you don’t market using every tool at your disposal, how will people find your book? Be creative and have fun.
If you’ve a book trailer, then put a link in the comments so I can have a look.
Here’s the trailer I created for my book, Dead Again: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_oBAH0CTMLM&t=6s
Kevin Grover is an indie author of supernatural thrillers. His books are on Amazon and his website, Indie Bookshelf, shares various tips and experiences about his indie career.