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Publishers should put more money and creativity into campaigns for Black authors and be willing to let go of opportunities that do not align with their author’s values to ensure authenticity in their campaigns, The Bookseller Marketing and Publicity Conference has been told.
During a panel discussion on "authentic connection" chaired by Micallar Walker, c.e.o. and founder of marketing agency Dark Matter, speakers discussed the need to promote a “genuine message”.
Jessica Huie, author and founder of The Purpose Academy, told delegates that the objective and purpose of publicity is to share and communicate an author’s message, not just “publicity for publicity’s sake”. Crucial to this is finding platforms that share an author’s value system, she said.
“It’s being willing to actually let go of the opportunities that aren’t aligned with what’s important to you” she said, giving an example of a newspaper interview she did with an outlet whose “energy was completely off” and subsequently failed to help sell any books.
“You need to be very clear about what’s most important and consciously and intentionally choosing partners or media outlets that share that value system and objective and letting go of anything that isn’t. And sometimes that means you don’t get the headlines, and that’s OK too,” she said.
Sophia A Jackson, founder of Afridiziak, emphasised the need to “put some spend” behind an author, and think carefully about what might engage their target audience. She gave the example of Faber and Dark Matter’s immersive book launch for Akwaeke Emzi’s novel You Made a Fool of Death With Your Beauty in Brixton.
“They went to the community, there was Caribbean food, there was an African collage workshop, there was spoken word. It was a whole day, it was a wholly immersive experience, they had round tables, a bookseller of colour was there, there was a whole selection of beautiful books, it was like stepping into Jamaica, there were palm trees it was just a really beautiful experience,” she said. “I’ve been to lots of book events, but no book event that was so immersive, it literally filled my soul.”
Walker said she hoped that “very soon” people won’t need to reach out to her to reach Black audiences, because it will already be part of people’s marketing campaigns from the very beginning. “Then Dark Matter can evolve and become even more creative and do even more exciting things because I’m not having to focus on only reaching the audience” she said.
Carolynn Bain, founder of Afrori Books, said publishers need to engage with booksellers more to find out what customers really want. “My customers are looking for Black British YA books predominantly written by Black men with Black male protagonists. There’s been a massive depletion of this. They are just not there. It’s what my customers ask me every single day. But no-one’s talking to the booksellers and I find that bizarre” she said.
“If you spend a tonne load of money on something the chances of it selling are very high, so spend a tonne load of money on Black authors […] because there are audiences for them. Take the risks, do a little bit more legwork, get out there, get out there on the ground and go and meet booksellers.”