Today, the LA Times did a story about book trailers: their blockbuster-like budgets and their ability to sell books the way movie trailers sell tickets.
I don't know, though. I've enjoyed the book trailers I've seen, but I wonder if they really have an effect on sales.
What do you think? Has a book trailer convinced you to throw down at the cash register? Share your favorites in the comments!
The book trailer for The Black Prism by Brent Weeks made me want to read it--that's saying something, since I had previously started a book by him and decided I didn't like his writing. But this book is really good, so far. My husband also read Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter after seeing the trailer.
ReplyDeleteI recently read an article about making your own book trailers through Windows Movie Maker... what a terrible idea. A good trailer may make me pick up a book, but a bad trailer will surely keep me far away!
The "making of" the book trailer for Mrs. Peregrin's Home for Peculiar Children had more to do with me buying the book than any book trailer has ever influenced me.
ReplyDeleteI think the idea of the book trailer is interesting. The article mentioned its success when used to promote Paranormal. I'm curious as to the success rate when it is used to promote other types of book. As a writer of Historical Romance, the whole topic makes me ponder the potential cheesiness of the finished product. Has anyone seen successful book trailers for something not as inherently flashy such as Women's Fiction or Historical Fiction?
ReplyDeleteRomance author Tessa Dare does excellent and hilarious book trailers. Her latest one for another author, Maya Banks, had me giggling and buying the books.
ReplyDeleteSo.... :)
Honestly, I haven't seen that many book trailers. I see movie trailers because if I go to a movie in the theater, I have to. Or if I'm watching television, I have to. But as far as I know, I haven't had to watch a book trailer in order to read a book. So I'm not sure they have that wide a reach - regardless of whether the trailer itself is convincing or not, it's just not gonna have the same reach.
ReplyDeleteNo, however, barring a few cut-rate TV spots, I've never seen a book trailer outside the internet. Remember, a trailer can do more than just tell you a book will be awesome. It can tell you a book exists. On the internet, however, you can't find a trailer unless you go looking for it. If they find their way to new avenues (the linked article talks about movie theaters and targeted advertising on TV), then they might prove to be an effective marketing tool.
ReplyDelete-LupLun
Shooting for the Moon
I didn't know they existed until that Timothy Hutton one went circulating around recently. And to tell you how effective it was, all I remember is that it involved Timothy Hutton. I can't even remember the name of the book.
ReplyDeleteA great book trailer creates fans of the trailer, not the book. A bad trailer, unfortunately, hurts the book. I've seen cheaply made trailers for books that were very good. The quality of work in the trailer must match the level of work in the book. This is a combination that seems difficult to attain. In leu of a bad trailer one could always tape book flyers to the backs of coyotes and send them into a neighborhood. It's pretty much the same thing.
ReplyDeleteI'd heard the buzz surrounding "Miss Peregrin's Home for Peculiar Children", but when I saw the trailer--YOWSER--I trotted over to B&N the very next day and shelled out $18 for the book. So, yes, if done well, a trailer can clench the deal. In general, "wordy" trailers (those with only words & music) are less compelling than the acted or animated ones. Unless it's a gripping clip, the finger reaches for the clicker by the minute mark.
ReplyDelete