The Overlooked Role of Marketing, Publicity, and Sales, or What does your media list look like?

In the first deep dive into the Pen America Report on Race, Equity, and Book Publishing, we skip to the end, where Pen America takes a hard look at the role of marketing and booksellers in the overall lack of real diversity in the industry.

One of the first things Pen America Report notes is that there is actually very little market research on book buyers and readers of color. So when publishers and bookstores have trouble reaching this market, it translates into the perception that "they don't read" and aren't worth targeting. And yet, it is of interest to note -- especially to independent bookstores -- that at least one study suggests that people of color buy far less from Amazon, and are far more deliberate in their purchases.

But the report notes that diverse titles are not well served by publisher and bookseller marketing efforts because they are put through a standard "boilerplate" process that never reaches a diverse audience. In publishing, slipping sales or disappointing returns of an anticipated book by a white author is often seen as a problem in the way the book has been marketed, whereas for an author of color, it is regarded as a problem with the book itself.

The bookstore version of this scenario is similar. It is not unusual for a bookstore to say that a BIPOC book "doesn't sell" or that people don't attend events with BIPOC writers. Even when stores alter their practices by, say, giving diverse books longer time on the shelves before slating them for returns, or placing them in high-visibility, high-profile areas of the shop, sales lag because the store has not developed a diverse readership or customer base. There is a significant difference between selling BIPOC titles to white readers, and creating the kind of store and selection that attracts diverse readers, but it is the latter that grows the demand for diverse books:

"Marketing and selling to a non-white audience takes specific expertise and connections built over time—and that editors and marketers of color are expected to develop and utilize these channels alongside staying on top of more standard forms of publicity and outreach." --Rockelle Henderson, President of Rock Inked

Step one is to do your research. Bookstores have regular promotional strategies for getting the word out about new books or store events. But since those strategies are not attracting a diverse audience, they are insufficient to the purpose.

Within their own communities, rather than relying on traditional promotional avenues, stores should search out the places diverse readers go to find out about new books: It might not be the local newspaper or public radio station, so they should look at the alternative papers and magazines in the area, as well as other Black media like radio stations, podcasts, and YouTube channels. Booksellers should make a point of reading beyond traditional book media like the New York Times Book Review or NPR to see what books are getting new buzz. They should also be reading BIPOC publications and watching Black television programs.

Stores should also make a note of venues that host BIPOC events and how they publicize them, be familiar with active Black churches and social hot-spots, clubs, cafes, and bars. If there is a college or university in the area, bookstores get to know the Black Studies departments. And it goes without saying that if there is an HBCU (historically black college or university) institution close by, the store should be familiar with its programs and departments.

Read the full report here