Advertisments

What's So Special About Special Market Sales? A monthly column about the lucrative world of Special Sales

This month: Precious Red Gems of Summer - Sure, strawberries taste great, but can you build a profitable book business around them?

Home-style dishes with a unique flair are the signature trademark of York's cooking style. While cooking up story ideas for her culinary features on the CBS-TV affiliate in Tampa, Laura focuses on interesting, flavorful recipes using common ingredients -- and not too much time in the kitchen. "Most people don't have time to prepare gourmet meals that demand unusual ingredients or complicated cooking skills. I enjoy creating sensational, yet simple, recipes," says York. These simple, sensational recipes for everything from strawberry salads to strawberry cocktails fill the colorful book.

Cooking up a great book is one thing - selling it in large enough quantities to make a profitable business is yet another. Enter Karen Fate, York's co-publisher and partner in Simple Sensations Marketing, LLC. "The average American is exposed to about 3,000 advertising messages a day," says Fate. "As a self-publisher, the challenge is to break through this avalanche of clutter and actually make an impact on the target market. You must create an expectation and an experience that is appealing to the consumer and relevant to their needs, and with this in mind, we made Sensations! a visually appealing cookbook, very inviting and friendly." For example, to further its use as a gift item, the inside front cover features a whimsical strawberry bookplate perfect for a personalized message.

"You really have to do your homework," says Fate. "Talk to people in the industry. Spend some time at your local bookstores and talk to the customers. Use the wealth of information available on the Internet. Research trends and how they affect your target customer. Knowledge is power in positioning your product. Share this information with those that you are trying to sell your product to, and communicate with them about new developments. This approach not only shows your commitment to the industry and to their business, it also provides an opportunity to stay in front of them. No one knows your product better than you, and no one has a greater stake in the success to be achieved."

During their research for the book, York and Fate learned that cookbooks are the number one most collectible item for women in America. And wouldn't you know it, they also discovered that Americans consume more strawberries than any other fruit! Combining these facts with their geographic location in Tampa, just twenty miles west of the Strawberry Capitol and host to the Florida Strawberry Festival, which draws 100,000 people annually, they figured they had the perfect ingredients to launch the cookbook. The official launch March 1-11, booth staffed with volunteers from a local church who received a portion of the proceeds for their building fund. Another thing Fate and York had learned during their research was that 80% of books are sold by word of mouth, and this was the beginning of a trend of creating sales within a very personal experience.

The pair built up this wave of word-of-mouth advertising with a barrage of contacts to local media, which embraced the title, resulting in articles in the area's newspapers and on radio and television. The article that ran in the St. Petersburg Times was filed on the AP Wire, giving the book its first national coverage. Two articles and select recipes ran in Tampa Bay Magazine, and a feature story appeared in Murray Life Magazine, an alumni publication of Murray State University, where York received her broadcasting degree. National distribution for Simple Strawberry Sensations! was secured, but not without effort. "One of the greatest challenges in being an independent publisher is that of being accepted as a direct vendor," says Fate. "There are many objections you hear: 'You only have one product'...'Our experience has shown that most independent publishers are no longer in business the second year'...'Our policy prohibits us from establishing single product lines as vendors.' That's when you have to put your thinking cap on and truly go out of the standard box of distributors." National distribution deals were made with Ingram, Anderson News, and The Media Group; a regional representation arrangement was made with Southeastern Book Company in both their school divisions and Southern Women's Shows throughout the Southeast; and non-traditional market sales representation was contracted through the Jenkins Group. The www.simple-sensations.com website was developed to provide direct order support. Now, it was time to provide more publicity and "pull" sales.

"Following the Festival, we took up an aggressive marketing campaign, focusing on creating strategic alliances and other 'innovative' techniques," says Fate. "Of course by 'innovative' I mean 'limited budget.'" Laura began appearing everywhere they could book her, and she used her broadcasting experience to make her appearances and cooking demonstrations professional and appealing. The recipes in the cookbook were the focal point of cooking demonstrations with Federated Stores in their Five Star demonstration kitchen in the state of Florida, and with Publix Supermarkets Apron's Cooking School in Florida. Laura did demos at department stores and book signings at bookstores and at various civic and charity organizations, from museums and libraries to hospitals and churches. The book was sold at holiday bazaars to benefit the Red Cross and Junior League.

A partnership was formed with Lexus of Tampa Bay, and radio ads offered a free autographed copy of the book for test-driving a Lexus. Local real estate and insurance offices were offered the books for purchase to use as client gifts. A direct mail campaign contacted Bed & Breakfasts throughout the Southeast and select locations nationally, to acquaint them with the book and the brunch recipes. Fate says that direct sales are the greatest source of revenue and growth potential for their book.

Cable television networks like the Discover Channel and Home Shopping Network were contacted, and a segment for Discovery Daytime's "Home Matters" program was taped and aired twice last fall and will run again in the spring. York appeared as a guest host for three sales presentations in September 2001 on the Home Shopping Network. Additional presentations are being negotiated for the spring.

Sensations! got its first Corporate Sales support when Rich Products, maker of - what else - whipped topping, used the book as a premium item for the foodservice industry at their food show in the fall. Clients received a copy of the book with "Compliments of Rich Products" stamped in the bookplate. The book is also being considered by one of the nation's largest strawberry growing & distribution facilities for use as a retail item.

All in all, it's been quite a year for the two-woman Sensations! team. They've already begun planning and have formed a strategic alliance with the 2002 Strawberry Festival, and are hard at work to bring more national coverage to the event via network morning news shows and to major cable networks. For now, they can be very proud of having sold 10,000 books in ten months.

"The past year has been a true roller coaster ride," says Fate. "You start out with great expectation and anticipation. Slowly you climb toward the top, determined to reach your goals. You encounter twists and turns, and find yourself upside down at times. As you reach the end, you realize you're hooked, and you are ready to go again."

"Self-publishing requires a true commitment and entrepreneurial spirit. You have the opportunity to live the American dream of owning your own business and product, so it is well worth it. Remember, the quote by Calvin Coolidge, "Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent."