To Swag or not to Swag by Jean Rabe
To Swag or not to Swag
Bookmarks, coffee mugs, and key
chains oh my!
I adore swag. I am drawn to swag
tables at conventions and book events like a dog is pulled toward an unattended
sandwich.
Swag!
I’m not talking about attitude or
style, or the folks who walk confidently with a swagger. And I’m not
referencing pilfered goods—in the late 1800s swag meant things burglars
absconded with, silverware being choice. If you look back to the 17th
century, you find swag-shops in the thieves’ underworld.
I’m not talking about “stolen
anything.” That definition is way out of date. I consider swag free
book-related stuff. STUFF. LOTS OF STUFF.
The “freebie” definition of swag
started to appear in the 1960s, and referenced promotional items…records sent
to radio stations, dinosaur-shaped bars of soap Sinclair gas stations used to
pass out, perfume samples offered by Avon representatives, and the like. At
Oscar time you catch mention of the movie stars’ swag bags…those are some
lavish and valuable freebies.
The swag I’ve seen at various book
events includes:
·
Pens…lots
and lots and lots of pens
·
Bookmarks…lots
and lots and lots and lots and lots of bookmarks
·
Nice
mechanical pencils
·
Bookplates
·
Stickers
·
Post-it
notepads
·
Postcards…lots
of postcards
·
Lip
balm
·
Keychains
·
Coffee
mugs
·
Tote
bags
·
T-shirts
·
Small
flashlights
·
Baseball
caps
·
Chocolate
bars
·
Temporary
tattoos
·
Rubber
bracelets
·
USB
flash drives
·
Reusable
water bottles
·
Business
cards
·
Books
All of the above swag touts the
authors’ latest books and lists their webpages. All of the goodies are intended
as advertisements.
Here’s a link that shows more
than a thousand pictures of author-related swag: https://www.pinterest.com/lorikingauthor/author-swag/
Generally, you have to visit a
swag table early if you want the best stuff—tote bags, coffee mugs, USB flash
drives, and books. Books often go first…except for stinky books. You can tell
if the freebie books are stinkers ‘cause they come back to the table, pages
ruffled, as someone gave them a try and cast them back.
I already have more tote bags
than I can use and more coffee mugs than I need (I’m drinking tea right now out
of my Serial Killer cup). So I grab pens and mechanical pencils. Different
pens, one for each book or author advertised. I can always use pens and
mechanical pencils. I never bother picking up pencils I have to manually
sharpen (don’t know where my pencil sharpener is).
I also pick up business cards of
authors and editors I’ve chatted with and who I might want to contact down that
proverbial road.
I don’t touch bookmarks—I have a
box from the last time I ordered them to promote some of my novels.
Here’s a great article about swag
that was posted on Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author_blog_posts/4996643-monday-marketing-let-s-talk-swag-what-works-what-s-a-waste-of-your-t
And another worth a look: http://romanceuniversity.org/2014/01/08/lets-talk-about-marketing-swag-with-cynthia-dalba/
A Sad Truth About Swag
Authors who pay for all of this
promotional material…some of it quite costly, are often wasting their money.
They are spending more on their keychains and coffee mugs than they will make
on sales because of those items.
In all the years I’ve been
grabbing swag at book-related gatherings, I have never purchased a novel based
on a promotional item. Ever. I’ve never even looked up the books advertised on
the sides of pens and mechanical pencils. I pick up books based on reviews or
advertisements on the Internet or because I listened to an author in a seminar
and decided I ought to be reading that soul’s work. Word of mouth works, too. A
friend tells me about a great author…I’ll buy into that.
Here’s a good article about spending
too much on swag: http://www.stephaniedray.com/2011/03/02/5-things-authors-should-know-about-promotional-items/
I attended a seminar at Killer
Nashville where the speakers said authors should take the money they would
spend on swag and instead spend it on well-placed advertisements or
web-services that offer book promotions. They said some authors believe that
swag items give them a presence at conventions and helps create a brand. That’s
true to an extent, the speakers said. But you’re not likely to earn back the
amount you spent. Better to let your writing be your best advertisement.
Better to devote your energy to
getting noticed via blogs and newsletters and good reviews.
During my own writing career I’ve
purchased pens a couple of times and bookmarks often. I’ve always had bookmarks
left over on the swag table at the end of a day, and fortunately I’ve usually scooped
them up before the cleaning crew comes by and tosses the table contents into
the garbage. That’s really a waste of swag money.
The Dead of Winter
My new mystery novel, The Dead of Winter, doesn’t have pens or
mechanical pencils to advertise it. I’ll probably get some bookmarks—maybe—but if
I do it will not be multiple boxes of them…just enough to pass out to folks at
book signings. I won’t be spending a lot of money on them.
Instead, I am taking the advice
of the panelists at Killer Nashville and writing blogs, creating a newsletter,
and I am paying for a few of those web-promotion services.
We’ll see what happens.
Now, by no means am I suggesting
that my fellow authors stop buying swag to promote their books. I love the pens
and mechanical pencils. I can’t remember when I bought pens in a store because
of the assortment I have from attending conventions. If you keep putting them
out on the swag tables, I’ll keep scooping them up!
My latest novel, The Dead of Winter, is set for a
November 1 release.
Find The Dead of Winter on Amazon by clicking here: https://www.amazon.com/Dead-Winter-Piper-Blackwell-Mystery-ebook/dp/B01LY5X4BB/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1475603013&sr=8-1&keywords=the+dead+of+winter+by+jean
I have a newsletter filled with
tidbits about my upcoming books, reviews of things I’m reading, and writing
advice. You can subscribe here: http://jeanrabe.us14.list-manage1.com/subscribe?u=89364515308e8b5e7ffdf6892&id=9404531a4b
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