10 Top U.S. Book Festivals: A Great Way to Sell Direct to Consumers

From guest blogger, Michael Rosen, Sales Representative for Sheridan Books…

Every day I hear about the changing face of bookselling. For most publishers, Amazon is the principal portal for online distribution of both electronic and printed books, dominating the majority of their sales. Selling though brick-and-mortar bookstores would be a wonderful venue…if you could find one still open. Yes, that is a slight exaggeration.

Perhaps it’s a backlash or just simple survival, but I am seeing the stirrings of a new direct to consumer movement, with publishers building their own self-nurturing sales channels. An electronic or printed book sold through a publisher’s website is far more valuable than one sold through a third party online vendor. A book sold through the publisher’s site gives the marketer captured data and site analytics. Those are the statistics upon which to build a very successful selling strategy, the kind that can build community, and I dare say a customer family.

For the past three years I’ve attended the Brooklyn Book Festival (the photo to the right was taken there in 2012). I’ll be there this year too. There I’ve witnessed book, journal, and magazine publishers selling face to face, direct to consumer. That’s an unbeatable relationship builder. I’m a serious eavesdropper and each year I marvel at the very personal exchanges I hear between sellers and buyers. It stands to reason – who is more dedicated to their bookselling than the publisher?

Following is a list of some of the largest book festivals in the U.S. I say visit or exhibit. But above all, take the time to explore direct to consumer selling.