By Denise Turney

Social media networks aren’t the only places book authors can spread the word about their works to sell books. Radio, another effective marketing tool, is another way authors can exposure and sell books. However, gaining the most out of radio takes a bit of practice. The way authors approach radio station owners and DJs also makes a difference.

Book authors landing radio interviews to sell books

To schedule radio station interviews, visit the station’s website. Get the name of the DJ you want to be interviewed by. When you email the station, address your correspondence to this DJ by name. Highlight your book’s benefits, what readers will gain (i.e. new ways to avoid high blood pressure, how to graduate from college without creating student loan debt) from reading your book. It’s this you want to focus on during your interview.

Create a list of questions for interviewers to ask you. In addition to saving interviewers’ time (trust me, most interviewers will really appreciate this), this step can help the focus of the interview remain on topics you want to cover. Although there’s no guarantee that the interviewer will ask questions you send her, it certainly doesn’t hurt.

Getting the most out of book radio interviews

If this is your first time conducting a radio interview as a book author, practice interviewing with a relative or friend. Relax. During practice sessions, work to engage potential listeners. Avoid trying to directly sell books during the actual interview. Instead, focus on sharing valuable information with listeners.

Tell your family, friends, colleagues and book supporters about your interview. This is a great time to use radio marketing to sell books. Post information (i.e. date, time, location) about your radio interview at social media networks. To get more exposure, create and send a press release about the interview. The more people who tune into your radio interview, the better. More listeners can make it a lot easier to sell books while you’re on the radio. Also, get enough listeners, and you might be asked back.

On the day of the actual interview, arrive 10 to 15 minutes early, 5 minutes may be enough for online radio interviews. If you’re not certain how early to show up, ask the interviewer. Dress comfortably but professionally. Again, relax. Have fun.

More tips on how you can market and sell books and products via the radio are at our chistell.com YouTube channel. Please share your comments about the session as well as your experiences marketing via the radio in our YouTube channel comments section!

Thank you for reading my blog. To learn what happens to Raymond, Brenda and the other characters in my new book, Love Pour Over Me, hop over to Amazon.com, B&N.com, Ebookit.com, or any other online or offline bookseller and get your copy of Love Pour Over Me today. And again I say – Thank You! Consider Love.