Do Trailers Sell Books?

by Jean Henry Mead

The jury’s still out on whether trailers actually sell books. Regardless, they showcase your work if you place them on U Tube and promote them on Facebook, Twitter and other social networking sites.

The videos range in price from less than a hundred dollars to several thousand, or you can produce them youself. My first book trailer for my historical novel, Escape, was created by a student who did a credible job for $60, but I wasn’t impressed with the music or photo quality. So I hired a professional to produce my second trailer, for $475, which carved a nice chunk from my royalties. A Village Shattered video recently earned four and a half points out of a possible five from a new video judging site, First Turning Point. The only nit mentioned was punctuation within the video.





My first self produced video, Diary of Murder, only earned three points from the same site. Among the nits, the judge said the music was too recognizable. The bottom line is that both books have sold equally well so the expensive trailer was probably a waste of hard earned royalties.



Whichever route you decide to take, book trailers are worth the investment if you have the time and energy to vigorously promote them.