Book Marketing Case Study—Mr. Fahrenheit by Lisa Beecher

Lisa Beecher’s book about her family’s struggles with mental health was published to help other families. Specifically, families of first responders.

Lisa Beecher and her husband are first responders, deeply invested in careers and family, when he experiences a psychotic break. From a treatment failure in a psychiatric hospital, to her husband’s return to work and beyond, the family is forced to operate by the rules of a culture that does not encourage and support caring for mental health in an optimal way.

In this interview, Lisa shares how she paved the way for her book to become a number one new release and later, an Amazon bestseller.

She talks about the steps she took to reach out to other authors for testimonials
How she tried to overcome her fear of public speaking. (An acting class!)
Her limited budget, and how she spent it
Her strategy for selling books at speaking events
Why she invested $100 in an image consultant and the return on that investment

Here’s Lisa’s story.

1. David Wogahn: To what extent did you reach out to authors of similar books or other professionals about reading your book and possibly offering a testimonial?

Lisa Beechter: My book is for everyone who cares about mental health, but my best audience and ideal readers are first responders, and specifically, police officers. The majority of testimonials printed on the first few pages of my book came from top leaders of first responder professions in my state of Maine. Asking them to endorse my book in writing was not a small request. They tend to protect their good names and reputations, and are prudent and intentional about putting their credibility and integrity on the line in such a public and permanent way. I took nothing for granted and was truly appreciative when almost to a person, they said they’d be honored to read my book and write a testimonial.

I became aware of a similar book published a few months previously that was gaining traction and receiving nationwide attention. I bought the book and read it before reaching out to the author. My plan was to establish a relationship with him before asking for a blurb. I praised him for the courage it took to write such a deeply honest account of his struggles, explaining how his book affected me and predicting its benefit to other police officers. I did not water down our conversation by mentioning my book. I posted an honest review on Amazon, signing my name, and I promoted his book on my Facebook page. A few weeks passed before I privately messaged him and explained I had just finished my story, asking if he would read an advanced reader copy (ARC) and write a blurb if he believed it worthy. He agreed. His book has continued to do well, so his testimonial has meaning and value to prospective ideal readers.

Even though I’m retired, I’ve remained up-to-date through professional listservs on law enforcement speakers coming to town. In what still seems like a fortunate stroke of serendipity, I learned that a nationally-known, extremely well-respected psychologist and author of a popular wellness bible for police officers would be coming to my city. I formulated a plan to attend the event and wait for a discreet moment to approach and ask him to read my manuscript and write a blurb if he believed it worthy. It took my entire day but the hours were well spent. A few weeks later he emailed me the quote that appears on the back cover of my book.

The same strategy worked in all these situations. I researched, planned, and dared to ask. I took risks and was rewarded, making sure to follow up with sincere gratitude for their willingness to invest time and lend support.

2. Before your book was released, you had a lot of pre-orders. What sort of marketing were you doing to create awareness?

Once we had the book cover, I posted a “coming soon” announcement on my social media sites. Along with a picture of the cover, I included an attention-getting phrase that was raw and revealing: “My husband and I were police officers in Portland, Maine when he experienced a psychotic break.” That sentence promised potential readers exposure to information they might find difficult to get elsewhere, as well as a unique personal experience my family was willing to offer by being open and honest. Without my asking, many of the advance readers and blurb contributors took that opportunity to add their own enthusiastic comments, advising prospective readers to buy and read the book once it became available.

My instincts cautioned me to be mindful about how often I posted in advance of release. My goal was to create interest and anticipation, not annoyance. Utilizing that strategy turned out to be advantageous. Less was more.

Over the next month or so, all this up front planning and awareness-building resulted in the book getting lots of positive customer reviews and becoming a number one new release on Amazon.

3. Did you establish a budget for marketing? What did you spend money on to market the book?

I did not have a firm line-item budget but was willing to spend a few hundred to three thousand dollars to market this book I’d poured my heart and soul into, genuinely believing in its potential to help humanity in some way. I spent money on a few elements of the process that were important to get right.

I’m lacking in technological skill, so I hired a professional developer and designer to create my author website. They charge a reasonable monthly fee to maintain it, and the peace of mind has been worth it.

I weighed the pros and cons of paying for editorial reviews from Kirkus and Foreword Clarion. They cost several hundred dollars, but favorable quotes from credible industry-renowned review companies would likely carry influence. I took the chance this investment would pay off, and I believe it did.

I purchased a couple of boxes of author copies to give away. I’ve distributed books to influencers, libraries, fundraisers, and administrators of specific Facebook pages. Giving away a few books has created community connections and generated buzz about my work

As you know, AuthorImprints also organized a promotion of the book to reach new readers. I’m happy to say that resulted in the book becoming a number one bestseller. It also helped that by that time, the book had 65 reviews.

Marketing my book has required public speaking, an activity I’m uncomfortable engaging in. I’m an introvert, as many writers are. I took a Dale Carnegie public speaking course many years ago, and still have those materials, but that instruction did not help as much as I’d hoped. To increase the ease with which I interact, I paid $130.00 to take a beginners acting class. Learning to control voice and movement and manage tension had the potential to build confidence and benefit me as a speaker. A professional actor taught the class. I wish I could say I learned a lot that helped me, but the sad and humorous truth is I was a hopelessly inept student. I did, however, come away with a much greater appreciation for actors and their complex and extremely nuanced craft.

My entire law enforcement career was spent wearing either uniforms or dark colored suits. I was about to embark on my new author vocation, and planned to buy a couple of new outfits. The dark colored suits would have served just fine, but I was ready to break out and try something new. There’s a whole psychology of how color impacts consumers’ impressions of a brand, but I had no idea what shades and styles would look best. I hired an image consultant who worked with both men and women to offer guidance for a flat fee of $100.00 for just one hour. I’ll never be an expert on spring collections or fall fashion must-haves, but I’m now capable of spending my limited clothing budget on a few perfect pieces in colors and styles that are professional and appealing.

4. Can you point to one or two events or strategies that resulted in more sales or awareness than you expected?

I was invited to give a presentation at a wellness conference. The organizers had a budget that did not accommodate honorarium payments to speakers, but did allow purchases of swag bag items for attendees in order to enhance their overall experience. The organizers purchased 100 of my books to include in the bags.

Having gained the understanding that event budgets are often set up this way, I’m comfortable with respectfully asking if their budgets allow the purchase of my books for audience members. I’ve had a 50% success rate with that strategy at the few conference engagements I’ve accepted.

5. Now that the writing and publication process is behind you, and you are actively marketing the book, do you think you would do anything different the next time around?

My plan included promoting my book on the Facebook sites of various first responder groups. I had learned that the rules attached to these groups usually included a ban on self-promotion, necessitating getting permission from administrators of those pages. Private messaging each admin with a thoughtful ask that included how my book would be beneficial to their particular group, and waiting for a response, took time. I had significantly underestimated the number of groups related to law enforcement, the fire service, and emergency medical services. There are hundreds. Many are private, requiring me to ask for admission.

Marketing to these Facebook groups was part of my post-release plan. Next time, I would do a lot more advance work. I still have not connected with the majority, which I intend to do as time allows. I’ll be busy for a long time to come!

More about Lisa

Lisa Beecher is a former chief of police with thirty-three years in law enforcement. She is the recipient of the inaugural Police Services Award from the Family Crisis Shelter for dedication to justice for domestic abuse victims, and was recognized by the National Center for Women and Policing with a Breaking the Glass Ceiling Award.

Learn more about Lisa and Living with Mr. Fahrenheit.