How Publishers Deploy Small Ad Dollars.

In a business that often tries to ride free with word-of-mouth, publishers are beginning to reach out to black consumers by advertising in black media,

Most publishing insiders agree that considering the many ways there are to sell books, advertising plays a small yet unique role. Mark Greenberg, president of the Mesa Group, an advertising company specializing in book promotion, points out that a best-selling black author such as Terry McMillan, who publishes with Viking (a BIBR advertiser), will have advertising campaigns similar to that of any best-selling author. But he also says that while some books have mainstream appeal, for certain books advertising must "target the community." Outreach may also include print and radio and perhaps transit advertising, ads on the Internet and flying billboards.

Mark Spear of Simon & Schuster (also a BIBR advertiser) says Iyanla Vanzant is an African-American author with a message that is "universal." Like McMillan, she is said to have "crossover" appeal. But most publishers who, spend ad dollars create individual campaigns for each title. What is done for one book may not necessarily be done exactly the same for another. The wide variety of campaigns, says Cheryl Rozier, advertising director at AOL Time Warner, is what can make advertising an exciting part of the publishing process. "It's about getting the right [advertising] vehicle given the subject matter," she said. In addition to print, Time Warner (a frequent BIBR advertiser) also purchases airtime on the radio to promote their books.

Houses do spend money to ensure their African-American interest-books find readership and place ads to tout their imprints featuring black books. An ad ran in the February 2001 issue of Essence magazine featuring Striver's Row, the subimprint of Villard. "For the first time, we took an ad in Essence," says Deborah Aiges, vice president and creative director of Random House trade group. "We more or less announced the new line of good-looking trade paperbacks." Striver's Row also ran a similar ad in the January/February 2001 issue of BIBR.

Some books are advertised to the academic market, says Rockelle Henderson, associate director of advertising for Harper-Collins. A book like A Renaissance in Harlem, edited by Lionel C. Bascom, "would be good for a black studies class," so ads might be placed in publications that appeal to educators. Nomi Victor, advertisement and on-line promotions manager for Norton, says the company's list of African American titles such as The Norton Anthology of African American Literature, edited by Henry Louis Gates Jr. and Nellie Y. McKay, is developed to be of interest to African Americans, as well as to the general readership. (Both HarperCollins and Norton have advertised in BIBR.)

The decision of ad placement and book selections basically boils down to dollars and cents. Advertising space is expensive. In most houses, money is allocated for advertising only after everything else is budgeted for each book. "The lion's share of the marketing budget goes into publicity," says Aiges. Publicity entails touring the author, setting up interviews and sending out review copies of the book. Funds also might go first into point-of-sale items, which range from posters to bookmarks. Whatever is left over--often little or nothing--is then used to place ads. Since money is tight, group ads are one of the options publishers use. "Budgets are small, so throughout the year we'll advertise two or three books at a time," said Henderson. Group ads also give companies a chance to advertise their midlist and backlist books--titles that might not otherwise have ad money allocated.

Will black readers learn about their favorite authors through more ads? AOL Time Warner's Rozier says, "The challenge for each book is finding an inventive way to get the word out."