One Brand’s Tasty Recipe for Sales

Cookbook14_Cover_FINAL_0Denver-based publisher 5280 took a cross-channel long-term approach when it came time to sell their first cookbook. The results were delicious.

Facebook has been falling out of favor with many B2B brands (including us; we wrote previously about our about face from Facebook) but one B2C publisher has figured out the secret sauce for selling out their first cookbook, social included.

“When 5280 The Cookbook went on sale in October 2014, the magazine had 95,000 Twitter followers and 45,000 Facebook fans. This large audience gave [5280’s Dan] Brogan a strong social reach to incorporate into a multi-platform campaign that also included web banners, email marketing, and print ads in their magazines,” writes Ron Matejko in Publishing Executive.

“The campaign continued throughout 2015 with three more marketing pushes until they sold out toward the end of the year. The end result was the cookbook sold 9,000 copies on the newsstands and 4,000 copies through the magazine’s online store,” Matejko continues.

“Social worked hand-in-hand with the other components and it definitely created a buzz about the cookbook,” Brogan said. “We didn’t know what to expect but we ended up selling 13,000 copies, which we are told by people in the book industry is great for a local market.”

The key was their long-term approach, rather than a one-shot campaign, plus a solid cross-channel strategy. Consistency over time helped them leverage their large fan base, and creative uses of social platforms allow their fans and friends to share the word in unique ways, including local chefs preparing recipes from the book.

Like any media strategy, social can work when your audience is engaged and available on those platforms and you take the long term approach to building momentum. For publishers reaching their reading public, the results can be pretty tasty.