The Challenge
Create public awareness for a new series of children’s books by Jason Edwards that deals with childhood fears. The books are the “Will Allen” series in which the lead character investigates various monsters that translate to a childhood fear.
The Solution
Strategic Vision PR Group developed an overall book publicity campaign that would make the series stand out from other books and create awareness of the series for parents.
The campaign encompassed:
- Media relations
- Branding
- Book reviews
- Special events
The Results
Strategic Vision PR Group developed the concept of the “monster hunt.” This was an event at bookstores and libraries where the author would pretend to be Will Allen and children would join him for a monster hunt, which would end with him overcoming a childhood fear — the “monster.” The agency developed monster survival kits for children and their parents that had the look and feel of the book series. Included in this monster packet was an application where children could apply to become monster detectives and would receive a monthly e-letter, a membership card and puzzles. We promoted the monster hunts with the venue that was holding the event by sending out invitations and press releases. We also promoted the hunts online.
The agency was able to have the series chosen as an Accelerated Reader selection and obtained book reviews in Bookreviews.com., ForeWord Magazine, the Midwest Book Review, The Scarsdale Inquirer, and in Scholastic Parent & Child magazine Strategic Vision PR Group obtained coverage for the book series in several media outlets, including the New York Daily News, WCBS-TV (New York), The Observer (N.J.), the Anxiety Disorders Association of America and the Freedom From Fear Association.
As a result of our efforts, the series won a Mom’s Choice Award. The monster hunts we developed have been featured at the Southwest Florida Reading Festival the Arkansas Literary Festival, the Empire State Book Festival, the Kidquake Literary Festival in San Francisco, and the WHUD Kids Fair in New York, and at more than 100 schools and libraries.
