This is the first in a series of posts featuring the winners of the 2023 Christian Authors Network (CAN) Excellence in Marketing Awards. Grace Fox won first place in the nonfiction Visual Media category and describes her activities here.
The 2024 marketing awards will open in November 2023. CAN members, please be thinking of how you can enter the awards. See the guidelines at https://christianauthorsnetwork.com/marketing-award/.
Creating Award-Winning Media Visuals
by Grace Fox – www.gracefox.com
Fresh Hope for Today by Grace Fox
As a non-fiction writer, I seek to provide spiritual growth resources, so creating a variety of complementary products to Fresh Hope for Today: Devotions for Joy on the Journey seemed the natural thing to do. Winning CAN’s 2023 Outstanding Visual Media Award for these resources came as an unexpected delight.
In full disclosure, I cannot take credit for the artwork. I developed the concepts and oversaw the development of each project, but one of my ministry coworkers—Lori Stevens—provided the graphic design, and she did a phenomenal job.
Fresh Hope for Today’s cover features a hummingbird, so every complementary product follows suit. The most versatile is a set of four greeting cards, each card bearing a different design and Bible verse on the front with a blank inside.
The cards have multiple uses: I included them in goodie packages for my launch team members. I mailed them to readers who purchased multiple pre-order copies of Fresh Hope for Today. I’ve sent them to readers who post online reviews and to podcasters who interview me. I sell them on my back-of-the-room table at speaking events, and I also use them as incentives there—”buy any three items and receive a set of cards free.”
I created high-quality bookmarks to distribute at CPE and the National Religious Broadcasters convention. When I speak at women’s events, I place one on every seat prior to a session. I also carry them with me to share with friends and strangers should the opportunity arise to tell them about Fresh Hope for Today.
Life can be nutty-busy sometimes, and spiritual disciplines can easily be neglected. I “get” that challenge, so I also developed downloadable products as an organizational tool to keep ourselves focused. These include journaling pages for expressing gratitude, reflecting on one’s day, writing sermon notes, tracking Bible reading and Bible study, tracking prayer requests, and organizing one’s daily and monthly schedule. They’re suitable for color printing and ideal for keeping in a three-ring binder. I uploaded these as individual products and as a complete package onto “Inspired Fun,” an online shop similar to Etsy: https://www.inspiredfun.com/shop/connecting-the-dots-faith-resources/
Writing devotional books that encourage my readers’ spiritual growth brings me joy. So does creating practical and eye-appealing ancillary products. I consider these as discipleship tools. Jesus said, “Feed My sheep,” and providing these resources is my way of following His directive.
What ancillary products might work for your books?
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About the author:
Grace Fox
Grace Fox is the award-winning author of 13 books and a popular Bible teacher at international women’s events. She’s also a member of the Advanced Writers and Speakers Association (AWSA) and a member of the “First 5” Bible study writing team (Proverbs 31 Ministries).
Grace has been a career missionary for 30 years. She and her husband have served in Nepal, at a year-round Christian camp on an island off Canada’s west coast, and are now co-directors of International Messengers Canada, a missionary sending agency with 300 staff in 30 countries. They currently live full-time aboard a sailboat in Vancouver, British Columbia. Visit her website to learn more about her and her books.
