Engage Your Readers, Start a Conversation, and Sell More Books: The Marketing Journey of The Girls Are Gone
When Allison Mann first heard about the case, she was a paralegal. The story left a big impression on her: after an ugly divorce, the two teenage daughters of David Rucki and Sandra Grazzini-Rucki vanished. David, their father, started to investigate every lead he could. Sandra, their mother, went on vacation. Allison knew what a lot of people don’t—that missing children are far more likely to be kidnapped by someone they know. While some adults worked tirelessly to find out what happened to the girls, others conspired to keep the truth hidden.
Enter journalist Michael Brodkorb. He was covering the case for the Star Tribune when he, like Allison, was struck by the impact that this criminal case had on the people involved. Michael and Allison connected because they were eager to see justice for the girls.
Then, after two years of searching, law enforcement finally found the girls living on a ranch in Northern Minnesota. Their mother had kidnapped them. She meant to hide them from their father and the rest of the world.
The general public doesn’t hear a lot about familial abduction. Michael and Allison wanted to start a thoughtful discussion of the topic based on what they’d witnessed. Their book highlights the search for the Rucki sisters and the impact that this case had on their family and community. Passionate about social justice, Michael and Allison set out to expose how individuals’ personal vendettas can destroy families.
“We want to bring people into this discussion and inform them,” Michael said. “These types of stories are all too common.” Michael started by creating a website, Missing in Minnesota, which launched two years prior to the book’s release. It was a way to update people on Sandra Grazzini-Rucki’s criminal trial and shed new light on the case as the events unfolded in real time. Soon after they met, Allison began to contribute to the site. Missing in Minnesota built a community around the story that drew people who were passionate about true crime and family justice. One year after The Girls Are Gone was published, it has sold over 10,000 copies between paperbacks and ebooks.
The Girls Are Gone owes much of its success to being an intentionally crafted and thoughtful book. This book represented an opportunity for two people who watched the story unfold before their eyes to synthesize their experiences, discuss what led up to the kidnapping, delve into the search process and criminal trial, and record the way that it touched the family and community. They allowed people to experience the trial as they experienced it—as a living event that impacted a real family—not as a quick blurb for the newspaper. Allison and Michael wanted to cover the story from all sides, and each brought a new dimension to the book.
But the book’s success also has to do with the effort that Michael and Allison put into connecting their book to their audience. Aside from the Missing in Minnesota website, Allison and Michael have a robust social media presence where they give their followers new updates on the case and their book. “Connecting with the online book community, like Bookstagram, was one of the best things we could have done in our first ninety days,” says Allison. Since it’s a story that’s still developing and evolving, their website and social media are a great way to keep people aware of the story beyond the page.
For Allison and Michael, beyond-the-page engagement also included in-person events. They hired a publicist to help them book events and get media coverage. They’ve done over fifty events since the book came out, and most include a Q&A portion. There were many times when a bookstore event was the first opportunity a reader had to connect with the story. They could get inside information on the case, talk about their own experiences, and ask questions. “Make sure that you’re accessible to your audience,” Allison advises. “You need to be willing to engage with people and with the discussion.” They let people know about their events through Facebook, their websites, and print advertisements. Sometimes the venue would promote the event on their own site or in local media. With such a compelling and important book, it was crucial for Allison and Michael to seek opportunities to connect with people directly.
Beyond the general readership of true crime fans, there were other readers who had a more specialized interest in The Girls Are Gone. Relationships with missing child organizations, advocates, activists, and the legal community were both natural and illuminating. There were times when someone from one of these sectors would reach out to Allison or Michael directly, and others when Allison or Michael would make the first contact. Law schools have recommended their book for courses, and advocates have posted about their book on social media to share Allison and Michael’s work with their own communities. These readers enhanced the discussion around parental abduction with their own unique insights.
With their growing movement, Michael and Allison continue to find new ways to reach people. Their recently released audiobook includes exclusive interviews and other content that isn’t in the book, and an ebook ensures their book’s accessibility. All formats are important, because they give readers more options to engage with the story. The Girls Are Gone continues to sell across the country. Michael and Allison just announced their fifth printing.
Book marketing is an opportunity to continue the conversation about your work and why it matters. “Be active. You have to take a role in getting the word out there. Remind people about your book, and continue to do so,” says Michael. “Marketing is the absolute most important thing.”
Michael and Allison have stayed invested in their online community. They’ve engaged different audiences and worked consistently to get the world out. “We just found out we’re in a library in Kentucky,” adds Allison. “It’s truly been a journey.” They continue to do events and speak about parental abduction. Their engagement was key to the lively conversation around their book that exists today and its ultimate success.
Allison and Michael’s next event will take place on January 23rd at Winding Trail Books in St. Paul from 6:00-7:00pm.