The most important step to any event is the inviting process! The first step to inviting is to make your MASTER LIST!
Make a list of 200 people. Start by scrolling through your FB friends list – aim for 200 with an absolute MINIMUM of 100 names on your list! Write down everyone who has kids in their life somehow – don’t try to guess whether they’ll be interested, write their name down! Jog your brain for potential party guests by thinking of every possible circle in your life!
INVITING RIGHT IS THE MOST IMPORTANT PART OF YOUR LAUNCH PARTY!
You’re going to reach out to the people on your list via an individual private message to ask if they want an invite. Director Beth York give us an example of Announcing vs Inviting for more successful events in her fun video below!
Remember, we’re going for a minimum of 35 “yes” responses! Here’s a graphic to help you think of people to invite.

- Texting, messaging, calling, or speaking face-to-face with someone is the best way to get a “yes”!
- Using someone’s name online or through text is like the digital equivalent of making eye contact, and people appreciate it! It grabs their attention and lets them know that you thought of them specifically – and everyone likes to be thought of!
- Compliments, when genuine, are a great way to break the ice if it’s been a while since you saw or talked with someone!
- Keeping things clear but concise is important. People need to know what, when, and why – but they won’t read a message that requires them to scroll. Keep it short, but don’t leave out the important stuff.
- Including a visual attention-getter not only shows off the beauty and uniqueness of our books, but also encourages people to open a message if you send the image LAST. It usually just says something like, “Lauren sent a picture” and gets them curious enough to open your message!
- Focusing on what’s in it for them (seeing inside some cool books they’re sure to love) and not on what’s in it for you (“getting their support”) is crucial! Yes, people may want to support you… but let that be their idea!
- Give them an out – include a quick 2-3 word phrase that takes the pressure off! Something like “No pressure – you can just look!” or “If not, no big deal!” There’s research out there (somewhere) that says people are actually more likely to say “yes” if you give them permission to say “no”.
Prepare for people to ignore you or politely tell you no. You’re just offering them a slice of cake, and they might be gluten free. No big deal. I will tell you – I had some people ignore my first message and it really bummed me out. I lost sleep over it, whined to my husband about it. But I wish someone had told me this: Some of those people will message you in six months asking for recommendations out of the blue. That happened! So don’t lose sleep like I did – you never know who will eventually be hitting you up for their book fix.

Build your skeleton invite, then start inviting!
Here is an example message for you to get an idea of what to send! This is just an example. You can build the main part of your invite that will be easy to copy/paste (the skeleton), and then change up the personal parts depending on who you’re inviting!
Hi, Rebecca! I saw your birthday post with your boys and hubby. You have such a beautiful family.
I’m reaching out because I’ll be having an online children’s book gathering and I thought of your boys. I just signed on to work independently for this amazing publisher and this is my kick-off! Would you be interested in checking it out? If not, it’s all good! I discovered these books in February and have honestly become obsessed!! My kids ask to read them every night! The illustrations are gorgeous and the quality is incredible!
We love these books SO much and I know you will love them, too.
Create a “skeleton message” using the outline above and send it to your Team Leader! Once she looks it over, you’re ready to start inviting!!
Avoid sending more than 20-30 messages at a time, to break things up and keep you out of Facebook jail!
Younger kids visual:


Older Kids Visual: