Who says editors have the final say in which books get published or played up big? Sales departments count. And so may buyers for huge book chains. But how about a little input from actual readers—not young Vassarites at large publishing houses, but ordinary mortals who patronize Borders?
In fact, Borders actually has conducted just such an experiment, and M.J. Rose has the details. Approvingly, she writes: “Better to have 2000 readers saying yes, I love that cover rather than three people sitting in an office who have just spent the last 2 hours looking at covers for 200 other titles.
“Of course we have to be careful when we start testing whether to publish books based on letting a handful of readers read a few pages.”
Buzz, too
Exactly. In fact, if e-books get published ahead of p-books, imagine letting the testers enjoy access to summaries and, if they want to follow through, full texts. Along the way, this group as a matter of course would help create buzz. Perhaps the chains could offer access not just to randomly chosen customers but also those willing to pay a subscription fee. In somewhat the same territory, at least one technical publishing one house has let paying customers enjoy first looks at forthcoming titles.
No, like Ms. Rose, I’m not suggesting this be the sole method of determining which books get published. Think of the niche books or Moby Dick-caliber masterpieces—books ahead of their time—that might suffer. Mock ’em, but yes, sometimes well-educated young trends might actually identify books that are as brilliant as they are unpopular. Even today, let’s hope there is at least a little room for books published on the basis of sheer artistic merit. Must popularity be all, especially when e-publishing costs are lower than in p-publishing?
Just one more tool—not a full solution
Still, customer voting is one more tool for book marketers, who, given the less than awesome growth of most of the book industry in recent years, at least here in the States, might well benefit from experimentation.
Photo credit: By Roger, via Creative Commons.
(Thanks to Peter Brantley.)
You know, Baen has been doing this sort of thing—using e-books to promote p-books—for some time. And not just to readers—to stores and distributors too. Apart from binding CDROMs full of them into the back of select hardcovers, they have also created promotional CDROMs to be handed out at publishing-industry conventions, and presumably sent to bookstores and distributors, for books such as Shadow of Saganami and Through the Looking Glass.
[…] I think the “free now, pay later model” may be better off than “free after the paper release.” Getting the book out early may generate word of mouth that lead to pre-orders and first month sales. MR Rose revealed part of Borders new market information gathering scheme. I received this email too, as part of the Borders Rewards Program I think. Right now, Borders has you vote on covers, buying habits, etc. David Rothman suggests that if enough readers online love the book, perhaps those chains will be induced to preorder it as well, which I do think is the idea of “free now, pay later.” […]