The marketplace for books—whether print, digital, or audio—is clearly owned by Amazon. According to RR Bowker, as of October 1, 2012, Amazon accounts for 27% of total units sold, which is an improvement from 21% a year earlier. Barnes & Noble went from 17% to 16%. Other than these two retailers, no single company scored in the double digits. In fact, no single category of sales channel hit double digits. Here’s how the rest of the book marketplace breaks down:
- All independent bookstores, combined – 6%
- Other ebook and audio download sites – 6%
- Other e-commerce sites – 6%
- All book clubs – 5%
- Discount, closeout, and thrift stores – 5%
- Walmart – 4%
- Non-traditional bookstores – 3%
- Warehouse clubs – 3%
- Christian bookstores – 2%
- Target – 2%
- Books-A-Million – 2%
- Supermarkets – 1%
- All other means – 12%
The book marketing battlefield runs beyond bookstores or e-commerce sites. Books are everywhere and nowhere. But however they are sold, there is no doubt that sales will always be driven by savvy book marketing and the garnering of news media coverage. Word of mouth makes a big difference but only once there is a critical mass of interest that builds up form marketing exposure. Publishers and authors will continue to identify their target readers, sell their books everywhere in every form, and market to their core readers. Promote—or perish!
Brian Feinblum is the chief marketing officer of Planned Television Arts (rebranded as Media Connect), the nation’s largest and oldest book promotions firm. Brian has worked in the promoting industry since 1989 and has worked with clients of varied professions such as magician David Copperfield and best-selling author Og Mandino.
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