It’s tough. We all know how challenging it is to find readers and to entice them to pay a few $ for hours of learning and enjoyment. Reading is one of the best investments people can make of their time and money. We know this. How can we pass the word along?
As authors and business people, we all share objectives for encouraging more people to read and buy books. How do we do this?
Here are a few thoughts.
We don’t communicate the value of books enough
Let’s start with non- fiction. We should let our readers know more clearly what they will learn and experience from our books. If I want to learn how to do something, I can buy a book and benefit from an expert’s condensed knowledge, often obtained from many years of experience, and I can read the material in my own space and time frame, providing maximum flexibility. This knowledge can provide a new skill, hobby or even a career change. Paying someone to share this knowledge with me, or even participating in a training course would be a much higher cost (sometimes ten to a hundred times more), and far less convenient.
For fiction, the value can be measured by the escape potential of the story, how it gives us insights and helps us to build empathy, and by the inspirational impact of a protagonist who overcomes insurmountable difficulties to get the girl, climb the mountain or win the prize. Often uplifting and inspiring – even when it’s sad.
Comparatitus
We need to harp on a bit about the comparative cost of a book. With the arrival of e-books and the absence of delivery charges, books have never been cheaper or more accessible. I’m the first person to advocate for a yummy cappuccino made by a skilled barista. This delicious ten- minute experience typically costs me the same as a great piece of fiction – which delivers four hours rather than ten minutes of pleasure. We need to remind everyone that a great book costs the same as one cappuccino, two avocados, three bananas, four iced-vo vos … You get the picture. Books are sooo cheap as chips.
Everyone is time poor
In a busy-busy world I know that some readers have little discretionary time each day. The great thing about books is that they are portable and can be absorbed in small increments of time, say during the 30-minute morning commute on the train, the boring 20 minutes in the dentist’s waiting room or in those fifteen minutes before we finally fall asleep at night. So easy and a great way to wind down after a full day.
Happiness comes from experiences and not things
Many of us live in a culture where happiness is perceived to come from what we can buy. So wrong. The pleasure from some big house, nice car and fancy clothes can be fleeting – and many of these experiences can be accessed much more cheaply by renting them. Yep – even the fancy clothes. Research shows us that happiness is more likely to come from experiences. Books deliver fabulous experiences by the boat-load. You get to travel to places beyond your local area, and vicariously live another person’s life. Our own little mini-holodeck – in Star Trek speak.
The pleasure doesn’t stop at the last page
Once we finish a book we can keep it and reread it at a future date. Or we can share the pleasure by passing the book along. Happiness comes from giving to others – and books are a perfect gift. I love discovering bus tickets in second-hand books and wondering about this book’s journey. (If you like tracking book journeys, release a few books into the wild and track their journey via Book Crossing. This is another way to encourage reading).
Authors as Superheroes.
While we, with ‘we’ being many authors, may be introverted and spend hours out of sight writing like Clarke Kent, we have the power to change the world, like superman. I get irritated by the high regard and near superhero status given to some sporting figures. For many of these celebrities they are just playing a sport and making a lot of money. They are not engaging in an activity that has broader learning benefits. It would be good if the media sprinkled some of the super hero fairy dust on more authors who are changing the world through their writing. Who are your writing super heroes? What can you do to lift them up?
Leverage our support team
We have millions of supporters out there like librarians, teachers, journalists and traditional book store owners. We should develop partnerships with these allies to encourage higher levels of reading. When was the last time you went to a library or a school to read your story out loud or to share your motivation for writing the book in the first place? Talk to others and inspire them to read.
While I recognize my cynicism in outing sporting stars as false prophets, I recognize that all kinds of people at the movies and on Instagram are social influencers. They are more accessible now than in the past through twitter and the like and we should ask them to talk about books that changed their opinion, their lives and or delivered laughs.
Just a few thoughts from me.
What are your ideas on how we can increase readership and books purchases?
My two cents worth
- Remind people of how much time it takes to acquire this knowledge through channels other than books.
- Highlight how cheap books are compared to everyday expenses.
- Show people how they can squeeze in reading time even when they are busy.
- Communicate the value of experiences over things.
- Talk about authors who influenced you.
- Give book vouchers as gifts.
- Go to schools, libraries and book stores and read out loud.
- Lend or give books to others and talk about why you loved them.
- Release books into the community through sites like Book Crossing.
- Ask influencers which books changed their lives. (If they can’t identify any – suggest a few).
So, spread the happiness and pass this article along.
References
Forbes Article on how experiences brings you happiness
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Twitter: @janeellyson1
Image in middle from Unsplash photos by @KimberlyFarmer