Every year, 5 lakhs to 1 million books are published if we neglect the number of self-published books. But, from these vast numbers, only a few hundred books gain the spotlight and reach the hands of readers. Despite being deserving of a good plot, storyline, or great learnings (non-fiction), most of these books go unnoticed.
The core reason behind the situation is the need for more people to read and talk about it on massive platforms. Comparing books with web series and movies, the general audience and movie review pages post a massive deal out of a deserving piece of content. However, good books need a platform.
Regardless, this gap is slowly being covered by book influencers, who instead are known as bookstagrammers.
Who are book influencers?
Just like other influencers in different niches, book influencers are focused on sharing facts and posting content revolving around books. This community have different names for different platforms, such as booktubers for YouTube, booktok for TikTok, and bookstagrammers for Instagram.
The readers in the community share appealing book pictures and videos with relevant captions, mostly with book reviews, and convince other readers and non-readers to read the said books.
Role of book influencers
Convincing the audience to watch a TV show or movie is very easy compared to convince them to read a book. However, let's see how book influencers are convincing non-readers to pick a book instead of a screen.
Since Instagram became a video-sharing platform with reels getting wider reach, book influencers shifted their focus from text-based book reviews to visuals.
With the right aesthetics, right choice images, and themes, these influencers build up an excellent image for a book, inspiring other people in the audience to at least start with the reading.
Pages on social media with massive followings have started organizing and managing book communities where random people join the group, read an ordinary book, and share their reviews and thoughts on the same.
On top of this, readers are active on platforms like Goodreads that track their reading updates, allowing them to share and show other people how far they're from achieving their reading goal.
Book influencers interestingly used reel and short format. They often post short review videos on their accounts with a suspenseful ending that requires the audience to read the book and know the ending of the book and the characters.
When non-readers watch such videos, they often turn to start reading the book to know what happens in the story.
As we mentioned, with lakhs of books getting lost in the crowd, these book influencers are often seen collaborating with underrated authors to give the limelight to the books that they deserve.
By creating engaging content with photos and videos, the book gets recognition and is read by more people from the audience.
Among the book community, open challenges are often introduced by well-known book influencers. They go on a reading marathon to try to read books from different genres and share their views on the same.
This way, the audience gets new recommendations from the participants and gets to know their thoughts on the said books.
Due to book influencers, a huge part of social media platforms, including Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok, have been dedicated to readers who share their love for reading and encourage other people to do the same.
Future of book influencers
The influencer market has been on the rise for the last five years. Depending upon the niche of influencing, the demand for influencers changes. Speaking of the book industry, the growth has been noticed.
The emergence of social media has affected how people used to read but the same social media is now, through these book influencers, bringing more readers alive. Gradually, the audience have been understanding the importance of reading books from time to time.
In the coming years, with the rise in people's reading habits, book influencers can expect better collaboration with authors, publishing companies, editors, and more.
Conclusion
Book influencers can bring back the culture of reading habits in the world. They have the perfect platform, means, and creative ways to achieve this aim. With their dedication, it's possible to reshape reading habits and give the spotlight to some underrated gems.
Book influencers can take in charge of initiating valuable book discussions. Their work can lead to promoting voices, generating interesting reading trends, better relationship between authors and readers, developing communities, and promoting literature.
