Book your marketing with BookTok

We read to know we are not alone. – C.S. Lewis

Now we are literally not alone anymore. Why? Because there is a whole community out there, famously called the “BookTok”. 

Before we take a closer look at the effect BookTok has had on bookselling and publishing trends, we should probably start with a quick explanation of what BookTok is, and why BookTok trends are relevant. 

BookTok is a literary subcommunity of the social app TikTok—a short-form video platform. Creators from this community are called BookTokers, and they range from readers and authors to publishers, literary agents, graphic designers, etc. BookTok content varies but is largely made up of book recommendations and reviews. Users may also post book hauls, challenges, giveaways, and advertisements. Unlike other social media platforms, such as Twitter or Instagram, Tiktok’s algorithm is designed to reach more than just a user’s current follower base, connecting you with a large scope of creators and users that are interested in the same content as you. 

Source: https://whnt.com/

In BookTok’s case, this content is books and book-related topics, such as literary genres, tropes, theory, etc.; all of which appear on TikTok’s curated “For You” page (FYP) and in several BookTok hashtags. 

Rising to prominence in 2020, the year of the plague, BookTok quickly established itself as a key player in the digital marketing trends of the literary community. What originally started as a series of videos to discuss and recommend books, turned into a marketing phenomenon like no other. As engagement within the community continues to grow, BookTok recommendations appear in every major bookstore and on every bestseller list. 

Now arguably one of the largest subcultures of TikTok, BookTok has drastically changed the way that we view bookselling and marketing. 

As of August 2022, the hashtag #BookTok has 67.7B views, while #BookTokChallenge and #booktokreccomendations have 127.1M and 60.9M views, respectively.

Source: https://la-lista.com/

How exactly has BookTok been influencing bookselling and publishing trends? The first answer is that the more readers talk about a book, the more viewers tend to go out and purchase that book. Even books that were published nearly a decade before BookTok began, such as Madeline Miller’s Song of Achilles (2011), can now be seen climbing the New York Times Bestseller list and selling out in bookstores. Not only do these books sell out, but many of them are also being rereleased in new covers or editions, signed to movie and TV adaptations, and getting long-awaited sequels or continuations of their series. 

The authors of these books are experiencing similar changes, and many small or independent writers are suddenly being signed to large publishing houses, while established authors are releasing books at a much quicker rate. 

Large book retailers, like Barnes & Noble and Booksamillion, have begun creating specialized shelves and displays for books that are popular on BookTok and have even dedicated entire categories of their websites to BookTok selections and trends. Almost every B&N location has altered its marketing strategy to reflect this growing interest in BookTok picks.

Publishers are also now considering BookTok a serious promotional tool, and have begun to utilize the various literary networks created through the platform. 

Notable publishing companies, such as Penguin Books, have made TikTok accounts and regularly interact with Booktok content and creators. Likewise, publishers are working with their authors on the app to create more organic content, targeted campaigns, and BookTok-influencer collaborations.

-Saumya Shah