ReaderVision

Using big publisher techniques

to find & understand readers

Who reads your books? • When do they read them?

• Why do they choose yours?

• What do they love about your stories & characters?

• How can you make sure they buy your next book?

What is insight?

‘A deep understanding of something or someone’

Consumer insight = curiosity & a quest to understand

what makes consumers (i.e. readers) tick

Readers of Marian Keyes

Readers of Jill Mansell

What readers of Me Before You love

Owners of Border Terriers

Owners of Border Terriers

What Gone Girl readers buy

What readers of Gone Girl say

Reader Insight • What makes readers love/hate a genre or author?

• What influences them to try a new author or book?

• When do they read? Does their behaviour change

depending on time/place/mood?

• Are technology & other behavioural changes

affecting how and what people read?

• How can we get them to buy & read OUR books?

TV vs Books 2005 TV Industry Book Industry

• Audience research – influences commissioning

• Mass media: advertising/license fee

• Numbers

• Appreciation Index, focus groups

• Instinct/editors

influence

commissioning

• Individual media: small

investment, personal

choices

• Sales figures, little else

Book Industry 2015 • Consumer insight the new buzz phrase

• Big data, insight managers, analytics

• Amazon pay-by-page

• Consumer conversations & engagement

• AUTHORS know more than publishers…

I Insight Learning about insight helps you:

1. Understand what it’s about

2. Work with your publishers on insight-based

campaigns

3. Use the techniques yourself to help you: o Generate and test book and story ideas

o Develop and improve branding and social media

o Innovate and reinvent your career

o Reach more readers!

When readers lie… Lies, damned lies…statistics: getting to the truth

Understanding consumers (including readers):

What readers Say

How readers Act

What readers Want

e.g. UK election 2015

NICE READER! Nice Reader: appreciative, loyal, interactive…

NICE: the Ideas we’re using to gain insight

N: Numbers & statistics

I: Interactions & Conversations

C: Cultures & Trends

E: Experiences & Instincts

READER READER – the process of insight:

Refine the question or quest

Explore the insights &data

Analyse what it suggests as a whole

Desires and needs – how can you meet them?

Evaluate which are practical & appealing to you

Respond – take action

1:Numbers & Stats It’s not just editors/marketers who have access to data.

• Sales figures: The Bookseller, BookScan, Guardian

• Rankings/numbers of reviews e.g. Amazon

• Overall size of market for genres, books

• Twitter/Facebook followers & fans

• Website visitors & behaviours/time on site (Google Analytics, Facebook dashboards)

• Pages read, speed of reading – Amazon & their authors

Useful as a headline: but they explain what, not why

Numbers & Stats: try this! • Idea 1: Unmask the reader (Easy)

o Go to https://yougov.co.uk/profiler#/ and search books/movies/TV that has similarities with what you write

o Draw up your own profile of your ideal reader – their likes, brands, hobbies.

o Use the data to help with marketing, social media & planning future books

Numbers & Stats: real examples • www.my-

bookmarks.co.uk

Penguin/Random House

• E-book giveaway –

tracked via Facebook,

led to record number of

paperback sales

2: Interactions As writers, we are closer to readers, in better position

to understand them through interactions:

• Reviews: Amazon & GoodReads (ouch), Wattpad

• Events, emails, comments

• Surveys & Top 10s/Reader lists e.g. Love Reading,

Richard & Judy & associated forums, blogs

• Publisher research/focus groups

Interactions: try this! • Idea 2: Crowd-source your title/story/cover

(Advanced) o Take a current dilemma and use your fans/social media contacts to

answer

o Define what you want and how you’re going to ‘source’ info (e.g. Twitter,

a survey, comments, competition entries)

o Be clear on how it may be used e.g. in a book, associated publicity

material.

o Can also generate interest/anticipation.

Interactions: Real Life examples • Pan Mac – Jeffrey Archer & female readers

• Michele Gorman’s interactive Misfortune Cookie novel

• Email capture in return for free summer special via my website

3: Cultures & Trends Other cultural influences and social trends are good

sources of ideas & innovations.

• TV & Film: Nordic noir, longer storytelling (e.g. The Killing,

Broadchurch)

• Imagery: typography in book covers

• Social trends, e.g. 50 is the new 30, health monitoring

• Technological change e.g. e-books

• Segmentation- who are YOUR people?

Cultures & Trends: try this! • Idea 3: ‘Collect’ social trends (Easy)

o Stay alert for media coverage relevant to your area (use Google Alerts to automate this)

o Sign up for newsletters in your specialism e.g. travel, music, technology

o Use what you see & experience – does it have a role in your work?

Cultures & Trends: real examples • Serials: technology & attention span catches up

with Dickens all over again

• Social trends: women’s fiction, movies, dramas

• Tea and cake…

4: Experiences & observations Don’t be a slave to data – use your own bull-filter,

experiences & instincts too.

• Media coverage can be premature e.g. The death

of … has been exaggerated: chick lit, cupcakes.

• Mine your own hobbies & life experiences

• Conversations & debates with friends, family, even

local radio phone-ins

Experiences & Observations: try this! • Idea 4: Focus group fun! (Advanced)

o Coffee at yours/online discussion group

(Facebook good for this)

o Work out what you want answered: provide

props to discussion

o Record if possible – avoid directing too much –

analyse later

o More info here: www.webcredible.com/blog-

reports/web-usability/focus-groups.shtml

Experiences & Observations: real examples

• 5:2 Diet Book: what could I bring?

• 50 Shades of Grey – instinct

combined with timing and technology

Before you go… pick a task to try! • 1: Unmask the reader (Easy)

o Go to https://yougov.co.uk/profiler#/ and draw up your own profile of your

ideal reader – their likes, brands, hobbies.

• 2: Crowd-source your title/story/cover (Advanced) o Use social media – simple Facebook/Twitter question or advanced survey

• 3: ‘Collect’ social trends (Easy-Intermediate) o Track trends that interest you/are relevant (use Google Alerts &

newsletters)

• 4: Focus group fun! (Advanced) o Coffee at yours/online discussion group to analyse a topic: record &

analyse later

READER: how to use insights Remember READER – the process we’re going through

Refine the question or quest

Explore the insights &data

Analyse what it suggests as a whole

Desires and needs – how can you meet them?

Evaluate which are practical & appealing to you

Respond – take action

ReaderVision Worksheet • Go to eepurl.com/bsuiwr to

access all slides & links

• Follow me @katewritesbooks

• www.kate-harrison.com

Insightful Links…

• https://yougov.co.uk/profiler#/

• www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/social-trends-rd/social-trends/index.html

• www.mintel.com/

• www.thecreativepenn.com/

• www.google.com/trends

• www.thebookseller.com/news/consumer-insight-now-heart-publishing

• timgrahl.com/email-marketing-101-for-authors/

• http://backlinko.com/google-keyword-planner