Change or evolution in the publishing industry is a constant process and cannot easily be predicted. Five years down the line we all assumed that it would be the end of the printed book and soon the electronic book would conquer the market. E-books offer many advantages such as Easy access anywhere, Eco-friendly nature with no harm to trees, Shipping/delivering an e-book to a device is much cheaper than delivering or mailing a printed book, and finally, the advances and innovations that we can have with ebooks are amazing.
Although e-books have many attractive benefits, readers and authors seem to have their own ways of consuming content. Many readers still love printed books, which I think is also a plus for authors and publishers. Enjoying the smell and feel of the printed book while reading and relaxing without electronic devices around is something you can experience and cherish for a lifetime.
But in recent years we have seen significant improvement as print books have overtaken digital books and many readers are now buying both print and digital versions of the books they love.
Nine key trends that are shaping the business and the art of the publishing industry.
- Smaller publishers and bookstores are on the rise as they improve their niche capabilities. With the rise of mega bookstores like Barnes and Noble and Borders, the bookstore story is very different now.
- Audiobooks will dominate the market as more and more readers turn to Audiobook platforms. Podcasting will be a new trend in the self-help industry. Although printed books remain the most popular book format, demand for Audiobooks has skyrocketed. The listening share of titles has doubled within 4 years and the trend seems to be increasing significantly.
- Self Publishing will gradually become big. Self Publishing can pose a long-term threat to traditional publishing. With the advent of platforms like Amazon, more and more authors tend to abandon the traditional publishing model since it allows you to produce and distribute books directly, also with the option of social media that allows you to share the 1-to-1 communication to expand your Sale.
- Non-fiction titles outperform fiction as novels and short stories have declined in popularity in the coming years, Whereas political books, self-help titles and motivational titles remain popular. Will poetry keep its reputation? We could see the popularity of poetry growing in the near future as a dedicatedly written format that offers a unique experience compared to novels.
- Authors will spend more budgets on digital marketing to refine their websites and attract more readership with SEO. Authors and publishers have found that engaged readers are more likely to buy books and started building long-term relationships. Email marketing has become the best way to sell books.
- Publishing giants consolidate. Associations have priority over competition. This means there will be fewer major players in the industry, further concentrating publishing power and reducing competition for manuscripts, Lowering financial advances, and making it harder for authors to negotiate contracts.
- Digital technology is becoming a competitive advantage for publishers, it is becoming a key driver of change in the book publishing industry, the publishing industry is using AI technology in many ways. With digital marketing and advertising in the publishing world, there are seemingly endless opportunities to take advantage of. With the ability to access content instantly, you can quickly grow your digital subscribers.
- Libraries will run afoul of publishers as demand for digital media grows persistently. The reason is that libraries defend the free flow of information.
- As more book summary platforms emerge, we are seeing a rapid upward trend in the number of platforms and services in the publishing industry.
Conclusion
The publishing industry is an industry that always adapts to needs. But the last few years have been perhaps the fastest-changing yet. These include threats such as Audiobooks and podcasts as well.
Anyways! It’s always exciting to see how these trends develop in the publishing industry.
