Social media is boosting physical book sales, say experts
When was the last time you picked up a book for fun?
Today might be a good day because it’s World Book and Copyright Day.
UNESCO designated April 23 as a day to celebrate book lovers and recognize the power of books to connect generations and cultures.
Even with e-books and audiobooks becoming more popular, experts say people are buying more printed books due to social media.
Why printed books sales are going up
Since 2017, Americans have been spending more money on books, according to data from Statista.
This is in part due to BookToks and Bookstagram, which are posts on TikTok and Instagram where influencers share opinions and recommendation, said Danielle Fuller, an English professor at the University of Alberta.
She said that book influencers post selfies with physical books or their collection of printed text.
And that’s one of the drivers of the higher sales.
“This type of visual representation may have subtly impacted social media users to purchase printed copies,” Fuller said in an interview with CBC Kids News.
Book sales have increased in the past few years in the U.S. (Image credit: Emile Windal/Belga Mag/AFP/Getty Images)
Another reason for the increase in sales for printed copies could also be a change in their appearances.
“Physical books are now becoming really beautiful,” said Joanna Pozzulo, host of the Reading for Well-Being Community Book Club at Carleton University in Ottawa.
For example, some books have their edges sprayed with designs, something that Pozzulo said makes them “almost like collector items.”
Fuller also said that people like to collect physical books because they are more likely to build emotional attachments with printed text than digital text.
However, she added, regardless of the format of the book, any form of reading benefits us in many ways.
Everyone tells us that reading is good for you, but why?
Reading can be a form of stress relief for people who are overwhelmed by the real world or overstimulated by the digital world, said Fuller.
“Readers have always turned to books to learn about experiences unlike their own or cultures and worlds unlike their own, but also to escape from their own immediate life,” Fuller said.
She added that the physical book format allows people to get away from their screens to create a more peaceful and comfortable environment.
Influencers are showing the physical copies of their recommendations on TikTok. (Image credit: Tatis_corner/ TikTok, Aliradfordd/ TikTok)
Reading helps build empathy because we are able to “walk in a character’s shoes,” said Pozzulo, who is also a psychology professor at Carleton University.
“We can imagine what they’re going through,” Pozzulo said. “So, it helps with our perspective-taking.”.
Pozzulo said that she can’t think of anything bad about reading.
She said whatever genre or format kids choose, it brings emotional and intellectual growth.
“Reading is so easy to do and I’m so thrilled that, you know, social media has caught on to it.”
So, what do kids think?
We asked kids in Toronto, Ontario, to share what their favourite book is. Watch the video below to hear what they said.
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