What Do We Mean By "Audience" - And Why Is It Important?

This week I want to address an issue about audiences for books and what we really mean by that word.
 
First of all, a little story to provide context.
 
On Facebook, someone posted an idea recently that they were considering. They write true crime stories and were thinking of engaging with a YouTube creator who makes videos about true crime, thinking that a review or endorsement would help their book sales. The YouTuber has a large following, so, on the surface, it looks like a winning idea.
 
Several responses came back saying it was a good idea, because both the author and the YouTube creator were targeting the same audience.
 
I disagreed with that view at a fundamental level. I believe they were targeting totally different audiences.
 
Yes, both audiences are interested in true crime, but that doesn’t make them the same audience.

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YouTube is a video medium. It targets people who like to watch videos. To use the marketing term, that’s the way they “consume” their entertainment.

True crime authors, however, are targeting their work at people who consume their entertainment in written form, primarily books.
 
Looking at a Venn diagram of the two audiences, there is an overlap where people who like true crime will consume their entertainment in both video and written form. However, it is the size of that overlap that determines whether or not it is worth spending money on the idea, because the YouTuber will probably want to be paid for their endorsement.
 
Readers often seek in depth knowledge, enjoy imaginative story telling and have a keen interest in diverse genres. YouTube viewers prefer visual content, quick tutorials and enjoy entertainment videos. 

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It is important to remember that just because people like the same genre, they won’t also use the same medium to consume it.
 
Let me take you away from books for a moment to illustrate my point.
 
Everyone has to eat but we don’t all consume food in the same places.
 
Some people like take-out food. Some like going to fast food outlets. Some like to cook at home and some like to eat in a restaurant with waiter service.
 
Despite all of them eating food, in marketing terms each of those groups (and there may be others) are all different audiences.
 
Marketing companies spend a huge amount of time and money to make sure that their advertising is seen by the right audience. They consider TV, radio, newspapers, magazines, internet sites and a whole range of other ways of advertising to decide which is going to be best for them.
 
For example, you won’t see adverts for McDonalds in the pages of The Times – but you will in the Sun. That’s because Sun readers are more likely to eat in McDonalds and Times readers are more likely to eat in regular restaurants. They all eat food, they may even all eat burgers, but they are not the same audience.

And yes, we know that some McDonalds customers will sometimes eat in restaurants and some restaurant customers will sometimes go to McDonalds - but they are the overlap in the Ven diagram - a small proportion of each audience.

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That is why Amazon advertising is so effective compared to other advertising channels.

​Readers go onto Amazon to find books. They may not buy them there, they may buy them in bookstores or through other websites, but they use Amazon for “product research”.
 
So, if you advertise on Amazon, your ad will be seen by people who read books and you don’t have to worry about whether or not they also watch YouTube videos..
 
The audience for books, regardless of genre, is always the people who read books. Any other type of entertainment consumption is just a distraction and trying to use it for marketing is likely to cost you more than it earns you.
 
It is why none of the book marketing gurus recommend advertising on YouTube. If it was an effective channel for selling books, they would be all over it.  And if it isn’t good for selling books, then there is no point in paying a YouTuber to endorse your book – no matter how large their following.
 
Similarly, mainstream publishers don’t use YouTube for marketing. If it was an effective channel, they too would be all over it.
 
So, our key take-away from this blog is that just because two groups of people like the same subject, it doesn’t mean they are the same audience. You have to consider the preferences for how they consume their entertainment, just as restauranteurs have to consider how different groups of diners choose to consume their food.
 
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