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NetGalley Launches Consumer-Facing Platform
NetGalley, a platform that allows publishing industry professionals to access digital ARCs of upcoming releases, has launched Booktrovert.com, a “consumer-facing marketing platform” featuring giveaways, reader activities, merch, and more. NetGalley is positioning Booktrovert as a solution to “the book industry’s demand for robust consumer marketing tools.” Marketing is a perpetual challenge, and publishers continue to struggle with how to get readers to buy the books they want to sell them instead of/in addition to whatever is trending on BookTok. Algorithm-driven social media has turned marketing into a casino in which the odds of gaining traction are low, but the possibility of hitting the viral jackpot compels everyone to play. Which is all to say: I understand the opportunity NetGalley sees here and why publishers might find it appealing. The real question is: what is the value proposition to the readers?
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