Inevitably, when someone asks me what I do for a living, and I tell them that I narrate audiobooks, the discussion leads to whether or not they have ever listened to an audiobook. Usually, the answer is ‘no’.
Although audiobook sales are increasing year on year, they are still quite a long way behind print-based books. For example, 15% of people in the UK listened to an audiobook in 2019, whilst 77% of the population read a book. Yet in 2019 in the USA, the sale of audiobooks exceeded, for the first time, the sale of ‘ebooks’ – such as Kindle and similar. So the trend for audiobooks is undoubtedly on the rise there and the UK is sure to follow.
When I ask people why they have yet to listen to an audiobook, the answers I get are many and varied but may include the ‘top three’ which are:-
“I don’t know how they work.”
“I don’t have time”.
“They’re too expensive”
So let’s address each one in turn.
“I don’t know how they work.” Well, if you have a computer, laptop, tablet or smartphone – or all four – then you are equipped to listen. Each time you listen to your chosen audiobook, it will remember where you finished so that it will resume where you left off when you return to it. You can repeat sections/chapters or the whole book if you want. And once you’ve purchased and downloaded your first audiobook, you’ll find it very easy to use and you’ll be able to listen to it at your own pace but with more opportunities to do so than with reading a book.
“I don’t have time”. This may be a cover for ‘I don’t want to’ or ‘I don’t think I’d like them’. Because frankly, if you have time to read a book, then you’re sure to have time – more of it in fact – to listen to one. For a start, if a book takes you about 8 hours to read, then it will take about the same time to listen to it read by someone else – maybe a shade longer, but there won’t be much in it. But the key thing with audiobooks, is that you can listen to them on occasions when it would be impossible to read. For example, do you really want to risk reading a book whilst driving? I hope not! It really is important to keep your eyes on the road!
“They’re too expensive”. To some extent this is a fair point. On the face of it, an audiobook will cost more than a paper or hardback. After all, with an audiobook, you have to in effect pay for an extra player in the game – the narrator – not a factor with books. But if you were to have a subscription arrangement with Audible – the largest marketplace for audiobooks, you can choose one audiobook a month for just £7.99 per month which compares well with book prices – unless you always buy your books from charity shops!
Like most things in life, you won’t know what it’s like until you try it. So if you want to try an audiobook free of charge, take a look at my growing list of titles on my web site and fill in the free audiobook request form. I’ll then send you a code and instructions so that you can give it a go. I am confident you won’t be disappointed!
Cheers, Andy