Many people may have forgotten that before it became a tech and ecommerce behemoth, Amazon started as an online bookseller in 1994. Nearly three decades later, Amazon is celebrating the roots of its business with a major campaign for its books division.
The goal of the campaign, titled “That Reading Feeling Awaits,” is to inspire reading, celebrate its place in culture and inject love and excitement back into books—as people spend more time streaming or scrolling online. Ad agency Droga5 London, which also works with other parts of Amazon such as Prime Video and Alexa, created the campaign for the U.S. and U.K. markets.
In many ways, the ad more closely resembles one for another form of entertainment, such as gaming or TV. That was intentional, explained Droga5 creative director Matt Hubbard, who said the team’s challenge was to portray a predominantly non-visual type of entertainment whose action happens internally.
“Reading on the surface doesn’t look like anything, but [the reader] could be in the most amazing world. When you’re reading, you’ve got all these synapses firing and your whole imagination is on fire,” Hubbard said. “Our challenge was how to unlock that.”
The idea behind the campaign is to capture the invisible magic within people’s imaginations when they read—and the unique relationships and experiences that readers have with books. The ad comprises a series of vignettes that show people reading books in ordinary settings while fantastical worlds come to life around them, spanning various genres that are depicted by different animators.
Beyond the film, the campaign includes out-of-home ads designed by 17 different illustrators—and social media activity that “incorporates some of the language and visuals that people use and enjoy online,” said Droga5 London chief creative officer Shelley Smoler.
Amazon Books has released a bespoke sticker pack and emojis to allow people to share their love of reading on social media, which will be promoted by influencers on BookTok, an area of TikTok devoted to books. The team has also submitted a proposal to the Unicode Consortium to create an official reading emoji.
“There’s a community of readers who are limited in how they can share their love of books on social media,” Hubbard explained.
Winning over readers
Another challenge for Amazon Books may be pushing back against the assumption that it hurts independent booksellers. Amazon has been the target of an ongoing campaign from the American Booksellers Association (ABA), the trade body for independent bookstore owners, which urges consumers to shop from local and independent shops.
Nevertheless, independent bookstores in the U.S. grew in both number and diversity last year, according to the ABA. Last month, the association reported 2,010 members at 2,547 locations, an increase of more than 300 since spring 2021.
In news heralded by some independent booksellers, Amazon said in March that it plans to close all 68 of its physical bookstores and shops carrying toys and home goods in the U.S. and U.K.
However, it is understood that the Amazon Books campaign is unrelated to those store closures—and books remain a core part of Amazon’s e-commerce business.
CREDITS:
Director of Global Marketing, Amazon Books: Josh Fein
Head of Brand Marketing, Amazon Books: David Rosenberg
Senior Brand Marketing Manager, Amazon Books: Radnyee Pradhan
Sr. Brand and Campaign Manager, Amazon Books: Ben Creasey
Agency: Droga5 London
CCO: Shelley Smoler
Creative Director: Matt Hubbard
Creatives: Chris Russell, Ahmed Ellabib
Head of Design: Chris Chapman
Agency Producers: Sophie Paton, Caroline Angell, Rob Steiner
Assistant Producer: Olly West
Strategy Director: Pete Heskett
Comms Strategy Director: Clemency Beale-Collins
Strategist: Sara Barqawi
Head of Account Management: Jen Knox
Senior Account Director: Tom Elias
Account Director: Laura Kidd
Account Manager: Heidi Brown
Motion Designers: Michael O’Brien, Rob Wicksteed
Studio Director: Tim Larke
Art Producer: Katerina Gharraph
Senior Creative Artworker: Paul Callaby
Artworker: Nik Coomber
Production Company: Prettybird
Director: Tom Noakes
EP: Juliette Larthe
HOP: Fiona Bamford-Phillips
EP: Ted Thornton
Producer: Cindy Burnay
New Business: Shiara Miranda
Treatment Creative Direction: Tom Manaton
Stop Mo/Puppetry Production: Benji Landman
Stop Mo/Puppetry Production Assistant: Lottie Lindsay-Beavan
Live Action Production Assistant: Becca Stovold
MD/EP : Scott Horan
Senior Producer: Joan Garcia
Producer: Dani Ojeda
PM: Dani Gonzalez
PC: Olga Airas
PA: Paula Comella
Prod. Designer: Maria Puig
