BookBub


BookBub is a book discovery service that was created to help readers find new books and authors. The company features free and discounted ebooks selected by its editorial team, as well as book recommendations, updates from authors, and articles about books. The service is free for readers and includes a website and personalized email newsletters. The Guardian called BookBub the “Groupon of e-books.”
The company is headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

History

BookBub was founded in January 2012 by Josh Schanker and Nicholas Ciarelli with no outside funding.
In September 2014, BookBub launched in the UK.
In 2015, BookBub had over 40 employees, raised $7 million in funding, and expected to be the catalyst for 20 million eBook purchases.
In 2019, BookBub had 120 employees, 15 million subscribers, and launched an audiobook division called Chirp.

Business model

The newsletter is free to customers but authors and publishers pay to be featured in the newsletter. Authors and publishers use BookBub to gain exposure with the intention to increase future sales. The cost to have your book feature depends on the genre and price of the book. In 2014, the cheapest slot was $40 to advertise a free book of African-American interest. BookBub rejects about 80 to 90 percent of requests for eBooks to be featured.