Reading rituals for a life already in motion.

The Question

How do you help readers discover another way to experience stories?

When I first met the Apple team, we weren’t talking about audiobooks—we were talking about book-to-screen marketing. Afterward I did what I usually do: I found the book people in the room. They shared that Apple Books had an awareness problem. Almost everyone had an iPhone, but not everyone realized there was already a Books app on it. That stayed with me until I had an idea.

What I Noticed

During my years in publishing, I had watched investment in audiobooks steadily increase and at the same time, I was seeing more and more conversations about audiobooks in the book community.

Then there was Daisy Jones & The Six. My first audiobook that I listened to all the way through and it’s still the one I recommend to anyone who tells me they’ve never listened to one before. The full cast narration transformed the experience into something that felt more like a performance. It made me realize that audiobooks weren’t simply another format—they were another way to experience a story.1When I first read the book, Camilla was hands down my favorite character. When I watched the show, Daisy became my favorite character and when I listened to the audiobook, Karen became my favorite character. The performances do so much!

That changed the question I was asking. Instead of wondering how to convince readers to try a new platform, I started wondering how we could help them discover new moments for reading like during your commute, while walking your dog or prepping dinner. I thought about the hours people spend doomscrolling—me included—and how there’s an alternate right there in your hands.

What We Built

I developed a pilot partnership centered around audiobooks, positioning Apple Books as a natural extension of a reader’s everyday life rather than a replacement for physical books or e-books. The campaign celebrated the idea that reading doesn’t have to happen in one place or one format. Through original social content, community storytelling, and thoughtful integration with Reese’s Book Club, we showed readers how audiobooks could fit seamlessly into routines they already had and that we believe listening counts as reading. The pilot gave us room to experiment, trust our instincts, and focus on the reader experience above everything else.

As the partnership grew, so did the ambition. What began as a focused campaign evolved into a year-round ecosystem that expanded from audiobooks into e-books, creator collaborations, editorial content, and real-world experiences—all rooted in the same belief that reading should fit naturally into people’s lives.

What Happened

The response exceeded every expectation. One of our social posts in the initial campaign became one of Apple Books’ highest-performing ones that month and one of Reese’s Book Club’s strongest-performing partnership campaigns.

What began as a pilot evolved into a multi-million-dollar, year-round partnership. Apple Books first became Reese’s Book Club’s official audiobook partner before expanding into both audiobooks and e-books as we continued learning from reader behavior.

Highlights

• Multi-yearPartnership expansion
• OfficialApple Books audiobook partnership
• ExpandedInto audiobook + eBook partnership
• Top performingAcross Apple and Reese’s Book Club partnership campaigns
• Year over yearContinued investment based on audience insights

The Takeaway

Instead of trying to change how people read, we expanded where reading could happen.

I never saw audiobooks as competing with physical books or ebooks because, to me, they’re all part of the same reading life. Listening counts as reading. The opportunity was to help more people discover when an audiobook might fit naturally into their day—during a commute, while folding laundry, out on a walk, or even while working on a puzzle.

We leaned into both the practicality and the magic. Yes, audiobooks are convenient, but they’re also immersive because a talented narrator can make a story feel entirely new. By celebrating both, we helped readers find more moments for the stories they already loved.