Quote:
Originally Posted by DiapDealer
Quite simply put: no (in my case, at least). I don't browse covers, so there's nothing to "catch my eye." I've usually made the decision to buy something (based on author, or recommendation, or conversation) long before I get near a picture. Besides, the thumbnail covert art is too small for me to make anything out at most retailers anyway. So the art is definitely not something that draws me in, and I find them quite easy to ignore, actually.
Most times I don't even give the cover art a thought until AFTER I've downloaded a book. So while I can appreciate the fact that many people want their experience to be a universal truth when it come to packaging, it's simply not true of all readers.
Coverart certainly had an effect on me when browsing stacks of physical, front-facing books at a B&M store, but ebooks have released me from worrying about that nonsense.
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Buying based on suggestion would just pass the cover art effect on to those making the suggestion. At some level it has had an effect on the purchase of the book. Buying from a known author just pushes the effect back to the point of that introduction, unless the initial book of that author was a suggestion in which case it's back to the person making the suggestion.
Again -consciously- you aren't thinking of the cover. And while the thumbnail may not be much of an image, in your case it doesn't need to be since you're buying based off the suggestion of others who have read the book, and thus seen the cover, or because of author in which case you've seen their previous books covers. Now if you were browsing ebooks and not using either the suggestion of others or authors you had read and enjoyed to guide your search, and disabled image display that would be a way to ensure you were not directly influenced. But there is still an indirect influence of the book being published, the spot it gets in search results, etc. are all influenced by the sellability of the book, and publishers do put stock in the coverart to have an influence.
I appreciate that we like to think we are above being influenced, however the publishing industry knows that isn't true.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/0...n_3354504.html
http://thebooksmugglers.com/2010/04/...y-results.html
http://www.creativindie.com/8-cover-...-buying-books/
http://www.thebookdesigner.com/2014/...ure-explained/
I could go on, but it's a bit OT for the thread.