At the Penguin Random House Audio (PRH Audio) we are dedicated to producing top-quality fiction and nonfiction audiobooks for all ages written and read by the best in the business. We believe that audiobooks are one of the best ways to read a book while crafting, cleaning, exercising or even curled up with a blanket at the end of a long day. We love to share our audiobooks with individuals who are equally as passionate as we are as part of our PRH Audio Influencer Program!

As an official PRH Audio influencer you receive the following perks:

1. Complimentary audiobooks with just a tap on your device in our free PRH Audio app, designed for verified publishing industry users. 

2. Access to specially curated “Books for Review” playlists in the PRH Audio app.

3. Monthly emails with updates on recommended titles, app updates, and special announcements.

4. Based on your reviews, genre preferences, and activity, you will be considered for periodic deluxe mailings including an array of audiobooks and themed goodies to enhance your listening experience. 

5. Influencers will have the opportunity to have their reviews reshared on PRH Audio social accounts.

The Penguin Random House Audio app provides verified influencers a simple, secure way to access review copies of audiobooks from the Penguin Random House Audio Publishing Group's full catalog, including adult titles published by our Random House Audio and Penguin Audio imprints, and kids & YA titles published by our Listening Library imprint. We encourage our influencers to share 1-3 of their reviews each month on their social media accounts to excite the audiobook community to listen as well.

Get started here:

Download the PRH Audio app for iOS devices | Download the PRH Audio app for Android devices

The PRH Audio app includes:

• Audiobook samples and review copies of new and backlist releases, with content added daily as titles become available.

• Simple and easy to navigate audio player, with sleep timer and variable narration speed, favorites, bookmarks, and easy-to-use chapter navigation. 

• Curated thematic and topical collections, like audio best sellers, book club picks, Amplify Black Stories, and more.

• Automated requests – simply click “request download” to open a pre-populated email request that will be routed to our team. You’ll receive an email notification about the status of your request within 3 business days. NOTE: In addition to the dozens of titles available in the curated “Books for Review” playlists, you can request up to 15 more audiobooks per month.

Work with marketers across Penguin Random House by joining the Penguin Random House Community.  

We developed the platform to centralize our many influencer lists, allowing marketers across Penguin Random House to work with more social media influencers while safely storing their personal information. By signing up, your reading and genre preferences and contact information will be available to any PRH marketer looking for social media influencers to work with on either paid or unpaid campaigns. Creating an account allows you to manage your preferences and contact information and makes you visible to more marketers for more campaigns. Learn more at PRH.com/Influencers.

Still have questions? Check out our FAQs below!

What is an ALC?

This stands for Advance Listeners Copy. These are completed and finalized audiobooks we circulate with our media outlets, reviewers, bloggers, and influencers to generate pre-publication buzz and are for personal use only for review purposes.

How does the PRH Audio Influencer Program work?

Approximately once a month, you'll receive an email from us with details about our Books for Review playlists, a curated list of audiobooks that are available for immediate download in the PRH Audio app. Influencers will also be able to request up to an additional 15 audiobooks per month that are not featured in these lists. Audiobooks for review via the PRH Audio app will be our main method of ALC distribution, and you will be automatically pre-approved for the digital offerings each month. 

What are you looking for in an applicant? 

We're looking for active influencers with an engaged following who love audiobooks! Ideally, we want someone who posts thoughtful reviews, shares their excitement for upcoming and new releases, and utilizes the various features and tools available on Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, YouTube, or Twitter social media channels. We do understand life happens and that the capacity in which you're able to post about our audiobooks will not always be the same. We do encourage that when our influencers post audiobook reviews that all or some of the following are included: review of the narrator’s performance, the synopsis of the audiobook, notes about the author, and audio-focused imagery (such as featuring headphones and/or the audiobook playing on a phone or tablet in a photo).

What are the requirements to apply?

You need an Instagram, TikTok, Twitter, Facebook or YouTube account where you post book and audiobook reviews, live in the US, and be 18 years of age or older. We are accepting influencers that have a minimum of 3.5K followers on their preferred social account for reviews. You must be active on your social account in the past three months and have examples of past audiobook reviews. 

NOTE: Even though we are grateful for reviews on Goodreads, we are currently not accepting entries with this platform as the main social review platform of choice.

If I’m a current member, do I need to apply?  

Yes! We refresh our program every year, so even current members need to submit an application to renew their participation annually. Stay tuned for an invitation to renew your status from our team.

Are the programs open to international influencers?  

Due to world rights and restrictions, Penguin Random House U.S. is only able to work with influencers within the United States.

How is PRH Audio prioritizing diversity and inclusion for their influencer selection? 

As an imprint of Penguin Random House, we publish voices reflecting the full spectrum of genres and the diversity of our world, and we want the influencers we work with to be a reflection of that. We strongly encourage BIPOC reviewers and reviewers of historically underrepresented groups outside of race or ethnicity to apply.  

Please note we take the privacy of our program members and applicants very seriously, and as such, we do not require data on identity and diversity for our database. If you are comfortable and want to share, we do invite applicants to self-identify as someone from a historically underrepresented community and to let us know if there is a certain type of book or voice you would like to prioritize on your platforms. 

As a member of the program, how will I receive the audiobooks? 

We offer audiobook downloads via our proprietary PRH Audio app.

I finished listening to an audiobook and I LOVED it! Now what?

We hope you enjoy the free audiobooks and that you'll like it enough to want to post about it, but we do not require you to post.

If you do decide to post about a complimentary audiobook you received from PRH Audio, you must tag our account in your post copy. Please use these mandatory disclosures via the FTC:

• Disclosures must be “unavoidable” (i.e., above the fold, not just “noticeable and easily understandable,” as in the past). Consumers must not be required to click through or scroll down the see the disclosure.

• For social media videos, if the endorsement is made through both visual and audible means, the disclosure should be in both the video and the audio.

• Disclosures must be clear and conspicuous to ordinary consumers in the targeted group. For example, if a post is in Spanish and targeting Spanish-speaking audiences, the disclosures must also be in Spanish.

• Standalone hashtags may no longer be sufficient. When in doubt, add the brand!

Here are examples/options for disclosures:

• THANK YOU — Please note free audiobook: "Thanks for the free audiobook" and tag @PRHAudio 

• PARTNER — Tag the imprint and use the imprint's Partner hashtag: #PRHAudioPartner 

We encourage influencers' reviews to include the audiobook cover shown in a device (phone, tablet, smart watch, etc.), review on narration and author, and whatever else you would like to include in your review.

*Note: If we see that you haven't made the proper disclosures, we will reach out to request you to edit your post. If you do not edit the posts, we will remove you access to the app.

I don’t see an audiobook available for free download. Now what?

If you see an audiobook in the app that you want to listen to but it’s not available for immediate download, simply click “request download” to open a pre-populated email request that will be routed to the audio social media team. You’ll receive an email notification about the status of your request within 3 business days.

NOTE: In addition to the titles available in the curated “Books for Review” collections, you can request up to 15 extra audiobooks per month.

If you are searching for an audiobook title but it’s not visible in the app, please reach out to your influencer program contact and they will be able to let you know when you it will be available.

I missed the deadline to apply. Can I still work with you? 

Yes! We encourage you to still send your application. We will put your information on a list and as we get openings we will reach out to you.

Do you offer compensation for posting about books?

In accordance with Penguin Random House influencer policy, we work with influencers in the following ways:

1.  Penguin Random House does not offer monetary compensation for buzz mailings that have no posting requirement. For buzz mailings, we will provide you with books and give you the opportunity to read and review them, but you are under no obligation to do so.

2.  The Penguin Random House Audio Influencer Program is a buzz download offering and does not offer monetary compensation.

3.  Penguin Random House does offer monetary compensation for sponsored content where posting is required. These paid posts will be within specific parameters, including timing and content guidelines, and potentially content approval.

NOTE: If you are an influencer or have a social media presence but also contribute to a media outlet, please disclose that in your outreach to us.

Additional Resources:

Penguin Random House Influencer Policy

Updated on December 1, 2023