GARDENING BOOKS- PLEASE READ

[size=medium]Questionnaire

I am a third year publishing student at Oxford Brookes University and as part of one of my modules I am researching gardening books. I would really appreciate it if some of you could answer these questions, it would be a great help.

1. Age?
2. Gender?
3. How would you describe yourself? -Gardening Beginner -Gardening Expert -Gardening Professional -Gardening Hobbyist
4. Have you purchased any gardening books? If so, which ones?
5. Would you be interested in buying a collectable, beautifully designed series of books on different plants and flowers?
6. What is your favourite plant/flower?
7. Do you ever visit The Royal Horticultural Society website?
8. Would you prefer to buy a gardening book by the Royal Horticultural Society or a normal gardening book?
9. Have you ever bought a gardening book published by Dorling Kindersley or endorsed by the Royal Horticultural Society?
10. Have you ever bought a gardening book as a gift for a friend/relative?

Thank you for taking the time to answer these questions.
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Hi GardeningStudent and welcome to the forum. I will have a go at answering your questions. However I would make one point. If you want to make money you should publish books for people who don't know about or care much about gardening. These are the people who like collectable beautifully designed books, Its that or another pair of shoes.

If you want to sell books to proper gardeners. They want content. But there is a limited number of them.

1) 68
2) male
3) grumpy old man - Gardening Hobbyist
4) lots. Many by Christopher Lloyd, Beth Chatto etc. Now generally buy only specialist books about just one plant Genus. That way the books doesn't overlap. Most general gardening books all say the same thing.
5) No. By collectable and beautifully designed you appear to be saying superficial. But I would buy good informative books.
6) Today I will say Brugmansia - but there are so many it will change several times in a season.
7) Not if I can help it. I rate it as poor.
8) I don't care who its by - if its informative.
9) Quite possibly. I have no prejudice against foreigners. I even bought a book written by a woman once.
10) Occasionally - but generally they don't appreciate it. If they did they would have bought it for themselves long ago.

 

Hi Gardening student,

Forgive me if I am sceptical but didn't Dorling Kindersley go Bankcrupt or get taken over by someone ?

If not, then.

#1. 40 ish.
#2. Bloke.
#3. Forgotten most things that most people knew in the first place.
#4. Of Course I have. Gilbert Whites, A Natural History of Selbourne, Brimble, Intermediate Botany. Keeble Martins Concise British Flora etc.

#5 This looks like a sales pitch to me so justify your self right here and now or forever hold your peace.

 

Ziggy,

I was thinking along the same lines with your answer to question 5.

Think I'll hold fire on this one!

 

With regards to question 5- this is not a sales pitch, I am on a publishing course and for my coursework we are put into groups and told we have to find a publisher and come up with a list of books for that publisher that they have never done before. This questionnaire is just for market research on an idea we have and to provide some primary data when we have to do our presentation, I am not affiliated with The Royal Horticultural Society or DK in anyway it is all hypothetical. Thank you for the answers so far.

 

I'm not normally agressive (Yes he blooming is, say the rest of them :DOH

If i'm wrong here and it is a genuine student enquiry then I do apologise and will carry on with the enquiry.

 

It is just for my coursework, this was the only way I could think of getting my questions to a relevant audience. Most students are not interested in gardening (or don't even have gardens) and I wanted the people who answer the questionnaire to have gardening experience so that the data I collect is relevant for my presentation.

 

Thats cool then Gardeningstudent & welcome to the forums, I do apologise for my cinical attitude earlier.

And we will of course, help you on your quest.

 

But as I implied GardeningStudent - people on a forum like this are not really your target market.

Yes they do buy a lot of books, but they are often buying specialist books such as gardening history, or single genus books.

I think the big market for gardening books is for books that no one is going to read - but with nice pictures.

 

#6 The potato

#7 Yes, but i'd prefer to visit an RHS Garden

 

I see what you mean but our aim is to come up with a range of books that have both useful content, but are also aesthetically pleasing- a tricky thing to balance. Thank you for your answers.

 

For the rest of the questions.

No, I could probably write a book better than one I could buy.