Last month R.R. Bowker, the major publisher of reference books and resources for the book trade, released the 2008 U S. Book Consumer Demographics and Buying Behavior Annual Report which is being published print-on-demand by Lightning Press and retails for $999. Its findings about book buying patterns have emerged from data collected from Bowker’s Pub Track Consumer and from other information gleaned from the vast amount of statistics on titles published and books sold that the company regularly monitors. The findings are very helpful for authors and publishers who wish to perform targeted and effective promotion of their books.

Some interesting facts contained in the report are:· Most buyers are women (53 percent as opposed to 47 percent men)· Women buy more books than men (65 percent of all books purchased)· Men buy more e-books than women (55 percent)· Women buy the great majority of paperbacks, hardbacks, and audio books· Generation X buyers (ages 30 to 48)purchase more books on the Internet (30 percent)· About 21 percent of book buyers heard about a book first online· Mass merchandisers continue to gain market share while bookstores show declinesFor authors and publishers all this is critical information when attempting to gear promotion, publicity, or advertising to a book’s particular audience.

If you have written and published a book that you think is aimed primarily at men, then the e-book format should be utilized. If the audience for a book is men or women in their 30s and 40s, then promotion and distribution should be geared towards online promotion, viral marketing, social networking and Internet book distribution sites. The report also highlights the vital role the Internet plays in getting the word out about books since 21 percent of buyers say they learned of a book they purchased online. Word of mouth too has always been a very large factor in disseminating information about books. But if 21 percent have heard of a book online, that means 79 percent have learned of it through more traditional means. Therefore reviews, news articles, book signings, speaking engagements, workshops, seminars, media appearances, postcards, posters, bookmarks, and other means of getting the word out about books cannot be ignored without fear of losing market share.

If you think you would benefit from information on more of the behavioral trends described in Bowker’s new publication, rather than paying $999, you may be able to locate a copy at a reference library.At Dorrance Publishing Co., Inc. we take into consideration what we know about buying patterns when creating tailored promotions for the books we publish, and we always use all the tools at our disposal to gear publicity and promotion to a book’s intended audience.