Can we ask for feedback on the Mumsnet Books please?

[JustineMumsnet]

Just had a meeting with the publisher and they are not, shall we say, flying off the shelves despite the fact that everyone who reads them says how brilliant/funny they are. Sales via MN particularly are pretty poor.

So - can you give us some pointers as to why you aren't buying/recommending these utterly marvellous books, packed full of MN wisdom please?

Have you heard about them - do we need to shout more? Or do you feel you don't need them, because you've got MN at your fingertips, or, perish the thought perhaps you just don't like the look of them?

gah

not that the toddler cartoons person is not skilled up at all, oh no...just

you know

you do good drawing boco

Oh yes, a funny toilet book. That's what it IS really, to me. Except I don't MN in the loo. Someone did didn't they, now THAT was funny.

But I only approve of this idea as long as I feature heavily in it

Or do you have to be in the thread, emerging for it to be funny? Is it funny after the fact? I can probably answer my own question. Franny's son's cock sculpture has cheered me up a number of times and the Classics are often good for a weep laugh.

But I think you'd need a bit of market testing to find out if non-MNers would find it funny.

Lol thank you Slubber Must admit to reading this thread through my fingers a little bit, in case thousands of pg women didn't buy it because the pictures were shoddy or something.

I had a flick through and I thought the illustrations in the pregnancy book were brilliant but I did not buy it because I have squeezed three of the fuckers out already and my husband is having the snip asap

next year next year he says

wnaker

I haven't bought them for myself because I'm past all those stages (do one on teenage girls however, and I'll have your hand off).

I haven't bought one for friends though because I feel it would 'out' me as a mumnsetter, and I want complete anonymity...I mean whoever heard of a newsreader frequenting a parenting site?

Being a wot I am a practising qualitative researcher, I'm happy to help you out for a vast fee with any further research you may wish to do amongst your target audience ...

Seems I'm not practising enough ...

Being as wot I am a practising qualitative researcher, I'm happy to help you out for a vast fee with any further research you may wish to do amongst your target audience ...

I bought loads of books while pregnant - on pregnancy, giving birth and baby names and I read them all, cover to cover.

I also bought lots more on child development and bringing up children which I planned to read after the birth. Ha ha! I haven't even touched one of those as I'm just too bloody busy. (Suspect I may get round to reading up on baby & toddler development when DS is about 10, and think "oh that's what that was all about then" )

I would have bought the mumsnet one if it was out then. I am unlikely to buy the toddler one for myself (see backlog of books above).

My friends are breeding like mad at the moment however, and I would definitely pick up the books in a shop and buy one of them as a present if it looked good. I would need to have a flick through first though, and I haven't seen it anywhere yet.

They came out too late for us.

But I have a pregnant friend, although as hers is due in December there is no point getting her the Pregnancy one for Christmas. The Babies one would be ideal - but when's that out? Not until next year?

Whomoved in post of tues 24th 8:00:32 has all the key questions for mums (this mum anyway). If you can answer those I'll pay a lot more than a tenner!

My dd is 10 so I have no need for books on pregnancy or toddlers!

I don't think the front covers of the books would make you want to pick them up if you saw them in a shop...Babies the mumsnet guide has the best cover but why go for black and white?

Babies one due beginning of March.

I bought the toddler's guide, along with What to Expect Toddler and Gina Ford Toddler.

I guess the MN books slot in between these style, neither entirely comprehensive, nor taking a line on what a parent should do. They are more entertaining to read, certainly, but I tend to use parenting books for random bits of info rather than entertainment. Also, they are not so appealing to give as a gift - covers are a big part of this. Should have gone for a 'chick lit' feel! And the amount of space dedicated to really large quotes means you feel a bit cheated in terms of value for money.

I don't think the quotes work v well out of context from the threads - doesn't quite translate to a parenting book, where you want the authoritative word of experts.

You ought to compile something a bit more like 'Can I Give Them Back Now' - a book showcasing the 'off the record' side of parenting with plenty of humour and all the weird and wonderful anecdotes you get on MN.

The books are great, but I wouldn't buy them. Why would I need to when I have mn?
I'd buy one as a gift for someone though.

Alternatively, why don't you go down the e-fulfillment route and make smaller publications available for download for a reduced cost.

Or go into the gift book bundle market - a 'baby bootcamp - view from the trenches' book for the first six weeks, bundled in a basket with babygros, nappies and gin a rattle.

i have just handed my toddler one on to a friend... it was ok

but the book i bought before i discovered mumsnet i would NEVER part with! and that must have been about 2004?

Hmm I think it is this issue of you're either in one of two market segments:

1. Mumsnetters - many of whom won't buy it becuase they would MN for the answers to problems

AND

1. Those who have yet to hear of Mumsnet or if they have heard of it aren't members and will see a lot of quite witty quotes but won't relate to the brand quite as much so won't buy it either.

The parenting book market is hideous these days. Only the top few, maybe 20, books sell in any decent numbers apparently.

Well, I'm no longer in the target market. Not pregnant and have no toddlers. Simple. And when I was it was before I had discovered MN. So it might be too late to target MNers. Better to address potential MNers via NCT or the hospital Bounty pack.

I have peeked at the pregnancy guide in Waterstones and it was hilarious - a brilliant read. However I did not buy it or recommend it because my Internet life is my secret. If I had the MN book on my shelf or gave it to a friend I would worry they would guess I am a poster and seek me out (paranoid emoticon).

Sorry I haven't read any of the other messages.

But you do know that pregnanat women are great big, fat humour vacuums? Don't you? I have four children and I can honestly tell you I would NEVER have felt calmed by someone called VinegarTits or AnyFucker, quite regardless of what they had to say.

Also. Pregnant women are humourless. Totally. They remain that way for 2 years post birth. Do not waste jokes on these people. Stand back and do sign language. Really.

I bought the toddler one months ago but haven't opened it, it's sat in my bedside table.

DH is getting me the pregnancy one for Xmas, and I'm more likely to read that one.

Have to say though, I bought the toddler one mostly to "support" MN, just like I bought the MN Xmas cards last year but never sent them to anyone.

If I wasn't already on MN I don't think I'd pick the MN books over any other on the bookshop shelf. Not that I've ever actually seen the MN books in the shops - where are they sold?

Mumsnet has a good search facility and keeps posts for a long time (indefinitely?)... Also I think people may feel more reassured by 'experts' than by the collective wisdom of a talk forum. Having said that I might get the toddler one

Interesting, isn't it...? I thought the toddler one was hilarious, but I think the problem is that parents-to-be want a voice of authority. They don't want lots of funny views on a problem, they want THE ANSWER!

There isn't one, obviously - the best you'll ever get is lots of funny views on the problem. But by the time you've worked that out for yourself you're not buying books any more....

You could re-jig the contents so that they're more organised along the problem = answer line, but that's probably an editing nightmare!

My mum bought both books for me from the charity shop she works in - both still wrapped together in cling-wrap so the previous owner hadn't even opened them.
I was pregnant at the time and had a toddler so read some of both. They are both still under the bed not touched for months now.

They are amusing and full of tips but like someone else said they don't have "answers" ... just suggestions. I read it and felt a bit "wanting" still. I can't explain it very well. Maybe the lack of an authority figure? I quite like the Dr Spock books and he gives lots of scenarios with no definitive answer - but maybe I like it because his book is a bit more stuctured. I can get all the random answers by logging on to Mumsnet (and do) but in a book I think I'd like it to have more of a structure - a few summary paragraphs written by an editor at the start of each section and then the differing viewpoints.

I'll go and look again and see what else I think.