'Barnes And Noble'
Barnes and Noble are the biggest book retailer in America. Many of the cookery books that are now sold gain prominence through being sold in their stores. Their shops are situated in New York, again a prolific area for those who want their work to be noticed. In a city as busy as New York cookery books that are focused on producing meals that can be made in a small apartment with little fuss are a big hit.
Looking at retailers like this is important for my research. If the book is to be published it is a good idea to look at they way bestselling books are formatted. I can draw on this for the design of my own book. I will look at all best selling books but will concentrate on those that share the same target audience of my book.
Although i already have a rough idea of how i want my book to look colour wise i need to take into account text format and layout. I also need to look at image format and layout. Without doing this i will not be able to produce something to my best ability as i will be limiting myself to my own particular tastes.
The main reason that Barnes and Noble are so successful is down to the fact that they sell all forms of books, magazines, graphic novels etc. Although this is more related to their success as a retailer i still feel that this is important for future reference. A cook book is such a wide spread item and one that is aimed at students would sit well in a shop like this as many different people walk through their doors. This could attract people to the book just because of where it is situated in the shop.
Barnes and Noble are the biggest book retailer in America. Many of the cookery books that are now sold gain prominence through being sold in their stores. Their shops are situated in New York, again a prolific area for those who want their work to be noticed. In a city as busy as New York cookery books that are focused on producing meals that can be made in a small apartment with little fuss are a big hit.
Looking at retailers like this is important for my research. If the book is to be published it is a good idea to look at they way bestselling books are formatted. I can draw on this for the design of my own book. I will look at all best selling books but will concentrate on those that share the same target audience of my book.
Although i already have a rough idea of how i want my book to look colour wise i need to take into account text format and layout. I also need to look at image format and layout. Without doing this i will not be able to produce something to my best ability as i will be limiting myself to my own particular tastes.
The main reason that Barnes and Noble are so successful is down to the fact that they sell all forms of books, magazines, graphic novels etc. Although this is more related to their success as a retailer i still feel that this is important for future reference. A cook book is such a wide spread item and one that is aimed at students would sit well in a shop like this as many different people walk through their doors. This could attract people to the book just because of where it is situated in the shop.
These are the current 'cookbook
bestsellers' on Barnes and Noble. All of them vary greatly in design
however all of them are aimed mainly at women. A lot of this is down to a
'new age' of women that now work and come home wanting to cook a proper
meal. Some want to diet but be healthy. My cookbook is aimed at both
men and women and i will have to take this into consideration in the
design. Two of the books are formatted in such a way that they are bound
to appeal more to women rather than a male audience from the front
cover.
 |
| One version of the cover |
These are the current 'cookbook bestsellers' on Barnes and Noble. All of them vary greatly in design however all of them are aimed mainly at women. A lot of this is down to a 'new age' of women that now work and come home wanting to cook a proper meal. Some want to diet but be healthy. My cookbook is aimed at both men and women and i will have to take this into consideration in the design. Two of the books are formatted in such a way that they are bound to appeal more to women rather than a male audience from the front cover.
The use of the flowers immediately adds a feminine feel to the book. Whether this is to attract other women or to purely reflect the author is something that is left to the public to interprate. There is always an element of marketing with all products intended for sale as without this they would not be successful. The mixture of the bold and swirly text I don't feel works well however that is personal preference. The whole point is to catch the eye with the bold text which then draws the reader in. On this particular book however i feel that the whole cover is far too busy. The flowers and various clashing colours detract from the overall look of the cover. Sometimes when the cover is too busy the attraction of the clashing colours, text etc is lost. Personally the flowery border i feel works well and i will think about possibly using a border for the cover of my own book. I do like the combination of swirly text and plainer,bolder text again something i will take forward into my own work. However i will not use as many colours as this is where i feel the cover falls down.
As for the back cover i like the way that it is a simple photograph of the author. As my book is for a company i do not feel that a photograph would be appropriate. Text references and quotes would probably be more suitable.
As for the back cover i like the way that it is a simple photograph of the author. As my book is for a company i do not feel that a photograph would be appropriate. Text references and quotes would probably be more suitable.
Personally from the two covers i much prefer the first one as i feel that it all works well together and draws your eye in. The second cover is let down i feel by the colours rather than the text or flower border. This is what i will take forward and look at in my own work.
No comments:
Post a Comment