Survey of Book-Buying Behavior

Verso Advertising recently released the results of its 2009 Survey of Book-Buying Behavior. The survey included 5,640 respondents and was weighted to mirror the 18+ U.S. population. The study has some interesting findings including:

• 21.5% of book-buyers prefer to shop in local independent bookstores and 21.4% prefer to shop in chain bookstores however actual purchases do not reflect this. The effect is even more pronounced among avid book buyers.
• A hybrid market is developing. Many people will buy and read both e-books and printed books.
• E-reader penetration could reach 12-15% over two years. There is no near-term tipping point for e-reader adoption.
• The primary time that consumers use e-readers is: reading at home (27%), traveling or commuting (24%), reading in bed (14%), during breaks in the workday (9%), and studying or school reading (6%).

PowerPoint slides of the findings can be found at this link.