An Assessment of Consumer Acceptance of Textbooks Authorized and Published by Nigerians (The Case of Fourth Dimension Publishing Co. Ltd. Enugu)

Abstract

The study is aimed at determining consumers' acceptability of t ext book s authored an .I publi she d by Ni g e r i a n s and to examine consumers' desirability y to substitute imported printing paper s wit h locally manufactured newsprints for text book publishing . Stratified sampl e s o f customers, namely, students, lecturers, librarians and sales force of publishing houses were interviewed. M a n a g e me n t of Fouth Dimension Publishing Co mpany Enu gu , West African Publishing Company Ilupeju and Baralta Pr ess Ka c1u na ~ were also interviewed. Results of the interviews a nd secondary data from Ministry of E duc atio n? UNESCO Yea r Boo k s , I ,i braries a nd Nigerian Publishers' Association wore subjocted to analysis and statistical testso Te s ts and interpretations of the analyzed data led to the fo l l ow i ng fi ndi ngs and recommendations. Local custowers accept text b ooks a u t h o r e d and published. by Nige r ians . BlJ.t Ln Niger ian pu.blishing, textbook inking is poor, the alighnment of printed matter on the pages is usually peerly done. The registering is also usually poor since letters at the back of the pages are seen while reading. Binders of Textbooks in Nigeria rarely use the proper adhesive. These areas need a lot of improvements. Corrections or ommissions should be rectified as soon as they are located by printers. Nigerians are rational buyers. They want value worth for their hard-earned money and will not patronze any product of a company unless they are convinced it will stand the test of time. The more the number of times a textbook changes hand from the senior to junior members of the family, the higher the quality in Nigerian sense. Textbooks manufactured from newsprint are not acceptable to customers. Nigerians are used to quality products. But since the idea is to force down the price of books so as to reach everybody the government should research into newsprint publishing and provide the necessary legal and economic environment for private applications. In india, no textbook costs a student more than the equivalent of N1. Indian textbooks are produced from newsprint in three editions: 1. Library edition with thick cover 2. Students’ edition with paper cover and is cheaper than the library edition. 3. General edition with high quality paper. It is the most costly. If contents and price are acceptable people will buy it. Government should borrow a leaf from India and intervene especially at the primary school level. The in-house magazine of the Nigerian Publishers Association should be developed into an advertising medium for publishers to reach out to lecturers, students, librarians and trade associations, since individal advertising is very expensive. Local publishers should patronize indigenous press houses such as Academic Press, Ilupeju rather than publishing overseas. Since typesetting is the major time cost consdieration, publishers should typeset their typed scripts or manuscripts for printers. This will reduce the delay occasioned by printers. Indigenous publishers should utilize the channels of distribution already developed by the multinational publishers and if possible, also engage their sales representatives on part time basis. The glazed cover, sharp illustrations and the clear blurb that characterized foreign textbooks are the most marked difference between textbooks authored and published by Nigerians and these published by foreigners.