Social network Gurgle.com signs book deal
Gurgle.com, a new mother and baby social networking site, which claims to be the UK’s first, is set to launch a series of books on parenting with publishing house HarperCollins.
Due to be published in spring 2009, the series of three paperback books aim to combine educational articles from the site with user-generated information.
Nifa McLaughlin, site editor at Gurgle.com, said: “We are thrilled to announce our partnership with HarperCollins which will bring the gurgle brand to a wider audience. It’s a real testament to all who work on the site that gurgle has become such an influential voice within the parenting marketplace within a short space of time.”
Launched in October 2007, Gurgle.com is a joint venture with high street retailer Mothercare offering parents and parents-to-be the chance to join an online community where they can share experiences and gather advice from parenting experts.
The site has more than 50 ‘how-to’ videos covering a variety of topics including making up a bottle, morning sickness and what to do if your baby chokes.
Gurgle.com is claiming to be the first such site in the market, despite a number of established websites offering a similar service.
Justine Roberts, co-founder of Mumsnet.com, which launched in 2000, told mad.co.uk: “We don’t label ourselves as a ‘social networking site’ as such, but effectively I suppose that’s what we are, so I don’t think they can really call themselves the first as we have been going for eight years.
“Labels are irrelevant though. Websites are either useful or they’re not. We have always set out to offer the best and most useful advice to mothers and I’m sure they will be useful to new mothers as well, which is the most important thing.”
