NAIBA to Hold Inaugural Marketing Conference

This October marks the reinvention of the New Atlantic Independent Booksellers Association (NAIBA) fall trade show into a marketing conference, where the emphasis will be on providing booksellers with knowledge about the books they will be selling rather than on placing orders. On the agenda are opportunities to preview publishers' latest offerings, meet authors, and take part in regional- and American Bookseller Association-sponsored educational programming. The conference will be held on Sunday, October 14, and Monday, October 15, at the Sheraton City Center in Baltimore, Maryland.

"The old concept of the trade show as the time to place orders [with publishers] wasn't working for us," explained NAIBA Executive Director Eileen Dengler. "We needed to build something new and more useful. Booksellers can use this as an opportunity to get help from the publishers to sell books in their stores." And Dengler's hoping that booksellers will take every opportunity to get answers to questions such as "What books are going to receive a lot of promotion this season?... How can you help me get more authors to my store?... And how can we use our limited floor space most effectively?"

Dengler added, "Publishers are very creative and have good marketing people. We want booksellers to leave the show all charged up about the books, the way reps return from a sales conference."

Among the highlights of the conference are awards presentations, including the NAIBA Book of the Year Awards, featuring a Legacy Award honoring Anne Tyler, and the Dashiell Hammett Awards, bestowed by the International Association of Crime Writers; expanded Pick of the List presentations; a "Moveable Feast" authors' luncheon; and educational workshops, including three sessions presented by ABA: "Staff Development -- An Overview," "Handselling: Customer Service With Results," and "How to be the Story: Developing and Implementing a Public Relations Plan."

Events begin on Saturday night, October 13, with an Early Bird Buffet Supper, followed by a Quiz Bowl. Attending the supper will be Laura Lippman (What the Dead Know, HarperCollins) and Joshilyn Jackson (The Girl Who Stopped Swimming, Grand Central).

Adult and children's Pick of the Lists sessions presented by publishers' house reps fill Sunday morning, and on Monday morning an additional Pick of the Lists session, this one presented by independent rep groups, will be featured.

Topics at NAIBA's Sunday afternoon workshops include shop local, Internet marketing, store design and layout, kids' pick of the lists as selected by regional booksellers, and more. ABA programming on Sunday includes:

• "Staff Development: An Overview," presented by ABA Membership Marketing Director Meg Smith from 2:30 p.m. - 4:15 p.m. Topics will include hiring people who will add strength to the store, recognizing and building upon an employee's unique abilities, and creating a work environment that motivates staff.

• "Handselling: Customer Service With Results," presented by ABA Education Director Len Vlahos from 2:30 p.m. - 4:00 p.m. Topics will focus on implementing and improving handselling strategies to grow the store's reputation, increase sales, and energize staff. Video vignettes will illustrate some do's and don'ts of handselling.

• "How to Be the Story: Developing and Implementing a Public Relations Plan," presented by Smith from 4:30 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. Independent booksellers spend an average of two percent of their annual budgets on advertising. But what is their budget for public relations? What is the difference between advertising and PR? This session will show how a comprehensive public relations plan can have greater impact on a store's visibility than advertising, at a much lower cost. Learn to create and execute a PR plan. Booksellers will break into groups to tackle hypothetical PR problems.

ABA will have a booth at the conference where booksellers will be able to talk to staff about any issues of concern; learn about the many new features of the redesigned trade website, BookWeb.org; and enter drawings for chances to win fabulous prizes, compliments of BookExpo America and ABA. Prizes include hotel accommodations at the 2008 Winter Institute, accommodations at Hotel ABA at BookExpo America 2008 in Los Angeles, an iPod, and a color inkjet printer.

Booksellers who are not currently members of ABA are invited to join staff at a lunch reception from noon to 1:00 p.m. on Monday in the Hopkins Room of the Sheraton Baltimore City Center. The gathering will be an opportunity to mingle, say hello, and get a taste of what the association has to offer. There is no planned agenda.

For a look at NAIBA's complete program, including author events, and to register, go to www.newatlanticbooks.com.