Book Sense

Over the past year-and-a-half, BookSense.com's e-newsletter has established itself as a fun, promotional vehicle strengthening the bond between consumers and independent bookstores. "We get a lot of feedback from consumers," Linda Castellitto, BookSense.com's creative director, told Bookselling This Week. "And the newsletter will often prompt them to go look for books on their local independent bookstore's site, too. It's helped increase awareness [of independent bookstores]."

The votes have been tallied, and here are independent booksellers' picks of the best books for reading groups.

These are deemed to be the books that have been, and continue to be, the most popular choices of groups, as booksellers recommend them for their quality, subject matter, and discussion value.

An ever-increasing number of American Booksellers Association member bookstores are reporting to the Book Sense Bestseller List by using BookScan. Bookstores using Anthology, Books in Stores, Booklog, Computac/Square One, IBID, or WordStock systems can use BookScan to generate a weekly sales data file and to orchestrate electronic transmission of the file -- within a matter of seconds.

What is Book Cash?

Beginning in August, as many as 20,000 consumers nationwide will receive a special Book Cash promotion designed to send book buyers into bookstores nationwide. The latest version of Book Cash certificates, good for $10 towards payment for any book purchase, will be sent to certain new subscribers to the New York Times.

As in previous Book Cash promotions, the certificates should be handled as if they were regular checks or traveler's checks: they should be deposited in the store's bank account.

Book Sense recently announced that Firehouse.com, the leading fire and emergency services portal, which covers daily news and information for the emergency services sector, will be joining with Book Sense and The History Channel in supporting "The Fire on the Mountain, Campaign for Communities: Firefighter Fundraiser" promotion. The fundraiser will run from September 9 through October 25 and will coincide with a documentary based on the book Fire on the Mountain: The True Story of the South Canyon Fire (Washington Square Press) by John N. Maclean.

Based on the last four weeks of sales from over 300 independent bookstores across America.

By Carl Lennertz

Again, some gems with passionate recommendations that I thought some of you would like to consider for stock.

Carl
[email protected]

For almost two years, the BookSense.com Affiliate Program has been successful on the national level, with currently close to 500 affiliations made up of a mix of authors, political organizations, and businesses. Now, the number of independent bookstores that are initiating their own affiliate programs through their BookSense.com Web sites is rapidly growing. A major reason for the burgeoning numbers is simple, according to Meg Smith, BookSense.com business development and marketing manager. "It's a great marketing tool," she summed up.

Call for Bookstore Photos for the Fall 2002 New Yorker Book Sense Insert

Book Sense is working with The New Yorker on its September 30 Book Sense insert to feature as many independent bookstores with Book Sense as possible. All Book Sense stores are encouraged to send photographs of their stores -- exterior and interior shots as well as photos of in-store, window, or point-of-purchase Book Sense displays.

Based on the last four weeks of sales from over 300 independent bookstores across America.

Next week: Poetry

Thanks to all the stores that report, the new expanded electronic reporting options, and the software our team here has built to sort and slice a ton of data according to BISAC categories, this is the second of many subject category lists to run in BTW each week. (Cookbooks ran last week.)

Booksellers participating in the Book Sense national marketing program will have a special opportunity this summer to celebrate Harry Potter’s July 31st birthday. Scholastic Books and Book Sense have joined efforts to present the "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire Celebration" promotion.

For both Pat Willoughby and Petra Williams, the prospect of running an independent bookstore represented a radical change from their careers in corporate America.

Willoughby, in sales and marketing for the last 20 years, is the owner of the Burke’s Books of Park Ridge in Park Ridge, Illinois, set to open in late July. Williams, the co-owner, along with her husband Daniel, of All About Books in Smithville, Missouri, just outside of Kansas City, was an engineer. All About Books will open in mid-July.

The coming weeks will see the launch of significant new promotional opportunities for independent bookstores participating in the Book Sense national marketing program.