E-Books

Here are answers to frequently asked questions about the first e-reader integrated with the Google eBooks™ platform.

Emily St. John Mandel talks about The Singer’s Gun, Unbridled Books’ recent 25-cent e-book promotion, and her cautiously optimistic forecast for indie bookstores.

This October, ABA member bookstores will be able to offer customers who purchase a hardcover copy of the new Hillary Jordan title, When She Woke, a free e-book version as well, thanks to a special promotion from Algonquin Books.

The Google eBooks™ Affiliate Program allows retailers and other website owners to link to hundreds of thousands of titles in the Google eBookstore and earn a commission for referring sales.

Last week, independent bookstores experienced a significant jump in e-book sales thanks to Unbridled Books’ partnership with ABA, which featured the promotion of 25 e-books for 25 cents.

ABA Technology Director Matt Supko and Matt Norcross of McLean & Eakin Booksellers provided the latest updates and best practices for promoting Google eBooks™ and IndieCommerce sites at the Day of Education’s “E-Books 201.”

Unbridled Books is partnering with the American Booksellers Association for a promotion that highlights 25 Unbridled eBooks for 25 cents. The titles, all Google eBooks™, will be available for 25 cents via IndieCommerce websites for three days, June 9 - 11.

ABA recently convened four Bookseller Task Forces – Digital, Education, Local First, and ABACUS – to gather member input and suggestions for ABA initiatives and programming.

Green Apple video demonstrates how to buy e-books; Orca Books is a “whale of a bookstore”; Booklovers’ Gourmet showcased in One New England

Random House has worked with ABA’s IndieBound program to create an “Eat Sleep (e)Read” window cling to promote e-book sales at independent bookstores.

This week, Judge Denny Chin rejected Google’s Amended Settlement Agreement with the Authors Guild and the Association of American Publishers, but left the door open for approval if changes were made.

With QR codes going mainstream, indie booksellers are increasingly integrating them into their shelf-talkers and newsletters. Among the results has been the opening of conversations between customers and staff about e-books, new technologies, and customer service.

On Monday, February 28, ABA indicated its strong support of the decision by Random House to adopt the agency pricing model for the publisher’s e-books. Under the agency model, a publisher sets a retail price for a specific book, which establishes a level playing field for all resellers.

At the recent Digital Book World conference in New York, Jack McKeown, co-owner of Books & Books in Westhampton, New York, and director of Business Development for Verso Digital, presented an update on the “2010 Survey of Book-Buying Behavior With Verso Digital.”

Two sessions on how to sell e-books drew full houses on Friday, January 21, at Winter Institute 6. Topics included how to introduce customers to e-readers and e-books, marketing tips and tactics, and the importance of capturing e-book market share.