Dear Booksellers,

It’s Monday, so let’s get right to it:

IndieCommerce/IndieLite Updates

• IndieCommerce Alert: The volume of support requests has accelerated significantly in the last week. The IndieCommerce team now has more than 300 pending tickets for customer support. We are working through them as fast as possible and are continuing to add additional resources with that goal in mind. We appreciate your patience.
• Non-book:
  • Local Store Inventory (LSI) for non-book is scheduled to be available later this week. This will make your non-book/sideline ecommerce more robust by displaying your on-hands for customers. Watch for the announcement.
  • Register for the October 14 webinar on how to create, sell, and manage non-book stock on IndieCommerce sites.
  • Read the IndieCommerce FAQ on adding non-book products to IndieCommerce sites.
• New Features for IndieLite:
  • Discount Coupons: IndieLite sites can now offer coupons to their customers. Coupons can be for a dollar amount or percentage, for the order subtotal, or for particular ISBNs. (IndieCommerce stores have additional options for coupons.) Learn more about offering discount coupons.
  • IndieLite stores using Stamps.com, PirateShip, or ShippingEasy solutions can export order information into a CSV file and create shipping labels in bulk.
  • IndieLite stores can request both of the above features from the Store Features page on their IL sites. Go to: Store -> Configuration -> Account Information and Preferences -> Store Features
• Bookazine Stock Information: Bookazine stock information is now visible on all IndieCommerce and IndieLite admin order pages.
• Launch Your Site Now: The IndieCommerce team has created two webinars to help booksellers on the IndieCommerce and IndieLite platforms prepare their sites for launch. Watch now: “IndieCommerce 101: How to Get Your New IndieCommerce Site Ready for Launch” and “IndieLite 101: How to Get Your New IndieLite Site Ready for Launch.”

Antiracist Idea

Joanna Robinson from The Treehouse Reading and Arts Center shared her #antiracistindies idea: Each time you sell an antiracist book, a book that celebrates diversity, a book that addresses racism/antiracsim, or a book that teaches accurate American history, tweet, “We just sold another anitracist book to an American voter,” along with the photo of the book and the hashtag #antiracistindies. 

COVID Resources

A reminder for those looking for air filters, masks, and other PPE, there is a Resources for Reopening page on BookWeb along with a Coronavirus Resources page, which both have valuable information. The supply lists are continually being updated.

Local Grants

A couple of weeks ago, we reminded everyone to check with your local city and state government for potential new relief grants. Avid Bookshop just discovered a recently announced grant/loan program through their county. And here’s a tip: They saw that they weren’t eligible but they were encouraged to apply anyway and they received the grant! So again, new grants and loans are still popping up on the local level. Watch for them.

This Week’s Events

Coffee Break: Tuesday, October 6, at 3:00 p.m. ET
Join us for an opportunity to share support, ask questions, and trade best practices. All booksellers are welcome. If you’ve never attended this event before, it’s a great way to hear what’s working well at other stores and crowdsource solutions to any challenges you’re facing at your store. Email [email protected] for Zoom login details.

Technology Meetup: Shipping Tools: Thursday, October 8, at 1:00 p.m. ET
This session will feature booksellers discussing what shipping platforms and software they are using, what their process is, and useful tips. Guest speakers are:

• Suzanna Hermans of Oblong Books in Rhinebeck and Millerton, New York
• Alison Gwinn of Changing Hands in Tempe and Phoenix, Arizona
• Kathy Burnette of Brain Lair Books in South Bend, Indiana

Sign up and learn more about ABA meetups here. Recordings of previous meetups are available in the Education Resources section on BookWeb.

Q4 Top 10 Things to Know About: Leveraging ABA’s Fall Marketing Campaign: Thursday, October 8, at 3:00 p.m. ET, 
The next session in our series on preparing for Q4 will focus on ABA’s second fall marketing campaign, to be announced later this week. Registration is required. If you can’t attend, we’ll be sharing takeaways in this Friday’s update.

ABA is here for all of you. Please reach out if there is anything we can help with. Members can contact me directly, or email the Membership, Advocacy, or IndieCommerce teams.

Best,
Allison