On Demand Education Sessions

This session is for members working at Pop-Ups, Bookmobiles, Online Only & Other Non-Traditional Bookstores to come together for connection, support, community, resources, and to discuss the unique issues you experience

During this session* you'll hear from fellow booksellers on how they take accessibility into consideration in the virtual world of websites, virtual events, and social media. Guest speakers for these session are:

• Serena Morales, Books Are Magic
• Hannah Oliver Depp, Loyalty Bookstores
• E.R. Anderson, Charis Books and More
• Nicole Brinkley, Oblong Books
• Ryan Elizabeth Clark, Gibson's Bookstore

*A full transcription and closed captioning are available. Please note that both are machine-generated and are not reviewed for accuracy. Information discussed is reflective of the time of the recording.

Our New Member Series:Store Ownership 101 provides new and prospective bookstore owners with an opportunity to ask questions of seasoned bookstore owners/staff. 

The opinions expressed are those of the individual participants, not of the ABA. Information discussed is reflective of the time of the recording.

This session is part four of our Social Media series and focuses on social media analytics. It will include discussion on common benchmarks and available analytics tools used by other booksellers. Guest speakers for this session are:

• Kelsey Hammond, Yellow Dog Bookshop
• Rhiannon Gupta, RJ Julia Booksellers & Wesleyan RJ Julia Booksellers
• Kathy Ellen Davis, Bards Alley and NAIBA

This session follows the format of an Open Forum: the opinions expressed are those of the individual participants, not of the ABA. Information discussed is reflective of the time of the recording. Please see the most recent ShopTalk and/or the daily email update for the most current information.

This session follows the format of an Open Forum: the opinions expressed are those of the individual participants, not of the ABA. Information discussed is reflective of the time of the recording. Please see the most recent ShopTalk and/or the daily email update for the most current information.

Part 5 of our Social Media Series! This session will be an open Q&A format during which attendees can ask a few of the bookseller panelists from the prior sessions in the series additional questions related to social media.

This session is part four of our Social Media series and focuses on social media analytics. It will include discussion on common benchmarks and available analytics tools used by other booksellers. Guest speakers for this session are:

• Christine Bollow, Loyalty Bookstores
• Robin Wood, Books & Books @ The Studios
• Kathy Ellen Davis, Bards Alley and NAIBA 

This session provides kids focused booksellers and bookstore owners with the opportunity to come together for an open conversation to share best practices, talk about their business, and have a dialogue on the developing needs of children's bookstores and booksellers during Covid and beyond.

Our New Member Series: Intro to ABA Benefits includes a tutorial on navigating Bookweb.org to ensure a better understanding of where to find the information most vital for members. The presentation looks at education resources, networking and community, business affinity partnerships, indie marketing, advocacy, and much more. The second half of the session will offer booksellers an open forum during which they can ask questions and talk with ABA staff.

The opinions expressed are those of the individual participants, not of the ABA. Information discussed is reflective of the time of the recording. Please see the most recent coffee break and/or the daily email update for the most current information.

This session is the second of our five part Social Media series: All About Video and will feature guest speakers:

• Abbigail Glen, Shelves Bookstore
• Kathy Ellen Davis, Bards Alley and NAIBA 
• Kassie King and Stephanie Skees, The Novel Neighbor

This session follows the format of an Open Forum: the opinions expressed are those of the individual participants, not of the ABA. Information discussed is reflective of the time of the recording. Please see the most recent ShopTalk and/or the daily email update for the most current information.

This session is the first of our five part Social Media series: Need to Knows and Best Practices and will feature guest speakers:

• Isis Asare, Sistah Scifi
• Christina Ciampa, All She Wrote Books
• Claire Phelan, Third Place Books 

This session is for members working at stores who stock mixed or used inventory to come together for connection, support, community, resources, and to discuss the unique issues you experience within your business.

This session follows the format of an Open Forum: the opinions expressed are those of the individual participants, not of the ABA. Information discussed is reflective of the time of the recording. Please see the most recent ShopTalk and/or the daily email update for the most current information.

Having a bookstore with a café or restaurant creates some unique needs. This session will provide booksellers and bookstore owners with the opportunity to engage in an open conversation to share best practices, talk about their business, and crowdsource ideas & solutions to problems.

Consigning out books or other products to local merchants allows you to reach different locations and markets and enables you to strengthen the quality of your brand. Join a conversation with booksellers who regularly consign books to other merchants and know firsthand what the benefits and challenges are. They will share tips for getting started and suggestions for maintaining a vibrant business through consigning products. This session will also include discussion on and samples of operating agreements and other important documents. 

Speakers include:

• Kathy Burnette, Brain Lair Books (South Bend, IN)
• Rebekah Shoaf, Boogie Down Books (Bronx, New York)
• Jenny Cohen, Waucoma Bookstore (Hood River, OR)

Patreon is a membership platform that provides business tools for content creators to run a subscription service. In this session, Mary Ellen Funke of Patreon will present what Patreon is, why it is a valuable tool, use cases, and review Patreon pricing with time being included for a Q/A portion as well.

This session is for members working at stores operating with three or fewer employees to come together for connection, support, community, resources, and to discuss the unique issues you experience when faced with many tasks and few hands.

This session follows the format of an Open Forum: the opinions expressed are those of the individual participants, not of the ABA. Information discussed is reflective of the time of the recording. Please see the most recent ShopTalk and/or the daily email update for the most current information.

From romance to mystery, thriller to horror, fantasy to science fiction, and so much more, the world of genre fiction is filled with loyal readers. Are you reaching them? Booksellers will hear from several guest speakers on a bevy of topics related to marketing to the genre audience. Guest speakers will include:

• Danielle King, Left Bank Books in St. Louis, MO
• Stephanie Csaszar, Books Around the Corner in Gresham, OR
• Deanna Bailey, Story on the Square in McDonough, GA
• Kristian Beverly, Cupboard Maker Books in Enola, PA

This session follows the format of an Open Forum: the opinions expressed are those of the individual participants, not of the ABA. Information discussed is reflective of the time of the recording. Please see the most recent ShopTalk and/or the daily email update for the most current information.

This session follows the format of an Open Forum: the opinions expressed are those of the individual participants, not of the ABA. Information discussed is reflective of the time of the recording. Please see the most recent ShopTalk and/or the daily email update for the most current information.

Email list management is a necessary part of using any email marketing tool. The critical tasks of email list management include ensuring the contacts’ email addresses are valid, responding to unsubscribe requests efficiently, and maintaining your list of engaged subscribers with the end goals being a low bounce rate, a high open rate, and an overall healthy mailing list. This session, led by Cynthia Munoz, Constant Contact Retention Specialist will share best practices applicable to any platform and offer a demo of how to implement those best practices within Constant Contact. 

Our New Member Series:Store Ownership 101 provides new and prospective bookstore owners with an opportunity to ask questions of seasoned bookstore owners/staff. 

The opinions expressed are those of the individual participants, not of the ABA. Information discussed is reflective of the time of the recording. Please see the most recent coffee break and/or the daily email update for the most current information.

• Katrina Brooks, Black Pearl Books in Austin, TX
• Marianne Reiner, Run for Cover Bookstore in San Diego, CA
• Melanie Moore, Cincy Book Bus in Cincinnati, OH
• Lady Smith, The Snail on the Wall in Huntsville, AL
• Tameca Blossom-Lyons, Brown Babies Books in Evanston, IL
• Victoria Scott-Miller, Liberation Station in Durham, NC
• Lucy Kull, Redux Society in Kansas City, MO

This session follows the format of an Open Forum: the opinions expressed are those of the individual participants, not of the ABA. Information discussed is reflective of the time of the recording. Please see the most recent ShopTalk and/or the daily email update for the most current information.

This session follows the format of an Open Forum: the opinions expressed are those of the individual participants, not of the ABA. Information discussed is reflective of the time of the recording. Please see the most recent ShopTalk and/or the daily email update for the most current information.

Whether your store is new or long established, it can be profitable to consider how your store could be structured differently than your current business model. Join a conversation with booksellers who will provide information on starting a new nonprofit bookstore or transitioning an existing bookstore to a nonprofit.

This conversation is moderated by Veronica Liu, Founder Collective Member & General Coordinator, Word Up Community Bookshop/Librería Comunitaria (New York, NY). Presenters include: Jamie Rogers Southern, Executive Director, Bookmarks (Winston-Salem, NC); Jeff Martin, Founder, Magic City Books and Booksmart Tulsa (Tulsa, OK); Jeff Deutsch, Director, Seminary Co-op Bookstores (Chicago, IL); Praveen Madan, CEO, Kepler's Books and Magazines (Menlo Park, CA)

Our New Member Series: Intro to ABA Benefits includes a tutorial on navigating Bookweb.org to ensure a better understanding of where to find the information most vital for members. The presentation looks at education resources, networking and community, business affinity partnerships, indie marketing, advocacy, and much more. The second half of the session will offer booksellers an open forum during which they can ask questions and talk with ABA staff.

The opinions expressed are those of the individual participants, not of the ABA. Information discussed is reflective of the time of the recording. Please see the most recent coffee break and/or the daily email update for the most current information.

ABA recently partnered with Gravity Payments to offer credit card processing services to bookstore members. Gravity Payments, which came recommended by several booksellers, is led by CEO Dan Price, who launched the company because he saw independent businesses being overcharged and underserved by their credit card processors.

Gravity Payments offers special rates and terms for ABA members. 

During this session, representatives from Gravity Payments will discuss their service, provide a short presentation, and be available for questions from members.

Watch this short video to learn more about Dan Price and Gravity Payments.

This session follows the format of an Open Forum: the opinions expressed are those of the individual participants, not of the ABA. Information discussed is reflective of the time of the recording. Please see the most recent ShopTalk and/or the daily email update for the most current information.

This Marketing Meetup focuses on Independent Bookstore Day (IBD) and will include an overview of the annual event, why it’s important, and how some bookstores are celebrating and promoting it this year.

Guest speakers for this session are:

• Samantha Schoech, IBD Program Director 
• Danielle Mullen, Semicolon Bookstore, Chicago, Illinois
• Erin Ball, Third Place Books, Lake Forest Park, Washington
• Britt Hopkins, Second Star to the Right Children’s Books, Denver, Colorado
• Robin Wood, Books & Books at The Studios of Key West, Key West, Florida
• Hannah Reidell, Raven Book Store, Lawrence, Kansas, and MIBA
• Courtney Karecki, ABA IndieCommerce Specialist

This session follows the format of an Open Forum: the opinions expressed are those of the individual participants, not of the ABA. Information discussed is reflective of the time of the recording. Please see the most recent coffee break and/or the daily email update for the most current information.

This session follows the format of an Open Forum: the opinions expressed are those of the individual participants, not of the ABA. Information discussed is reflective of the time of the recording. Please see the most recent coffee break and/or the daily email update for the most current information.

• Serena Longo, Harvard Bookstore (Cambridge, MA)
• Teresa Lynch, The Ripped Bodice (Culver City, CA)
• Lety Stanton-Verduzco, Brain Lair Books (South Bend, IN)
• Misian Taylor, Room of One’s Own (Madison, WI)

This session follows the format of an Open Forum: the opinions expressed are those of the individual participants, not of the ABA. Information discussed is reflective of the time of the recording. Please see the most recent coffee break and/or the daily email update for the most current information.

This session follows the format of an Open Forum: the opinions expressed are those of the individual participants, not of the ABA. Information discussed is reflective of the time of the recording. Please see the most recent coffee break and/or the daily email update for the most current information.