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Owners of (self-defined) very small stores are challenged to find the time and resources to organize successful events and to balance daily work with event budgeting, planning, execution, and follow-up. This panel will feature owners of very small stores who are excited to share tips and practices for hosting successful events.
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If you are thinking about opening a café or other food and beverage component in your bookstore, this session is not to be missed. Panelist will discuss tips and best practices for start-up, profitability, staffing, and overall management for combining book retail and a café business.
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This is a ticketed session. For owners and managers only. Limited capacity, first-come, first-served. Preference will be given to ABA owners and managers.
Dr. John Sherlock, Director, Master of Science Human Resources Program at Western Carolina University, will lead a discussion that will focus on best HR practices for small business owners, including talent management and how to create a skills inventory for you and your staff.
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Learn how to attract capacity crowds week after week and how to market to this captive audience to drive sales. Energetic and dynamic bookstore storytime leaders will discuss how to incorporate variety, pacing, and songs to add to the fun, as well as the risks and rewards of soliciting donations or even charging admittance. This session will also include a demonstration of tips and tricks for wearing costume characters, including fun and easy ways to pose for pictures, how to deal with frightened children, and simple moves to make the character come alive.
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For booksellers, there are few greater triumphs than placing the right book in the hands of any reader, but that is especially true for kids who rarely if ever read for their own pleasure. How can we reach these non-readers and what can be done to turn them into readers? Booksellers and educators who have been successful in the ongoing struggle to reach reluctant readers will be joined by bestselling author and literacy advocate Jon Scieszka to share their passion to make a difference and discuss what they have learned works best for inspiring children to want to read.
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A children’s book festival can be an ideal vehicle to promote reading and literacy in your community. Booksellers with vast experience at literary festivals around the country will explain how to get started with your own children's or teen festival, working in partnership with other local businesses and organizations, attracting authors and publicists, and garnering media attention. How narrow or broadly should your focus be, when are the best times of year, and what other considerations must go into such an undertaking? Learn all this and more before adding a festival to your events calendar.
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Bookstores everywhere are resources and gathering places in their communities but underrepresented and disenfranchised students often lack the means to visit your store or are unaware of how much you have to offer. In these cases, partnering with religious, cultural, and non-profit organizations, as well as underprivileged schools, can help reach new customers. Learn from booksellers across the country who have been successful in bridging this divide and creatively getting a share of Title I money so books can find a home in diverse households of all income levels.
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A business plan is a document typically associated with launching a bookstore. However, any time you decide to make a change to your operations, it's critical to have a plan. This session will include a review of the essentials for any business plan. Attendees will have a chance to have their own business plans reviewed post-Winter Institute by panelist Jodi Rhoden, Owner/Operator of Short Street Cakes and Teacher at Birds Eye Business Planning (Asheville, NC).
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This session was presented at Children's Institute 2014.
It is clear that age compression -- or the marketing of titles for older children to younger children -- is having an effect on the sales and popularity of picture books among elementary school children. But the benefits of reading picture books to older children are many. How can you educate customers about the importance of picture books for children ages 5 and up?
This session was presented at Children's Institute 2014.
It is clear that age compression -- or the marketing of titles for older children to younger children -- is having an effect on the sales and popularity of picture books among elementary school children. But the benefits of reading picture books to older children are many. How can you educate customers about the importance of picture books for children ages 5 and up?
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Session presented at Children's Institute 2014.
Book fairs can be a great source of revenue if you can keep them from being a drain on your resources. How far in advance should you schedule in order to properly prepare? How much inventory should you have on hand, and how do you choose titles and decide quantity? Should you discount books, or offer a percentage of sales as cash back? What kinds of events are helpful in driving book fair attendance? What organizations, other than schools, make good book fair partners? This session will give you the keys to grow your book fair business in your store, at schools, and elsewhere in your community.
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Whether you need business capital for a store redesign, expansion, or to open a second location, this session will help you to think about non-traditional options to acquire the capital you need. From social media campaigns to community involvement, there are a growing number of new options beyond the bank loan.
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Geno Church, Word of Mouth Pathfinder from Brains on Fire, will lead an interactive workshop created to help booksellers spark and sustain word of mouth marketing. Learn how to make people fall passionately and madly in love with your store, and how loving your customers can result in not just building a thriving community, but also drive meaningful conversations and, ultimately, the financial success of your business. This session will also be offered on Friday from 10:30 a.m. - 11:45 a.m.
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Edelweiss is a program that provides value to both booksellers purchasing titles for their stores and sales reps. This session will explore the ways Edelweiss can both optimize and streamline the buying process and facilitate better communication among booksellers and reps. Robert Sindelar, Managing Partner of Third Place Books, with stores in Lake Forest Park and Seattle, will moderate the session.
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This basic course for new booksellers and those interested in a refresher will provide best practices for handselling in the era of showrooming. A panel of experienced booksellers will explore not only placing the right book in a customer’s hands but also about how to close the sale. The session will conclude with the opportunity to see expert handsellers in action.
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Putting your store in the media spotlight and keeping it there does not have to cost a lot of money. In fact, it doesn't have to cost you anything at all beyond usual staff hours. This session will focus on how to take advantage of free media outlets to market and promote your store.
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Have you ever wondered what your customers think about your store or how they view you compared to your competition? In this session, find out how to create and execute customer surveys that will help you learn more about your customers and develop more effective strategies to meet their needs. This session will outline the "nuts-and-bolts" of how to do customer surveys -- including how to frame questions, administer the survey in your store and online, and analyze the results.
The American Booksellers Association, a national not-for-profit trade organization, works with booksellers and industry partners to ensure the success and profitability of independently owned book retailers, and to assist in expanding the community of the book.
Independent bookstores act as community anchors; they serve a unique role in promoting the open exchange of ideas, enriching the cultural life of communities, and creating economically vibrant neighborhoods.
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