The State of Independant Booksellers

Let me tell you a story. In Ancient Egypt, there were two Papyrus sellers. We'll call one Fred-hotep and the other Joe-Hotep.

Now Fred-Hotep would open his store every day and the begin complaining "oh, there's no profit margin and that Library of Alexander! Everyobe is going there! And those Phonecians! They kill me with their order by mail and have it anywhere in the known world in six months! How do I compete with that?   I give the business six months!"

Joe-Hotep took a different tact. He looked at his competition and made some plans. He worked a deal with the Phonecians to delivery his stuff, he produced his own mail order catalogue, he started a little buy, sell trade program and he made sure his was the most knowledgeable staff around. He held events and pretty soon, Pharoah noticed him. He decreed Joe-Hotep the Royal papyrus dealer and soon, Joe-Hotep had a chain of stores.

I use Egypt, because for many, many years people have been predicting the end of Independant bookselling. Everyone has always complained that "People don't read any more."

The truth is, the market is changing and evolving, and when things change and evolved, only the fittest survive. You have to make sure your the fittest.

How do you do that? Easy just follow three rules.

Identify your competition.

Figure out what your competition does well, and do the same.

Figure out what your competition doesn't do well, and do something better. 

First, who is your competition? Let's look at the field.

Discount chainsis not your competition. Sure, they use a few big titles as loss leaders. Sure they have a book section, but the selection is incredibly limited, it's often in disarray and there is no one there to assist Books are an after thought for them. Real readers go to bookstores.  They aren't and won't ever be your competitor. Be aware of what they have on sale and buy less of it for yourself.

On-line merchants - There is some competition here. What do they do Well? Pricing. Or at least it seems so. Most of them you have to order more then $25.00 worth of the right things to get the free shipping, and if you don't, well, then you're paying the same price and you have to wait for the book. Also, they have reviews, and reader suggestions, but do they have a person you cam talk to? I've watched lots of people walk past the Bestseller list to go to the staff recommends. People want someone they can talk to - someone who can give them feedback, help them find some new thing. You have a staff, and by making sure they are personable and knowledgable you can get the return business.  Also, you can host events - not just signings but musical acts, singles mixers, school functions - be a real community service center. Try that on-line. You can lerchandise and greet and go into the community to get sales. You can approach churches and schools and local businesses and get sales. You business is small, and flexible and it can be anything.

I spoke to a man once who had a small Indy music store. As his community changed, so did his business. First, he added books, then DVD's, then Photo processing and his business flourished. You cam sell fresh fruit or art or luggage in your small book store. On-line marketers are good at diversifying. Find what they do well and emulate it.

Finally - chains.  These are your direct competition. But even they have their weaknesses. What they do well:

1. Inventory control. - They know what they have ad what they need.
2. Selection - They have or can get anything (so can you)
3. Branding - They have a rep, they are familiar and they are everywhere - so people know what they will get going in.
4. Reader's programs - they have a discount card - you should too.
5. Scientific research - WHAT? Yes, there have been millions of dollars of research on why people buy and the chains use it in their business. It can be silly stuff like "90% Of people turn to the right when they enter a store" to "Putting a book in a customers hand increases by 80% the chances they will buy it". It's out there and you need to know this stuff if your going to compete.

There are other things they do well, and I don't have space to get into it here - however, you need to figure this stuff out if you are to compete. What they don't do well, however is to allow their employees to be sales people. They discourage them from reading on the floor (Wouldn't you ask what the sales person is reading?), they limit the amount of products they will carry and they focus too much on large events and not enough on small ones. They are, on some level, a corporate machine centered on profit. It's easy for you to create a family environment to get customers to see your store as a social center. 


These are the things you need to know. You need to be able to walk your store and think like a psychologist. Certian typoes of nooks have an overlap - and if you put those books together people will buy more on impulse.  Like this:

People who read music books tend to read Art, Photogtaphy, TV, Travel, Drama and Arts and Crafts books. They also tend to like Home design and gardening books. They are also likely to be fiction readers. Put all these things close together in your store - along with poetry.

On the other hand, people who read Science fiction also read fiction, Computer books, Science books and Non-fiction in general. 

People who buy children's books tend to buy Fiction, Educational, Child rearing, Pregnancy books.

So, if you have fiction at the center of your store, tying it all together and the rest of the books around the edges witht he sections touchimg like sections, you drive sales. How? Well, someone comes in for a Travel guide and sees next to it the New John Lennon Bio, which they go to look at which draws them closer to gardening. Now, someone who wanted one ooks is browsibg, abd thinking about other things they have been meanibg to buy. Once you get the mind moving, they think about that baby shower coming up, projects they've been meaning to do - all sorts of things that you can then UPSELL.

Anyway, there is more that I know about how people buy. If your interested, please see the Services page. I've helped a lot of bookstores become more profitable, and I've love to help you, too.