How can I get prominent place in Bookstores?

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Permalink Reply by Bill Frank on August 27, 2007 at 5:49pm

Hi, Rita. Congratulations on your success at placing your book in large bookstores and local independents.

Your question has an interesting, international flavor to it. Book selling practices in the UK are different than in the US. I know this because I was promoting an American author to Borders and large independents in the UK this February.

Most large bookstores in the US prefer to purchase books from a distributor or a wholesaler. They want to write one check at the end of each month to the distributor or wholesaler rather than to the individual publishers. It means less administrative work for them.

I was fortunate in February. My author was with a large publisher that had it's own distribution in the UK. Perhaps you've heard of them. Pearson Education, part of Pearson publishing. Without that connection to the distribution channel in the UK, I'm not sure I would have had success with Borders or the other bookstores.

One thing you can do to help the bookstores to sell your books is to prepare a "hand selling" sheet. Hand selling is industry jargon for personalized recommendations to book buyers based on their buying habits and preferences. Create an A4 (8.5 x 11) sheet that describes your book. Include the title, author, ISBN, price, ordering information, and any marketing plans you have for the book. One important thing to include is a brief description of the book and a comparison to other books in your genre. The comparison information helps sales clerks to identify potential customers for your book. For instance, if a book buyer comes in and asks for a similar book to yours, the clerk can make the customer aware of your book. I've also found it's helpful to include a thumbnail picture of your book's cover on the hand selling sheet. It helps clerks to locate the book by its cover if a customer wants to buy it.

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Permalink Reply by Rita Offen on August 28, 2007 at 2:53am

Thanks Bill, this is very useful. My book is co-operatively published, and is available through most wholesalers, so it's easily accessible via the bookstores' system. It is print on demand which has not been a problem for most so far, but it has been a problem for a few, who have said that once they've bought it, if it doesn't sell, they're stuck with it. I believe it will sell though if it has a good position in the store. A manager from Borders said that big publishers pay the bookstores to place their books in prominent places. I don't have the resources to do this, so maybe I have to rely upon my charm!

Rita

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Permalink Reply by Marion James on August 28, 2007 at 9:54am

Rita

Best of luck with your book.

Here is an honest comment from a book shop owner: EVERY WRITER THINKS THEIR BOOK WILL SELL. No, that wasn't meant to be smart or sarcastic, it is just a fact of life.

So here are two pieces of genuine, heartfelt advice:

1. Rely on your charm! What a great summary of how you can help the book store market your book. If you will do a booksign, book reading etc ("meet the local author" is always popular) the book store will be more likely to make it prominent. Sadly, you are competing for the prime space with blockbusters that have huge national advertising campaigns behind them.
2. Help them out with the "returns" problem. That really is a problem for the small local bookstore. They don't have the capital to invest in a dud. Even a book like Harry Potter can end up left on your shelf if you over order, and you can return the extra copies to the wholesaler and not pay for it. If you really believe your book will sell if in prime place, then as a small bookstore I would be impressed if you would "put your money where your mouth is". How about you offer them if they will put 5 copies of your book on x shelf, then you will buy back unsold copies at the end of y months at a rate of z% of the cover price (z being as close to the amount they have to pay for the book (60%?) as you dare).

Just remember, Borders Waterstones etc have decisions made centrally, so the managers don't have much freedom. Local independents are more likely to be flexible and help you.

Best of luck.

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Permalink Reply by Rita Offen on August 28, 2007 at 2:00pm

Hi Marion,

This is very useful - I see what you mean. I will be contacting bookshop owners for book signings. You're right, large stores are limited by their 'system' they follow. One manager at Borders said I should negotiate with Gardners to offer my book sale or return. She wasn't willing to order a POD book. Anyway, I'm still learning lots! Thanks for your help. One question - in 2. above, what number of months should I leave the books with the shop before I buy back any unsold copies?

Rita
http://www.chilledparent.com

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Permalink Reply by Marion James on August 29, 2007 at 4:15pm

Yes, probably the lady from Borders prefers to work with Gardners because then she just has one account to track, and they have a GREAT system. They updated their website last month and it is really sweet to use.

Gardners would give 60 days* or 90 days for returns, depending on the retailer, so you could work on that basis.

* They normally express this as 2+1 i.e. Any books ordered in January, irrespective of the date, are paid for or returned by the 31 March. So 1 Jan or 31 Jan invoices: pay or return by 31 Mar.

For non UK readers: Gardners is one of the biggest UK distributors, a bit like Ingram in USA.

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