February 2008 Newsflash!

In This Issue

A note from ABC President Becky Anderson

ABC is going (almost) paperless

New ABC Website

Newsletter Editor Extraordinaire

New Voices goes to the people

ABC goes to the Regionals

Quick reminders

Membership News...Hooray!.

Hello and Happy 2008!

I am going to waste very little time ushering you to the critical information below, but let me just say how exciting 2008 is looking for us. The Board just finished its annual retreat in Miami, and there was a lot of out-of-the-box thinking going on.

2008 is going to be a year of technological innovation, re-branding, and program strengthening so that we can work smarter and put more of our energy into the programs that really help the bottom line of our members.

The Board decided that in the current challenging climate, every service ABC provides to its members should do one of three things: Educate, Network, or Drive Sales.

I think you'll agree when you see the changes that they really make sense.

Rachel and I have our work cut out for us, but we've taken our vitamins and we're raring to go.

Hope you are too!

Kristen

A Note from ABC President Becky Anderson

Hello ABC!

I hope you all had a great year end, and 2008 is starting off with a bang. I've heard from quite a few independents around the country that it's been a mixed bag for holiday sales: some great increases, some moderate ones, some down, some even. But all in all I think we may have come away better than other retail businesses.

So now that we are over the season to make merry, let's make it a season to create more awareness of our local and independent edge. Spread that revolution to our fellow local independents in our cities-towns and villages. At Anderson's we had one of our best November-Decembers for both our stores and our Bookfair company.

I know it's that rant-that call to action-that mantra of local-independent-family owned business-that community connected message-that is doing it for us. So much can happen when the store, newspapers, government leaders, school districts, community leaders and groups come together to build community. We become that place where people buy into the revolution because we deliver on what we promise. We are the ones in tune with the souls and passions of our communities.

ABC is doing its part with the newly re-branded ABC catalog, a "Thanks for Buying Local" talker, and a number of other educational and print programs to help you succeed. You can read about many of our new initiatives below.

Let's make 2008 a revolutionary year where it takes off for all of us. Make it local and lead the charge for your community!

Because-Books Make Everything Better!

Hope to see you all soon in Los Angeles for BEA 2008,

Becky Anderson
Anderson's Bookshops
Naperville, Illinois
ABC President

ABC is going (almost) paperless

Green and lean is our new motto! Going green

It took us awhile to catch up with the 21^st century, but starting in April 2008, ABC will be moving all of its membership registration, event ticketing, catalog ordering, and credit card processing online.

Designed to work seamlessly with our new website (see below), our new system will allow users to receive immediate confirmation of orders and memberships, as well as to request invoices, get automatic e-mail reminders, and have payments processed when the order is placed. Gone are the days when ABC staffers--all 1.5 of them--have to manually process hundreds of charges, checks, and faxed orders.

But don't worry, the new system still allows users to pay by check, and our fax line and mailbox will remain open for those ABC members who like to do it the old fashioned way!

New ABC Website Under Construction

Grab your hard hats.

Launching in time for BEA, ABC will have a brand new, super snappy website.

The updated site will still deliver all the basic ABC information, but it will offer enhancements including a flash-based design, a clean and easy to navigate interface, and improved store listings by state that will include photos. It will also integrate with our new online ordering and credit card processing system.

The site is being built on a parallel URL. Want a sneak peek? A disclaimer: keep in mind that the site is under development, and currently only has test images and temporary text.

Still, we think it's pretty cool!

Newsletter Editor Extraordinaire

A new job for a familiar face Rachel small

In keeping with our new "work smarter" philosophy, we've re-jiggered our work load to streamline one of our most labor intensive tasks-the ABC newsletters.

Many of you remember Rachel Hochberg from last year's BEA. As of March, Rachel will be taking over the editorship of both of ABC's newsletters. She will now be the primary point person for all newsletter functions, including booking ad space, and research and development for the Toolbox.

This will allow Kristen to focus on building our new educational iniatives, as well as ongoing development of our existing programming such as the catalog, the upgraded New Voices materials (see below), and the work on our website and finances.

Interested in the 2008 ad program in the ABC News?

Download the media sheet here.

New Voices goes to the people (your customers!)

Working harder than ever

One of the most important developments to come out of the recent Board meeting was the decision to make sure every service ABC provided to its members did one of three things: Educate, Network, or Drive Sales.

In light of that the Board decided to reallocate the print costs of the spring poster--(a giveaway that did not necessarily drive sales)--to the New Voices program, and to make it a consumer broadsheet. In addition, the Board decided to focus the program on Middle and YA titles only for clear branding. Essentially, New Voices will now be a spring mini-catalog.

Each ABC store will receive 100 broadsheets, and there will also be a downloadable PDF. These materials will be available in time for BEA.

Remember, starting this year the New Voices program will be vetted by committee to insure a selection of great books, so this is a program that will really enhance sales!

ABC goes to the Regionals

Much better than going to the races.

Over the past couple of years, ABC has been strengthening its relationships with its sister associations, particularly in the area of education.

At BEA 2007 and at the 2008 ABA Winter Institute, ABC presented panels on issues in children's bookselling that were very well received. Demand for information on building children's sales continues to be strong, particularly among non-ABC member stores, and these presentations have the added benefit of building ABC membership.

In 2008, we will continue this trend by developing new panels for BEA, as well as taking ABC expertise to the regionals. In addition to our basic presentation on building children's sales, we are working on a couple of panel ideas for veteran children's booksellers which we will roll out at BEA.

Looking beyond that we will be recruiting store members to partner with the ABC to help us present at the Regionals. If you are interested, please e-mail Kristen for details. In the meantime stay tuned for more exciting updates!

Quick reminders
They'll barely slow you down Dues renewals are out. Please renew. The ABC Evening at BEA will be Friday, May 30th. Save the date. The full ABC at BEA rundown coming next Month. We've got some big (and very cool) surprises. If you haven't yet registered for the ABA hotel at BEA, they are already nearly sold out. Contact Margaret at the ABA to get the latest availability. Don't wait!

Membership News

Hooray!

2007 was a great year for ABC membership.

We added 42 new stores to our roster, and 96 new members overall!

Below are our newest additions, but I want to welcome once again all the new stores that joined us in 2007.

We're happy to have you!

If you are one of our newest members and you are missing any materials, please e-mail us. We were a victim of our own success last year because our outdated system made us always a little behind in processing this bountiful harvest of new members. Add in the foibles of faxing, a new baby, and an interstate move, and you'll appreciate last year's challenges.

The good news is that with our new online system, much of the tedious and redundant work will be eliminated, and as we continue to grow we will be much more agile.

Shortly before BEA we will produce a brand new "Guide to your ABC Membership" which will be mailed to all members. It will include the 2008 directory, as well as supplemental materials for each segment of the membership.

In the spirit making ABC (almost) paperless, this compact piece will replace the existing new member packet and will be the only thing that will be mailed to all members annually.

ABC will be lean and green in 2008!

200 SPONSOR (Thank you!)

Meera Gill

Play Odyssey Inc.

Los Angeles, CA

www.playoi.com

STORES

57th Street Books

Angela Sherrill-Children's Book Coordinator

Chicago, IL 60637

www.semcoop.com

Between the Covers