Publishers,
authors, and book promoters know that the way for books to sell well is to
market them effectively. They may have
their own expectations of which methods would be most effective, but it’s well
established that a concerted effort is needed.
However, when it comes to Barnes & Noble, something has been lost
when it comes to book marketing. It’s
hard to believe, but America’s last big book chain has been bleeding red ink
for years, while the book industry overall is healthy and stable. Amazon is up, indie bookstores are up,
publishers are making money – but B&N is in turmoil.
As
a consumer and book marketer I tried to help them, offering my advice through
my blog as well as email and snail mail. I never received a reply back. Maybe it was because they were too busy
switching the CEO’s desk. They’ve gone
through four in the past five years. Right now they don’t even have a CEO.
They
hire wrong, including people from outside the book world. Each of the recent CEOs has a year or less to
audition for the right to stay on – and they fail miserably. They can’t blame the retail apocalypse –
sales in retail America 2018 are up 5.5%.
They can’t blame the book industry – it’s growing. They can’t blame anyone but themselves.
So
what can they do to turn things around?
1. Develop
a relevant partnership. They need
someone who sells a profitable item in their store, just as they do well
selling coffee. Further, they need traffic boosters – something that gets
people in their stores. I would suggest
the stores make a government service available.
Have a mini-DMV in a store – people that come in with a purpose
(license) may end up browsing books, buying coffee, etc.
2. Sell
books that aren’t sold elsewhere. Enter
into an agreement to sell books published by a think- tank, association, or
non-profit-provided they’re not sold elsewhere.
BN can agree to donate resources to them as well.
3. Have
around-the-clock events. No reason not to.
They bring people in and they get authors and publishers to help market
B&N.
4. Lease
out event space to those who want to hold a special event there, from a party
to a graduation, especially during off-hours.
5. Brand
yourself --g ive out (don’t sell) bags, hats, mugs, shirts with B&N on
them. This is Marketing 101. Don’t they know anything?
6. Open
more stores in areas that are growing but are underserved. Stop closing stores – open more. You can’t grow if you shrink. Simple math here, folks.
7. Get
out there and market the book-reading, sin-tore ,paper-book experience. Take ownership of it.
8. When
you hold a name-author event, film it and use it for social media,
traditional media, and your website. Give people good content and a reason to
tune into the site.
9. Tell
your story. When people purchase from you, stick a card in the bag to explain
the rich history and importance of B&N.
Brand yourself!
10. Sell
something that no other retailer sells, including Amazon, especially something that kids
would want – which brings parents in with them.
11. Create
a rooftop restaurant. A café is nice,
but this would be great in warm-weather areas.
12. Work
with local stores to hold a sponsored cocktail hour – “Barnes & Noble and
Jack’s Winery Celebrate September 25th.”
13. Have
a costumed carnival barker right outside your store or down the block. Create a
mascot. Have it call attention to daily events, deals, and new books.
14. Encourage
local schools to do field trips to the bookstore. Have students prepay to get a deal on
books. Bring authors in to speak. Serve snacks.
15. Create
“buy local” campaigns for some stores where B&N is the only game in
town. Rail against Amazon and promote
human touch, paper books, real people.
Barnes
& Noble needs to shape up or get sold. It has floundered the past decade,
losing market share to Amazon and indies. It went down hill after Borders, its
main brick-and-mortar competitor closed up. It can’t hold onto a CEO and it
keeps closing stores. B&N can do
better. It needs to.
Maybe
it can read a book on bookstore management – but they probably don’t carry it.
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