Indie Bookstore Love: Random Idea #2

The Seattle Times reported the closing of another indie bookseller in town. So. In my on-going quest to brainstorm ideas for indies, here's another random idea...

RANDOM IDEA #2: PARTNER WITH LOCAL NON-PROFITS
Partner with organizations that serve a community near your store--children's hospital, moms' groups, food bank, foster kids, cancer research, etc. More likely than not, these groups send newsletters to their members. Why not pitch a quarterly column, creating a round-up of books on a topic that's pertinent to the specific group?

For instance, say the local hospital is within a mile or two of your store. October is Breast Cancer Prevention Month. So put together an article listing 10 books (fiction and non-fiction) that feature breast cancer. Or, say, the Children's Hospital is close by. Create a list of the 10 best read-alouds for pediatric patients. Use your store's name as the byline ito drive traffic to you. And create a table with the offerings in one easy-to-find spot.

What are the benefits?
1. It's a win-win. These groups are looking for content; you have books that are relevant to their members.
2. You reach a broader audience than your own base! At no mailing / production expense to you.
3. You're helping your community and building one at the same time.

Indie Bookstore Love: Random Idea #1

Out for a run with a girlfriend who's a longtime bookseller, she shared the sobering news that her independent bookstore might not make it past the summer. Okay, folks, I'm still mourning All for Kids Books in Seattle and cannot grieve for yet another neighborhood institution to shutter.

So! After ignoring my umpteenth invitation from Facebook and Blogger friends to divulge 25 Random Things About Me, I thought I'd rather share some Random Ideas for Indie Bookstores to keep them going in this economy. (Note: I'm no expert on retail, but as an avid reader and stalwart book buyer, these are simply ideas that would make me eager to patronize my local bookstore...and to bring my friends.)

INDIE BOOKSTORES: RANDOM IDEA #1
With layoffs a reality and unemployment high, why not create a Career Seminar Series? Invite a local Life Coach to share his / her expertise on figuring out life's purpose and positioning ourselves to find, interview, and secure a new job in these economic conditions. THEN have the Life Coach book talk 10 awesome books about this very topic.

These career self-help books are the ones that people ought to BUY and use as a workbook, marking them up, scribbling notes, etc. They are INVESTMENTS, well worth the cost of the books.

Consider this: one of my acquaintances is a Life Coach. She had 20 clients in January, now she has 4. I would bet she would be motivated to conduct such a seminar for FREE.

Potentially partner with your closest library so you can work together to spread the word about the series to their patrons and your customers. Then, let local alumni groups (who maintain fairly large email lists) and organizers of local job fairs know about the seminar to generate more word-of-mouth.

Notify the press. This is hugely topical and relevant. I would be surprised if this didn't get you a feature story in the local section of your paper.

Today I am thankful for tenacious booksellers who enrich our communities.