ABA at NEIBA, MBA Fall Shows Next Week

American Booksellers Association staff will be at the New England and Midwest booksellers associations’ fall shows next week to offer educational programming and to meet with booksellers on the trade show floors. Booksellers who stop by the ABA booth can learn about membership specials and enter their names for an extra chance to win a scholarship to the Sixth Annual Winter Institute, to be held January 19 - 21, 2011, in Washington, D.C.

New England Independent Booksellers Association (NEIBA): September 30 - October 2, Rhode Island Convention Center, Providence, RI

ABA staff at the show will include CEO Oren Teicher, Senior Public Policy Analyst David Grogan, and Member Relationship Manager Kaitlin Pitcher.

• E-Fairness Update With State-by-State Roundtables: September 30, 4:30 p.m. - 5:30 p.m.
  ABA staff will provide a briefing on state sales tax fairness efforts in the NEIBA region. Discussions will focus on the strategies that booksellers can use to help move e-fairness efforts forward, current ABA initiatives, and how-to's for legislative meetings. There will also be a Q&A period. Following the presentation, booksellers will organize by state for further discussion.

ABA COO Len Vlahos will also be on hand on Friday afternoon, October 1, for the NEIBA session "Google Editions," presented by Chris Palma, strategic partner development, Google Books Partner Program. NEIBA invites all booksellers to this important session, aimed at those who are selling e-books, are planning to sell e-books, or would like to be able to answer customers questions about purchasing e-books.

Midwest Booksellers Association (MBA): October 1 - 2, RiverCentre, St. Paul, MN

ABA staff at the show will include Technology Director Matt Supko and Member Relationship Manager Elizabeth Nichols.

• Techniques & Tactics for Online Website Promotion: October 1, 9:30 a.m. - 10:30 a.m.
  Want better placement in search results? Make the most of your website, and increase your audience and your sales. From hyperlocal searches and affiliate marketing to advanced analytics and beyond, learn how to build a meaningful relationship between your website, search engines, and your community. Presented by Matt Supko.
• Business of Accepting Credit and Debit Cards: October 1, 3:40 p.m. - 4:40 p.m.
  Learn how to navigate the myriad rules associated with accepting credit and debit cards. From managing procedures that ensure you are getting the best rate to understanding PCI compliance, learning more about this topic can save you money. Presented by Sarah Bagby, Watermark Books.

Details about regional programming and trade show registration information can be found on the respective regional websites.

BookExpo America will be conducting a brief survey at each show to discover what will make BEA even better for booksellers. They're encouraging booksellers to stop by booth G3-4 at NEIBA and booth 2005 at MBA to take part in a brief survey. BEA will give participants $5 for sharing their opinions.