Season's Booksellers Forum Tour Ends in Massachusetts

On Wednesday, April 26, at the Westford Regency Hotel & Conference Center in Westford, Massachusetts, the American Booksellers Association held a Booksellers Forum and Education Program in conjunction with the New England Booksellers Association (NEBA). More than 60 booksellers attended the program, which featured the ABA education session "Handselling: Customer Service With Results." Representing ABA were CEO Avin Mark Domnitz and COO Oren Teicher.

"It was very comprehensive," NEBA Executive Director Rusty Drugan said of the forum. "So many discrete and important issues were covered -- technological issues to the Legislative Day to other various educational programs. Everyone was very engaged about the Legislative Day at [BookExpo America] and about efforts to get the bill passed to allow trade organizations to offer health insurance."

The seminar "Handselling: Customer Service With Results" was presented by ABA's Domnitz. It covered how to improve handselling strategies to grow a store's reputation, energize staff, and increase sales. Domnitz used video vignettes starring ABA staff to point out some do's and don'ts of handselling.

"Avin's handselling seminar was great," said Vicky Uminowicz of Titcomb's Bookshop in East Sandwich, Massachusetts. "It was a good reminder of all the basics that we need to cover. And it came at the perfect time for us because we always hire a lot of summer help. He's given me the whole format for our staff meeting on handselling."

Carol Stoltz of Porter Square Books in Boston agreed. "I thought the little snippets of interactions on the video were just great. They were wonderful examples, which we could respond to and then discuss what people did correctly or incorrectly. It inspired Jane [Dawson, co-owner of Porter Square] and me. When we came back to the store, we used some of the techniques even though we are seasoned booksellers. I would love for everyone in the store to see the presentation or a translation of it through one of us."

ABA's Booksellers Forum followed the handselling session. The forum, facilitated by Domnitz and Teicher, took up several issues of interest to independents, including the Winter Institute; Small Business Health Plans (SBHP), also known as Associated Health Plans; and the upcoming Legislative Day.

Karen Baker of the Country Bookseller in Wolfeboro, New Hampshire, brought up the January Winter Institute in Long Beach, California. "I wanted to know if ABA is going to do it again and how [the association] could possibly top it. I often go to educational seminars that seem full of wonderful ideas that I forget about once I get back to the bookstore. That wasn't the case with the Winter Institute.... I've been so busy working on what I learned there, I haven't forgotten a thing."

Baker was "most interested in the insurance issue," she said, referring to proposed legislation that would allow business and trade associations to offer group health coverage on a national or regional basis. "Oh, that health insurance could be easy and affordable," Baker said. "I'm very excited about it. All small businesses struggle with health insurance because the cost is exorbitant. Right now, no one is covered [at the store] except me. I would love to be able to offer insurance to everyone who is working close to full time if I could afford to. I haven't yet printed out the template letter on BookWeb to send to my senator, but I will."

Uminowicz of Titcomb's planned to attend Legislative Day on May 17 at BEA after hearing about the scheduled programming, which includes being briefed on current public policy issues affecting the book business and meeting with senators and congresspeople on Capitol Hill.

"I'm very excited," she said. "I'd like to learn more about the book industry, and I'd like the chance to meet with our representative about local issues. We do a lot of business online, and I'm interested in tax issues. I feel we should charge sales tax on all online purchases, not just on in-state sales. I'm just excited that a little bookstore like us gets to go to Washington. We'll learn a lot."

Uminowicz added, "I really appreciate that both Avin and Oren came out to talk with us in a small group format. I loved spending time just talking about books and the book industry. It was wonderful to be able to ask questions in an informal setting -- at BEA everything is so big there really isn't that kind of opportunity." --Karen Schechner