ABA to Focus on E-Books and Literacy at Heartland and NEIBA Shows

Two regional trade shows — the Heartland Fall Forum [1], sponsored by the Great Lakes Independent Booksellers Association (GLIBA) and the Midwest Independent Booksellers Association (MIBA), and the New England Independent Booksellers Association (NEIBA)  Fall Conference [2] will be held from Wednesday, October 3, through Friday, October 5, 2012.

At each of the shows, ABA staff will be on hand to present two education sessions:

•  E-Books and Independent Bookstores: ABA staff will provide an in-depth introduction to Kobo’s e-reading platform, which is available to all ABA member bookstores through a partnership between ABA and Kobo, announced last week. Under the agreement, all ABA members will be able to offer their customers a full line of e-readers, e-reading accessories, and e-books from Kobo’s catalog of nearly three million titles. Booksellers will get the latest updates and an introduction to a digital solution that can support their bricks-and-mortar business. The session will include an opportunity for booksellers to ask questions.
   
• Meeting the Literacy Needs of Your Community: Children’s booksellers wear many hats and one of them is that of a literacy advocate. This session will detail how booksellers can begin to examine the literacy needs and efforts in their own communities and bring books and literacy to children who need them the most. Presented by the ABC Group at ABA.

 In addition, ABA will be staffing a booth on both trade show floors where booksellers can learn more about selling Kobo e-books and e-readers and how they can participate in the first-ever multi-publisher print-book promotion exclusively for ABA member bookstores, starting on Small Business Saturday (November 24, 2012).

The ABA booth will also feature information about the Eighth Annual Winter Institute to be held in Kansas City, Missouri, in February 2013. Booksellers who drop off a business card at the booth will earn an extra entry in a sweepstakes to win a Wi8 scholarship, covering up to four nights’ accommodations at the host hotel, a maximum of $350 in travel expenses, and the $75 Wi8 meal fee.

Attending the Heartland Fall Forum at The Depot in Minneapolis, Minnesota, will be ABA CEO Oren Teicher, Content Officer Dan Cullen, and Member Relationship Manager Nathan Halter. “Meeting the Literacy Needs in Your Community” will be held on Thursday, October 4, from 2:15 p.m. - 3:15 p.m.; “E-Books and Independent Bookstores” will also be presented on Thursday, from 3:30 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.

Just prior to the start of the Heartland Forum, on Wednesday, October 3, at The Depot, ABA is hosting an Events Specialty Institute, open to all ABA members. (Learn more.) [3]

Questions about the ABA program at the Heartland Fall Forum should be addressed to Halter [4].

Attending the NEIBA Fall Conference at the Rhode Island Convention Center in Providence, Rhode Island, will be Senior Program Officer Joy Dallanegra-Sanger, Membership and Marketing Officer Meg Smith, Director of Member Technology Neil Strandberg, and Member Relationship Manager Kaitlin Pitcher.

On Wednesday, October 3, from 3:45 p.m. - 5:00 p.m., in Providence, ABA will be present the session “Meeting the Literacy Needs in Your Community”; and on Friday, October 5, from 10:00 a.m.  - 11:00 a.m., “E-Books and Independent Bookstores.”

Booksellers with questions about the ABA program at the NEIBA show should contact Pitcher [5].

Bookstores that have not been members of ABA in the prior two years can join ABA at the regional trade shows and enjoy a complimentary trial membership until February 28, 2013. Trial membership includes all the benefits of regular membership (except for the monthly White Box mailing). Benefits include the ability to join IndieCommerce, access to ABA Education, and a chance to register for the February 2013 Winter Institute in Kansas City (Wi8).