Ebooks present opportunities rather than threats for booksellers. While dedicated ebook readers may not be worthwhile to stock, demonstrating ebook capabilities can attract customers. Selling ebooks through affiliate partnerships is free or low-cost. Ebooks expand the customer base by improving access through formats like large print or audio. Selling related accessories also creates new revenue streams. Booksellers can encourage ebook readers into their stores through promotions and developing an ebook community. Overall, ebooks should have a place in bookstores.

1. Is There Room On Your Shelves
For Ebooks?

2. Are you scared by ebooks?
Why?
Are you scared by Audiobooks?
Hardbacks, Paperbacks and all the other formats
of books?
So why are ebooks different then?

3. Sadly as much as we may want to click our heels
three times, close our eyes and think of home
that's just not going to make ebooks, kindles,
and apps go away.
Instead we have to deal with them head on and if
we can turn what we might think of as a
predator to our shops and sales instead into a
bit of pet project then we are likely to make it
safely through the forest of change.

4. Who reads ebooks?
And how do they read them?
Who here has an ebook reader...
Kindle, Kobo, Nook, Sony, Other?

5. Who here has an Ipad or tablet?
Android, windows or generic...

6. Who here has a smart phone
or blackberry...

7. Who here has a laptop or desktop
computer...

8. So who here doesn't have an
ebook reader...
Pretty much everyone has an
ebook reader, ebook app, or the
ability to read ebooks – it's pretty
much integral to the tech these
days.

9. Who here doesn't sell ebooks?
Why?
Technology, ability or desire –
which one is it and how hard is it
to overcome really?

10. So first off do you need to sell
ebook readers to sell ebooks?
NO
in fact my suggestion, having ebook readers on sale and instock
in the shop, is that truthfully I've found as a small bookshop that
the costs have outweighed the gain...stockholding, knowledge
base needed etc set against low return sales income (given
most people largely buy 'free' or exceptionally low cost books)
just don't in my experience make the scales balance.
Add into this the growing trend is in fact away from dedicated
ereaders and into tablets and apps means you are likely always
going to be one model behind...

11. So do you need to sell ebook readers
to sell ebooks?
Maybe?
That said it is fair to say that 'Kobo' is a strong and growing brand
and the GoTab from Gardners is a lovely little piece of
equipment, so it may be that you do want to sell ereaders – that's
a personal shop choice and I do know a few shops that have
done relatively well with them, more often slightly larger shops in
more urban or affluent areas though from what I have gathered
talking with folks around the place.

12. Don't be a Dummy
Get in a demo or dummy model (you can pick secondhand ones up quite
cheaply) to make a 'feature' of the fact that you can sell folks ebooks
(indeed you can always offer to order them ereaders anyway if need
be!).
If anything that's been the only real benefit I've gotten from actually
stocking ereaders, it's a talking point, it makes people stop and play
for a few minutes, it makes them ask questions about ebooks which
gives me an 'in' to promote the ways they can get ebooks and still
shop with and support my shop – their local bookshop and place of

13. Before you make any decision, if you
haven't already, here are some basic
questions you need to ask yourself...
What do I get for every device sale and is it worth the
display space and retail energy I will be devoting to it?
How do the subsequent e-book sales factor into the
equation?
What should be the new staff-training protocols?
How will I handle customer service?
Do I own the customer data or does someone else?

14. and finally here are a sample of some of
the questions that customers ask...
Does this get WiFi? Do I need the internet?
What kind of processor does it have?
What’s the battery life?
If I download a book to this, can I transfer it to my
phone? How? Can you do it for me please...
What’s DRM?
So, is this a Kindle then?

15. These few questions are just
the beginning,
because remember when you
move into selling ereaders
you are moving into selling
electronics and that's a whole
new market and set of skills
and issues...

16. So Ebook selling then...
Some methods and venues for sale
of ebooks...
Amazon, Kobo, Hive,
Bookdepository, 10ofthose,
Gardners, bespoke/own website, BA
ebookcard & site...
(to name a few)

17. Which of these are closed doors for
booksellers?
Amazon, Kobo, Hive,
Bookdepository, 10ofthose,
Gardners, bespoke/own website, BA
ebookcard & site...

18. Answer …
None of them,
they are all venues booksellers can
tap into and make use of
– if not directly then through
affilliate schemes!
So why aren't you selling ebooks
again?

19. So what are the costs?
Mostly time and a little effort for most
of them...

20. Setting up an affilliate partnership takes time
to fill out a form, send a few emails, get your
codes back and start using them by adding
them to your websites, profiles, emails etc...
The ones where you set up a shop can take a
little longer – filling in the details, arranging it,
updating it, uploading it...
Some of them have larger costs, for instance
to sell ebooks via Gardners or Hive you need
to have a Gardners account and you need to
use them regularly …

21. Own website/bespoke – well the cost on that one...
how much have you got to spend because there's a model
out there for you whether it be through someone like
merlio/booksolve or a more shopinabox system that you
plug in, or even just a simple site like mine where you just
put all your affilliates in one place...
the choice is yours, the cost is yours to decide...
The question as much as anything
isn't so much what is the cost,
so much as what is the loss if you
don't...

22. So good things about ebooks for
booksellers... and consumers...
Do you sell audiobooks?
Do you sell large print books?
Ebooks are a good way to deal with the issue of large
print for many people – and not just large print, but for
some it's actually a matter of black on white and most
ebooks easily allow these issues to be resolved so they
are a great tool for consumers with reading issues, and a
great way for you not to lose those customers...
You can encourage them to come into the shop and even
offer to help them load and download books onto their
readers, thus ensuring they go through your affilliate links
and that you can still gain their add on sales of other
items.
Ebooks are just another form of book and we can use
them to our advantage …

23. Some more good things about ebooks for
booksellers...
Don't just sell the ebooks, think about selling the add on's
that go with them...
so sell covers not just for ebook readers but what about
for ipads and tablets, and even mobile phone cases, or
memory cards, chargers...
think about it, a whole new range of add on sales and all
with pretty good margins usually.

24. Encourage ebook readers into your shop,
no not the tech but the folk that own them
and that read ebooks..
Offer them offers that then get them to realise you sell
ebooks – that encourage them to set up and use your
ebook site or links, so how about you 'buy' the physical
books they probably no longer want, however offer it in
an ebookcard form, or through an ebook instore purchase
via gardners or the like...
How about running an ebook readers bookgroup!
But make it so they have to purchase the ebook from you
- you provide the ebook to them via email link or affilliate
link or direct them instore etc so that again they get used
to perceiving you as an ebook seller and using you/your
site as an ebook provider...

25. How else could ebooks work for you?
Are there resources missing from your area?
Can you produce them and offer them out in ebook
format?
Does an ebook always have to stay an ebook...
Bindworx the next generation offering?

26. What can we talk to publishers about?
Clone files iniatitive – can we get our publishers to do
the same thing, ie bundle an ebook with the pbook...
Reading notes are going over to ebook & app formats
– are there ways we can work together on this, just as
once some of the publishers did subs gift cards can
they do subs ebookcards that shops can sell...
And moving one step sideways from ebooks but
keeping in with the ecard idea … can we get our
publishers such as kingsway etc to offer an icard that
can be used for purchasing downloads or physical
product of any format … Something we sell in the
shops with their branding that can be used on their
websites (wouldn't this solve quite a few legacy and
ongoing issues and problems...)

27. So to conclude …
is there room on your shelves for
ebooks?
Yes there definitely is...
there has to be doesn't there?