ABA Education & More at NEIBA, GLIBA & NAIBA

The American Booksellers Association is looking forward to seeing booksellers at next weekend's trade shows hosted by the New England, Great Lakes, and New Atlantic booksellers associations. ABA staff will be at each to celebrate independent bookselling, visit with booksellers, and share some updated and innovative education sessions. Booksellers are also invited to stop by ABA's tables at the shows to learn how the association's programs and services can help their businesses.

In addition, at all three shows there will be an Edelweiss demo and education session presented by Above the Treeline. Edelweiss is the new free interactive catalogs system for stores and their publisher reps.

Booksellers who stop by the ABA tables at the shows will have an extra chance at winning one of more than two-dozen publisher-sponsored scholarships to the Fifth Annual Winter Institute, to be held at the Doubletree San Jose in San Jose, California, from February 3 - 5, 2010. Scholarship winners will be selected from among all ABA bookseller members, with booksellers dropping off a business card at the regional shows earning an extra entry in the scholarship drawings. Scholarships cover the cost of reasonable airfare, up to a four-night hotel stay at the Doubletree San Jose, and Wi5 meal fees.

Here's a look at ABA programming at each of the shows (check on-site for room numbers).

New England Independent Booksellers Association

The 36th Annual New England Independent Booksellers Association (NEIBA) Trade Show will be held from Thursday, October 1, through Saturday, October 3, at the Connecticut Convention Center in Hartford, Connecticut.

ABA's education session on Friday, to be presented by ABA CEO Oren Teicher and Web Content Coordinator Matt Supko, is:

• 10:15 a.m. - 11:45 a.m: Going Digital: The Case for E-Books
  Aimed at all booksellers interested in this topic.
  The publishing industry has been hyping e-books since the late 1990s. But the reality might finally be outpacing the hype. E-book sales are growing at 150 percent or more each month, and consumer interest has been piqued by the iPhone, Kindle, and Sony eReader. All NEIBA attendees are invited to come hear ABA's presentation on how and why the e-book phenomenon is real and happening now.

Also on Friday will be the session "Edelweiss: Yes We Can!" where a representative from Above the Treeline will give a brief overview of Edelweiss, the interactive catalog platform, and then moderate a buying session between a publisher rep and a bookstore buyer.

For the latest NEIBA program details, including participating authors and ticket information, and to register, visit www.newenglandbooks.org.

Great Lakes Independent Booksellers Association

The Great Lakes Independent Booksellers Association (GLIBA) will be celebrating its 20th anniversary at its annual trade show, to be held from Friday, October 2, through Sunday, October 4, at the Renaissance Cleveland Hotel in Cleveland, Ohio.

ABA's programming on Friday, to be presented by COO Len Vlahos, includes:

• 10:30 a.m. - 11:20 a.m.: IndieCommerce: The New System
  Aimed at booksellers currently using the product.
  IndieCommerce (the program formerly known as BookSense.com) has been transformed. Specifically, the product has migrated to an open-source content management system called Drupal. This new and improved program provides booksellers with more intuitive and robust administrative tools, allows for much greater control over the look and feel of their websites, and allows ABA staff to roll out new features more quickly. Vlahos will demo the new product and answer bookseller questions.

• 2:00 p.m. - 2:50 p.m.: Social Media & The Independent Bookstore
  Aimed at booksellers of all levels who are interested in social media.
  Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, blogs, and other social networking sites have fundamentally changed the way people approach not only their private lives, but also their business transactions. Social media networks are not the wave of the future -- they are the wave of now; in today's connected world you are no longer building relationships with "customers" but with "friends." Attendees will leave with a greater understanding of where this paradigm shift is taking small businesses.
• 3:00 p.m. - 3:50 p.m.: Going Digital: The Case for E-Books
  Aimed at all booksellers interested in this topic.
  The industry has been hyping e-books since the late 1990s. But the reality might finally be outpacing the hype. E-book sales are growing at 150 percent or more each month, and consumer interest has been piqued by the iPhone, Kindle, and Sony eReader. Learn how and why the e-book phenomenon is happening and how indie booksellers can be a part of it.

Also scheduled for Friday will be a session on Edelweiss, the interactive, online catalog platform from Above the Treeline. The Edelweiss platform works across participating publishers and is freely available to booksellers, publicists, bloggers, agents, and other catalog end users. In addition to the education session, Mark Evans of Edelweiss will be on the trade show floor on Saturday for one-on-one and small group demonstrations of this eCatalog solution.

For more details about the GLIBA trade show, for advance ticket information, and to register, visit www.gliba.org.

New Atlantic Independent Booksellers Association

The New Atlantic Independent Booksellers Association (NAIBA) will hold its annual trade show from Saturday, October 3, through Monday, October 5, at the Sheraton City Center in Baltimore, Maryland.

ABA's schedule of education programming on Sunday includes:

• 2:30 p.m. - 3:30 p.m. IndieCommerce: The New System
  Aimed at booksellers currently using the product.
  IndieCommerce (the program formerly known as BookSense.com) has been transformed. Specifically, the product has migrated to an open-source content management system called Drupal. This new and improved program provides booksellers with more intuitive and robust administrative tools; allows for much greater control over the look and feel of their websites; and allows ABA staff to roll out new features more quickly. Matt Supko, ABA web content coordinator, will demo the new product and answer bookseller questions.

• 3:45 p.m. - 4:45 p.m. Adapting to the New Landscape
  Aimed at owners and managers.
  Financial markets are strained, energy prices are soaring, and your customers are scared. This isn't the first time, and it won't be the last, that your business has to navigate tough times. While the road may be bumpy, there are proven strategies to help your business emerge stronger. A panel of bookseller experts will discuss the value of cash reserves, controlling expenses, managing inventory, managing staff, and providing leadership skills. The discussion will be led by ABA CEO Oren Teicher.

Also on Sunday, at the Technology Center, Above the Treeline's John Rubin will present "Edelweiss: Interactive Online Publisher Catalogs." This new eCatalog product works across participating publishers and is freely available to booksellers, publicists, bloggers, agents, and other catalog end users.

For more details about the NAIBA trade show, including advance ticket information, and to register, visit www.newatlanticbooks.com.