MBA: In advance of its fall trade show, which begins on September 22, the Midwest Booksellers Association announced that it will be no more. Instead it will assert its independence with a name change, Midwest Independent Booksellers Association, or MIBA. This is the second new moniker for the association, once known as the Upper Midwest Booksellers Association.
In a letter to the publishing community, MIBA executive director Carrie Obry said, “Adding ‘independent’ to our name will underscore our value within the bookselling industry and serve as a constant reminder to everyone we work with that our mission is to support independent bookstores.” She added that MIBA will unveil a new “independent” logo shortly. A redesigned Web site is also in the works, and will go live by the end of the year.
SIBA: The Southern Independent Booksellers Alliance, which has long celebrated its independence, is upgrading its nearly two-year-old Circle of Sites program to drive sales to SIBA stores. The promotion, which initially launched in January 2010 with 25 stores, places weekly banner ads for books of regional interest on participating stores’ sites. In the past, to prevent driving traffic away from the stores the ads were not hyperlinked.
As of this week, that’s changed. When consumers click on the ad, they are automatically offered a chance to purchase the book on the Web site of the store—now up to 75 participating bookstores. It’s too soon to tell what direct impact the change will make. But SIBA executive director Wanda Jewell anticipates increased Web traffic and sales for Circle of Sites participants. This week’s ad is for Patti Callahan Henry’s Coming Up for Air (St. Martin’s), set in Alabama, which released August 20.
