Although computerized inventory systems have now been around for some 20 years and are becoming more powerful by the day, they continue to accommodate users who may have older operating systems. Among the rich menu of standard capabilities offered by these systems are ordering, receiving, returns, special orders, bar code labels and scanning, standard and custom reports, book club, off-site sales, used books, mail order, tracking of nonbook items and electronic ordering.
Here's the first of a two-part article on what some booksellers had to say about their experiences with these inventory systems (listed in alphabetical order).
Anthology
www.anthology.com
Ideal for stores with older hardware, this system, launched in 1990, runs under IBM-compatible computer systems from DOS to Windows NT. The newest version, 4.0, also works with Booksite and Booksense. Anthology can support multi-user or multistore systems, sidelines and inventories of up to one million items; functions include cash register, mail orders, special order customer tracking, overstock returns, book fairs and bar code printing.
Before using Anthology, Karen Beem of the Newtown Bookshop in Newtown, Pa., had used IBID and Booklog in other stores. She prefers Anthology because "it's very easy to cascade one purchase order onto another, and you can access any other online inventory without exiting Anthology. IBID was frustrating because you had to go to another computer to access Books in Print. Booklog didn't seem very sophisticated about customer information." Her partner Perry Beem noted that the program's efficiency makes life easier. "Nothing is idiot-proof, but this is close. If people have any cash register experience at all, within an hour they're ready to go. Even people who are not computer literate find they can use it. You can push a button and create a purchase order for what you sold yesterday. You can order directly from Ingram, Baker & Taylor, etc. Everything's right there in the same program; you don't have to go out and count books every day."
Andi Allen runs Pieces of Mind in Edwardville, Ill., and says Anthology meets all the needs of her store: "It's very easy to flip in and out of screens, from sales to receiving to search. You can do a look-up in the middle of a sale. It's also very flexible; you can search your inventory by keyword, author, title or ISBN. When we do book fairs outside the store, we just scan the books in; if someone comes in to the store looking for those titles, it shows that we still have them but they're out of the store at the moment. Customer service and tech support is very good as well, but the system is so stable that I haven't had to use it much. It's also priced fairly. I'm very satisfied with it and can't think of anything I'd change." Allen said that she's used IBID and found that "it wouldn't let me do a lot of things I'm used to. It's not as easy to search as Anthology, and I didn't like the management report."
Booklog
www.booklog.com
Booklog, celebrating its 20th anniversary this year, was the first DOS-based inventory management system created specifically for booksellers. Available in DOS and—since 1997—Windows versions, it serves inventory control and point-of-sale needs from electronic ordering to cash register sales. Single- or multi-user operation is supported, and there is unlimited sales capacity. Functions include inventory, sales, purchasing, returns, reports, book clubs and customer sales history. Features include comprehensive point-of-sale, purchasing, receiving, returns, electronic ordering, tracking of nonbook items, CD-ROM interface, accounting interface, credit card verification, mail order, special order and book fair modules. Advanced features include extensive and customizable reporting, detailed sales analysis and graphing, customer tracking, book clubs, direct-mail module, employee time clock and reporting, gift cards and much more.
Laura Hansen, owner/manager of Bookin' It in Little Falls, Minn., is happy with the DOS version of BookLog that she uses in her store—although she said the Windows version is tempting. "I would like some of the features of the new Windows version, such as more customer detail reporting—especially of titles purchased—but at this time, any conversion is cost restrictive. We use the inventory module as well at year end, and though it's pretty low-tech, it serves our purposes well." A decade ago, when her store opened, the only other system considered was Anthology. But, Hansen said, "the demo didn't work properly, and they were not very responsive to my inquiries, and I felt that didn't bode well for customer support. The support folks at Booklog have been very helpful on the rare occasions we have needed them."
Stephen R. Grutzmacher, partner/ manager of Pastimes Books in Sister Bay, Wisc., has used BookLog exclusively since 1996 and said that "as a fully integrated database, it manages the day-to-day operations of my store exceedingly well. I have been well satisfied with the product and the various updates they have released through the years."
Book Manager
www.bookmanager.com
Available since 1986, the components of this Windows-based system are linked by single-keystroke commands, with each screen displaying related and relevant data. Features include inventory control for book, magazine and nonbook product, fast searches, ordering, receiving, returns, customized reports, flexible point-of-sale, invoicing, customer file links, frequent buyer system, accounts receivable, mailing lists, target marketing, built-in faxing, accounts payable, general ledger and event schedules. The single- or multi-store system also includes bar code labeling, inventory reconciliation, special event pricing, customer standing orders, electronic ordering and receiving, imports from Books in Print, on-screen links to vendor stock levels, and a whole collection of routines to manage customer orders, reservations and fulfillment.
Before using Book Manager, Nancy Marshall, co-owner of the Episcopal Bookstore in Seattle, Wash., used the accounting program DataPro. "It had a module for inventory, but you had to use three or four screens," she told PW. "Book Manager is very simple, developed by a man who continues to run his own bookstore. We use it for everything: gifts, recordings and extensive mail order. And it's not the most expensive system, either." In 1997, when Marshall made the switch, she said BookManager built a program for the store to use to transfer between the two systems. "It took 15 minutes: we opened under the old system and closed under the new one—it was seamless! Plus they're doing a lot of developmental stuff with Title Wave, which is like Books in Print: if I put in the beginning of a title, it taps in through the Internet to their database."
Book Manager is widely used in Canada. For 10 years, it has been the only system used by Kelly McKinnon, co-owner of Kidsbooks in Vancouver, B.C. "What's great is that [inventor] Michael Neill is a bookseller—working in the industry alongside of us, in a sense—so he's able to figure out what we want next. Pubstock [the program's distribution source database] has been a huge bonus: we get daily updates of publishers' inventory numbers, including wholesalers, as part of our inventory program."
Like Marshall, McKinnon appreciates Title Wave, which she says "literally saves us hours of time, whether on the phone, taking orders, receiving or entering catalogues." And both booksellers appreciate the customer service: Marshall said, "They never talk in language I can't understand or make me feel like I'm stupid." For McKinnon, it's the accessibility: "We've called their 'panic number' at 9 a.m on Saturday and 10:30 p.m. on Thursdays, and we've always gotten help."
Books in Store
www.bisusa.com
Books in Store was developed by Jerry Peacock, a bookseller who teaches computer science at the university level and first tested the system in his own store. Available in both DOS and Windows; the DOS version features include ordering, receiving, fast keyword searching, unlimited reporting, multiple POS stations, cascaded electronic ordering with every vendor capable of receiving electronic orders, and fax ordering with more than 1,500 additional publishers, special orders, bar code printing, nonbook item tracking, remote access, customer mail-list support, including bulk mail sorting, book club and historical title tracking. BIS has never charged for software updates or enhancements and that policy extends to the New Standard version for Windows as well. The Windows version allows for more expansive title information and inventory data, three tax rates per item (federal, regional, local), allows creation of a comprehensive sales history, and displays book jackets on-screen.
Although Shirley Lamb Steanda is happy with the system, she was not so pleased with the customer service aspect. For her store—BoPeep Books in Lakewood, Colo.—the system is "wonderful for inventory management. I get a printout at the end of every day. I can make up my own reports and print out a list from every publisher. I suspect there are tons of things I could be doing that I don't know how to do yet." On the negative side, she said, "There are no toll-free numbers, no 24-hour tech support number. You get the same voice mail for all departments," she said.
Christine Kaufman has been using Books in Store for four years at the Snow Goose Bookstore, Stanwood, Wash., but 15 years total. "I've always been very happy with it. I use the older version, though, and now they have the New Standard. It was very simple, easy to teach people, a really nice, plain inventory system. The new one is Windows-based, and has a lot of stuff all over the screen—it's somewhat counterintuitive. But this doesn't mean it's not fine for someone else! Also, old machines don't have to be networked. If one goes down, then you can still work. They also have a frontlist program called BEEF [BIS Easy Entry Frontlist-on-a-Floppy service]. It loads frontlist from hundreds of publishers—so about 90% of the bibliographic information pops up just like that!"
Next week: booksellers comment on IBID, Square One, Wordstock and other systems.
