Jan & Roger O’Connor and Lynn DeWeese-Parkinson – Bibliodirect

A: BiblioDirect.com is being developed by Bibliophile Books, Inc. as a site for booksellers by booksellers. We intend to create a site that will attract quality booksellers: the best dealers have the best books, and that combination will attract the best customers.

BiblioDirect.com is designed to facilitate the transaction between the buyer and the seller without getting in the middle. We will charge a monthly fee to the dealer, but after that we just get the buyer and the seller together and continue to advertise our site. All transactions are made at the dealer’s price and under the dealer’s terms with no mark-ups, additional shipping fees, or commissions.

We don’t think anyone has yet gotten it right. Some databases want to interpose themselves between the seller and buyer. We will not. Some want a piece of each transaction. We do not. Some do not seem to see advertising and public relations as critical. We do. Some do not want to police their sellers to insure fair, professional dealings with unquestioned returns. We will. We want to create a database that we want to sell through. We shall.

Editor: Is this a long-term commitment on your part? Where do you see yourself and your database in three years? 5 years?

A: It goes without saying that we are developing BiblioDirect.com for the long-term. We are booksellers and have been for a long time. We expect to die with our boots on.

Editor: What lister book database inventory programs do you/will you support?

A: All inventory programs will be supported on BiblioDirect.com

Editor: What are your upload procedures? Deletion procedures? Are “wants” listings available? For sale matches? Are any additions/changes planned?

A: Our web-based upload procedures are being designed to be as easy as possible with the least chance of error. Obviously, our program will allow frequent updates with both additions and deletions of records; however, book dealers will also have the ability to edit or delete records on-line.

We will encourage potential customers to create want lists. Even more importantly, we want the potential customer to be able to leave a very specific want (for example, Steinbeck, Of Mice and Men, first state in DJ, signed) so that only the most appropriate match will be made so that potential customer will not have to wade through pages of matches that bear no resemblance to what he or she is actually looking for.

Editor: What customer service (for both sellers and buyers) do you/will you have?

A: For sellers, you can expect a knowledgeable friendly BiblioDirect.com voice at the other end of the telephone (or as a recipient of an e-mail) and someone who understands the book business, book terms, frustrations with customers, etc. We’ve been there.

We’re also open to suggestions and ideas, and plan to have an easy way you can make suggestions for improvements or tell us, Gee, I wish you could.

For really technical questions, we might put you in touch with one of our programmers. These programmers were chosen not only for their technical expertise (and in that area they are very, very gifted), but also for their ability to use the English language. Of the three of us involved in BiblioDirect.com, Roger is the least proficient with the computer. (No, that’s not fair. Roger is hopeless.) Our test with the programmers was to see if they could explain a technical term in such a way that even Roger could understand it.

The best customer service we can give the buyer is an assurance that the BiblioDirect.com book dealer holds to professional standards, describes his/her books accurately, and follows through with the sale in a timely manner and then packages the book carefully for shipment.

BiblioDirect.com will also provide a means for private, voluntary feedback between buyer and seller as well as a complaint/dispute resolution service.

Editor: Will you/do you have any quality (i.e., descriptions, shipping, and/or customer service) standards for your listers? If so, what will be/are the consequences of violating those standards?

A: We are proud that we sell books for a living; we constantly strive to be the best book sellers we can be. We will expect no less from the dealers who list their books with BiblioDirect.com. The standards we set for the BiblioDirect.com dealers will be common-sense and basic to a quality retailer.

Should we find it necessary to look at any problems with a BiblioDirect.com dealer, it will be done quietly and privately. We will work closely with that dealer to encourage them to improve and to become more professional in their approach to book selling. After repeated conversations, if we cannot assure ourselves that a particular dealer is willing to improve, their listings will be suspended from BiblioDirect.com.

By the same token, we will look for the same quality in the buyers. To give some assurance to the dealers, we will maintain a system whereby any dealer can inform BiblioDirect.com privately of a particular person whose books are lost in the mail, or who returns a book after it has been slapped on a photocopy machine and then expects a full refund. If we see a pattern developing, we will contact the customer on behalf of our dealers.

Editor: What are your technical arrangements (in non-technical language, please) to ensure reliability of service? Future growth? Additional services?

A: We have purchased the best servers, router, and back-up systems currently available with dedicated Internet access. They will be maintained by an amazingly talented engineer. When the time comes for upgrades, we are ready, willing, and able to make those changes, and in fact many are already planned for the future.

Editor: Will you/do you have the capability of taking credit card info for orders? If so, what can you tell us about the safety procedures you have or will have in place to ensure the security of such info?

A: Yes, we will have the capability for a customer to provide his/her credit card information in a secure manner. That information, however, will only be provided to the book dealer by logging onto the BiblioDirect.com site. A number of security measures have been taken to make sure that the customer will feel more comfortable leaving credit card information on the BiblioDirect.com site than giving their credit card to a waiter in a restaurant.

Editor: Do you ever plan to process credit card orders through your database (rather than simply passing on the info to the lister) and, if so, will the lister or buyer bear the processing cost, and how long will it take to get payment to the lister?

Answer: No.

Editor: Do you have any plans for programs associated with your database which would involve anything other than direct contact between seller and buyer?

A: No. One of the major purposes of developing BiblioDirect.com is to maintain and encourage contact between the buyer and the seller.

Editor: Do you have or do you plan to have an “all word search” capability?

A: A definite yes.

Editor: What search capabilities does your database have now? What is planned for the future?

A: The BiblioDirect.com user will have an option of a basic search or an advanced search. Since the advanced search has been designed by professional bookdealers, it should improve upon current capabilities at other sites.

Editor: On what will you base your listing fees? What fees do you have now or plan to have?

A: 1- 1,000 records — $25.00 per month; 1,001 4,999 records — $30.00 per month; 5,000 9,999 records — $35.00 per month; 10,000+ records — $40.00 per month.

Editor: Do you plan to have or now have your database searched by Addall or Bookfinder or any other mega-search site?

A: Yes, we have plans for the BiblioDirect.com database to be included with mega-search sites.

Editor: How do you plan to advertise your database (both to draw listers and buyers)?

A: Frankly, we’re not going to tell you where we will be advertising, and we doubt many of you will ever see our most of our ads because they will be directed to the potential buyerbut we will be out there trolling. We believe that targeted advertising to book buyers where they may be found and marketing Internet bookselling on the Internet are two principles of successful advertising. BiblioDirect.com will be advertising on a variety of on-line sites (such as Google); however, we hope we are creating a site with enough interesting features that both book dealers and book buyers will be encouraged to tell a friend about the site. A large share of our budget is devoted to advertising and public relations.

Editor: What background or experience do you or other people involved with your database have that relates to the online book or online book database business?

A: Lynn DeWeese-Parkinson is known to all as the Grand Poobah of the Bibliophile mailing list, but he is also an accomplished bookseller who deals exclusively in Latin America, the Caribbean, bullfighting and baseball books. He began in the book business in 1961, took time out for a law practice and returned to bookselling 15 years ago.

Roger and Jan O’Connor preside over the chaos that is Mostly Books. Both were college teachers; Roger long ago succumbed to his love for books, while Jan carved out a career in media/public relations, working for a time at NBC, several radio stations, and a state arts agency. Jan is also a former member of the Kansas Humanities Council and has been active in civic organizations.

Both Lynn and the O’Connors have been selling books online since the advent of online bookselling.

Editor: Do you or are you planning to have professional management, bookseller management, or????

A: With BiblioDirect.com’s commitment to booksellers, our management will always be vested with bookdealers.

Editor: What markets (geographical and/or demographic) are you aiming at?

A: BiblioDirect.com will be marketing the world of books to the world, and we will be marketing the expertise of our dealers.

Editor: What services/features does your database have that you feel sets you apart and/or will ensure the success of your database?

A: Log onto http://www.BiblioDirect.com on March 17th (the tentative launch date) and see what sets BiblioDirect.com apart

2002 Los Angeles Book Fair

I generally try to avoid saying anything nice about Los Angeles, but every so often the ole town will elicit a begrudging compliment from my lips. The weekend of February 1st – 3rd was one such occasion.

For an all-to-brief weekend, Los Angeles became the center of the rare book universe, hosting the 35th California International Antiquarian Book Fair. As it did two years ago, the fair occupied the entire bottom floor of the Los Angeles Airport Marriott, and featured some 250 dealers from every corner of the globe. All the dealers in attendance were members of the prestigious ABAA and, as might be expected, the books on display represented some of the finest and rarest titles available, books that many of us might only see in a dealer’s or auctioneer’s catalog.

By the time I arrived some 45 minutes into the day’s festivities, the place was already bustling with activity; browsers flitting from booth to booth, customers lovingly leafing through their impending purchases, dealers chatting with each other and catching up on the latest news and gossip.

As is my usual practice at book fairs, I made an initial circle of the exhibition floor, soaking up the general ambience, luxuriating in the presence of so many beautiful and important examples of the printed word. Two years ago, my initial lap around the perimeter revealed an abundance of Harry Potter material prominently displayed (and accordingly priced). This year, however, I immediately noticed that the pint-sized warlock had been supplanted to a large degree by Frodo, Gandalf and the rest of Tolkien’s beloved band of adventurers. The buzz created by the The Lord of the Rings movie has apparently increased the demand for quality Tolkien items; I spied a fine first edition of The Hobbit priced at $150,000.

Having completed my initial perambulations, I made a beeline for the nearest booth, and immediately started to drool. My area of specialization is the American Revolution, and at the booth of Joseph J. Felcone, I spotted two beautiful items.

One was a lovely first edition of British Lt. Colonel Banastre (The Butcher of the Carolinas) Tarleton’s A History of the Campaigns of 1780 and 1781, in the Southern Provinces of North America. Unfortunately, with an asking price of $5000, my wallet was light by about $4990, and I had to pass.

Felcones booth also had a wonderful 1777 broadside announcing Sir William Howes new strict regulations on traffic into the port of occupied New York. As I was peering through the glass, another browser bowed down to take a look. It wasn’t until I stood up and glanced at my similarly-intrigued neighbor that I realized he was actor Ricky Jay (most recently seen playing opposite Gene Hackman in David Mamet’s The Heist. Just another L.A. moment to add to my repertoire.

Having only attended book fairs as a browser, I was curious about the perspective from the other side of the display case. Along one wall of the exhibition room, I recognized the name of a dealer from whom I recently purchased a book, so I thought I’d introduce myself and get some impressions on book fairs from a dealer’s point of view.

Eric Waschke of The Wayfarers Bookshop has attended up to 30 book fairs in one year, although this year, he plans on attending around 15. Book fairs are an important facet of Wayfarer’s business and, along with mail order sales to regular customers, make up the majority of the shop’s business (by contrast, online purchases account for less than 10% of sales).

Waschke has found that the quality of material offered for sale is a key aspect of book fair success; the better the material, the better the sales. And, as the quality of his stock has steadily improved, he’s also found that He’s able to focus on larger book fairs, eliminating the need to travel as much as in the past.

I also stopped to chat with Nicholas Potter, a bookseller from Santa Fe, New Mexico. For Nicholas, book fairs play a less prominent but nonetheless important role. He travels to only 2 or 3 fairs a year (usually the large New York and California ABAA fairs). Potter runs an open shop in Santa Fe, and fairs in the larger cities offer him an opportunity to plug into the areas’ larger economies, and to find ready buyers for more expensive items that may not sell as quickly (or at all) in a smaller city. Potter tries to bring select stock in a variety of subjects to book fairs; he knows many dealers prefer to focus on a specialty subject (case in point, one dealer at the fair specialized in items by or related to Winston Churchill), but Potter finds that titles in a variety of subjects usually attract a wider variety of buyers and result in greater sales.

Potter notes that he usually doesn’t buy much for resale at book fairs; even New Mexico material that might sell well at home is generally priced at levels which wouldn’t allow profitable resale back in Santa Fe.

After leaving Potter’s booth, I paused to snap a few pictures. In my viewfinder, I noticed a small crowd clustered around a particular booth. I should have known from the warm smiles and laughter that I had stumbled onto the booth of Pat and Allen Ahearn, owners of Quill and Brush and fellow IOBA members.

I had traded a couple of emails with Pat before, and I was glad to have the opportunity to meet her in person. For those of you who haven’t had the pleasure of meeting the Ahearns, theyre a wonderfully gracious and engaging pair who obviously love each other and the business of bookselling.

I asked Pat what she valued most about attending book fairs, and without any hesitation, she cited the opportunity for personal, face-to-face contact with customers and fellow dealers. Many booksellers are spending more and more time behind their computer terminals, in relative isolation and anonymity. Pat feels that book fairs provide an ideal opportunity for book dealers to socialize and network (a phenomena I’d had plenty of opportunity to observe as I wandered around the fair).

Another IOBA member exhibiting at the fair, Vic Zoschak from Tavistock Books, echoed Pat’s observations. While recognizing the economic impetus for attending book fairs, Vic also stressed the importance of the networking and socializing opportunities book fairs provide, particularly with customers. As Vic put it, it’s important to take the opportunity to personalize your relationship with a customer; it may not only help you make the current sale, but numerous future sales as well. Indeed, during our chat, Vic excused himself several times to converse with several familiar customers, and it was obvious they appreciated the recognition and personal attention.

After talking with Vic, I spent a couple more hours wandering around the stalls, poking through dealers’ book offerings and a rather eclectic mix of ephemera; the strangest item I saw was a $3750 set of 60 artificial glass eyes manufactured in France in the 1860s. Being a firm believer in an ordered, balanced universe, I’m certain that somewhere in the world, an exhibitor at an ophthalmology convention was displaying a first edition Hemingway and drawing similarly curious stares.

When I finally departed the fair, my pockets were laden with dealer catalogs, and my arms were encumbered by my single purchase, a lovely Heritage Press set of Biddle’s Lewis and Clark journals (Gen. Howe’s broadside will just have to wait until next time). All in all, it was an extremely enjoyable, rewarding and educational day.

IOBA and Firsts: A Match Made in Book Heaven

Firsts magazine, a print publication founded twelve years ago, describes itself as “The Book Collector’s Magazine.” What more natural place for the Independent Online Booksellers’ Association to advertise?

Len Lanfranco, outgoing IOBA Public Relations Committee chair, made an advantageous deal with Firsts for a whole year’s advertising. The first ad, designed by incoming Board Member at Large Maria Bustillos, appeared in the February issue of Firsts.

In future months, IOBA will develop advertisements for IOBA new programs benefiting both dealers and collectors, starting with the new IOBA search feature, which is set to be up and running by the beginning of March. Using this feature, book buyers will be able to filter their ABE search results for books on offer from IOBA dealers only. Members will receive an email announcement when the service is available.

“Maria has been a joy to work with,” said Lanfranco. “She stepped up when we needed help and did an outstanding job. We’re lucky she’ll continue with the project. Greg Williams, a new committee member, offered many fresh ideas and excellent critiquing.

The 6,000 discerning and knowledgeable readership of Firsts offers IOBA the chance to reach a large number of potential member booksellers, as well as a group of eager collectors who will benefit from access to IOBA’s great booksellers, from our high professional standards and the increasing educational opportunities that IOBA has to offer.

IOBA members who wish to subscribe to Firsts may do so at: http://www.firsts.com ($40 per year). Lanfranco expressed thanks to Firsts and said IOBA looks forward “to our continuing relationship with the wonderful Kathryn and Robin Smiley of Firsts, who have been a sheer delight to work with.”

Please participate in IOBA’s advertising effort by sending advertising ideas to Len Lanfranco (columbia@pagefour.com) who will be helping to develop IOBA’s advertising strategies. We’re also looking for a few more committee members.