Indie Bookstores & Social Media

Many people, when looking for a specific book, don't think twice about where to go: usually, it's a big-name chain retailer like Borders or Barnes and Noble (or any of their affiliates). They're all over the place, and it's really easy to order online from their websites. Or, there's always Amazon.com.

But what about independent stores? They are, for the most part, small, locally-owned stores competing for customers. So how do they compete? Many have websites, which may or may not feature e-commerce, and some are getting into the social media game. Blogs, Twitter feeds, Facebook pages--all are relatively easy to maintain, and can easily get the word out about the bookshop.

Here are a few that I looked into (note: I have not actually been to any of these stores, but I'll be changing that soon)

Pudd'nhead Books - A relatively new store right by campus, the site includes links to Twitter and Facebook in a highly visible spot. The site also functions pretty much the same as the blog itself does. The Facebook page has a few hundred members, shows a good use of events and the wall, and there are a few photos of the store itself. I'd love to see more pics of the events, of book club, of visiting authors, etc. And it's actually a group page, not a fan page--is that problematic? I haven't decided. The Twitter feed is an interesting mix of sales & events updates and personal tidbits, and there's a decent number of followers.

The Book House - A bookstore in Rock Hill, the site feels like an older generation of web design, and kind of cluttered. They are on Facebook, a fan page, but the link is at the very bottom of the website's home page. The Facebook page itself appears a little lackluster: only one event (last May), half of the photos are actually profile photos (mostly the logo), and there are "Discussions" and "Reviews" tabs with nothing posted under them.

Star Clipper Comics - Located in the Loop, this store focuses on graphic novels & manga. The site looks really good, but the links to all their social media sites are are on the bottom. Star Clipper has a blog, MySpace, and Twitter. The blog is really well done, lots of in-depth and frequent posts (including one about a Dr Horrible comic, omg), liberal use of images, and includes some links. The MySpace page has nothing objectionable about it, per se, but the status was last updated in September, and the blog was last updated in May. I think, with such a great blog, it should either be linked to the MySpace page, or the MySpace could just be dropped. I've also heard that Facebook is more amenable to venues (I admit I know very little about MySpace, so I can't honestly critique it as fully as I can Facebook). The Twitter feed has a low-ish number of followers, but a pretty good number of tweets, and is updated regularly.

Subterranean Books - Also in the Loop, they just use a blog as their site. It includes lots of internal links made handy by tabs across the top. The blog itself has good posts, and lots and lots of links to other blogs, St Louis-area stuff, St Louis media, and others. Right at the top are links to Facebook, Flickr, and MySpace. There's a Facebook fan page, or a friend page--I don't know why there's a need for both. The fan page seems a bit light on content, so perhaps it's the newer of the two. I think they should just keep one presence, and a fan page is the best bet. Looked at together, there's some good content--but most people wouldn't be looking at both for info. The Flickr page features a good selection of photos--events, store windows, merchandise--but it hasn't been updated since late 2007. The MySpace page's blog was last updated in 2008, and features the song "Sick of Myself" by Matthew Sweet--interesting choice.