Photo: Sam Machkovech
Here comes the next tremor in the book universe.
Amazon.com, the world’s largest online bookseller, has opened it’s first physical bookshop!
Amazon Books has opened in Seattle’s University District just a few miles from Amazon headquarters.
It’s 5,000 square feet with a majority of the space dedicated to the almighty book. By combining new display tactics (all books are face out!), a largely crowdsourced inventory, and a seamless ebook purchase option Amazon Books is open for business.
After all the years Amazon was paving the way to sell books online, completely upending the bookselling and publishing fields in the process, they are now looking at perhaps becoming the model bookshop for the 21st century.
I know the mere utterance of that possibility is considered sacrilege by many but I don’t think Amazon Books is going the way of the Fire phone.
As recent data has shown – the digital book revolution has stalled and might be settling into its new role alongside, instead of in place of, the printed word.
Amazon already sells the most print and ebooks online so what will stop them from doing this in the physical world?
Photo: Seattle Times
Photo: Sam Machkovech
And then there is Indiebound, the marketing and branding offering for independent booksellers, courtesy of the American Booksellers Association (ABA).
A recent blog post states that the Indiebound has begun a test “designed to increase traffic to member stores — and to their e-commerce websites — by improving the online shopping experience for an initial purchase on IndieBound.org”
To do this – a ‘Buy Now’ button has been added to the product page so one can now buy a book right there on the webpage they’re at!
Yes, that’s right a ‘Buy Now’ button.
While Amazon was patenting One-Click Shopping Indie Bound was perfecting the 5-click and out approach. “Very few customers who arrive at IndieBound.org take the extra steps necessary on the site to find an IndieCommerce website, and, as a result, they are leaving the community of independent bookstores empty-handed,” – says ABA CEO Oren Teicher
Instead of trying to offer e-commerce options to their member sites the time has come for them to be the e-commerce option for their members. Of course, member stores should still have their own web presence with e-commerce functionality but Indiebound has to become the go-to site for those of us who would like to support the independent bookshop community.
– See a book
– Click ‘Buy Now’ button
– Checkout
– From a pop up menu choose from the independent bookshops nearest you (or pick other and type in your favorite)
– The proceeds of the sale go to that bookshop!
Simple as that.
Now with Amazon officially encroaching on the brick and mortar universe it is imperative that the response be swift and strong.
The window is almost closed.
The bottom line; however, is that with the advent of Amazon Books there will be more bookstores and with that more access to books for the community. Forget purchasing anything, just having more book spots enriches everything around it.
Amazon opens first brick-and-mortar bookstore — at U Village – Seattle Times
Inside Amazon’s new brick and mortar store where books don’t have prices, online customers drive selection – Puget Sound Business Journal
Amazon’s first brick-and-mortar store: One big ad for the Amazon app – ars technica
ABA Tests ‘Buy Now’ Button to Up Sales Through IndieBound – Publisher’s Weekly