During the month of July, the American Booksellers Association will present a Marketing Meetup on marketing as a small store, plus two Technology Meetups, one on cyber insurance and the other on Zoom. Sign up and learn more about ABA meetups here [7].

July 2 at 1:00 p.m. ET: Marketing Meetup: “Marketing Ideas From Small Stores”

Marketing is absolutely necessary for a business to be successful, and even more important for small, independent businesses. Without thoughtful marketing, your store may only be recommended a few times by people who happen to find you — but that’s it; there’s no real customer growth. In this session, you’ll hear from six guest speakers from small bookstores, who will share what works for their stores in a variety of marketing areas, including social media, newsletters, events, and general marketing.

Guest speakers:

Bob Lingle, Off the Beaten Path Bookstore [8], Lakewood, New York
E. Jean Pemberton Jones, Enda’s Booktique [9], Duncanville, Texas
Meghan Hayden, River Bend Bookshop [10], Glastonbury, Connecticut
Chelsea Elward, Booked [11], Evanston, Illinois
Lexi Walters, High Five Books [12], Florence, Massachusetts

July 9 at 1:00 p.m. ET: Technology Meetup: “Cyber Insurance”

There are various insurance coverages that can assist in providing protections to you and your bookstore related to cyber threats. During this time of crisis, there has been a notable increase in the need for cyber security. Cyber threats can come in many forms (phishing, malware, extortion, viruses, etc.), and cyber insurance coverages come in many forms as well. The team from Arrowhead General Insurance Agency will present information on cyber coverages and how these coverages can protect your bookstores. Guest speakers will include Bookstore Insurance Specialist Judi Yacovazzi, Vice President and Bookstore Insurance Leader Tiffany Poletti, and Chief Underwriting Officer Chris McQuiklin.

July 30 at 1:00 p.m. ET: Technology Meetup: “Zoom”

In June, publisher Wiley offered to send copies of Zoom for Dummies to independent booksellers free of charge upon request [13]. Now, Wiley has gone a step further to work with ABA and Zoom for Dummies [14] author Phil Simon [15] to set up this Technology Meetup, during which Phil will provide his expert advice on Zoom, including best practices, tips, and answers to some commonly asked questions.