Booksellers Blog

Are you going to BEA? I’ve combed through the workshops, panels, and Author Stage events to pick out a few social-media related sessions that I think you shouldn’t miss. This is not all-inclusive — much of the BEA programming appears to be social-media related. However, I did want to highlight a few sessions that I know will be great and that I plan on attending:

• Thursday, 2:45-400pm, Room 1E12  : Social Media and the Independent Bookseller (scroll down to the bottom for details of this session).OK, true confession time — I’m one of the panelists, along with Len Vlahos of ABA, Stephanie Anderson of WORD bookstore in Brooklyn, and Megan Sullivan of The Harvard Bookstore. Still, I think it will be a great discussion about using social media to promote your bookstore. Please join us.
• Becoming an Agent of Trust: Publisher and Retailer Strategies for Harnessing New Social Media Tools to Grow Communities
  10:30AM – 11:30AM (Friday, May 29, 2009, in the  Autographing Area (I think)) In the old days (and by that, we mean 10 years ago), the Internet was a place where one put up a site, paid for a few banner ads, and then everyone sat around and waited for the money to come in. Ten years later, we’ve learned how to build dynamic relationships through content, through the use of  social tools and community platforms, and by the new and expanding nature of trusted relationships in the Internet age. Join Chris Brogan as he walks you through a simple exercise of goal-strategy-execution, sharing various social media and online marketing tools, such that you’ll leave with actionable next steps to pursue for yourself. Learn how to be a trust agent from one of the guys who wrote the book on such things.
  Presenter:

  Chris Brogan – Author, Trust Agents: Using the Web to Build Influence, Improve Reputation and Earn Trust

  Julien Smith – co-author,Trust Agents: Using the Web to Build Influence, Improve Reputation and Earn Trust

  I’ve talked about Chris Brogan here before, and I urge you to check in on this session if you have a chance. Chris is an entertaining and inspiring speaker, and a far cry from many of the “Death by Powerpoint” business presenters. Chris always has great ideas about social media, and I’m eager to see what he brings to BEA.

• Saturday, 2pm, Room 1E14:  Gary Vaynerchuk, author of Crush It! (Harper Studio)I’ve been remiss in talking about Gary Vaynerchuk here on this blog, mainly because he has been written about everywhere else. He is the Social Media whiz kid who used the internet to grow a single location brick and mortar wine store into a multimedia empire. Think I’m joking? In less than 10 years, he took the family business, Wine Library in Springfield New Jersey, from $6 million to $60 million annually. He’s now paid big bucks to consult for companies. I’ve watched many videos of Gary’s presentations, and he is always motivating and inspiring, and unlike any business speaker you’ve ever seen.

I will be at BEA on Thursday through Saturday, and I do hope that I get to meet you if I haven’t already.  I will be at Booth 4077, Firebrand Technologies, on Friday 5/29 from 1-2 pm. Firebrand has thoughtfully provided space at their booth for book bloggers to meet their readers. There will be 44 book bloggers doing meet and greets at the booth throughout the course of the weekend. Check out the full schedule of “blog signings” (a tongue-in-cheek reference to the many author signings that happen at BEA), or download a pretty, printable pdf.

Have a great show!

(edited to change the Chris Brogan session to the one that I think you will find of most interest. It’s more of a workshop format, from the description. The BEA website is pretty confusing, isn’t it? The BEA Education Sessions are listed there under the “Big Ideas at BEA” moniker, and are easy to miss.)