Have You Heard About FBA?

  FBA stands for “Fulfillment By Amazon.” It’s an order fulfillment service offered by Amazon.com that allows 3rd party sellers to procure inventory and send it to Amazon for storage in one of their warehouses. The seller then advertises the merchandise for sale and when it sells, Amazon fulfills the order and deposits the profits … Read more

Internet Sales Tax Legislation Gains Steam

New legislation to impose state sales tax collection requirements on Internet retailers such as Amazon.com is in the works according to Republican Senator Lamar Alexander. Legal confrontations between the giant Internet retailer and state lawmakers have been occurring for years as cash-strapped states continue to pressure Amazon to comply. However, the tide seems to be … Read more

Should Internet Sellers Be Forced To Collect State Sales Taxes?

By Joe Waynick Internet retail giant Amazon.com and the state of California have been locked in legal combat the past few months because state lawmakers want the retailer to begin collecting state sales taxes on Internet sales made to California residents. Under federal law states can only require companies to collect sales taxes if they … Read more

How To Partner With Book Dealers

By Joe Waynick

It should be obvious that book dealers and used book store owners are natural allies. Then why is it so difficult for these two groups to see eye-to-eye?

I’ve been a full-time book scout since 2006. I pound the pavement every day in search of that elusive literary diamond hidden beneath a pile of cheesy romance novels. Very few of the books I examine pass muster for my Internet bookselling business. That’s because I’m a very picky treasure hunter.

Nevertheless, I pass over dozens, if not hundreds of books every day that would be perfectly acceptable in a brick-and-mortar retail bookstore. But for a long time I didn’t buy them because it was so difficult for me to get a clear sense of what bookstore owners wanted in my area.

Perhaps it was my fault, but it’s certainly wasn’t from a lack of trying. I canvassed owners of local book stores, making sure that I identified myself as a book scouter. I examined their inventory and asked them what type of books they currently needed. I told them I scout every day and that I had a good chance of finding valuable stock they could use in their stores. I even emphasized that I only want to bring them quality books they actually needed and not use them as a dumping ground for the junk I couldn’t sell online.

Still, the barriers were up and tight lipped shop owners merely stared at me as if they were talking to a new form of alien life instead of openly discussing their needs. That’s unfortunate because I could really help them with their business. For eight to ten hours a day I inspect books. It’s a simple matter to broaden my criteria to include titles tailored specifically to niche bookstores.

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2011 Sellers Conference for Online Entrepreneurs (SCOE) Is A Hit

By Joe Waynick For the past three years I’ve attend the annual SCOE conference held every July in Seattle, WA for online entrepreneurs. And every year it just keeps getting better and better. The conference is designed for all online sellers using Amazon for a sales platform regardless of product category, including consumer products, books … Read more