Meeting organizers asked those attending to come dressed as they would if they were keeping an appointment with the buyer for a bookstore or the person in charge of purchasing for a city library. Most of us were still too casually attired, but two met the mark. We decided that men should wear ties and jackets and women very nice pants or a dress. The professional look of Pathfinder representatives helps put buyers at ease, receptive to what we say about the books.

Michele Smith opened the meeting and Barbara Bowman chaired and gave an orientation talk, emphasizing that our job is to convince buyers to place an order for Pathfinder books and provide whatever assistance they need in making that order.

Being on time for appointments is elementary; bringing several catalogues to use in presenting the books, as well as a case packed with books to show, is also basic. As professional book sellers, buyers will appreciate the high quality of the photos and covers.

We point out the presence of indexes, footnotes, and other features to show how serious Pathfinder books are. We should arm ourselves with information about what books sell and bring books on topics covered in local or national events. Also key is remembering that sales representatives do not try to recruit buyers to the political ideas inside Pathfinder books.

Michele Smith reported on recent visits to bookstores in the Bay Area that resulted in more than $1,000 in sales. Her report detailed each sale so that those of us who had never done this before could learn as much as possible from it.

Bringing titles that Pathfinder has published in both English and Spanish is effective in placing Spanish-language titles. To encourage placements in bodegas with Spanish and French as well as English titles, Pathfinder has offered representatives the opportunity to offer expanded discounts and credit to those placing small orders. Explaining that all of Pathfinder's titles are being converted to digital form so that they can be kept in print easily will also convey the seriousness of Pathfinder Press. Sales representatives will be on the front line in getting the books out to workers who browse the bookstores in every city and town, a key part of the new worldwide outreach plans of Pathfinder. Also very important is remembering to listen carefully to the buyer; she or he knows the business and what will work best in their bookstore.

Near the end of the meeting, volunteers played the roles of book buyer and Pathfinder sales representative--a difficult exercise that provoked discussion about many of the points made in the initial reports, such as filling out the order form after the buyer has marked up what they want to order in the catalogue--a technique recommended by Mary Lipman, an experienced Pathfinder sales representative who helps to organize volunteers in San Francisco.

Participants in the class were urged to set aside two hours for each appointment, just in case the buyer is willing to talk about many of the books and place a large order. Sheets were handed out that explained some of the technical elements of sales work: discount policies, prepayments, shipping costs, book wholesalers used by Pathfinder.

Sales representatives experienced in this activity advised us to pay attention to details--like making sure to put the catalogue case containing the books and order forms up on a chair or a nearby table rather than the floor, so that as you reach inside the case to bring out the titles to show you are not bobbing up and down trying to hold a conversation.

Developing a long-term professional relationship with the buyers is very important too. As you get to know the buyer, you will get better at suggesting new titles or different ways to display titles that will assist their sales. Record keeping is also fundamental to the success of this political campaign to place Pathfinder books in stores and libraries. Every visit by a sales representative should be recorded on the form that will go into the log book. Without this information, the next visit to that buyer will not go right and an order is much less likely.

Michele Smith will be organizing assignments and keeping the log book up-to-date for San Francisco and the East Bay. Mary Lipman will do the same for the South Bay.
 
 
Related article:
Pathfinder volunteer projects in full swing  
 
 
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