Penguin Random House Announces New Initiatives to Support Independent Bookstores
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Penguin Random House is launching two new marketing programs to support independent bookstores this holiday season.
“The final months of 2020 are a critical time for independent bookstores,” said Jaci Updike, President, Sales, Penguin Random House, U.S. “We wanted to find innovative ways to support the work they do on behalf of our books and authors, and to help drive sales in their stores.”
The first program, “Books Give More,” is a partnership with Penguin Random House’s Consumer Marketing team. Independent bookstores that promote select titles from the “Books Give More” campaign during the holidays are eligible to receive a marketing credit based on their 2019 sales. To help drive consumer demand at the store-level, Penguin Random House will be promoting these titles via social media marketing, online advertising, and e-newsletters. Penguin Random House will also be creating digital initiatives that focus consumer attention on independent bookstores on an ongoing basis.
The second initiative supports virtual events hosted on bookstores’ platforms. Referred to as VESPER, the Virtual Events Support Program reimagines traditional event coop for today’s events landscape, where the vast majority of events are occurring online. All divisions of Penguin Random House, along with DK, will be participating in the program.
“Author events at independent bookstores are a crucial component of some of our most successful book launches,” continued Updike. “We have seen firsthand how labor-intensive it is to mount a successful virtual event. We hope VESPER helps stores engage with their communities in new ways, as we all learn together how to connect our authors more closely with readers in the virtual space.”
Bookstores interested in finding out more about these programs are encouraged to contact their Penguin Random House sales representative.