COVID-19 Support for Our Publishers

Get the word out: Many publishers have developed initiatives to support their readers or customers during this difficult time. We have compiled a comprehensive list of special resources and offers from publishers for readers, children, parents, librarians, and booksellers. To have your announcement added for free,  please submit here.

Provide relevant updates in Edelweiss: Your readers and buyers may also be wondering how to reach you during office closures. Therefore, make sure you have an Information Page on your Edelweiss+ listing to share special announcements, the best way to reach your team, etc. If you already have an Information Page, be sure to check that all information has been updated and is correct.

Tip: Did you know that you can now right click on your Information Page to copy the direct URL and then share in your email and marketing communications?

Go digital: With stores and libraries closed and readers at home, many publishers are shifting focus from print ARCs to digital copies. Over the past few weeks, Edelweiss+ has experienced record numbers of review copy uploads and downloads. It’s a good idea to brush up on how your team manages requests so that you stay on top of them!  Don't forget that you can auto-approve entire Communities, like ABA members and Kirkus reviewers. Save yourself time and grant access to more people by using auto-approval, Quick Send, and more. 

Get the most out of your review copies by sharing in your marketing/sales communications and promoting on Edelweiss. Access all these tips and tricks, including the Leveraging Your Review Copies Checklist, on our review copy training page!  

Give it a try: Not currently using the Edelweiss+ Review Copy Module? During this time, we are waiving the $99 annual fee for new review copy setups. Catalog Services subscribers can add digital review copies for simply $50/title (discounted pricing for distributed publishers may also apply). Learn more here.  

Edelweiss+ hosts a community of over 145,000 book professionals, including reviewers, media, booksellers, academics, and librarians. Use this digital community to your advantage.  

Leverage Edelweiss360 to find and communicate with influencers: Don't forget that all publishers who subscribe to catalog services have access to the complimentary features of Edelweiss360! In addition to tracking activity around your titles and catalogs in Edelweiss+, this tool makes it easy to identify and communicate with book professionals. Access our knowledge base of Edelweiss360 help documentation here. If you're interested in upgrading to Edelweiss360 Premium to activate more direct marketing and sales prospecting tools, learn more here. 

Promote your titles to raise awareness: Enter promo code SUMMER20 when making your reservation in Edelweiss for 20% off any promotions through the end of August. You can use it more than once! Learn more about all promotional options here, and be the first to know about other special promotions by subscribing to our publisher marketing mailing list.  

Use Edelweiss+ Communities to share collections with readers: Edelweiss+ Communities are groups of Edelweiss+ users with similar reading interests or roles. Learn more about Genre Communities and Verified Communities (like the ABA or LibraryReads) here. Remember that you can create new communities or join existing communities to share collections with other Community members and stay connected during this time! 

During times of rapid market change like this, it's important to consider how our marketing strategies need to adjust and adapt as well. For example, traditional advertising or event strategies may no longer result in the same ROI or even be feasible at the moment.

Virtual events: Author talks and events are a big driver of sales - for both stores and publishers. But just because stores are closed doesn't mean that meaningful events can't happen virtually. Stores across the country are gaining experience at hosting successful virtual events. You can utilize the same Event Grid functionality in Edelweiss+ to manage your virtual events, too!

Direct-to-consumer marketing: Now that a certain large online retailer has de-prioritized book sales, it is more important than ever to consider new ways to reach readers. Due to "shelter in place" guidelines, indie bookstores are ramping up their email communications to grow online orders and curbside pickup in addition to marketing their virtual book clubs and events. Edelweiss360 for Booksellers is a new tool that allows stores to promote titles and events to customers via targeted emails while also tracking conversion to sales. Publishers can get their titles in front of loyal indie bookstore consumers  AND support the indies by sponsoring placement in these store-branded email campaigns. It's effortless - other than activating their titles with Edelweiss360, no work is required of publishers.  Interested in participating in the beta test? Learn more here.  

Now is a great time to learn more about all the rich features of Edelweiss+ to make sure that your entire team is getting the most out of it.  Here are some great resources to get you started:

• • Catalog Admin Training
  • Sales Rep Training
  • Edelweiss+ Help Site
  • Checklist: Leveraging Edelweiss+
  • Checklist: Leveraging Catalogs

If you have questions at any time, please feel free to contact us at support@abovethetreeline.com.