An independent bookshop website: stock, events and orders

Short answer: An independent bookshop website doesn't need to out-Amazon Amazon. Its first jobs are to tell people what you have and what's on, make ordering any book from you as easy as messaging a friend, and sell tickets for events. Full online sales from your own stock come later, and only if your shop system can keep the website's stock accurate. Online-only sales can be handed to an affiliate route such as Bookshop.org, so you earn from them without packing parcels.

Feature priority list

This is a proposed order, based on likely value for the least ongoing work. Reorder it using your own enquiries, event bookings and analytics.

1. The basics, done properly

Opening hours (and holiday hours, updated), address with a map, phone, email, a few photos of the shop and the people in it, accessibility notes, and whether you have a café or children's corner. Match all of it to your Google Business Profile. Check your analytics to see how much traffic this page gets; it is a sensible first page to get right.

2. ‘Order any book’ request form

Many customers may mainly need to know you can get a book, not that it's on the shelf. A short form (title, author or ISBN, name, contact, ‘collect in store’ or ‘post to me’) and a promise in plain words (‘we'll confirm price and when it'll arrive’) gives people an alternative to the big-retailer app. Route it to an inbox someone checks daily, or straight into your shop system's customer orders if it supports that.

3. Events listing with tickets

Author talks, signings, book clubs and children's story time are things a website can sell that an online giant can't. Give each event its own page with date, time, price, what's included (some shops bundle a copy of the book with the ticket) and a booking button. If tickets come with a book, make it clear whether it's collected on the night or posted.

For search engines, Google's event guidance says each event must have a unique URL (a leaf page) with the structured data on that URL, and it recommends marking up single-event pages rather than pages that list schedules or several events. A recurring schedule such as ‘first Thursday book club’ is a human-facing description only; each dated session you want in Google event results needs its own page with its own URL and markup. Events must accurately state name, start date and location, be bookable by the general public, and take place in a physical location. Don't mark up things that aren't events, such as ‘buy your tickets now’ or discount offers. Keep past events visible as an archive; it shows publishers and authors that you run a lively programme.

4. Staff picks and lists

Curated lists (‘What we're reading this month’, ‘Books for nervous new readers’) are your shop's voice on the web. Each list item should link to a way to buy: your own shop page, an order request, or an affiliate link.

5. Signed copies and pre-orders

Signed and dedicated copies from events, and pre-orders for big releases with a signed bookplate, can be good reasons to buy from you. Even without a full shop, a simple product page with online payment and ‘collect or post’ options can work for a handful of titles.

6. Online sales through an affiliate

If you want to sell online without running a warehouse, an affiliate route does the fulfilment. According to the Booksellers Association, BA members that are independent, physical bookshops based in the UK can become Bookshop.org affiliates for free (this is described as an exclusive BA member benefit), earning 30% commission on sales they generate, calculated from the cover price. Bookshop.org handles stock, picking, packing, postage, customer queries, delivery issues and returns. In addition, 10% of other sales on the platform go into a shared pool paid monthly to bookshops on the platform, according to the BA page. The BA page also describes a storefront page for your shop, curated lists, a shop finder map, and an affiliate dashboard; customers can share their details with you if they choose.

On your website, that means your staff picks and lists can link to your Bookshop.org storefront or lists, and sales through those links credit you. Check the current terms with the BA and Bookshop.org before you build around them.

7. Live stock from your shop system

Showing what's actually on your shelves is the most useful and most demanding feature. It only works if stock and reservations are kept accurate and timely, whether your EPOS or inventory system publishes them automatically or you maintain them reliably by hand. Some bookshop systems include a webstore: Bookmanager, for instance, describes a consumer webstore that automatically syncs with your inventory. If you can't keep stock reliably current, don't promise stock online. A stale ‘in stock’ label that sends someone across town for a book you sold yesterday costs more goodwill than no label.

Ask your EPOS provider three things: Can it publish stock levels to a website, and how often? Can web orders reserve a copy so it's not sold at the till? Can it import title data (covers, blurbs) so you're not typing them?

8. Newsletter

New arrivals, events and staff picks, sent monthly as a starting suggestion. Put the sign-up on the events page and in the footer; event-goers may be good early sign-ups, and your own open and click data will show whether that holds for you.

What to leave out at first

A full catalogue of every title in print, unless your system provides it automatically.
Complex shipping tables. Start with collection in store and one simple postage option.
Accounts and wish lists. Start without them and add them only if customers ask or your order data shows a need.

A sensible build order

Basics, Google profile alignment and the order-request form.
Events pages with ticketing.
Staff picks linking to an affiliate storefront.
Newsletter and signed-copy pages.
Live stock and full online ordering, once your system supports it.

FAQ

Do I need my own online shop if I use Bookshop.org?

Not necessarily. Many shops use an affiliate route for online orders and keep their own website for events, picks and order requests. Your own shop makes sense when you sell plenty of signed copies, local exclusives or gifts.

Is Bookshop.org the same in the UK and the US?

They run under similar models, but eligibility and payments differ: the US help centre ties bookstore affiliates to ABA membership and a physical bookstore location (not online or events only), and describes its shared pool as divided every six months, while UK shops come in through the Booksellers Association, whose page describes monthly pool payments. Check the terms for your country.

Can customers reserve a book online and pick it up?

Yes, if your shop system can mark a copy as reserved. Otherwise, the order-request form with a confirmation call or email does the job.

How do I show event tickets that include a book?

Say exactly what's in the ticket price and when the book is handed over, on the event page and in the confirmation email.

If your events, staff picks and stock live in three different places, show us how the shop runs today and we'll plan a site that fits it.