This document discusses strategies for maximizing ebook collection dollars in libraries. It recommends taking a "storefront approach" by focusing on new and popular titles. The author suggests checking bestseller lists, holds lists, and media coverage to determine popular titles. Pre-purchasing titles before publication can generate early interest. Statistics on usage help inform purchasing and ensure budgets are used effectively. Romance genres and older popular titles often circulate well. A multi-faceted approach is needed to navigate changing publisher policies and pricing.

1. Stretching Your eBook
Collection Dollars
Kathy Petlewski, Electronic Resources Librarian
Plymouth District Library
mkp@plymouthlibrary.org

2. The Storefront Approach
• Our consortium never intended to have a
traditionally comprehensive collection from
Overdrive.
• We have emphasized what was new and/or popular.
• If it circulates well in print, then it will probably do
well in digital format.
• If it’s in the media, then it will circulate.

3. How Does That Work in
Theory ?
• Check both the New York Times & USA Today
bestseller lists weekly.
• Look at the holds lists for our print books.
• Scan the media to find out what our patrons are
hearing about - - movie tie-ins, morning show
appearances etc.
• Local book club favorites, NPR features, Great
Michigan Reads etc.

4. Always Check These Sites !
EarlyWord.com

5. Early Word New Title
Radar

6. Early Word Usual
Suspects List

7. Shelf Awareness Site
http://www.shelf-awareness.com/

8. Shelf Awareness
Media and Movies

9. Shelf Awareness -
Attainment

10. Buying Pre-Pub Titles
• Purchasing ebooks before they are published
will put them on the site early.
• This leads to lots of holds before the title is
released and will trigger the Holds
Management System if you have one set up.
• Analysis has showed that we ended
purchasing more copies if they appear as pre-
pubs than if we put them on the site when
they are actually released.

11. The Realities of Today’s
Overdrive
• Out of the New York Times Bestseller List dated
March 18, 2012, only 5 of the top 14 titles were
listed on Overdrive as ebooks available for
licensing.
• Out of the top 14 in the USA Today Best-Sellers
for March 3, 2012, 4 ebooks were available. (3
were licensed for e-audio but not e-book format.)
• Penguin’s decision to drop OverDrive is huge.
• Random House’s pricing as of March 1st also has
enormous ramifications

12. Multi-Facetted Approach to
Purchasing
• If you or your consortium can afford it, purchase
in large quantities if publishers are changing
policies or pricing.
– Our consortium purchased several hundred titles before
Penguin stopped access.
– We also purchased older titles by popular authors and
filled in series for ebooks published by Random House
prior to March 1st.
• As an Advantage library, Plymouth also took
these same actions on a much smaller basis.

13. Viewing Reports is Key to
Success in Budgeting
• Using the ContentReserve site is essential if you
want to find out what your patrons are reading.
• Use it to stay up to date on holds ratios.
• Find out the most popular genres in your
community.
• See which authors are checked out most
frequently.
• Discover which format of e-book is most popular.

14. What We Discovered in the
Statistics
• By far, ROMANCE is the most popular genre
among our patrons.
• Patrons checked out ebooks that we didn’t own
in our library in print format. Most of these were
not best-selling authors, but big in romance
paperback.
• Patrons were just as likely to read an older book
by a given author as they were the latest release.
• Fiction titles were in much greater demand than
non-fiction with the exception of those in
national news. (biographies, politics, memoirs)

15. Using Statistics Helped
Save Money
• Happily, romance books tend to be more reasonably
priced than most best-sellers.
• Felt more comfortable purchasing older titles by
popular authors at a more reasonable price.
• Took a chance on buying ebooks on sale in genres we
know have been popular – ie Amish series from
Thomas Nelson.
• By closely monitoring holds ratios, we can better
determine when to purchase additional copies of
popular books. (Our automatic purchasing of holds
was discontinued after Random House raised prices.)

16. Taking Additional Steps
• As a consortium, encourage member libraries to
become Advantage Libraries. This can cut down on
the number of duplicate copies of best-sellers
needed on a consortium level.
• If an Advantage Library, seek funds from local
sources such as the Friends group.
• If you don’t already have it, get a separate line item
put in your library budgets for e-books.

17. Questions or Comments
This presentation may be found online at:
http://www.slideshare.net/kpetlewski/
stretching_ebook_dollars