Getting The Most Out Of Bricks And Mortar
Marc Compeau writing in Forbes magazine.18 June, 2008

Online sales--$136 billion in the U.S. last year--still account for just 3.2% of total retail spending, according to the Census Bureau. But as we get lazier--and as the price of speedy Internet connections continues to plummet--e-commerce will play a larger role in the way we buy and sell. eMarketer projects that online sales will grow at a 12% annualized clip through 2012.

Compeau then goes on to illustrate how stores in various sectors are succeeding including the following about a successful independent bookstore:

The Bookstore Plus, in Lake Placid, N.Y., just celebrated 35 years in business and is still going strong. How does owner Sarah Galvin compete with the likes of Amazon.com and the online units of Borders Group and Barnes & Noble?
First step: educating her customers--for example, letting regulars know that the weekly book order goes out on Sunday. "If a customer lets us know about a special order on Saturday night, we can have it in the store by Wednesday," explains Galvin. "But if you let us know Monday morning it's going to take 10 days."
Read the full story here from Forbes online.