Discoverability: Still A Book's Biggest Problem
By Cecilia Tan, Founder/Publisher, Circlet Press
Posted at Book2Book Friday 09 Apr 2010

The old method of discovering books for the vast majority of readers was to go into the bookstore and wander around and see what was there.

This method is breaking down for a number of reasons. We have fewer bookstores. The stores we have, which in most places means chain bookstores, are often poorly curated, or poorly stocked. Borders at one point recently had a massive inventory reduction which meant fewer books on the shelves. Independent bookstores with great curation may still face inventory and cash flow challenges. But the number one reason we publishers keep selling books returnable on consignment is because the number one way to sell a book is to have it on the shelf for the consumer to see.

So what happens when there are fewer stores, fewer shelves, and greater competition for the shelf space that is left? You have to explore other methods of discoverability.
The full piece at digitalbookworld