Dear Barnes and Noble,
While I love perusing the aisles looking for the latest and greatest reads, I must say that your ‘system of order’ is horrible. What do I mean by this? Well, it’s gets tiresome when I have to walk back and forth between the ‘Romance’ section and the ‘Fiction & Literature’ section to find my favorite romance authors. I find myself baffled at why some romance authors are found under Fiction & Literature while others are under Romance. Is there a system to your madness? If so, please tell me the secret. And may I also suggest a ‘Paranormal Romance’ section for adults? You gave it to the teens, it seems only fair you would give it to us older folk too. And if you’re feeling really generous, I would love a ‘Romantic Suspense’ section too.
xoxo
The Book Vixen
P.S.
Those books you find pulled out from their spot and placed flat on the shelf – yup, that’s my doing. It annoys the heck out of my OCD side when I see a Laurell K. Hamilton book mixed in with the Nora Roberts books (especially when the shelf is clearly labeled “Alpha by Author”). Pulling those mis-shelved books out is my way of helping your employees notice the books that need re-shelving. I’m also guilty of putting same titled books (by the same author of course) right next to each other. They get lonely when you separate them.
P.P.S.
I love that you think ahead of yourselves by stocking the 2nd and/or 3rd books of a series. But it’s really saddening when I’m looking to start a series and you don’t have the first book in stock.
Sometimes I move the books back to their proper place too. Cute post.
ReplyDeleteTrying to search the B&N site truly takes time and patience. I've found titles by the same author split between different categories.
ReplyDeleteAnd lol, I do the same thing in-store with the reshelving. I *might* even take it a step further and organize series from oldest to newest, left to right. People have asked me if I work there.
Oh the things I would say to Barnes and Noble. I find their new system of putting the teen books into categories quite annoying. Plus I hate looking through the romance section and seeing things that don't belong or seeing romance books in other sections. I often help customers there more than the people who work there do and I don't work there, it's sad. Great Post!
ReplyDeleteOOOOh this is an old problem in any bookstore, Barnes & Noble notwithstanding. I worked in a Books-A-Million for 3 years, and the reason they are often mis-shelved is because the storebrand stickers that are placed on the books often have errors, even to the point of labeling it with the wrong author and/or title. Obviously, the people in Home Office don't coordinate the different sections very well, as "genre" authors will often get categorized in the generic fiction section and vice versa. My store was pretty good about submitting tickets to correct those errors, but many, many stores simply don't care enough to make the effort.
ReplyDelete...And that's my retail lesson for the day!
I'm glad to know I'm not the only person who moves books around in the bookstore. I also agree B&N is horrible about not having the first book in a series. My local Borders is very good about having the 1st book in the series, but not great about having the rest of books in the series.
ReplyDeleteOh I'm so glad that I'm not the only one who re-shelves books! I don't consider myself OCD but those misfiled books make me nuts!
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed the post. :)
Oh goodness, I run into this from time to time and it never fails to make me shake my head. Great post sweets!
ReplyDeleteIve never moved the books around, but I can totally agree to everything you said. I hate when they are disordered or when the genre is different than I expected it to be! IT would honestly be better if they organized all the books my author... at least then I'd know where to find an author (thought it would mostly kill browsing the shelves).
ReplyDeleteGreat post! I've found this problem is almost every large bookstore I've ever been in. With me, it's a hunt for my favorite urban fantasy authors; from sci fi to fiction to romance. I've finally stopped reorganizing shelves, but the mis-shelved books drive me nuts!
ReplyDeleteLOL--this post had me giggling....
ReplyDeleteI've re-shelfed books too but it was at Walmart. They keep putting Charlaine Harris and Patricia Briggs in the Young Adult section. Very annoying.
ReplyDeleteI hear you on the PNR section. I think the genre is to the point where it deserves its own isle. My favorite thing is when you will find the same series by the same author in two different sections of the store. Ya, thanks for being helpful!
ReplyDeleteStephanie G
Paranormal Haven
i have done the same thing, i used to work for Borders and I hate the BN system, when i go looking for religion or erotica or even women's lit i have to search the whole damn store, what's the point of the publisher's putting the categories on the back of the book if that's not where your going to shelve them. Little pet peeve when people CLEARLY see that's not where the magazine or book came from and just SHOVE it anywhere, stop being lazy put it back where you took it from UGH, my OCD also kicks in at the clothing store. i'm always telling people i don't work there lol
ReplyDeleteThis is why I love eBooks. :)
ReplyDeletei trust you actually sent this to B&N, and didn't leave it as a passive aggressive attack?
ReplyDeletei hear your frustration with their ordering system...just saying.
I think of all the big bookstores I've shopped in, Books-A-Million was the best organized. Barnes and Noble and Borders are both about the same.
ReplyDeleteJoBeth's isn't too bad.
Look at it this way...it gives you a chance to find something you weren't looking for :)
I just started following your blog, after I'd read your Book Blogging help post on Paranormal Junkie's View. It looks great and I think I'll be using some of your ideas just as soon as I narrow down my book reading plans for 2011.
ReplyDeleteI think you're letter to B & N is hilarous, because I feel the SAME way. I even went up to our (we have Borders here) store's front counter and asked them to explain what qualifies something as 'Literature' becasue items are a mixed bag in those isles as well as their actual Genre. No one working could answer, they even called the manager over, still nothing.
I completely agree there should be a Paranomal Section!
hehe forward along to Borders and Half-Priced books too! I have given up trying to just browse in a book store anymore---the ordering makes no sense at all.
ReplyDeleteLillie - I found that too: same author with books found at multiple sections. Do they want to make it confusing for us? LOL I got asked twice yesterday if I worked there.
ReplyDeleteRachel - Very interesting inside look! Thanks for sharing :) I wish I had a Books-A-Million in my area.
Liza - I wish they realized how important is it to have the first book in the series in stock. I passed up on getting quite a few books because of this. So sad.
Anna - Sounds like someone at Wal-Mart was categorizing by book covers O.O
Stephanie - PNR definitely deserves its own section now. It's gotten so big with Twilight and Sookie (to name a few).
Lisa - I haven't sent it to B&N. Maybe I should...
So totally agree... What the heck is Barnes and Noble thinking? I'm sooo lost at the store, and everything is mixed together... And their online nookbooks, I've been ordering from them for quite a bit, and now they suddenly have this policy that GiftCards aren't enough to purchase with, you HAVE to put in a credit card. I called and asked why my purchases were going through when I had $80 in gift cards? I was told "Copyright Laws demand that a credit card be used when purchasing ebooks..." bullox...when I purchase at the Apple Store, GiftCards don't need a credit card entered... nor at Amazon.... What the heck is it with that?
ReplyDeleteD
Dottie - You need to enter a credit card to purchase eBooks with a gift card? That doesn't make sense. That is bullox.
ReplyDeleteSo I've heard...(mind you I'm no expert) that part of the problem of books being filed all over the store is that they get filed based on what buyer brought them in. In other words, if KMMs books were bought by the Romance buyer then that is where they will be filed. If her books were bought by the Scifi/Fantasy buyer then that is where they will get filed. So it would be easy to see her Highlander books under Romance and her Fever series under Scifi/Fantasy.
ReplyDeleteAgain, this is what I have heard. Can't help but wonder if it's true. It certainly explains why there can be so much confusion on where to find authors in the bookstore. :)
YES! I hate when I want to start a series and all the bookstore has is the later releases.
ReplyDeleteAaah, that kind of categorizing drives me nuts too! I've even seen it where some of the books in a series are put in one category and then the rest of the books in the same series are put in another category!
ReplyDeleteNot only does this drive me crazy as a person obsessed with organization, but from a business/customer standpoint this is just silly. They're losing so much business with poorly organized categories.
I have stopped shopping at my Barnes and Noble for this reason. I was so frustrated with how the store was set up I haven't been back. I only order online from them now. Kinda makes me sad, but I don't have the time for that crap.
ReplyDeleteOur local Books A Million is organized like that. I had the hardest time finding Charlaine Harris books on my first visit because she was split into three separate categories. So frustrating!
ReplyDeleteLove this post! I agree with everything in it, especially the part about stocking the 2nd or 3rd books of series. It seems like they always have more than enough of the 2nd/3rd books, and only one copy of the first book...which of course is always taken!
ReplyDeleteoh my god! you are so right about the series arrangements, they always have the second and third but never the first one! im heather im new to the blogging world check out my blog? http://breathingbooks.blogspot.com/
ReplyDeleteany suggestions will be greatly appreciated!
I agree with it all! Books-a-Million is the same way... who comes up with the layout... a reader, I think not
ReplyDelete