Case Study:
Angell Eurosales
November 2009
Delivering a unique service to Nordic book buyers
Angell Eurosales is a partnership offering
publishers freelance representation in the
Nordic countries. The business was founded by
Gill Angell in 1992 and she was later joined by
her husband Stewart Siddall in 1994. They
represent a range of general and specialist
publishers, and twice a year visit customers
throughout Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Finland
and Iceland.
Highlights:
Delivering a unique service
Consistent presentation of
titles to aid buying
decisions
Simplifying data processes
Daily updates save time
BookData
Searching and record
retrieval online
www.nielsenbookdata.co.uk
BookScan
Measuring and analysing
demand
www.nielsenbookscan.co.uk
BookNet
Integrated electronic
ordering
www.nielsenbooknet.co.uk
For more information about
Nielsen Book’s products and
services:
www.nielsenbook.co.uk
Written by Gill Angell,
Angell Eurosales.
Kreaktiv in Drammen, Norway is an artist supply store that
also sells books. Pictured above are Geir Horgen and Rita Havikhagen Høgmoen with Gill Angell.
Angell Eurosales has used a laptop to access its ordering database since start-up,
but in the last two years they have developed (working with a team of
programmers based in Edinburgh) an on-screen book presentation system combined
with an automated ordering database. The aim of the new database is to increase
efficiency, reduce the amount of sales material being carried and to automate
routine processing of orders. The most important aspect of the system is to present
their publishers’ new titles to buyers in a clear, attractive and informative format
to aid their buying decisions.
‘Nielsen Book’s Record Supply
Service is perfect for our needs.’
Since they represent a range of
publishers it was always going to be a
Gill Angell, Angell Eurosales
challenge to get book data from
these various sources in a uniform
format to make importation into the
database consistent and efficient. Fortunately, one of their publishers suggested
talking to Nielsen Book to see if they could provide the information needed.
Gill says ‘It transpired that Nielsen Book’s BookData Record Supply Service, an ‘on
demand’ service with daily updates, was perfect for our needs. All we do is ‘copy
and paste’ a list of ISBNs sent by publishers. The system then requests the data
from the BookData Information ftp site and the next day imports the requested
title information. It could not be simpler!’
Helge Johnnysen, Art Book Buyer for NORLI
Universitetsgata in Olso, (pictured right with
Stewart Siddall) said: “At long last, a
computer information and presentation
system that works for the book buyer! The
Angell Eurosales system, with Nielsen Book
information, offers a cornucopia of additional
and valuable information such as the index of
the book, picture samples and descriptive
text, as well as much needed space for all the
extra information that bookshops require sales reps to include with each order.
It does away with masses of paperwork and confusing forms for each distributor.”
Copyright © 2009 The Nielsen Company. All rights reserved
Nielsen and Nielsen logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of CZT/ACN Trademarks, L.L.C.
www.nielsen.com 1
An innovative service for both booksellers and publishers
The presentation can either be controlled by
us or by the buyers via a hand-held number
pad which can also be used to add the
quantity of a specific title they wish to
order.’
An example slide from an Angell Eurosales presentation
‘It is exciting to see the
updates and new titles
arrive in the ordering
database from BookData
every day and this is
saving us a huge amount
of time inputting new
titles.’
Gill Angell
‘The database then checks for
any missing essential data or
missing jacket/cover images
and automatically assigns the
title to subject areas based on
the BIC codes already loaded on
the Nielsen Book database. We
review the data of every new
title to enable us to add or
change anything or load sample
spreads for illustrated books.’
“The on screen presentation of the database is very clear probably the best I have seen. The picture is big enough and you
can see the most important information immediately (title,
author, price, pub date, ISBN). The way the size of the book is
presented is very clever. I also liked the fact that you can choose
whether you want to see just one title at a time or several. It's
also a good idea that you can mark the titles you'd like to think
about and have them listed at the end of the presentation” said
Tuija Partanen, Buyer at Stockmann in Helsinki.
Gill goes on to say ‘many of our publishers really take care to
submit very complete data and descriptions and to keep Nielsen
Book’s database updated with changes. However, we will be
talking to a few of our other publishers to stress how important a
resource the Nielsen BookData Service is to us and their
customers, many of whom also subscribe to Nielsen Book’s
services in one form or another.
In the database, all of our bookseller customers have subjects
allocated to them. When we visit we launch a presentation which
shows all the titles relevant to that bookseller which are ‘new’
since our last visit. We can also set up special subject or publisher
templates to sell backlist books or special promotions, as
required.
Copyright © 2009 The Nielsen Company. All rights reserved
Nielsen and Nielsen logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of CZT/ACN Trademarks, L.L.C.
‘The new system has already been launched
on our autumn sales trips and the reaction
from customers has been very positive. They
really like the large 17 inch screens with
clear information and big cover image. It
saves the buyers a lot of time knowing that
important details such as price and
publication date are in the same place for
every title regardless of publisher. Stewart
was very keen that we include a visual size
tool which shows the size of the book
compared to a piece of A4 paper. This has
been one of the key features most
appreciated by our customers. They also like
the double page spreads that pop-up on
demand and the speed and efficiency of the
presentation.
Finn Nielsen (on the right) Buyer for Politikens Boghal
A/S in Copanhagen, Denmark with Stewart Siddall.
“We are using BookData Online at
Politikens Boghal and have done for
quite a while. The way Angell Eurosales
are presenting the new books using a
data feed from Nielsen BookData, is
very user friendly and professional.
Provided that publishers deliver useful
and complete information the Angell
Eurosales system is very close to being
perfect”.
Finn Nielsen, Bookseller, Politikens
Boghal, Copenhagen
www.nielsen.com 2
Publishers gain real benefits by providing good data
Our programmers have been fantastic
and whilst there have been a few
teething problems everything is now
running smoothly. Their biggest
challenge has been the need for
simultaneous multiple laptop use and
daily updating whilst we are on sales
trips. It is exciting to see the updates
and new titles arrive in the ordering
database from BookData every day and
this is saving us a huge amount of time
inputting new titles.
We are so pleased with the software
and are interested in customising it
for publishers with their own rep
force or for use more generally by
independent sales teams.
For more information about Angell Eurosales
email: [email protected] or
tel: +44 (0)1289 332 934
An example slide of the multi-book view from an Angell Eurosales presentation
The view from a publisher perspective:
“Gill and Stewart gave me a brief demo of their new
sales software at Frankfurt Book Fair. I was impressed
with how well our titles were presented. I liked the
added touches like extra photos, maps and full-size
front covers. Things change, pub dates move, subtitles
are added and covers get tweaked. As we update
Nielsen Book on a weekly basis and Gill and Stewart
download changes every day, they are completely on
top of any changes we make. The fact that we don't
need to create paper AIs for them is an added bonus. I
wish all our reps could use this great service!”
Helen Calderón, Sales & Marketing Manager, Bradt
Travel Guides
"I was delighted to see the truly excellent presentation
system that Angell Eurosales are now using to represent
our books in their territory. After so much work on their
part, it's amazing to see the integration of the BookData
Enhanced Service, with the sales and ordering
information that Gill and Stewart have added. It's been
a labour of love, I know, but so worthwhile. Honestly, I
suspect it's the beginning of a revolution in rep selling!"
Susie Dunlop, Publishing Director, Allison & Busby
(Board Member of the IPG)
Copyright © 2009 The Nielsen Company. All rights reserved
Nielsen and Nielsen logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of CZT/ACN Trademarks, L.L.C.
“We are very impressed with the database that
Angell Eurosales have developed for their sales
presentations. The on-screen display of cover
and spreads is comprehensive and the whole
programme, by having the most up to date
information available from Nielsen BookData's
Enhanced Service, makes ordering so easy. This
could and should become the industry model for
agency selling.”
Anne Dolamore, Grub Street
“Gill Angell and Stewart Siddall have always been
consummate professionals when selling our books
in Europe. Their new system will take the service
they offer, to Search Press and other publishers,
to a whole new level. It is sure to further
enhance sales of our books, not least as it
showcases our rich data. They should be
applauded for taking the initiative and designing
the system from scratch. I was incredibly
impressed with the way it presents books and the
efficiencies it introduces for placing orders. I
know it will be of real benefit to them (and
Search Press!) We also subscribe to the BookData
Enhanced Service which provides Angell Eurosales
rich and up-to-date information for our titles,
which allows book buyers all over the world to
make their decisions based on good quality
information”.
Martin de la Bedoyere, Managing Director, Search
Press Limited
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Publishers gain real benefits by providing good data
We have been very impressed with Nielsen BookData from our
first meeting with Simon Skinner, Sales Director, at Frankfurt
Book Fair 2007. Simon gave us a lot of time and advice and
seemed genuinely interested in our project. Lucy Huddlestone,
BookData’s UK Trade Sales Manager, is our main contact and has
been an absolute star. She has provided an exceptional service
and we cannot praise her or Nielsen Book enough.’
Lucy Huddlestone, from BookData, said:
“It has been really interesting working
on this project with Gill and even
though the service is now live, Gill has
further plans. One of the areas she is
keen to work with us on is to encourage
publishers to subscribe to the BookData
Enhanced Service – this will improve the
data held on our database and will
therefore be available to companies like Angell Eurosales. We
truly believe that better data helps sell books.”
BookData Enhanced Service
Publishers subscribing to this service will be
able to include enriched information in their
title records: descriptions, table of contents,
reviews, promotional information and author
biographies. A named editor will manage
their information, ensuring accuracy,
consistency, timeliness and completeness of
their records, which will give their titles the
competitive edge when viewed by buyers
around the world.
An annual subscription is based on a per title
rate for all publications. A minimum charge
applies.
Digital Product Listing
Existing publishers subscribing to the
Enhanced Service can list e-books free of
charge within an existing publisher
subscription, providing product records are
delivered in a suitable electronic form i.e.
ONIX or PubWeb. This offer will apply for the
first year of their subscription and will be
reviewed annually.
New publishers subscribing to the Enhanced
Service can list e-books at the agreed
chargeable subscription rate appropriate to
the number of new products they are
adding, providing that their records are
delivered electronically (see above).
Publishers of all sizes, regardless of
location, can benefit from this service. For
more information email:
[email protected] or
tel: +44 (0)1483 712 200.
For more information on Nielsen Book’s
services for retailers email:
[email protected] or tel: +44
(01483) 712 200.
Copyright © 2009 The Nielsen Company. All rights reserved
Nielsen and Nielsen logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of CZT/ACN Trademarks, L.L.C.
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