Borders Geeks Out
Troubled book retailer Borders Group, Inc. is looking to
make personal connections with science fiction fans and young adults online. Borders’ new science fiction blog,
Babel Clash, is it newest effort at reaching potential customers in a more direct manner.
Babel Clash is moderated by Borders’ science fiction buyer and features appearances by authors and other guest contributors who engage in online debates and trade blog posts with science fiction fans. In addition, Borders recently launched a
Facebook page [reg. req'd.] dedicated to readers of young adult books and graphic novels that also features interviews, book recommendations, photos, guest postings, and other exclusive author content. Furthermore, Borders communicates with customers
via the Twitter social networking site.
Borders is attempting to directly interact with dedicated subgroups of customers, such as science fiction fans and young adult readers, at a time general readership levels appear to be lagging. Borders’ dedicated young adult Facebook page has about 600 members. However, Borders’ Twitter page, which covers general topics relating to the retailer, has about 12,000 members, although Twitter users tend to be in the younger age demographic.
During Q1 2009, both Borders and its main rival Barnes & Noble
reported decreases in net sales, net losses, and declines in comparable store sales, with Borders reporting particularly steep declines in these areas.
Barnes & Noble has also attempted to more directly reach out to consumers by launching a new
multimedia blog feature promoting interaction between customers and store employees. Barnes & Noble also has pages on
Facebook [reg. req'd.] and
Twitter [reg. req'd.].
