Magic shelf
At the top of the page sits what Ertell calls
“the magic shelf.” Visitors are offered a chance
to “browse” the realistic-looking shelves
stocked with a variety of books.
By tapping on each one, visitors can look
quickly through a shelf labeled Staff Picks or
another for Gifts under $20. There is also an
option to customize the shelf based on viewer
preference. And if that’s not close enough to
the sensation of actually picking up a book,
recent visitors to the site could hear an author
talking about doing just that.
In an interview posted on the beta site, author
Michael Chabon is asked what inspired his book,
“The Yiddish Policemen’s Union.”
“You know what? It all started for me with this
little phrase book that I came across in a
Borders bookstore actually many, many years ago
called ‘Say it in Yiddish … A Phrase Book for
Travelers,’” Chabon said in the interview, “and
I was so entranced by the idea of holding this
book.”
Video of musicians making in-store appearances
also are featured on the site. In one example,
members of the Celtic choral ensemble Anuna sing
their way through the aisles as seemingly
bemused and bewildered browsers look on.
Readers who can’t make it to their neighborhood
book club one week can surf on over to Borders
to listen in on a club recently held at a store.
Again, Ertell says, it all goes back to the
content to which customers respond.
“It’s really good, compelling stuff that takes
it way beyond, ‘Don’t you want to buy this?’” he
says. |
