The short version
- People choose a bookstore for the people in it. Posts with a face and an opinion beat a photo of a shelf.
- One staff pick with a reason does more than 10 covers in a grid.
- Events are your best posts. Give the date, the time and one line on why someone should come.
- 3 posts a week is plenty: a pick, an event or arrival, and a moment from the shop.
A reader moves to town and searches for a bookstore. They find yours, scroll to the top of the Facebook Page, and see a post from the spring. They assume the shop closed, order from a warehouse and never learn you have a cat in the window.
A bookstore has more to say than almost any other small business. Here are 18 bookstore social media post ideas you can edit and use right now. If you also sell games or gifts, our toy store post ideas show how another gift-driven shop writes about stock.
What a bookstore post needs to do
Online stores have everything. You have a point of view. Every post should let a reader hear one person in your shop say what they love.
- Say who the book is for, in plain words ("if you liked [title]").
- Use a real staff name. People return for the bookseller.
- Give one reason, not a plot summary.
- Put the date and time in any event post, in the first line.
For a refresher on the basics, see what to post on your business Facebook Page.
Staff pick and shelf posts
If you liked
If you finished [title] and don't know what to read next, try [title] by [author]. Same quiet mood, different century. [Name] has pushed it into more hands than any other book on our shelf.
Photo: Both books side by side on the counter.
The bookseller's shelf
[Name]'s shelf this month: 4 books [he/she] couldn't put down. Stop in and ask for the one with the green cover. We're open till [time].
Photo: A close-up of the shelf with handwritten shelf-talkers.
Hand-sell of the week
A customer asked for a book 'with a dog on the cover that makes you cry.' We had two. This is the one we gave her. Ask us for yours.
Photo: A single book held up near the register.
Used and rare
Just in from an estate in [town]: [number] boxes of old cookbooks and a first printing of [title]. They'll be out on the shelf Friday morning.
Photo: A box of books with a few spines visible.
Author night and book club posts
Author visit
[Author] is reading from [title] at the shop on [date] at [time]. Free to attend. Signed copies are on the table, and we'll save you a chair.
Photo: The empty reading chair under a spotlight.
Book club open seat
Our [day] book club has 3 open seats. We're reading [title] this month. No homework if you haven't finished. Message us to join.
Photo: A circle of chairs and a stack of the month's book.
Kids story time
Story time returns [day] at [time]. We'll read [title] and have a craft table after. Bring a grown-up. Free, as always.
Photo: The story-time rug, empty, with the book on it.
Local author table
Writing a book in [town]? We carry local authors on a front table. Drop off a copy and we'll tell you the consignment terms in 5 minutes.
Photo: The local authors table with a handwritten sign.
A shop with a small cafe corner can also lean on the post types in coffee shop post ideas, since events and regulars carry the same weight.
Gift season and reading season posts
Summer reading list
Beach bag stuffers: [title], [title] and [title]. Paperback, easy to pack, and sand-proof as long as you shake them out. We're open till [time].
Photo: Three paperbacks on a towel.
Gift tables
Gift table is up. Books for new parents, books for retirees and one for the friend who's hard to shop for. We wrap for free until [date].
Photo: The gift table with ribbon and a wrapped book.
Gift card reminder
Can't decide? A gift card from the shop goes to a reader who'll pick better than either of us. Available in any amount at the counter.
Photo: A gift card tucked into a book.
Rainy afternoon
Rain all day in [town]. We have the kettle on and a corner chair open. Come in, find a book, and stay as long as you like.
Photo: The reading chair by a rainy window.
Hobby and gift shops share the same calendar. Holiday post ideas for small business lists the dates to plan around.
Behind the counter and small press posts
Shop cat
[Cat name] has taken over the poetry section again. We checked, and that is apparently a legal place to sleep.
Photo: The shop cat curled up on a shelf, not the books.
Unboxing day
New release day. We opened [number] boxes this morning, and [title] is on the front table. If you pre-ordered, your copy is waiting.
Photo: A cutter, a box and a stack of new titles.
Behind the title (for small presses)
This spring we're printing [title] by [author]. It's our [number]th book. Here's the cover proof on the press table. Pre-orders open [date].
Photo: A cover proof beside the printer.
Thanks for shopping local
A reader drove 40 minutes to pick up a book we'd held. Thank you. We keep the lights on one book at a time.
Photo: A paper bag with the shop's logo on the counter.
A simple week of bookstore posts
Pick 3 and rotate. If you aren't sure how often is right, how often a business should post explains why steady beats loud.
3 posts a week
- MonStaff pickOne book, one reason, one name.
- WedEvent or arrivalDate and time in the first line.
- FriA moment in the shopThe cat, the window, a customer find.
What makes a bookstore page look closed
Do
- Name the bookseller behind every pick.
- Repeat event posts 3 times: a week out, 2 days out, the day of.
- Answer comments asking if you carry a title.
- Post holiday hours early.
Don't
- Copy a long publisher blurb into a post.
- Leave an old event post as your newest.
- Show a customer without asking.
- Argue about a book review in the comments.
