I've been on PBS for a couple months and from the first was mailing two to four books a week.  Now I've got 80 books listed and haven't had a request in two weeks.  Should I take them all off and dump them at the library book sale?  How long should I wait?  Does it help to list more books?  I was astounded at the things that DID get snapped up (Boethius' CONSOLATION OF PHILOSOPHY, for goodness sake!) and think that what I have on the list is pretty desirable, but nothing is being taken.  Seeking advice from those with more experience.

Try offering a deal in Book Bazaar to see if you get some takers. 

What is Book Bazaar and how do I find it?

Mem, I've been a PBS member several years, and yes IMO the requests have slowed down (others would disagree).  Wishlists are also MUCH longer than just a year ago.  I try to go through my shelf every few months, and weed out books that haven't been requested in 6 to 8 months, definately after a year unless it's oop or unusual.  I'm definately overdue for a major purge...there's a book donation station calling me :-)

How quickly books get ordered is mostly a function of how heavily posted they are. You can tell how many copies of a book are in the system by putting the book on your "Reminder List". Rarer books in the system go more quickly. I have a few books on my shelf that were only-copies-in-the-system, and for some of them, it still took a month or more for the right person to be looking for them.

I took a quick look at your shelf, and I think some of your books are probably more heavily posted (The Cat Who ... series is pretty popular). So, it may take a while for those to work up thru FIFO.

When I joined at the beginning of the year (6 months ago), I posted a bunch of books, a lot were requested right away, but most of them have just now worked their way towards the top of FIFO. I get regular orders from FIFO, maybe 3 or 4 books a week, but some weeks I don't get any FIFO.

PBS is a patience game, you have to leave the books on your bookshelf in order to get them thru the FIFO line.

If you are looking for credits, one thing you could check into doing is offer a deal on your bookshelf in the Book Bazaar. A lot of times, offering a deal will help move the more heavily posted books more quickly out of your house.

Go to Discussion Forums --> Book Bazaar.

thanks, Sara P!  i've found Book Bazaar and posted my sale.

Becoming a regular forum poster can help as well.  I've had really good luck wiht having those heavily posted books ordered pretty quickly and frequently it's another poster whom I recognize as a regular.  I know they order direct from me because I'm here alot and they know it won't sit and time out but be accepted and shipped quickly. 

Becoming a regular forum poster can help as well.

Yes, that really does help.   Because I saw your post here I checked out your bookshelf Mem and ordered 4 books.  So now you can find 4 new books to enjoy !

Thanks !

I took a look at your shelf as well, and you definitely have books I'm interested in (once I build up some more credits!)

edited to fix insane comma usage

I agree with all above.  Book Bazaar and forum posting is the best way to get your books noticed.

Yep, and simply developing patience helps too. Some books have a bunch of copies already in the system, and since PBS operates on a FIFO system (first in, first out) everyone who posted copies of those books ahead of you will get their books requested first, unless someone orders directly from you.  I took a look and you have a good selection, a nice variety, and I'm sure most of those books will get selected eventually.

Orders do slow down and speed up from time to time, they seem to run in streaks. I for one am VERY glad I don't get orders like I did the first few months I was here, when I was sending a dozen books a week or more. I couldn't afford the postage! I like a nice trickle, one or two books a week, that's fine with me!

Cheryl

Becoming a regular forum poster can help as well.

It really does help.   When I started posting I really started getting orders.  It was exciting.

I sent you a PM.

Geri

You'll also learn that orders seem to come in waves.  I've spent $25 in postage this week mailing books.  Other times I'll go 2 or 3 weeks without mailing anything.

Writing reviews of books that are on your bookshelf also helps.  The most recent reviews show up in the front entry page with your name.  Of course, some folks skip the front browse page.  But it gets the book up there to tempt folks.  That helps both by FIFO and by your name.

Just be patient.  Things ebb and flow.  Sometimes I get a request for a book that I forgot I even posted.  Last week I posted a book and it immediately got a WL request.  I was skeptical about posting it and finally just did it because it happened to be sitting there, I was not only shocked that it was requested but that someone had wish listed it. 

Anyway, if you are curious, put your own books on your reminder list.  That will let you know how many copies of each are currently available.  Unfortunatly, it won't show how many have been posted prior to or after you posted your books.  I did take a peek at one of your books that way and it had 74 copies. 

I post a lot of books that would seem to have few takers, but I'm often surprised how quickly they get snapped up!   Granted, there are a few that have been hanging around for more than a year, and eventually I'll take them off the list if they don't move.   But I've been pleasantly surprised what patience can do.  

It definitely goes in cycles.  When I first joined I was at the post office almost every day.  Who knew I was reading in demand stuff?  I have used PBS to become familiar with authors that have been around, have a series, etc.  Fortunately, these are heavily posted books that I have obtained easily (probably too easy as I am being buried alive by a growing TBR pile).   What this means is I am going to end up with a bookshelf of heavily posted books.  It will be slow going but that is OK.  I have enough to read and have sworn (fingers crossed behind back) that I will not order another book!

You'll find when you first join you get a flurry of requests and then it slows down for a while while your books make their way up thru the FIFO system.  I always find when I post new stuff to my shelf, I get a flurry of orders again.

It really does go in cycles.  I have weeks where I'm sending out books nearly every day and then a couple of weeks with nothing.  Just gotta be patient and let the system work.  I wouldn't weed any books off my shelf for at least 6 months to give them a chance to get thru the system.  Heck, I'm lazy and never weed out my shelf, never know what someone'll request in a deal or as a freebie.

I will say, I posted some pretty random things on my bookshelf and it has been a pleasant surprise that every once in a while one of those books gets requested.  I would leave your books on your shelf for a while - I agree with all the others that PBS requires patience and waiting, but fortunately there are a lot of books out there to read while you are waiting for your books to be requested.  And I figure I'm going to be here for a long time to come, so if it takes several months for some of my books to get requested, that's ok with me!

I would have ordered that Boethius book too! (And I have an idea who did!)

Just checked your shelf, and there's nothing I currently need, but I added you as a buddy because you've got cool stuff!

Skuzzycat - I checked out your shelf and I see you have mostly Harlequin romances.  There seems to be a lot of these types in the system.  (You can tell how many by adding the book to your reminder list).  To get things moving, you may need to add some wishlist books or books with less than 2-3 in the system. 

Just some thoughts....

Mem M.  I too checked out your bookshelf  and have a word of advise even though I'm only a 6 week old PBS'er.

I was frustrated with all the books I had missing pictures so I learned how and added pics. Some I posted today are still blue but I've already submitted the pics and they will turn from blue boxes to pictures of book covers by tomorrow.   I never get around to getting the camera out but I have a printer/scanner combo and that is soooo easy to do.     So getting some pics into the spot where the blue boxes are is a good thing to do while waiting for the requests to come in.

And if you do it wrong the PBS folks are really nice when they email you to tell you so! That's how I learned...