For stores that promoted Small Business Saturday on November 24, the effort was worth it as we received many reports of increased traffic and sales. Even stores where business was flat or slightly down compared to Small Business Saturday 2011 reported greater awareness of the promotion.
One way to judge the effectiveness of SBS was to look at American Express card usage, and for some stores the  difference was clear-cut. At both Bookshop West Portal and Towne Center Books, Amex sales were triple what they are on a normal Saturday at this time of year. The Booksmith also reported higher Amex sales, bolstered in part by one man who came in with eight cards - "seven in his name and 1 in his wife's, and asked that we charge $25 to each and write him gift certificates for that amount."
As for sales, here are some other comments from stores:
Towne Center Books: "We love Small Business Saturday! We had a 40% increase on Saturday over a year ago (which we thought was a good day).
Our AMEX charges were about three times what they usually are proportionally so people definitely used their cards. Some even bought gift cards if they were too busy to shop at the moment or undecided. I think they were using the cards for themselves later. Let's do it every Saturday! I'm sure AMEX wouldn't mind."
Hicklebee's: "Our sales were double what they were the year before. More stores on our street participated in SBS."
Rakestraw Books: "Up 35% from last year's SBS, and it was busy all weekend."
Gallery Bookshop: "We did great ... up 25%, and a number of people said they came because of SBS. Also, I sent out a newsletter a few days before and mentioned the Amex $25 deal prominently ... that definitely drew a few shoppers and several phone orders.
It was good to have the Kobo deal and the Thanks for Shopping Indie promo going ... customers enjoy seeing some specials, even if it's not deep discounting."
Mountain Bookshop: "10% better than last year. Several posted comments about it on our Facebook page."
Laurel Bookstore: "We had close to a 5% increase over the Saturday last year. Many people announced that they were doing their shopping locally on that day for Small Business Saturday. We also offered pumpkin pie and gave away a free used book of each new book bought at full price. People were in good moods and happy to be supporting their local stores."
Pegasus Books: We had a busy three days and customers were most definitely mentioning Small Business Saturday and using the card, at all three stores.
Two stores also volunteered that they experienced brisk Kobo sales over the weekend, fueled by the Kobo Mini promotion. Bay Books in San Ramon sold six minis on Friday and Saturday "which more than half our supply and has our staff now all enthused about Kobos," while Green Apple Books sold 11 in two days.
Interestingly, several stores also successfully promoted Plaid Friday, including A Great Good Place for Books, Laurel Bookstore, and Gallery Bookshop, among others. The most comprehensive feedback came from Orinda Books:
"We did not participate in Small Business Saturday. We don't accept American Express cards at our store, so we did not want to get involved with that event. We didn't want to confuse or disappoint customers who were hoping to support local and get their $25 American Express rebate.
We did participate in Plaid Friday, a same-day alternative to Black Friday. The event originated in Oakland in the last three to five years, but it's spread. The idea is to support the local businesses that contribute to the local color of their communities. Most participating stores offered incentives for visiting, like discounts, free items, etc.
We offered a 20% discount off of one book if the customer wore plaid or mentioned Plaid Friday. We  advertised via Facebook, Constant Contact, and Twitter. We used our own accounts on those platforms, and we also were featured on the Plaid Friday Facebook page and in others' retweets. I started our promotional push a little later than I would have liked due to my own personal schedule, but we had very good results nonetheless.
We were up in sales and visits from last year. Instead of being a slow or slower day as customers frequented big box stores, quite a few stopped by especially later in the day to support their local bookstore and get the discount. Some of them wore plaid, and some of them mentioned the promotion. They all seemed very excited to participate in whatever way they could!"
| 
giving, and community. On Tuesday, April 23, 2013, 25,000 book givers in the U.S. will each give away 20 copies of a specially-printed, not-for-resale WBN edition of a book to light readers or non-readers who likely don't have the means or access to printed books. For this event, bookstores and libraries are the essential grassroots and nationwide advocacy and distribution network. 