Today we're celebrating 10 years of SalesData! Cupcakes were had and high fives were shared all around the BookNet office.
Celebratory cupcakes for a job well done!
10 years ago this week, BookNet processed our very first week of sales data, which provided the first, real glimpse of the Canadian book market. Using that data, we were soon able to launch SalesData, actualizing the dream of a Canadian-owned-and-operated national sales tracking service and bringing together publishers, distributors, wholesalers, agents, librarians, and retailers of all shapes and sizes to create a community committed to providing and sharing the best possible book sales data.
SalesData receives data from thousands of retail outlets and serves hundreds of reports every week to over a thousand users, providing insight into: ranked sales from a national panel of retailers; percentage share of subjects and formats for publishers, distributors, and retailers; and valuable views into nationwide sales at the title level.
On SalesData's 5th birthday, we threw some figures at you that showed how much SalesData had grown since its inception. Now, after 10 years strong, we are still getting down with the data:
- Taking into account leap years, SalesData has processed 521.7 weeks of data.
- Over the last 10 years, we have captured 529,859,279 units sold.
- The system is currently tracking data on 1,800,000 titles.
- Over 28,000,000 ISBNs have a bibliographic record.
- Approximately 250,000 reports are run every year.
- The SalesData database contains upwards of one billion rows of retailer data.
- So far this year, our 1,700 users have visited the site 446,288 times.
We have no intention of stopping here. In the new year, the BookNet team will be rolling out a new iteration: SalesData3, born out of the desire to increase the system's performance, usability, and analytical insight. SalesData3 will be a fast and scalable site that's responsive to different screen dimensions and quick to alter to keep up with the different types of data that could come our way in the future. On the reporting side, we're working on super fast text searches and new ways to segment and compare data over time and markets. We're also setting up data visualizations that will make it easier for people to discover and communicate meaningful patterns quickly. In the midst of all this change, our guiding principle remains to provide the Canadian book industry with market intelligence that helps make sound business decisions.
With cupcakes we salute you.
We want to thank all of our partners, contributors, and subscribers for 10 years of community building. Without you, SalesData couldn't function. A huge thank you is owed to every member of the BookNet team, as well—your passion for this project has won untold victories behind the scenes and you have been nationally recognized as "keepers of the data."
Thank you for 10 years of SalesData, and here's to at least 10 more.
