While chains fill out their surveys from their corporate headquarters, independents will often nominate one employee to fill out the Times questionnaire on a weekly basis. The sales of independent bookstores tend to rely more heavily on publisher's backlists and other titles that may not have made the radar screens of the Times or the chains, so the questionnaires can be a nuisance, since clerks may have to write in nearly half the titles. These lists have turned their focus to chains. Nevertheless, the fact that some independents still submit these questionnaires reinforces the Times' clout. An outspoken critic of the bestseller list, Ross nonetheless thinks that stores still need the Times.
Chains use it with a vengeance.
All sales reps care about is the New York Times list. It's grown in tandem with the chain booksellers. He also pointed out that publishers often use the list as a basis for authors' bonuses. He also notes that authors have an extra incentive to make public appearances and otherwise boost sales in bookstores polled by the Times. Another common complaint is that the list's meticulous but slow genesis makes for a week's time lag between sales and the Times' reporting of them.