I wish all books were available as PDFs. I don’t like the physical space real books take up, and I don’t appreciate paying for delivery, or waiting for delivery. Some books are available for Kindle, but I just want a PDF.
Recently I wanted to buy 4 books – my first instinct was to go to Amazon:
Item(s) Subtotal: AUD 97.92
Shipping & Handling: AUD 39.50
Total AUD 137.42
I’d prefer not to pay $40 for delivery, so I thought I’d check more local places to compare:
| Dymocks.com.au | Fishpond.co.nz | Amazon.com |
|
|---|---|---|---|
Building a WordPress Blog People Want to Read
|
AUD32.95 | NZD48.99 | USD19.79 |
ProBlogger: Secrets for Blogging Your Way to a Six-Figure Income
|
AUD42.95 | NZD46.69 | USD16.49 |
Outliers: The Story of Success
|
AUD61.51 | NZD52.98 | USD15.39 |
The Huffington Post Complete Guide to Blogging
|
N/A | NZD33.96 | USD10.20 |
| Total | AUD137.41 | NZD182.62 (AUD150.85) |
AUD137.42 |
So from Dymocks, 3 out of the 4 books cost AUD137.41. I don’t know about delivery, I had so much trouble with the site – no response, server errors, and when trying to check out it tells me my basket is empty.
From Fishpond, all books were available, total cost of NZD182.62 with free delivery.
So Amazon wins easily. But delivery might take a month. Sigh.
{ 3 comments… read them below or add one }
Better Read Than Dead is an independant bookshop on King Street Newtown in Sydney. I saw your comment and offer the quote below for comparison. We would source the books directly from their various suppliers inthe Aussie market. Prices are in AUD and GST inclusive.
Building a WordPress Blog People Want to Read
$32.95
5-7 days to arrive in store.
ProBlogger: Secrets for Blogging Your Way to a Six Figure Income
$42.95
7-10 days to arrive in store.
Outliers: The Story of Success
$32.95
We have this title in store already.
The Huffington Post Complete Guide to Blogging
$37.95
2-3 weeks to arrive in store.
So total cost of the books – $146.80
You have no freight costs if you pick the books up from us. If you want them posted then we use Australia Post regular parcel post for delivery within Australia. Overseas customers will be contacted with delivery and pricing details prior to order fulfillment.
Our usual* delivery costs within Australia are:
For 1-3 items $5.95
Over 3 items $7.95.
By shopping locally you are not only getting a better service, you are supporting a local company which in turn provides support to other local schools, libraries and organisation, provides local jobs and is an active participant in the wider community.
We are required to pay GST for sales withing Australia and therefore purchases from us contribute to the Australian Tax base which OS orders do not.
Please let me know if you would like us to place an order for you.
with best wishes
Sally Chilvers
General Manager
Better Read Than Dead
265 King Street
Newtown NSW 2042
02 9557 8700
Wow, thanks Sally. I’d definitely prefer to buy local, and next time I’ll be sure to check your store first – Amazon has shipped already so
I can’t cancel at this stage.
I’m never near Newtown these days, I assume I could order over the phone? (you don’t have an online catalog?).
I neglected to mention that I was actually getting these books shipped to NZ (hence the fishpond comparison).
Hello Paul, postage to NZ would be at standard Australia Post rates exactly as they charge us. We would get the package weighed and include the cost. We don’t have a catalogue online at this stage but we are always happy to order in anything in print that is not in stock here in the store. The best shot would be for you to go via our website and “Ask Hannah” for any of the books you were looking for. Hannah is a real person and will give you a quote and ETA. Enquiries via Hannah are attended to every day.
cheers
Sally