...books are cheap, shipping is not
By jeanneyvonne
@jeanneyvonne (5501)
Philippines
April 22, 2013 9:53pm CST
Just been talking to an online seller about the estimated amount of payment should I buy from him/her. I noticed that the shipping fee to my place is quite double the price of books that I picked. Although I could accept that, I have been wondering should I jump to the opportunity and be prepared to pay the cost or shrug the offer off. When I calculated to my local currency, it would come to a substantial amount.
Anyway, I had the other problem of time. I have been waiting for a while for some online purchase. I can wait, that's for sure but I guess the thought of the package never going to be on my hands or doorstep is also quite scary and frustrating since I did pay and I am close to annoying the staff at the post office. Besides, there is the additional costs of taxes and fees - and like everyone else, I hate them.
I don't know whether I should question my love of books and sometimes,being hooked to certain kinds of books.
1 person likes this
5 responses
@youless (112481)
• Guangzhou, China
23 Apr 13
Here there are several online bookstores and I especially like buying books from Amazon. Since most of the time they can offer the best price. Besides, the delivery fee can be free if it is up to a certain amount. And they can deliver the books to me in quite a short time and this is why I enjoy buying books from Amazon. I hardly buy books from an online seller since they can't offer me a free delivery.
@jeanneyvonne (5501)
• Philippines
24 Apr 13
Well, love to buy form amazon but not sure if they ship here. Someone told me how to go around this but I am very new to this and I don't know how to continue. In addition, every time I convert the dollar price (with shipping to my own currency), I do get discouraged. I agree. Independent online sellers have to use more traditional shipping.
@jeanneyvonne (5501)
• Philippines
30 Apr 13
I do0 have an reader but I'm not too fond of using it. In addition, sometimes, with my list of book list it does come with a huge price.
@varier (5685)
• Indonesia
23 Apr 13
I never consider to buy books online, especially if the merchants aren't in the same country with me. The shipping fee is just not so worth it, especially when you can actually buy that book on your local book store.
If it's not available on local book store.. Well, I'll try to find another alternative, or simply read online 
@jeanneyvonne (5501)
• Philippines
24 Apr 13
Actually, I don't want to consider anything else than buying from a bookstore. I am hunting for local online bookseller but they haven't got the book I want. I would most gladly buy form a local seller since it would be cheaper even the shipping fee.
@jeanneyvonne (5501)
• Philippines
25 Apr 13
Actually I am into series so I am looking for lots from authors. Sometimes, I have my own favorites within a series. It depends really. usually, I buy a paperback first and if I like it, I might by a lot.
@jonastabuena (2307)
• Philippines
23 Apr 13
The usual thing when you buy online is the shipping cost its really big, you don't really noticed it when you are eager to have that book, in my case i don't usually buy online when it comes to book, because of the time of shipment sometimes its take a long period of time and also the cost varies on the location of the buyer. So i decided to buy books in some book stores in our area.
@jeanneyvonne (5501)
• Philippines
24 Apr 13
Actually I consider everything before I buy.i do like to buy books but sometimes, books ain't cheap either. I would usually run an exchange rate and possible taxes because they will have additional costs aside form the actual purchase.
@LaDeBoheme (2004)
• United States
23 Apr 13
With brick-and-mortar bookstores becoming scarcer (witness Borders), sometimes you have to turn to the internet for a particular book or genre you want. I've been ordering from Amazon since the days they only sold books. Like youless mentioned, shipping is free with their SuperSaver Shipping...in the States anyway.
But you live in the Philippines, so I am not sure how that works when shipping overseas.
Have you thought about a eReader? I went with a Kindle. No shipping. No waiting. Books download within seconds. No matter where you are.
@jeanneyvonne (5501)
• Philippines
24 Apr 13
I do have an ereader but I had a thing with physical books. as much as possible, I would like to turn the pages and read it with paper pages.
@BSBarnes (10)
• United States
24 Apr 13
I don't buy many books anymore, as I have an electronic reader and download them. However, I do purchase some. I usually use Barnes and Noble or Amazon's web sites and have free shipping over $25. Your problem occurs, if I am assuming correctly, when you buy a used book from either of these sites or EBay. Used books can be quite cheap, and when purchased from a private seller, the shipping will cost more. My pastor recently found used copies of a book online that she needed for our bible study. She found them for pennies really, but paid $3.99 each for shipping.
@jeanneyvonne (5501)
• Philippines
25 Apr 13
I can also read online or with a device but sometimes, I find it tedious and paperbacks are handy when I want to read without an electronic gadget. Well, shipping is always a component when buying from any seller except a local bookstore.
