Shopping at online bookstores gives customers the luxury of finding the books they need online at a more affordable price than at their local bookstores. Of course, not all such bookstores are created equal and that’s why we decided to determine which sites were the best online bookstores.
Star Reviews wanted to include some of the largest and most well-known sites, so we included Books-A-Million in our reviews. Like all of our online bookstore reviews, our analysis of Books-A-Million looks at their selection, their usability, and their service. The results of our efforts to compare online bookstores are below.
What’s New?
- Books-A-Million now has a bargain books section for finding good deals
- Millionaire’s Club Discount Card which saves users an extra 10% off purchases for a year – joining the club costs $15 annually
Star Reviews Favorite Feature
Books-A-Million’s Personal Shopper Service is one of its best features. With this free service, you can receive gift recommendations for anyone by simply sending in an email with a few details about the person and your price range for the gift. You get an email back including several gift ideas.
Books-A-Million Features
Books-A-Million offers a number of features that should appeal to customers, including
- Free shipping available on orders of more than $25
- Hard-to-Find book locator through a team of independent booksellers in North America
- Books-A-Million Book Club provides recommendations on what to read for adults, teens, and others
Web Site Interface
The Books-A-Million web site is fairly easy to navigate if you’re trying to search for a certain book. You can use the prominent search box at the top of the main page to enter a term or number, then you can select to search by title, author, subject, ISBN, or keyword or in bargain books, religious books, or another specific category.
When your results appear, the most recent release matching your search criteria is highlighted at the top of the page. The rest of the results can be organized by publication date, alphabetical listing, bestselling items, and price to help you narrow down your options. After you click on the book, you’ll see some basic information, including the number of pages, the release date, customers’ ratings, as well as the price for users and the reduced price for Millionaire Book Club members. To add the book to your shopping cart, just click on “Add to Cart.”
Selection
Of the big three online bookstores, Books-A-Million has the smallest selection. For one, they focus only on books, audio books, and magazine subscriptions. You won’t find CD’s or DVD’s available through their site. Even within books, however, the selection is a little limited. For example, both Borders and Barnes & Noble carried Koji Suzuki’s The Ring and could ship it within 24 hours. Books-A-Million did have the book, but had to special order it which would delay shipment for up to 5 weeks.
Completing Your Order
To complete your order, go to your shopping cart and select “Proceed to Checkout.” You’ll need to create an account, which includes choosing a password and entering your personal information. Next, you’ll make your shipping choices. Four options are available: free (if you’ve spent over $25), standard, 2nd day air, and next day air. Then you’ll be asked to enter your payment information, review your order, and click “Submit Order” to make it official. You’ll receive an email confirmation after your order has been submitted, and you’ll be able to check the status of your order through the web site.
Pricing:
Books-A-Million’s prices are competitive when compared to the other large online bookstores. In fact, if you opt to join their savings club you’ll end up paying less than you would at most of the competitors’ sites. Price comparisons for the paperback version of Dan Brown’s The Da Vinci Code:
* Abe Books: starting at $3.60
* Books a Million: $7.99 ($7.19 if you’re a Millionaire Book Club member)
* Barnes & Noble: $7.99
* Borders online: $7.99
* Powell's Books: $9.95
* Zooba: $9.95
Customer Support:
Books-A-Million does provide a sizable list of common customer service questions and answers in the “Help” section of their web site. Some of these responses are very detailed and helpful. Customer service is also available by email and toll-free number. Our emailed question received a response in 24 hours. The answer was easy to understand and thoroughly explained, and the message seemed personal, not just a form letter. Unfortunately, customer service by phone was a little disappointing. Reaching a representative was confusing because they provided only a limited number of menu options. The representative was friendly, but her response to the question was unclear. In fact, what we were told by email and what we were told over the phone contradicted each other.
Upside:
Low prices, especially for members of their savings club. Easy to use web interface.
Downside:
Customer service could use some work, particularly by phone. Selection is not as large as competitors’. No CD’s or DVD’s are available here.