Membership renew....

[bombora56]

I know there are post here about it, but I couldn't seem to find them. I have my membership to renew on Aug 25th, and I don't think I'm going to do it. I read the email and "The NOOK discount benefit is no longer included with B&N Membership." I find that I'm ok with that, even though if your a member and B&N comes out with a new Nook every year, a discount if I'd like to buy it would be nice. Now with that and the fact that I buy close to 95% of my books for my nook, the membership is basically useless. It feels like they are alienating a large group of their customers by doing this. I'm also surprise with Amazon's PRIME, Barnes & Noble hasn't taken the cue and either just given in an include Nook related item discounts on memberships or just make a seperate Nook Membership. Just two days ago I went in to get (which is why i actually support Barnes & Noble, it's an actual store!) a new cover for my Nook glowlight, I looked online and decided I wanted the neoprene cover which has been marked down from $19.95 to $13.50. I go to pay and the women rings up $19.95, as I told her online it's been marked down, she say's yes that's online, I can't do that in store. Despite the fact that the membership wouldn't even take anything off, honestly with membership or not this is horrible customer service. I also don't understand why accessories for any nook receive no discount, are you not buying something from Barnes and Noble? Then there's the books, which I won't even touch on really because I can go on for days about how if the publisher sets the price why is B&N almost always more expensive than Amazon. With all the different Nook's now, be it Tablet or Color or Glowlight, I think it's safe to say Barnes and Noble have a pretty large group of customers who they need to treat way better, by cutting us off of discount's and membership benefit's you're really not hurting anyone but your own company. Anyone else feel the same way? Have similar problems. I've been supporting Barnes & Noble in the e-book field since they came out with the first simple touch, I've also bought a Tablet, and recently upgraded my touch for the glowlight, with all the money I've spent, a discount wouldn't really do much, but it would show that my business is apprieciated and would keep me coming back, taking away what very little you currently give, makes me think twice about taking my money elsewhere.

[flyingtoastr Scribe]

1. Membership coupons do apply on NOOK accessories. Take a 20% off generic that they send out every other Thursday and get a nice discount on a cover.

2. Store and online prices are nearly always different. Contrary to popular belief, it takes a lot of money to keep a 50000 sq. ft. building stocked with items to sell. In business terms, margins are lower so costs need to be higher. Think of it this way: those extra $5 that you're paying are helping BN keep 50-60 people in your area employed.

3. BN doesn't give the flat 10% Membershipdiscount on NOOK Accessories (I presume) because of the assumption that pretty much everyone buying a new Tablet or Color (the majority of NOOK buyers) is going to have a free Membership. The idea of the Membership is to get people to shop at BN over a competitor, but it would serve no purpose under these conditions other than to impact the store's margins.

I have a hunch that the discount of the Membership is going to be changing fairly drastically soon, and probably in the favor of ebook buyers. But as always, that's just speculation.

[bombora56]

I have eveything at B&N linked to one account with one email address and I don't think I've ever received a membership coupon, certainly not one every Thursday. I'll certainly look into that, as that's the first time I'm even hearing about it. I'm even ok with the store vs online price difference. I just don't understand why you can't get a standard membership discount. Would the company really lose money if they gave you a 10% for a nook cover? No, because it's already marked up so they make a profit either way. I also don't understand what you mean by a free membership. From the email I received as I stated already they are taking away the Nook benefit, you don't get discounts for nook books and unless you have a coupon (which i've never received) you get nothing off accessories.

"The idea of the Membership is to get people to shop at BN over a competitor, but it would serve no purpose under these conditions other than to impact the store's margins." - By choosing to buy a Nook, aren't we choosing to shop at BN over a competitor? Be it digital or physical we are buying from BN, I'm not buying a book for my Nook on Amazon. 

Sorry, but I don't think what your saying makes much sense. So as I understand it (according to emails), if I was to renew my membership Aug 25th it would have no impact for all the money I spend on/for my nook. 

[keriflur]

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bombora56 wrote:

Would the company really lose money if they gave you a 10% for a nook cover? No, because it's already marked up so they make a profit either way.

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You don't know that.  This is an industry with very, very small margins for retailers, especially with Amazon's downward pressure on prices.  The net on that item, after store overhead, cost, warehousing, etc. may only be 10%.  It may be 5%.  You don't actually know what it is unless you work for B&N, and even then you might not know.

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bombora56 wrote:

By choosing to buy a Nook, aren't we choosing to shop at BN over a competitor? Be it digital or physical we are buying from BN, I'm not buying a book for my Nook on Amazon.

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No, you're not.  You could buy books from Sony, Google, or Kobo to read on your nook and never buy a book from B&N.  You could only ever download free books and borrow books from the library and never buy a book from B&N.  B&N isn't Amazon, they're not forcing you to buy from them.

[bombora56]

You don't know that either. I'm speaking pure speculation. You don't know what they make or lose on any product, unless like you said YOU work for them and you know. For what you say about the membership and buying e-books, then why not give or make some type of Nook Membership and give your customers a reason to buy from you rather than from another store with cheaper prices? It looks like I am the only one looking at it this way. I'm not saying give everything a way for free but offer something to people that choose to buy your products. I live in NYC and all around, especially for commuting I see a lot more people with Kindles than with Nooks, and I think there is a reason for that. Don't be confused, I'm a BN fan and have supported their business for a long time and will continue to do so, I just think there are a few area's where they are lacking and could really pick up. Coming out with new and innovative product's before others is one step in the right direction, but if you give people no other reason to shop with you(or continue a membership), that's something that you need to improve on. 

[msmoonlite]

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bombora56 wrote:

You don't know that either. I'm speaking pure speculation. You don't know what they make or lose on any product, unless like you said YOU work for them and you know. For what you say about the membership and buying e-books, then why not give or make some type of Nook Membership and give your customers a reason to buy from you rather than from another store with cheaper prices? It looks like I am the only one looking at it this way. I'm not saying give everything a way for free but offer something to people that choose to buy your products. I live in NYC and all around, especially for commuting I see a lot more people with Kindles than with Nooks, and I think there is a reason for that. Don't be confused, I'm a BN fan and have supported their business for a long time and will continue to do so, I just think there are a few area's where they are lacking and could really pick up. Coming out with new and innovative product's before others is one step in the right direction, but if you give people no other reason to shop with you(or continue a membership), that's something that you need to improve on. 

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I agree. I'm also in NYC and the vast majority of ereaders I see on the train are Kindles. Amazon offers perks to Kindle owners that BN might want to look into. That being said these offers may not tempt die hard BN shoppers (like me) but they have cleared lots of inroads with the everyday consumer trying to save a buck or two.

[keriflur]

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bombora56 wrote:

You don't know that either. I'm speaking pure speculation. You don't know what they make or lose on any product, unless like you said YOU work for them and you know.

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I never said that I did.  I only said that I knew the margins in bookselling are generally small, which I DO know.

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bombora56 wrote:

For what you say about the membership and buying e-books, then why not give or make some type of Nook Membership and give your customers a reason to buy from you rather than from another store with cheaper prices?

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I don't work for B&N, so they're not buying from me regardless. 

B&N can't give a flat rate off all books for members because of the agency model - they are not the seller for all the books, so they can't set the prices for all of them.  As to why they don't give a flat rate on all the books they CAN discount - I know that it's been stated that the margins are too low already, and often, I'd agree (but not always).  Generally, B&N (and all retailers) pay 50% of the cover price for an ebook under the wholesale model.  If they're selling a book at 40% off cover price, then they're only making 10%.  When you subtract all the costs associated with selling the book and supporting the sale (if something goes wrong and you need to call CS), it's even less than that.

Also, Amazon does not have a discount program on ebooks.  Prime does not get you a discount on ebooks, just on other stuff.

Yes, I think it would be great for B&N to offer membership discounts on accessories, and occasionally for certain ebooks, and to offer other benefits to nook owners.  But I think the current philosophy is to try to offer the lowest prices they can for EVERYONE, not just for members.  I'd like lower prices and bigger discounts too.  Who wouldn't?  But I get that they have to charge enough to stay in business, and I support that.  This is a company that's taking huge losses in digital.  Until that turns around I can't imagine they'll be able to lower prices or give bigger discounts than they already are.

[keriflur]

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msmoonlite wrote:

Amazon offers perks to Kindle owners that BN might want to look into. 

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Like what?  The only one I know of is the kindle owner's lending library.

[bombora56]

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keriflur wrote:

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msmoonlite wrote:

Amazon offers perks to Kindle owners that BN might want to look into. 

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Like what?  The only one I know of is the kindle owner's lending library.

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Agreed, but even BN had lending before Amazon. I think they are talking about Prime. While I'm not that familar with the program I know you do get to pick free selected books for a limited amount of time and I think a limit of 1 a month also. For many the $80 or whatever it cost a year is worth it for that reason alone. Most people are sold on getting a "discount" even if they aren't really getting one or it's very small. People will see it as they are getting something rather than nothing. Going back to the original issue, before with my membership I was getting something, now I'm getting nothing. Now I don't renew the membership and pay the asking price and probably save money in the long run.

[frantastk]

I think you (everyone, not just you personally) just have to decide if the membership is worth it to you. For me, yes it is. I still buy a lot of paper books and magazines in store. Not so much fiction, as I am transitioning all my fiction over to electronic. I buy a lot of knitting books and for most I prefer a hard copy since I don't have any type of tablet device, books for my kids, books and stationary stuff as gifts. I know a lot of people who dropped their membership because they buy all ebooks. I also know a lot of people that make up the price of their membership at the cafe alone. I did almost all my Chrsitmas shopping at B&N last year. They had some really good deals in the toy section and I remember getting a bunch of members coupons during the holidays. They mail and email me members coupons all the time. I don't always get to use them all, but they are usually pretty good coupons. I do shop at bn.com alot too. The prices are frequently better online, even with the membership discount in store, but I don't like to do all my shopping online.

If all you buy are ebooks, then no you probably don't want to renew your membership. For me, even if I had a Kindle, Amazon Prime wouldn't be the right choice for me. If I had a Kindle I probably wouldn't use the lending library much. If I understand it right, it is one book a month, and I doubt any of those books come from the Big 6 (the only ones I'd probably want to borrow, indy books are so inexpensive I'd just buy them anyway). I just can't see the agency publishers agreeing to it.  I just don't buy enough at Amazon to make it worth it. Besides, when I do it usually gets free shipping anyway and I've never had anything ship from Amazon take longer than 2 days (or at least so rarely I can't remember when it did). Now my sister on the other hand, shops almost exclusively at Amazon, but never at B&N. 

I do think B&N could try to offer discounts on the non-agency ebooks, like Kobo does. But really the selection is sometimes limited. I get a lot of Kobo coupons and it can be a challenge to find a book I want to read that will take the coupon. I know there are people who don't understand the agency thing and rant about Kobo's coupon policy. (What I usually do when I have a coupon I want to use is go through my wishlist and search Kob's site to see if any of the books are by non-agency poublishers. It can take a while.)

[MusicmanGG]

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bombora56 wrote:

I know there are post here about it, but I couldn't seem to find them. I have my membership to renew on Aug 25th, and I don't think I'm going to do it. I read the email and "The NOOK discount benefit is no longer included with B&N Membership."

I just look on the site for benefites for being a member and the discount is still applies (even on renewals).

[bombora56]

Frantastk,

 I 100% agree. As I said, my BN shopping is probably about 90-95% ebooks now and I just don't think it would be worth it for me. It's totally up to each person. 

MusicmanGG,

This is direct from the email I received. Has anyone else received this also that needs to renew soon? Maybe they haven't updated the site yet?

Keep the Savings Coming!

As a Barnes & Noble Member, you have enjoyed a year of exclusive savings on books, music, Café items, and more. To continue the great benefits of Membership, be sure to renew before your Membership expires on August 25, 2012. You can renew at any B&N Store or online at BN.com.

Your Member Benefits Have Changed:

The NOOK discount benefit is no longer included with B&N Membership. You will, however, still enjoy FREE Express Shipping at BN.com with no minimum purchase. In addition, you'll receive great discounts in stores, including 40% off the list price on hardcover bestsellers and 10% off almost everything else. The benefits change will take effect after your current Membership term expires and your renewal Membership term begins. We look forward to providing you with another year of valuable Member benefits.

[MusicmanGG]

bombora56,

I wasn't doubting your e-mail, but pointing our the left hand does not know what the right hand it doing.

at the bottom of the members benefit description it says the following:

* Discount is limited to one new device per new or renewal Membership term only.

Next time I'm in my local store I am going to ask what's going on.

I renewed my membership in March and got the discount....

[Toreth]

Hmmm. Recently I purchased a new Touch and the sales rep told me I would get 10% off. I can't say if I got the discount on the case though but I know I got it on the Nook itself.  I have to admit I was surprised because I thought the Nook was exempt from the discount. Maybe because the store next door was a Best Buy and B & N wanted me to buy it from them. I'll have to check on that next time I'm in the store.

[bombora56]

MusicmanGG and Toreth,

I wonder how new this change is. Perhaps it's starting in August. I remember from my membership this year I was allowed $10 off simple touch and it was either 20 or 25 off color then tablet. I ended up using both those. Musicman, if you renewed in March then that's another different benefit "package" lets call it that you have. So it went from a discount off basically any device, to a discount off 1 device to no discounts on any device. Music, you'll probably get the no nook benefit discount when you renew next March, as for everyone else too, by next year no more Nook discount. Once again, I don't know how they would do it (but if BN would like to hire me I'll surely figure it out) but I think some type of BN Nook membership would be great. I think cutting off a major group of your customers to the current BN membership is a mistake.

[flyingtoastr Scribe]

Membership enrollments in-store haven't changed yet (you still get the $10/25 off a NOOK device), but the rumor mill is awash in speculation that it's going to be changing very soon.

[keriflur]

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flyingtoastr wrote:

Membership enrollments in-store haven't changed yet (you still get the $10/25 off a NOOK device), but the rumor mill is awash in speculation that it's going to be changing very soon.

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Well geez, I'd hope so, because that sounds like new members get a better deal than those of us that have been members the last 20 years.

[Mockduck]

Reason I'm not a member is it doesn't seem beneficial to Nook users. Sounds like I made the right choice. 

[flyingtoastr Scribe]

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keriflur wrote:

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flyingtoastr wrote:

Membership enrollments in-store haven't changed yet (you still get the $10/25 off a NOOK device), but the rumor mill is awash in speculation that it's going to be changing very soon.

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Well geez, I'd hope so, because that sounds like new members get a better deal than those of us that have been members the last 20 years.

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Membership has only been around since 2001.

[keriflur]

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flyingtoastr wrote:

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keriflur wrote:

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flyingtoastr wrote:

Membership enrollments in-store haven't changed yet (you still get the $10/25 off a NOOK device), but the rumor mill is awash in speculation that it's going to be changing very soon.

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Well geez, I'd hope so, because that sounds like new members get a better deal than those of us that have been members the last 20 years.

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Membership has only been around since 2001.

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Um... I got my membership card when I was 17.  That would mean that I was only 28 now, which would be great.  In fact, never mind, let's go with that.