I try so hard to like this, but the site just doesn't measure up!
by vivasuzi - Written: Oct 14 '05 (Updated Oct 14 '05)
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Short Version
I guess my major beef with this site is it's organization. In my mind an online store should entice me to shop online rather than making me want to go to the physical store. This site does the later. I get twisted around, and even an internet lover like me enjoys browsing the shelves at the store over using the online site.
Note: BN.com is the online store, BN is the physical store
Browsing is no fun
Definition: Browsing means looking at everything with no particular purchases in mind - trying to find something that sparks your interest.
I usually go straight to BN.com when I already know what I want. After all, if you spend 25$ you get free shipping, and I usually spend 25$. However, if I simply want to browse to find new books, it just doesn't cut it.
When I go to the BN I love the fact that I can casually walk around and see what's new, what's on sale, or what's popular. I can also stroll over to my favorite section and look at all the titles. If I'm curious about a book I can pick it up and flip through it.
When I go to BN.com, I can go right to sale items, right to popular, right to categories, but there are just so many choices that I don't even know where to begin. I usually choose Browse Books to view by category. There are just so many categories here. I know it's great that they have them all, but listed all on one page is a lot of reading and I have a short attention span.
I also like to view the Bestseller's tab. My issue with this is simple. Right now the #1 book is "A Million Little Pieces" by James Frey. Ok, so I'm scrolling through. What's this? #36 is "A Million Little Pieces" by James Frey. Is this a different book maybe? I did a comparison and saw the pictures and descriptions were the same. The only difference is one is Hardcover and one is Paperback.
This is not a top 100 list if the same books can be found on the list. I don't know how BN.com organizes their book data, but these should count as 1 item. I had the same issue when viewing books by category. It just doesn't make sense to me. You look at a book description and eliminate wanting it, a few pages later you see it again and have to think "did I already look at that one?"
What's it all about?
I mentioned earlier that if I'm at BN and I want to know what a book is about, I just grab it and flip through it. The inside cover usually has a snippet about it, or I can view the chapters.
On BN.com I instead am shown a long long description of the book. First there will be what Barnes and Noble describes it as, then the Publisher's description, stuff from the Critics, and some Customer Reviews. Although all the information is nice, I don't like to read that much just to see what the book is about. Amazon has the nice feature of allowing you to see inside most of the books for at least a few pages. I wish BN.com would add this.
Ok, I found it, now what?
Once I find the book I actually want to buy, usually the books I planned to buy and hence the only reason I went to the site, purchasing is ok. You add all items to your cart, and it seems really simple, but there's one thing missing. I usually forget that I have to go to the Paperback or Hardcover version before I hit add to cart. I think there should be a drop down instead of all these links. The book is the same regardless, so I should be able to just choose Hardcover, etc and hit Add.
You also cannot specify quantity here. I guess they assume you only want one book. If you want to change the quantity, you have to add it to your cart and then change it afterwards. This seems to be a feature that is everywhere online, and I'm surprised BN.com doesn't offer it.
Finally, you check out. I sign in to automatically enter my address and info. They show you that if you spend xx more you will get Fast and Free delivery. This is nice and I usually do try to find something to add to make it just over 25. This is where I have more problems browsing as I try to find a on sale book that is still of interest to me.
It's all over, how long do I wait?
This is the big plus for BN.com. Even with free shipping I can get my items in 3-4 days. They always come in good shape with no problems. However, one weird thing is that even if you check "all in one box" you still sometimes get the items in separate shipments. But who am I to complain, it's free either way.
I've never returned anything as I've always gotten exactly what I wanted.
Conclusion
BN.com may have some good sales, but you can get the same sales in the store most of the time. You may be able to stay at home and search, but it's also a little harder to browse casually. I just feel more relaxed and actually have a good time browsing around a real book store. Browsing the site just leads to frustration.
If you know what you want, and just want a quick place to buy it, go to BN.com. The prices are good.
If you just want to browse around at some books, go to BN in person, you'll enjoy it more.
Happy reading!
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This review clocks in at 974 words
Recommended:
Yes
What product did you purchase or try to purchase? Books, DVDs, Board Game
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