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I love Bookologist and the newsletter is packed with tons of useful info. I was wondering if you could tell me anything about where & how to get new books? Several of my "used book" customers have started to ask me about new books as well, but I don't have a clue about acquiring new books to resell.
My speciality is Science Fiction and I've been to the website of the most popular SF Book Publishers, but can't info on getting their books to resell. Any info you can give will be gratefully appreciated.
Thanks. Keep up the great work on Bookologist.
Joey Phillips
Buying new books is easier than you think. If you have a resale number issued by your state, you qualify to buy directly from the publisher. Look up who publishes the kind of books you want to buy and contact them directly. Ask them about their dealer discount, most publishers will give you 40% or so off the listed price if you buy in quantity. You can also return books that don't sell so ask them about their policies. The first purchase may have to be by check or credit card but most publishers will issue you an account after that so you can order books quickly over the phone, by fax, or through the Web site.
Discount books are a whole other ballgame. You won't have the publisher's list to go by, you will depend on what books happen to be available. Some of these sites will only require you to buy as few as three of the same books but you will not have a liberal return policy. Sites like bargainbookswholesale.com are web-driven and easy to use. I've used them myself and find they ship quickly.
For science fiction, you can try Booksource.com http://www.booksource.com. They had a large selection available. Another distributor for books is Baker and Taylor http://www.btol.com. For international sellers, visit Bertram's http://www.bertrams.com.
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Edith,
I love your articles. Thanks! I have to admit that I just read your Dec. 11 article today. Four kids, snow and the holidays keep me spinning.
I am interested in selling books online other than ebay. I currently sell on ebay. Do any of these other sites let you attached images to the description?
Thanks again for your great newsletters.
Freezing in Pittsburgh!
Phyllis
Edith,
Sorry to be a pain in the neck but I looked briefly at the other sites your recommended (ChooseBooks.com, and BiblioDirect.com) and I don't see anyone using photos with their listings. I wonder why or am I just not seeing the right ones. I think you have to have pictures to sell the book.
Thanks for your input,
Phyllis (still freezing in Pittsburgh)
I interviewed Michael Tokman of Choosebooks.com this week and asked him if his site accepts photos of books. His response was yes. I went to the site to see how it was done and Choosebooks accepts pictures that are hosted elsewhere. This means that you would have to have a site where you could store your own images and an ftp account to upload them. The listing on choosebooks would include the site's url link so a buyer could access the account. Their policy is outlined on this page:
http://www.choosebooks.com/info_general_27.jsp
And their main help page for dealers is here:
http://www.choosebooks.com/info_dealer_help.jsp
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Dear Edith,
Perhaps readers will know whether or not I got scammed on my very 1st purchase off a website ! It's not the money....it's the principle and not getting a book in time for Christmas for my mother who wanted it very much. Oct. 21 I sent an e-order for A Guidebook to the Bible by Alice Parmelee, Harper Chapelbooks, NY 1948. I received an em back at 10/21 at 5:33 a.m. saying to send the $2.00 fee plus $4.25 by check or m.o. I send a check the next day. I have sent em's, since trying to get their attention but no responses and no book.
Can anybody help with this dilema?
I enjoy Bookologist.com very much and it brightens my day to read each newsletter.
Thanks!
After reading the emails sent to this seller, our reader has tried very hard to conclude this sale. I checked the ebay feedback and found that while there were some complaints, there were a lot of positive responses. Buyers have a lot more clout when they purchase through a service because they have a middleman to complain to, though most services will not do too much until there are multiple complaints and a pattern develops.
Have any of our readers found a sure-fire way to get recompense from such sellers?
It may be that this seller hit a "bad patch" or there were extenuating circumstances but the email our writer forwarded show a determined series of requests that apparently were ignored. Any help will be appreciated.
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