eBook Fail!
So I'm about to get an eReader (of some sort) when, as fate would have it, I come across an offer from Barnes & Noble for five free eBooks. Not just some random eBook from their vast collection, but recent bestsellers.
Neat deal, right? Sign me up. It can't hurt to actually get the books before I get the eReader, right?
Well, actually, it can hurt.
The main page to Barnes & Noble advertises this promotion. It's in the lower right corner of the page. Can't miss it.
FAIL NUMBER ONE: On the header of this advertisement, it says: "IN STORE ONLY".
No way. That's got to be a joke. I mean, the whole point of getting an eBook is so that you can read it on your eReader without physically going to the store, right?
On the deal page, it lists three steps to getting your free eBook.
FAIL NUMBER TWO: Step one is to download their application to your eReader. They even show pictures of what they support. To their credit, they show a laptop, an iPad, an iPod, a compatible cell phone, and a Nook, which is their bread and butter.
But there's a whole slew of other eReaders on the market. Sure, you don't want to list your competitors. Totally understandable. But the whole point of selling eBooks is to sell eBooks, no matter what the end platform the eBook will be read from.
FAIL NUMBER THREE: Step two is to physically go to the Barnes & Noble store, oh, and bring your eReader device so that you can show it to the seller in order to get the voucher.
If I want to download a book, I want to download it while wearing my pajamas from the comfort of my living room. I do not want to get dressed into something that will present me as an acceptable member of the human race, pack up my laptop, iPod, iPad, or cell phone, get in my car and drive to the nearest Barnes & Noble so that I can get a voucher... just so that I can drive back home, put on my pajamas, slum it on my couch, and download the book.
FAIL NUMBER THREE(a): Nowhere does it say that the voucher is good for all five books being offered.
Does that mean I have to go to the store each week that a new book is on offer?
FAIL NUMBER THREE(b): There's a handy link to find your nearest Barnes & Noble bookstore.
I live in Canada and as far as I know there are no B&N's in my country, so that knocks me off the eligibility list. But it probably also discounts a lot of people in the USA who have eReaders, but don't live within a stone's throw or an as-the-crow-flies of a B&N.
FAIL NUMBER FOUR: Step number three is direction on where to go to redeem the voucher.
Well, I've driven all this way to the nearest B&N with my eReader, and now I have the voucher in hand. Now I have to go back home to download it? Aw, shucks. It's too much freaking trouble. Why don't I just buy the physical copy? I mean, the eBook might be free, but I could've bought it from the comfort of my own home, and I wouldn't even have had to get dressed to burn the gas to pick up the voucher to get the free eBook.
I mean, come on!
For all that trouble, I'd be interested in finding out how many people actually get the free eBooks from B&N.
Neat deal, right? Sign me up. It can't hurt to actually get the books before I get the eReader, right?
Well, actually, it can hurt.
The main page to Barnes & Noble advertises this promotion. It's in the lower right corner of the page. Can't miss it.
FAIL NUMBER ONE: On the header of this advertisement, it says: "IN STORE ONLY".
No way. That's got to be a joke. I mean, the whole point of getting an eBook is so that you can read it on your eReader without physically going to the store, right?
On the deal page, it lists three steps to getting your free eBook.
FAIL NUMBER TWO: Step one is to download their application to your eReader. They even show pictures of what they support. To their credit, they show a laptop, an iPad, an iPod, a compatible cell phone, and a Nook, which is their bread and butter.
But there's a whole slew of other eReaders on the market. Sure, you don't want to list your competitors. Totally understandable. But the whole point of selling eBooks is to sell eBooks, no matter what the end platform the eBook will be read from.
FAIL NUMBER THREE: Step two is to physically go to the Barnes & Noble store, oh, and bring your eReader device so that you can show it to the seller in order to get the voucher.
If I want to download a book, I want to download it while wearing my pajamas from the comfort of my living room. I do not want to get dressed into something that will present me as an acceptable member of the human race, pack up my laptop, iPod, iPad, or cell phone, get in my car and drive to the nearest Barnes & Noble so that I can get a voucher... just so that I can drive back home, put on my pajamas, slum it on my couch, and download the book.
FAIL NUMBER THREE(a): Nowhere does it say that the voucher is good for all five books being offered.
Does that mean I have to go to the store each week that a new book is on offer?
FAIL NUMBER THREE(b): There's a handy link to find your nearest Barnes & Noble bookstore.
I live in Canada and as far as I know there are no B&N's in my country, so that knocks me off the eligibility list. But it probably also discounts a lot of people in the USA who have eReaders, but don't live within a stone's throw or an as-the-crow-flies of a B&N.
FAIL NUMBER FOUR: Step number three is direction on where to go to redeem the voucher.
Well, I've driven all this way to the nearest B&N with my eReader, and now I have the voucher in hand. Now I have to go back home to download it? Aw, shucks. It's too much freaking trouble. Why don't I just buy the physical copy? I mean, the eBook might be free, but I could've bought it from the comfort of my own home, and I wouldn't even have had to get dressed to burn the gas to pick up the voucher to get the free eBook.
I mean, come on!
For all that trouble, I'd be interested in finding out how many people actually get the free eBooks from B&N.