Ever wonder how Amazon Prime does it?

[deadin]

The answer is: "Apparently not well, when it comes to the free shipping."

I just received notice that the annual membership in Prime is going from $70 to $99. I'm going to have to think about whether stay with it or not. Actually it would probably save me many $$ if I quit. (Free shipping and One Click Buying is just too easy.....) Although a one time cost for shipping throughout the year is less painful then being dinged every time I order something on the net....

 

[zzzippper]

Amazon Accused of Cheating Customers Through Shipping Costs - Yahoo

 

[Maximumbob54]

This is great to read since she just joined a month ago. She buys junk on Amazon all the time and I've been enjoying the prime (free) shows on the TV app. So go figure it's going up in price...

 

[b_san]

Just canceled my auto-renewal on receipt of email. I was using it to buy/ship supplies and gear to my main office in another state and they collect sales tax now anyway so other vendors come out on top even with shipping costs. Amazon Prime video is pretty bad and not a reason to keep Prime at least IMO.

 

[arjay]

Reel em in,slaughter the competition and raise the price :-D

 

[NWPatriot]

Jumping from $79 to $99 is a bit heavy, but it's still a good deal. If you use their streaming service, you'd easily pay $7-$10 a month for that from another provider. Factor in the free 2-day shipping and I still don't see another place that can beat it. Heck, I like that I can buy a small $5 item and get free 2-day shipping whether I've spent $5 or $50. I'm sticking with it myself. At least I'm not being forced to buy at least $35 worth of items every time I shop there to try and get free shipping. Now I can just order only what I need. When someone else can beat that deal, I'll consider moving on.

The fact that the price on this hasn't gone up since 2005 tells me they're not likely doing this for any other reason than to account for increased costs in shipping over the course of 9 years. Although it may have been better if they did it in smaller amounts over a year or two rather than doing it all in one go.

 

[kozmic]

I don't get it. 90% of what I get from Amazon is free shipping anyway. For the one or two orders a year that aren't....Even at $79 bucks it ain't worth it to me. I'll pass on.

 

[blackdeuce]

I always compare price with shipping costs included. Amazon is almost always the least expensive and I get free 2-day shipping with Amazon Prime. On some stuff, they aren't the cheapest. I just bought a welding helmet for my son and a vendor on eBay had a better price.

We have Netflix and use the Amazon streaming service. Amazon has some stuff that isn't on Netflix.

 

[NWPatriot]

I don't get it. 90% of what I get from Amazon is free shipping anyway. For the one or two orders a year that aren't....Even at $79 bucks it ain't worth it to me. I'll pass on.

It's kind of like having a Costco membership. If you're only going in from time to time to buy one or two items, it's not worth it. We do a lot of shopping with Amazon over the course of the year, so for us, it's a great deal.

 

[BillK01]

You do know you can "share" Prime with up to 3 other "family" members right?

That's what we do - my wife shares ours with her Mom, sister and cousin. They all pitch in a little bit toward the fee and it's not so bad.

 

[Bozz10mm]

I just signed up for Amazon Prime last month. I was ordering enough to justify it. They raised the minimum for for the slow free shipping to $35 from $25. I have been enjoying the free 2 day shipping, but now they are telling that when I renew next February, it will cost $99.

I am not going to cancel the auto renewal yet. I'm gonna see how the rest of the year goes first. I don't use the video service since I have Netflix.

 

[the ringo kid]

I don't get it. 90% of what I get from Amazon is free shipping anyway. For the one or two orders a year that aren't....Even at $79 bucks it ain't worth it to me. I'll pass on.

Same thing here.

Also, I pay a one time fee to buy dvds (called the selling price) with what I want to watch, and the kicker is--im permanent owner of those dvds and dont have to pay a fee to see said programs again.

 

[Rule3]

I don't have the Prime, just regular buy stuff. It used to be free for $25 now as mentioned it's $35 for free shipping. That's only if it direct from AMazon, if you items come from other places than the "free" shipping does not apply,

I guess since the Economy is so good and everyone makes higher wages we can pay for shipping.

 

[GaryS]

I buy a fair (OK a lot) amount of stuff on Amazon and my wife and daughter buy less. The shipping costs, plus the availability of items, plus the usually lower than I can buy it locally prices make it worth while for us.

I just got a new TV (which I bought locally) and hooked it up to the Internet so I can download movies and TV shows via Instant Video.

Now I can watch Firefly! Plus a bunch of other stuff.

I think that some people will find it worth while, others won't.

 

[USAF385]

I have a bunch of items saved for later that I can just add to the cart to get free shipping. I don't need all my items to arrive in two days... I can wait the week and use the free shipping on $35+.

 

[Bekeart]

FREE SHIPPING - SLOW TO SHIP

I have a bunch of items saved for later that I can just add to the cart to get free shipping. I don't need all my items to arrive in two days... I can wait the week and use the free shipping on $35+.

Same here. Keep several items in my Saved For Later portion of the Shopping Cart.

IF you pay enough you can get NEXT DAY or TWO DAY deliveries. I have noticed when using FREE shipping it takes two / three / four days BEFORE SHIPPING the order.

Bekeart

 

[5Wire]

The answer is: "Apparently not well, when it comes to the free shipping."

I just received notice that the annual membership in Prime is going from $70 to $99. I'm going to have to think about whether stay with it or not. Actually it would probably save me many $$ if I quit. (Free shipping and One Click Buying is just too easy.....) Although a one time cost for shipping throughout the year is less painful then being dinged every time I order something on the net....

What is the least expensive method of shipping for even small items?

The value of Amazon Prime would depend on how frequently you buy stuff and what shipping would otherwise have cost. For me, it's a no brainer. In the last 40 months I have used Amazon 180 times, not including Prime Fees, to purchase about $3350 of stuff not including free movies & videos. Prime Fees amount to about 8% additional expense (about $11/mo) and saved me travel expenses such as gas and tolls, or time in malls, markets, and such.

Even at $99/yr it's a fair deal, IMO.

 

[GaryS]

Not to mention the aggravation of driving from store to store because some companies websites don't show in store inventory.

What is the least expensive method of shipping for even small items?

The value of Amazon Prime would depend on how frequently you buy stuff and what shipping would otherwise have cost. For me, it's a no brainer. In the last 40 months I have used Amazon 180 times, not including Prime Fees, to purchase about $3350 of stuff not including free movies & videos. Prime Fees amount to about 8% additional expense (about $11/mo) and saved me travel expenses such as gas and tolls, or time in malls, markets, and such.

Even at $99/yr it's a fair deal, IMO.

 

[b_san]

Additionally, add-on items have greatly reduced the usefulness of Prime. When you could just grab a $5-10 item with free 2 day it was nice to have but when they moved a very high % of those items to add-on only status you may as well just save the items in your cart til you can use $35+ FSSS.

 

[MrTrolleyguy]

Amazon Prime video is pretty bad and not a reason to keep Prime at least IMO.

I am of the same opinion my friend. Maybe it was luck, at first I found some nice titles that were free. My luck has changed. The good stuff all cost $$

Another trick I noticed on another site...an on a webpage I am viewing a side panel ad has an item that I want at an attractive price. However when I later go back to that advertisement the price has jumped up. If you care enough to return they are shifty enough to remove the low price.