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You know you can read reviews without being a Prime member, don't you?
That is one of the major things I use Amazon for. A lot of people bash the reviews, saying they aren't reliable. To those naysayers I'll say this: Of course some of them aren't reliable, but most of them are, in my experience. It's just a matter of using your critical thinking skills. And many of them are hysterically funny. Some people automatically discard the reviews for items from people who purchased them from other websites, which I don't understand. A purchase is a purchase. My experience with a pooper scooper is the same whether I bought it at Petsmart or on Amazon.
As for the Costco thing, there are many instances in which you can save money. But my wife automatically assumes that when we need something, we should go to Costco or Sam's Club to get it. I make no such assumption. For one thing, their selection is limited, and their stock often rotates, so we can't buy the same item one week that we could last week. And secondly, just because something is at Sam's or Costco doesn't mean it's a good price. Sometimes it is, sometimes it isn't. I truly believe that when people pay for a membership to buy things at a store, they feel mentally obligated to purchase from that store, even if that feeling is unconscious, and they feel this way regardless of whether they are getting the best value for that particular item. That's why selling memberships to store clubs is a big win for a store.
I hate when she asks me to go with her to Costco and Sam's because the crowds and enormous size makes me very anxious. The people running into me with their giant carts, the towers of shelves stacked all the way to the ceiling, the incredibly long checkout lines, and the warehouse that is as big as a small city makes me feel overwhelmed and frustrated. She's really sweet and since learning how I feel, has learned to just go there by herself except on rare occasions.
That is one of the major things I use Amazon for. A lot of people bash the reviews, saying they aren't reliable. To those naysayers I'll say this: Of course some of them aren't reliable, but most of them are, in my experience. It's just a matter of using your critical thinking skills. And many of them are hysterically funny. Some people automatically discard the reviews for items from people who purchased them from other websites, which I don't understand. A purchase is a purchase. My experience with a pooper scooper is the same whether I bought it at Petsmart or on Amazon.
As for the Costco thing, there are many instances in which you can save money. But my wife automatically assumes that when we need something, we should go to Costco or Sam's Club to get it. I make no such assumption. For one thing, their selection is limited, and their stock often rotates, so we can't buy the same item one week that we could last week. And secondly, just because something is at Sam's or Costco doesn't mean it's a good price. Sometimes it is, sometimes it isn't. I truly believe that when people pay for a membership to buy things at a store, they feel mentally obligated to purchase from that store, even if that feeling is unconscious, and they feel this way regardless of whether they are getting the best value for that particular item. That's why selling memberships to store clubs is a big win for a store.
I hate when she asks me to go with her to Costco and Sam's because the crowds and enormous size makes me very anxious. The people running into me with their giant carts, the towers of shelves stacked all the way to the ceiling, the incredibly long checkout lines, and the warehouse that is as big as a small city makes me feel overwhelmed and frustrated. She's really sweet and since learning how I feel, has learned to just go there by herself except on rare occasions.
I average out the reviews - read the lowest and compare to the highest. Sometimes people will give a low review for a weird reason - nothing to do with the performance of the product.
I let my SAMS sub expire. My roommate still has one, but he enjoys buying in large quantities. We really don't need a lot of things, if it were not for all the animals we have.
But about Amazon Prime: do you have it, and do you like it? Has it been useful to you, and is it worth the up front cost of $100? I know some family members who do use it extensively to buy things. I am not sure about the streaming, but I do know they buy certain things that way. Part of my question concerns pricing. We do pay to shop at Costco, but we have confidence that we aren't paying too much for anything--in fact we feel that we usually we get good deals.
Next month we will have had Amazon Prime for two years. We plan on keeping it. The $99 per year fee is recouped in our savings. I have been using Amazon since 2001.
We use the Amazon streaming video which is ok, but to be honest we use Netflix more, Amazon our second choice. I'm not sure I fully understand that part of the question.
We are current Costco users, love it, have used it for over 20 years. We prefer it over Sam's, which we still are a member of. We started using Costco more often when they built a store nearer to us (Now 7 miles instead of 32 miles from us.)
Quote:
Originally Posted by silibran
If you subscribe to Amazon Prime, do you feel you get good value?
Yes, my wife did all our Christmas shopping through Amazon this year which included Kids, Grand-kids and Great-Grand-kids.
Last edited by Poncho_NM; 04-03-2016 at 11:21 AM..
Someone may already have mentioned this. You can easily share an Amazon Prime account with a friend and split the cost. You can create multiple addresses in the address book, as well as add multiple credit cards. I do this with my son.
Back when we had a Costco card, we bought specific things mostly. They got purchased and we didn't go that often since they were in such large containers. There were other things we would have bought except we'd never use them up and they wouldn't sit forever. Costco and such are great for big discounts on high ticket items and large package buys. If its stuff you don't use much of, make sure it can store.
The thing with amazon is that I can order in small amounts and get a discount. And those hard to find things, which you buy a bunch of since they are hard to find, don't need to be.
Somewhere in this state is a costco. I think its in Tulsa. That's a pretty long drive. That is another HUGE win for amazon. Even if you live in a town with a Walmart as you best option, you have the same selection as someone who lives in an area with everything brick and mortor.
I checked out amazon pantry, and it looks promising, but they don't have enough yet. I'm thinking about getting Walmart's version of prime since I buy a lot of stuff online from them (local walmart doesn't always keep the shelves stocked especially late). It comes with two day shipping as well. Last month except for fresh stuff, I did all my walmart shopping online too. I'll likely buy their deal. I have found I like getting the staples showing up on my doorstep. I have a cost before I put in the order, and can prune if needed. Prime pantry is mostly upscale stuff and I just need basic food stuff.
I used to get my pet food from Walmart, but then they put a one bag only limit on the food I buy. So I have to split orders out. I discovered that Amazon now has a bigger bag with no limit so I buy from them. I like to buy for the month or longer with things I can.
Online shopping but even more, attention to giving customers a reason to shop online, has grown so much in the last few years that it had made the selection of brick and mortor where you live far less important and will continue to. Things like amazon's subscribe and save will become more common as well.
Just as social media has changed the way we live and relate, online shopping is changing the way we provide for out needs.
One of the things I find amazing on Amazon is Amazon handmade. I do crocheting and love making blankets. I've run out of people to make them for. I'm thinking of seeing if they'd sell as well. I've bought some jewelry done by individuals I'd usually find at convention or faire too. It's also become easier to find supplies for craft items since you can get them in smaller boxes now.
And if we didn't have online shopping, and the practicality of it, it would be a lot harder for those like us who chose to move to less populated areas, so its done more than make shopping easier.
I average out the reviews - read the lowest and compare to the highest. Sometimes people will give a low review for a weird reason - nothing to do with the performance of the product.
I always read the one star reviews carefully, especially for larger purchases. You can usually tell if they are true or not. Longer, more detailed, reviews tend to be truer.
Then you decide if they are the exception to the rule on a good product, or an indication of problems.
Sometimes people give five stars to things I find are pretty bad.
I'm a long-time Amazon customer, but I didn't sign up for Prime until I broke my leg and was stuck in a nursing home for a month. I had to order new baggy clothes that would fit over my leg brace, handicap gadgets, and all sorts of odds and ends, and the 2-day delivery was really handy when I could not get out to the store to buy *anything* for myself. But.... I didn't renew the service. I can always get free delivery anyway by batching up orders, I have no interest in the streaming video service, their selection of classical music for streaming was pathetic (and there is a *ton* of free classical music on YouTube), and I didn't see any reason to subsidize other people's use of those services plus 2-hour delivery and whatnot that's not even available in my area.
Someone may already have mentioned this. You can easily share an Amazon Prime account with a friend and split the cost. You can create multiple addresses in the address book, as well as add multiple credit cards. I do this with my son.
I thought that you could only share with someone in your household.
Someone may already have mentioned this. You can easily share an Amazon Prime account with a friend and split the cost. You can create multiple addresses in the address book, as well as add multiple credit cards. I do this with my son.
Select Prime benefits can be shared between two adults in a household. Customers who are Amazon Student Prime members (free trial or paid) or invited guests of other Prime members can't share their benefits. However, other types of Prime members can share select benefits with those types of members.
One of the things I love about Amazon Prime that hasn't been mentioned, is the ease of returning items, with free return shipping. You go into your account to your orders, fill out a form saying why you want to return it, and normally, you can just print out a free return shipping label for UPS, and you can even call UPS and have them just pick it up.
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This is great to know. I do not have Prime (yet). I recently ordered from Amazon a grain grinder for $40 and got a gift of a better one for my birthday. I found that to return the one I ordered would cost $10 if I drive it to UPS wherever that is and $16 UPS pickup.
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