QUESTION: I’m convinced that two dealers on Amazon are selling used copies of my book but listing them as “New” condition. I understand that Marketplace sellers can discount the price, but it’s now below what Ingram or Baker & Taylor must pay for the book. I suppose it’s possible these sellers are trying to pass off used copies, review copies, or other promotional items as “new.” Do I have any recourse?
ANSWER: There’s not much you can do about this without getting personally involved. Odds are that these sellers don’t really stock books, they simply upload a list of ISBNs. And in the event they get an order, they’ll try to order the book from a wholesaler. When they discover they can’t do the transaction at a profit, then they’ll cancel the order. They’ll get negative feedback from the Amazon customer, and when enough of these transactions pile up, that seller’s account will be suspended or closed by Amazon.
The other possibility is they have a used copy — or review copy — that they’re trying to pass off as new. Pretty much the same thing will happen: a disappointed buyer will give them negative feedback for the transaction. Amazon does absolutely no vetting of its Marketplace sellers, so the only corrective action will occur after multiple customers experience problems.
Of course, not all buyers who are involved in a bad transaction report it, so the only way you could be absolutely certain that these sellers are nailed is to buy the items yourself, or have a friend do it for you. And then you could file an A to Z Guarantee claim for the transaction.
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6 Comments
I have this same problem, not to mention the fact that I am recieving, NO monies for my book sales! This is the kind of problem that also gives authors a bad reputation in the publishing world. I think we need stricker guidelines for such things, they don’t care to make it hard on us writers! The publishing world is hard enough to succeed in, now they have to push us over the edge with this!
Don’t be afraid to speak out about these issues! We, as authors, need to take control of out work!
Author Loretta Craig
Wow! This article is an eye-opener. It’s a shame when unscrupulous people can inflict harm on an author. We have enough to deal with trying to get our books written, published, and promoted. We don’t need this!
-Gina Magini
Several sellers on Amazon have listed my book for under $3. I know they got these books from book contests I entered and was required to send anywhere from 1 to 6 copies of my book. The contests claimed that the books entered would not be returned but would be given to charities, hospitals, etc. I was fine with that but I’m not fine with seeing my book listed as new on Amazon for as little as $2.82!!! Also, these ridiculously low prices price me out of the market. Worse, I think it psychologically reduces the value of my book to the consumer, which affects my sales.
Steve, thank you for posting this article. The more we all speak up, the more impact we can have. I’m not an attorney, but it seems to me that this practice of some booksellers is illegal, under the heading of false advertising. That is, claiming a book is new when it is used (because it was used for awards, reviews, or expos). I’ve been advised to NOT stamp review copies as reviewed, because it might dispose a reviewer (who may want to keep the book, or is counting on selling it) toward a negative review. Nonetheless, I’m seriously thinking of getting out my red stamp. I know how many books I’ve sent out there for review. It will take a lot of sales of phony “new” books before I’ll see a dime.
I agree that these distasteful practices are happening.
These practices are insignificant in the higher order of book selling, however.
If you have a great book and are marketing it properly, there will be enough demand for your book that the sales by these unscrupulous used bookstores are irrelevant.
For example, I know that since I got my new distributor NBN for my book How to Retire Happy, Wild, and Free , since September NBN has shipped over 3,000 copies to Amazon and another 3,000 copies or so to Barnes and Noble. This despite the fact that I had some real problems for the month of transition from Ten Speed Press being my distributor to NBN being my distributor because the ISBN number had to change, which created some problems with shipments with only 97 copies shipped in September.
Why should I be concerned if there have been 10 or 20 copies sold by used bookstores for $5 a copy in the last eight months if the average shipments per month to bookstores and Amazon.com are about 1,050 copies per month?
I would suggest that authors concentrate on the things that matter instead of things that don’t matter all that much.
Again, what matters is having a great book and doing at least 7 things every day to market your book for at least 5 years after it is realeased.
Ernie
J. Zelinski
“The Creativity Guy Too Prosperous to Do Mornings”
Author of How to Retire Happy, Wild, and Free
(over 120,000 copies sold and published in 9 languages)
and The Joy of
Not Working
(Over 240,000 copies Sold and Published in 17 Languages)
I decided to follow my hunch about the legality of selling used books as new. I spoke with someone at the Federal Trade Commision. They said that if used books are being sold as new, it falls under the Deceptive Practices law. They will take complaints at http://www.ftc.gov/ftc/contact.shtm, where they have a secure complaint form; or call -877-382-4357). Your information is not divulged to others. The FTC looks for patterns of law violation. The more people that file complaints, the more likely a case can be built. We do have a voice! To recap what we’ve all said, selling used books as new is misleading to the public, sets up unfair competition with other books sellers, robs publishers and authors, and devalues our books in the marketplace. The gentleman I spoke to also encourages people to file a complaint with the Attorney General in your state.