| Within the last two years, a movement in the online | | | | Your outlay: $16.00. Multiply this figure by five for all of |
| textbook industry has explosively emerged: College | | | | your classes and your total textbook expense is $80 |
| Textbook Rentals. The buzz is out; my Facebook is full | | | | for the semester. |
| of posts from college students spurting the wonders | | | | It's clear that buying and selling online is the best route if |
| of this phenomenal business model, as if it were the | | | | you want to minimize your textbook expense. And if |
| next handheld device invention or turbo-charged social | | | | you buy your books early enough before everyone |
| networking model. | | | | else does (December for Spring Semester and late |
| Having worked online textbook sales for numerous | | | | July/early August for Fall Semester), it is likely you'll |
| years, and having the knack to assess the value of | | | | spend only $70 versus $90 on the aforementioned |
| time and expenses, I'm not fully convinced. | | | | book as the supply will still be plentiful online. If you sell |
| A typical example, using realistic averages: | | | | at the right time (wait until the last two weeks of |
| A rental site will offer a textbook, say a book titled | | | | January or first two weeks of September), when |
| "International Business" for $65. At the college | | | | everyone else is buying and the online textbook supply |
| bookstore, the book is selling for $180. The current | | | | dries up, you may sell your book back for MORE than |
| online price on major sites like and eBay's for a used | | | | what you purchased. |
| book is about $90. Seems like a no-brainer, eh? | | | | Regarding buying and selling online, the most common |
| I'm not so sure. If these options are viewed from the | | | | objection I often hear is, "But I don't want to deal with |
| angle of what you, the student, will NET, renting is | | | | the hassle of creating an account, selling, etc etc." It |
| actually the second best option. | | | | can be a valid objection, but really, what is the value of |
| Here's the inside scoop: Buying at your college | | | | your time? If you spend 40 minutes on your first |
| textbook store is typically the worse option for your | | | | transaction which includes account set up time, and 20 |
| pocketbook. If you purchase the above textbook for | | | | minutes per book on the rest of your transactions, the |
| $180, it's likely your bookstore will offer $45-$85 for it | | | | amount of savings per hour you created by buying |
| when you sell it back to them. If the buyback amount | | | | and selling versus renting is $132.50 per hour. Is your |
| turns out to be $65, you're net loss on this one book is | | | | time worth $132.50 per hour? |
| $115. Ouch. Let's say you're enrolled in four other | | | | Also, for a seamless online selling process, write a |
| classes with similarly priced books, a likely scenario. | | | | super-accurate description when creating your listing, |
| Multiply your net loss amount of $65 by five for all | | | | and ship the textbook quickly, as in no later than two |
| your classes, and your net total outlay is $575 for the | | | | days after the sale date. And, if you end up purchasing |
| semester. Incredi-Ouch. | | | | an international edition online, DO NOT sell it on or |
| If you rent the above textbook, you'll spend $65, and in | | | | amazon.com, it's against their policies-sell it on eBay |
| some cases, $3-$5 for shipping it back to textbook | | | | instead. In fact, I'd avoid these international edition |
| rental company at the end of the semester (always | | | | books if you're just starting out. |
| ship media mail, it is the cheapest route.) Your net | | | | Another objection I hear is, "But I want to keep the |
| outlay equals $69. Multiply this figure by five for all your | | | | book as a reference." My next article will cover a |
| classes, and your textbook total expense for the | | | | strategy where you can maximize your savings and |
| semester is $345. Better, but.... | | | | sales price on your college textbooks, and keep the |
| How about a third option? Let's say, you buy the book | | | | books for reference. Say what?! It's much easier than |
| on for $90, and at the end of the semester, you take | | | | you think. |
| ten minutes to set up a account (you'll need a credit | | | | Please email me for more tips on minimizing your |
| debit card plus checking account information), and then | | | | textbook expenses and maximizing the value of your |
| sell the book online for $83. You'll be mostly reimbursed | | | | books. There are more methods and strategies to fine |
| for shipping (you'll likely net -$1.00 on this for media mail | | | | tune this process, which can only increase your rate of |
| shipments) and will take a ten percent commission. | | | | pay or savings when peddling your college textbooks. |