Barnes & Noble Coupon Discussion

[Louisville Slugger]

http://forum.dvdtalk.com/11179266-post6207.html

So the latest batch of Barnes & Noble coupons have been posted. However, take a closer look at the fine print:

"Cannot be combined with the Children's DVD, Blu-ray, and Music 40% off sale"

It seems like Barnes & Noble is trying to forbid the use of coupons during promotions.

If they start doing this now, what keeps them from doing the same thing during the Criterion sale? I guess only time will tell.

Looks like this might be my last year as a member.

What do you guys think? Should Barnes & Noble really care that coupons are used during promotions?

[Louisville Slugger]

I guess worst case scenario is I get (6) Criterions for $82.97 before tax instead of $64.08. That's if I cannot use any coupons. I will try though. Worst case is they say no.

[wormraper]

Originally Posted by Louisville Slugger

http://forum.dvdtalk.com/11179266-post6207.html

So the latest batch of Barnes & Noble coupons have been posted. However, take a closer look at the fine print:

"Cannot be combined with the Children's DVD, Blu-ray, and Music 40% off sale"

It seems like Barnes & Noble is trying to forbid the use of coupons during promotions.

If they start doing this now, what keeps them from doing the same thing during the Criterion sale? I guess only time will tell.

Looks like this might be my last year as a member.

What do you guys think? Should Barnes & Noble really care that coupons are used during promotions?

aaaaaaaaaaaaaannnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnndddddddddd, Barnes and Noble will be dropped from my list of retailers then. Sorry guys but that's just plain stupid and the ONLY reason I shopped them to begin with.

[DetroitSportsFan]

I think the days of using coupons during promotions are over, making B&N even more irrelevant.

The typical 20% off coupons just aren't enough considering their high regular prices. Only with a promotion are they worthwhile.

[Louisville Slugger]

I along with many others only shop there when I can combine my membership discount on top of a promotion, on top of some member and non-member coupons. If these coupons cannot be used during promotions then there is no point in shopping there because everything could be had for cheaper on Amazon (except during the Criterion sale which might be reduced to one time a year). Sometimes Amazon is cheaper for people who live outside the US though.

I have a feeling one day Barnes & Noble will no longer carry media and you'll only be able to buy media from their website. It's costing them way too much to keep media in the store and they know it. Most of the media probably only moves during promotions. People are not willing to pay Barnes & Noble's regular prices so either Barnes & Noble stops selling media entirely or they become more competitive.

[MoulinBlu]

When it takes a sale just for their prices to be competitive with most other places, it takes both a sale and a coupon for it to actually be an appealing deal. And often-times even with a coupon used on a sale item, with free member shipping, their prices are still no more competitive, even higher than their major competitors like amazon, best buy, etc. There are exceptions of course, like their recent promotion of Apocalyse Now. But, half the time I buy from BN, I see the same item even cheaper at amazon within a month or two. It's already hard for me to justify the $25 per year for their membership, even when I pay amazon 3x that for prime membership that I only use for shipping.

I've also had around a dozen orders where my rebate for using shopdiscover or mypoints was removed because I used a coupon. In several of those cases, I only ordered from BN because with the shopdiscover promotion it came out slightly cheaper than amazon and I wanted to make the most of my membership. When the rebate was unscrupulously withdrawn, I ended up paying more than I could have gotten it from amazon. But apparently BN is more interested in finding ways of not honoring their promotions and commitments than creating a satisfied and loyal customer base.

BN pretty much already convinced me not to renew my membership. If they have decided to become even less competitive than they are now, well, that's just another nail I guess. Which is very, very disappointing, as I love bookstores. There aren't any physical BNs around me. Books-A-Million seems to monopolize the market here. But, I always enjoy dropping in a BN when I happen by one on long trips. It'll be sad if another major book retailer were to close because of mismanagement or an inability to adapt and remain competitive.