How To Use Your TextBookStop Coupon

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TextbookStop.com Review

If you’re tired of the old, boring names such as Chegg and BookRenter, which normally come up when online textbook rentals and buy-and-sell discussions are on, then consider looking at TextbookStop.com. At the surface, it offers the same benefits as the major industry players but it also offers unique services and quirks that might just tick your senses enough to try it out.

We’re reviewing TextbookStop.com today, using the same system as in our previous reviews of the companies in the book-renting industry. The review centers on five critical aspects of the business, namely: Key Features and Company Strengths, Ease-of-Use, Pricing, Customer Support, and Shipping. The review that follows presents the facts and relevant information about TextbookStop, including bits and pieces of comparison versus similar companies. As always, we leave everything in the hands of the thinking buyer who knows more than we could ever share.

Key Features and Strengths
Perhaps the biggest killer to Textbook Stop is in its inability to compete with the big name players in terms of title offerings and selections. If one is looking for common titles in common fields, perhaps TextbookStop will have one or two copies in-stock but rare titles are almost definitely out of the question.

A plus to the companies’ reputation is its affiliation to Better Business Bureau (BBB), an accreditor of business practices and company reputations across the US. BBB provides independent analysis of various businesses and rates them on a number of factors including customer feedback and complaints, perceived business reputation and the likes. As of late 2010, BBB gave TextbookStop.com an A- minus rating indicating strong business policies and good customer support. In particular, TextbookStop owes its good ratings to reduced incidence of customer complaints, and the adequacy of background information provided to BBB that allows it to regularly monitor and assess the textbook company.

While BBB accreditation is not universal, it is certainly a big help in boosting company reputation for small start-up businesses like TextbookStop.com allowing it to compete against big-name industry players that no longer need the endorsement of 3rd party organizations like BBB.

Another creative bit introduced by TextbookStop.com is empowering the customer to choose whether he wants to rent new or used books. Of course, new ones are priced relatively higher which means the customer is left to do the thinking himself. Personally, we do not have a preference as long as product quality is compromised.

Our Score: 3.5/5

Ease-of-Use
The standard book title, author name and ISBN information for book searching are applicable. The search field is easy enough to use, and Help and FAQ sections are available to aid the lost. While the help sections are not as comprehensive as those of, say BookRenter and Chegg, it offers enough support to allow one to get around the website and familiarize oneself with the policies with as little hassle as possible. The mere fact that it is not hard enough to find your way around the website pages is cause for joy especially when contrasted with other sites who seem to think that messy layouts are the way to go.

Our Score: 3.5/5

Pricing
As with ease-of-use, pricing is average at 60% off of the book listing price on most titles. One can always check around to find the best bargain but our survey results show one will almost always fall within the average plus-minus a few dollars making TextbookStop.com a good alternative if one is just looking for a change in scenery from the Chegg and BookRenter dominated online books renting business.

Our Score: 3.5/5

Customer Service Support
Twitter and Facebook accounts are available for customer feedback and phone and email support are also standard. Apart from these, nothing seems to suggest that TextbookStop.com delivers anything out of the ordinary. Some users report prompt response to inquiries while some others complain of long wait times; whichever the case, we caution the user, like we always do, to do a little big of digging and researching before finally settling on a purchase or rent.

Our Score: 3/5

Shipping
Standard shipping policies are in effect; orders are paid by the customer while return shipments are shouldered by TextbookStop in the form of prepaid mailing labels.

However, one interesting policy that the company employs is the use of local drop points as means for returning books. One can stroll into pre-identified locations within colleges and universities and leave packages for shipment back to TextbookStop, not different from the way one returns books to the library. For those who can’t afford to leave school premises even for just a second, this offers a convenient way for returning books and it can also save others commute time or gasoline expense by not having to go to the shipment facility. Whatever your preference is, there’s a wee-bit of option to choose from with shipping.

Our Score: 4.5/5

Summary
Outside of the novel “local drop point” idea and the accreditation with Better Business Bureau, no other policy sets the TextbookStop apart from its competitors. The selections are limited when compared to the big-name players and one might find it hard to get the desired title.

Still, if you’re one for taking calculated risks, TextbookStop.com is your best bet for a renewed renting or used-books-buying scenery. Just do your own bit of research before placing the order; your extra vigilance will go a long way towards saving you time, effort and sparing your from potential rip-offs. As always, we employ you, the user: trust your instincts! You can never go wrong with them. If you do happen to go with the company, be sure to use an available Textbookstop promo code before you place your order. You always have to be certain that you’re getting the best deal when trying to budget your textbook costs.

Good Luck!