Disclaimer
This is a Review on Indiatimes Book Club(Though the mail from Mouth Pad says its added I couldn't find it)
My Dad has given me a habit in dharohar that is of buying & collecting books.
I have been an avid reader since my childhood days. In school was dependent on the school & local library. After joining college my source of reading used to be friends & some local library. But once I started working I had money in my hand to blow off(that’s what I thought). I started frequenting local bookstores in Ahmedabad and started spending big money on books.
And then one fine day one of my colleagues introduced me to Indiatimes Book Club. Initially I used use his account. I was so impressed that I became a member very soon and it would be the 4th time that I would be renewing my account this January.
Now let’s see what this Book Club is all about & why has it kept me hooked on to it.
*How to go there
Log On to shopping.indiatimes.com, then choose the Category Books and then Indiatimes Book Club **would stare on you:)
What is it all about?
It’s an initiative of Indiatimes online shopping.
To become a member you need
* An internet connection;)
* An account with Indiatimes
* To trust online shopping;)
Fees this membership comes with an Annual fee of Rs. 500/- & you get three free books by becoming a member. This means that you earn back your fee immediately.
Why to shop here….
~You get a minimum discount of 25% on most of the book purchases.
~Their range of books is very wide. Having browsed through sites like NDTV Shopping, Rediff Shopping, EBay, Indiaplaza, firsthandsecond etc I can vouch on it. The collection of books here is vast, especially on Indian Authors.
~ Free shipping, not all websites offer free shipping.
~ Reward Points by every shopping you earn carrots which can be redeemed later. You can exchange your Carrots for any product available on Indiatimes Shopping. You also have the choice to purchase a product using your Carrots plus pay the balance amount with Cash/Cheque/credit card etc.
~ Payment Options range from Credit Card, Debit CARD, Cheque, Demand Draft & Cash on Delivery.
~ Tracking, here you can track the current status of the order shipped. And this one is not just name sake it actually works. I have myself tracked my orders here.
~ Customer Care they have a proper customer care and trust me they do work.
Now these features are well displayed on the website, I’ll share with you my personal experience & what I think makes this club different from others.
## Unlike other online websites this store doesn’t have third parties selling a product. It is directly to Indiatimes that you place your order & It is Indiatimes which delivers the same.
## As soon as you place your order you receive a mail and if you send a mail to them it is always responded to.
## In case the product you have ordered isn’t available not only you get a proper intimation stating so but even the money gets credited back in the stipulated time.
## You can Pre Order books. Having done that I can say that they delivered it in time.
## Wish list is a feature I like the most. You can keep adding as many products in your wish list and order them as and when you want. Whenever I have time in my hand I browse through their store and keep adding books which I find interesting and order them later.
## Ratings & reviews besides each book there is a rating assigned by Indiatimes and a brief on the book too. Which helps a lot in the book buying decision and by now I have started trusting their ratings too.
## The website is divided into categories like Fiction, Non-Fiction, Health Mind & Body, Reference, By Authors etc. which makes the website user friendly and easy to browse through.
## I can still track my orders from the date I had joined the book club. Which is a huge advantage, (I can see how much lighter my purse is).
## We can also gift a book to friends. You just need to feed the address where the book has to be delivered. The gift can be sent with a personalised message & gift wrapping.
## You can store multiple addresses and just click wherever you want the book to be delivered.
##What I always do is that I visit a book store browse through the books and remember the titles I had liked. I would then log on to the website and buy the book on a 25% discount. In the present days when the cost of books are sky rocketing for Indiatimes Book Club is a blessing. I have ordered more than 50 books from here, for myself & my friends.
## The books are always couriered very properly. They are always packed in bubble wrappings and then plastic covering.
Online shopping has its share of disadvanatges like you can't see & feel the product. But I think for Books this is a good option, you need not feel it to buy it. And I also feel that the website & membership is must have for people who love to buy & collect books.
But yes we need to be a bit cautious with online shopping. But if you people trust my judgement then from experience am saying that this is a good option for book shopping. Till date I have recieved all my orders on time(with NDTV I Didn't), I have always recieved a proper feedback from them and last but not the least have always got my books in time & in good condition.
PS: If you have a friend who's Birthday is just round the corner & u know she/he is fond of reading, you know what to gift & from where.:)