Digimonkey fields a lot of questions about rebates and discounts. Well, actually, she fields one question on many occasions. Digimonkey, the book I bought today was supposed to be discounted, but I was charged full price at checkout. How come?
The short answer to this question is that the book that was purchased was offering a rebate rather than a discount, but Digimonkey has discovered that there are a lot of misconceptions about the difference between discounts and rebates. That’s why she’s going to share all the down and dirty details about both so you will know exactly what to expect when a discount or rebate is staring you down. But first, Digi wants you to understand a couple of rules.
Rule #1: Discounts and rebates will only be offered on “incentive eligible” titles on the site. Incentive Eligible books always show the nifty red crown emblem to the left of the price. If you don’t see the red crown, the book will not be eligible for either discounts or rebates, even during site-wide promotions. Ignore this rule at your own peril!
Rule #2: Many rebate promotions require that the purchase be made using only Paypal OR a credit card, not ebook bucks. If you choose to make the purchase with ebook bucks instead, you may not receive the rebate that is listed in the Cart during checkout. Details regarding promotion restrictions will be listed in a text box in the Cart, so be certain to check the details for any rebate promotion before completing your purchase. Also remember that whatever Subtotal is listed on the Payment page is what you will be charged. Always!
Discounts
Discounts occur when a book is offered for sale at a lower price than the regular price, and that lower price is charged at checkout. You receive the discount up front. It’s the equivalent of Digimonkey going to the grocery store for bananas and discovering they’re on sale for twenty cents less than the price Digi paid the week before. Digi’s thrilled and grabs a few extra bananas because, come on, they’re cheaper! A discount will show the regular price with a line through it and a new price listed immediately after it in bold, but nothing else. It will look like this on the book’s main page:
Discounted ebook
When the book is added to the Cart, it will list the regular price on the first line, then a line that says “Discount: Publisher discount” that shows how much is being deducted from the price paid, and then the Subtotal shows the actual price to be charged at Checkout.
Discounted ebook in Cart
In the example shown above, Digimonkey would have been charged $2.39 for the book on the Payment page.
Rebates
Rebates occur when a partial credit is offered for a book in the form of eBook Bucks, but the regular price is charged at checkout. The rebated amount is delivered to the Library as Unassigned eBook Bucks after checkout is complete. Bucks can then be used to purchase other books, which makes the final net cost for the purchase less than the regular price.
Rebates are the equivalent of Digimonkey going to the local electronics store for a new flat screen TV (hey, a monkey can dream) and then mailing in her receipt and proof of purchase in order to receive a refund check of one hundred dollars from the manufacturer. Digi paid full price when she bought the TV, but when she gets that rebate, it feels like Christmas! A rebate will show the regular price with a line through it and a new price listed immediately after it in bold with the words (after rebate) in grey. A rebate will look like this:
After rebate ebook
When the book is added to the Cart, it will list the regular price on the first line, then the Subtotal (which shows the price that will be charged at Checkout) on the next line, and then a line that says “ebook bucks to be given for this order” that shows the ebook bucks total that will be delivered to the Library after the purchase is complete.
Rebated ebook in the Cart
In this example, Digimonkey would have paid $4.99 for the book at checkout, but she would have received $2.50 in Unassigned eBook Bucks in her Library after the purchase was complete. She could then use that $2.50 to purchase another book that was valued at $2.50 or less.
The really good news is that you don’t have to wait nearly as long for your ebook bucks rebate as Digi will for her TV rebate. In fact, you don’t have to wait at all! The rebate is delivered immediately after the transaction is complete. All that’s left to do is Assign the Bucks to your account (or gift them to someone else) and you’re all set.
Assigning eBook Bucks Rebates
To assign your Bucks, go to your Library and look for the Unassigned eBook Bucks listing near the top. It will look like this:
ARe Bucks
The number to the left of the Access/Gift link shows how many different rebates you have to assign. This customer has two. Multiple rebates from a single purchase are often combined so if, for instance, you’re expecting two $1.25 rebates, they may be listed as one rebate for $2.50.
After you click on the Access/Gift link, you’ll be taken to the Assign Bucks page. It will look like this:
ARe Gift Bucks
To assign your Bucks, check the small white box to the far left of the Bucks you want to assign (you do not have to assign them all at the same time), then enter the email address associated with your ARe/OmniLit account in the Recipient’s Email and Confirm Recipient’s Email text boxes, your name in the Recipient Name box, and click “Assign Omni Bucks.”
Feeling generous? You don’t have to assign those Bucks to yourself. Instead, you could decide to give them to a friend. Just enter your friend’s email address and name in the Recipient boxes. Don’t have any ebook loving friends? Digimonkey’s email is…..
When you return to your Library, the amount you assigned to your account will now show in your Available eBook Bucks account, which you can use to purchase more books! Feel better now? Good. Because Digi’s off to do some bargain hunting of her own!
Filed Under: DigiMonkey eBook Tips
Tagged: are store, digimonkey, discounts, ebooks, rebates
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