
Demystifying Amazon Prime - jeffmiller
http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/10_49/b4206039292096.htm
======
ben1040
I can certainly see how Prime has gotten Amazon to get people shopping in
newer product lines.

Before Prime, Amazon was just for books. Now, I've bought books, a few
computers, DVDs, a whole set of golf clubs, a 22-foot stepladder, a lawnmower,
and I have a standing order for shampoo every three months.

Even the stuff like the ladder and lawnmower were cheaper on Amazon than at
Home Depot, I didn't pay sales tax, and it was delivered right to my front
door.

It's lowered the barrier to purchase quite a bit -- friends will often
recommend books to me during casual conversation, and I'll just pop out my
phone and buy it on the spot knowing I can have it in a day or two to read.

------
wccrawford
I love it. I hate going to the store and standing in line, so now I'll end up
buying something on Amazon and just wait the 2 days to get it instead of
driving to the store. It doesn't hurt that it's usually cheaper, either... And
you never have to worry about it being out of stock when you get there. You
can always see right on the site for sure.

I wish they'd do groceries and then I would have to deal with that, either.

~~~
sage_joch
They have gotten in the grocery business (<http://fresh.amazon.com/-> limited
to Seattle for now). It's a bit pricier than going to a physical store, but
there are some very real advantages: 1. recall emails, 2. filtering based on
allergies, 3. not having to rush once you've added a frozen item to your cart,
4. past purchases, 5. reviews.

------
nodata
Way more interesting is this (still in trial):
<https://tote.amazon.com/AmazonToteLearnMore>

Add in a feature it doesn't have: picking up stuff you want to sell on
Amazon's marketplace, and you've got something fairly big. Want new stuff?
Amazon. Want to sell stuff? Amazon.

It'd kill ebay.

~~~
parka
If I remember correctly, they did try to take on eBay, but that project was
eventually turned into Amazon Marketplace.

~~~
nodata
Yes and the integration with Tote would make it easier for existing Amazon
customers (pretty much most people) to use Marketplace rather than ebay.

------
Qz
I got in on the free for a year student promotion just before I graduated, and
it definitely changes the way you buy things, or even think about buying
things. Almost anything you want is 2 business days away. Combined with free
returns, it turns even $500 HDTVs into an easy impulse buy.

~~~
weaksauce
Free shipping on the returns is great! It really does change the way you think
about shopping.

~~~
ars
There was free shipping on the returns?!

I didn't get that.

~~~
Qz
It's been there for at least several months. They don't advertise it as much
because it doesn't earn them money to do that.

------
donaldc
The article seems to downplay the 2-day shipping aspect of Prime. I think
they're missing the point -- yes, free shipping is nice, but for many people,
getting what you ordered in two days in _very_ nice.

------
_delirium
I used this a bit when I was a student living in dorms, and getting stuff in
two days was very convenient. But now the UPS/FedEx aspect is just too much of
a hassle to deal with, so I prefer using USPS shipping. How do people get
around the problems with having to be home to receive shipments, if you don't
live somewhere like a dorm that has a mailroom handling that for you, and
don't work at home? After the first time I had to drive to some UPS shipping
center to pick up a package, I stopped considering this a viable shipping
option.

~~~
wmeredith
I use it all the time and just ship to my work.

------
jameskl
"Really what people are paying for is immediate gratification."

They make it sound like its a bad thing. I think that last quote misses the
point, I order single items from Amazon using Prime because I know I'll get it
in 2 days. As a parent with a young child '2 days' is quicker than I'll be
able to get to Target to pick up whatever it is I wanted.

I've ordered toilet paper using Prime...you know it's going to run out in 3
days, but you'll get it in 2!

~~~
hga
Agreed, I view it as more a low friction sort of thing and also thought that
quote was off.

------
naner
_A few weeks later she signed up for Amazon.com's free shipping service,
Amazon Prime, which guarantees delivery of products within two days for an
annual fee of $79._

A free service that costs $79?

~~~
wccrawford
Once you pay the $79, you get free 2-day shipping for a year for any products
that shipped by Amazon.

Yeah, saying it's 'free' is confusing, since you're already paid for it.
'Unlimited' would probably be better.

~~~
sachitgupta
Unlimited free shipping? :)

------
RK
The only program that I think beats Amazon Prime is Zappos VIP, which gives
you free next day shipping. Zappos seems to hand out VIP memberships right and
left to keep customers happy.

Of course, now Zappos is owned by Amazon.

Edit: I have both Zappos VIP and free student Amazon Prime, so I'm pretty
happy sending my cash to Amazon (not to mention AWS).

