Why market your Library’s discards and donations to the world at NO cost to your Library?
The answer is quite simple. We get “more bang for your book” and we donate a percentage of net sales to a non-profit literacy partner. We sell your books for what the books are truly worth, therefore optimizing the revenue potential for your Library and a non-profit literacy partner. The secret is our proprietary software. We continually price the books according to the demand of the market. In fact, by the time your book is sold, its price may have changed several hundred times. Leave the book selling to us and you’ll have more time to spend around the Library, in the community or at home.
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What are the costs of the Discards & Donations Program?
Zero! We often hear that our program is “too good to be true”. There are no service agreements (unless requested), sign-up fees, monthly fees or one-time fees. We understand the budget constraints many libraries across the nation are facing. Other than the time it takes to properly box the books and seal the carton, there are NO costs associated with using our hassle-free service.
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Who is eligible to earn additional funding and how often are payments made?
As long as the books have NOT been previously “picked over” (i.e. offered for sale or as a donation to employees, the general public or any third party), your Library and literacy partner are eligible to earn a percentage of net sales.
Payments are made every calendar quarter, once an account accrues a minimum of $50 in commission payable. If the commission payable at the end of the quarter is not equal to or greater than $50, the balance will roll over to the subsequent quarter until the account accrues at least $50 in commission payable.
Net sales are defined as the sale price of the book minus any marketplace commissions. For example, a book sold on Amazon.com for $100.00 would have a net sale price of $85.00 (after Amazon.com’s 15% marketplace commission).
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Which non-profit literacy partners does Better World Books work with?
Our literacy partners are credible, well-established, non-profit organizations with proven operating backgrounds. Our four main partners are Books For Africa (www.booksforafrica.org), Room To Read (www.roomtoread.org), the National Center for Family Literacy (www.famlit.org), and Worldfund (www.worldfund.org). Aside from truckloads of books, we have donated/pledged more than $2.8 million to our non-profit literacy partners.
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What type of books/materials does Better World Books accept?
We do have a few general guidelines in regards to the types of material we accept. Please review the Acceptance Guidelines Document for more details.
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Who determines the merchantability of the books?
To a certain extent, you do. Anything that you would be unhappy receiving as a customer, we suggest not sending. Otherwise, we make every effort to process the books we receive.
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Shipping. Is it really that easy?
Yes. We take tremendous pride in our shipping and logistics options. We will help choose the best shipping method for you. For all UPS shipments, we will direct you to a customized web portal where you can log in and print off your UPS labels using standard 8 ½ x 11 paper. Then, after the UPS labels have been attached securely to the each box, you may schedule a pick-up by using our UPS web portal. It’s that simple!
For our large volume customers we will use a freight company. Our freight partners request that shipments be palletized and shrink wrapped. In addition, they request that the Library provide the staff to move the pallet on to the truck. Loading docks are preferred, but not necessary.
In either case, we have a team of shipping and logistics professionals to help you along each step of the way.
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What size boxes do I use to ship our books?
We ask that you use boxes that are roughly 17.25” x 11.25” x 10”. Many of the boxes sent by book distributors/publishers will be similar in size.
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Assuming we send “acceptable books”, what sorting criteria are there?
You will not need to sort the books by title, author, or genre, but we do ask that you separate ISBN and No-ISBN books. This will help ensure accurate processing of the material.
For details on shipping No-ISBN material, please refer to the Antiquarian, Rare, and Collectable Books Document.
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Which online marketplaces does BWB utilize?
As one of the largest online bookstores, Better World Books currently sells on over 17 online marketplaces. In addition to Amazon.com, Alibris.com, Half.com, and eBay.com, books are listed on BetterWorld.com where you can fund literacy, care for the environment, and get a fair price on the books you want.
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Are books ever thrown away?
No. We are very conscious about our environment and we have an active recycling program. To date, we have saved over 12.9 million pounds of paper from the landfill. If we determine that a book does not meet our criteria or cannot be sold due to its condition, then we will recycle the book. Books that do not sell after a given period of time are collected and prepared for distribution to our non-profit literacy partners or recycled in an environmentally responsible manner.
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What sets apart Better World Books from other similar services?
In addition to our social, environmental, and economic impact, Better World Books is dedicated to serving the library community. As the industry leader, Better World Books continues to enhance our program with innovative, value-added services, which include the Online Sidewalk Sale, the BetterWorld.com Affiliate Program, the ARC (Antiquarian, Rare, and Collectable Books) Department, and the Onsite Pre-screen. For additional details, please refer to the Competitive Advantages Document.
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Wow! How do we get started?
It’s easy! Complete the SignUp form and email or fax it back to us. For a copy of the SignUp form, please visit www.betterworldbooks.com/signup or email library@betterworldbooks.com. Thank you for your interest in Better World Books.
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