Amazon is *slow* without Prime

[aja8888]

And my email to Jeff Besos said as much.

So how did that work out for you?

 

[Scuba]

Even if evil Amazon is plotting to "force" non-Primers to drink the Prime Koolaid, so what? They are a business and allowed to try to make money however they can. The non-Primers can congratulate themselves for being supersmart and not falling for it and getting the albeit slow free shipping they get, and the Koolaid drinkers can be the dupes with what thry consider is a reasonable fee that includes many benefits besides free shipping. Win-win!

[emoji23]
+1

 

[broadway]

So how did that work out for you?

Don't know.
He'll probably ignore it.

 

[broadway]

I simply don't agree that there is any particularly nefarious manipulation going on, so there is nothing evil that I am "condoning" as a customer. I see a business offering incentives, not evil-minded manipulation. That's what businesses do to gain and maintain customers, and I don't see Amazon as being "worse" than other businesses in this respect. You may think I'm blind, but again I don't agree. This is a difference of opinion, nothing more.

Of course Amazon offers incentives for Amazon Prime membership, that's why we sign up for it. We perceive a value proposition. Whether Prime membership is a good value for any customer totally depends on their buying habits and other Prime benefits that the customer may value. I think most customers are perfectly capable of looking at the cost/reward tradeoff and making a reasonable choice for themselves.

No company is completely benign. Neither is capitalism.

How can a customer determine whether Prime is a "good" value when Amazon deliberately makes it appear to the customer that the other choice is not a "good" value?
Non-Prime = 9 calendar days because of Amazon deliberate foot-dragging.
Prime = 2 calendars days
reality = 2 calendar days only the customer doesn't know it because my order from Boxed.com and Walmart.com proves it

For me in NJ, Prime simply isn't necessary. But Amazon manipulates the shipment delay to make it appear that it is.
Plain and simple.

I am going to buy from Walmart.com with the 2-day free shipping for $35 and actually get the order within 2 days + order day.

I find this defense of Amazon's actions very troubling.
It's like "see no evil, hear no evil".
Completely disregard the data.

Amazon has rigged the shipment system.
The customer isn't seeing the truth unless they order from someone else.
For someone on the east coast near an Amazon warehouse, they need to re-calibrate!!!!

 

[Bestwifeever]

Don't know.
He'll probably ignore it.

He might read it if you spell his name right.

 

[broadway]

He might read it if you spell his name right.

His email address is jeff@amazon.com


All this Kool-aid love for Amazon Prime.

I seem to have touched a nerve.

Maybe some people are realizing that they are being/have been manipulated with false data.
When Amazon has their thumb on the scale when the customer makes their decision on whether paying $99/year is worth it or not.

As an engineer, we are taught to evaluate based on factual data.
The data is useless when it has been manipulated by Amazon.

non-Prime customer order takes 7 business days because Amazon deliberately delays to make shipment look bad
Prime customer order takes 2 business days
non-Prime customer order probably should take 3 business days = allowing 2 days for "preparing" shipment + 1 day for shipment
*day of order not counted

The actual shipment time for NJ warehouse to Staten Island is 1 day in this Amazon order.

 

[audreyh1]

How can a customer determine whether Prime is a "good" value when Amazon deliberately makes it appear to the customer that the other choice is not a "good" value?
Non-Prime = 9 calendar days because of Amazon deliberate foot-dragging.
Prime = 2 calendars days
reality = 2 calendar days only the customer doesn't know it because my order from Boxed.com and Walmart.com proves it

For me in NJ, Prime simply isn't necessary. But Amazon manipulates the shipment delay to make it appear that it is.
Plain and simple.

I am going to buy from Walmart.com with the 2-day free shipping for $35 and actually get the order within 2 days + order day.

I find this defense of Amazon's actions very troubling.
It's like "see no evil, hear no evil".
Completely disregard the data.

Amazon has rigged the shipment system.
The customer isn't seeing the truth unless they order from someone else.

For someone on the east coast near an Amazon warehouse, they need to re-calibrate!!!!

What makes you think customers aren't also ordering from someone else? And routinely check prices from other vendors as well as shipping times?

I don't understand why you think customers can't determine good value.

Completely disregard the data? What you are providing is anecdotal, not the whole data.

I don't think you have necessarily touched a nerve. I think that some of us disagree with you and are saying so.

 

[broadway]

What makes you think customers aren't also ordering from someone else? And routinely check prices from other vendors as well as shipping times?

I don't understand why you think customers can't determine good value.

Completely disregard the data? What you are providing is anecdotal, not the whole data.

Why would you as a Prime customer order from someone else?
You are enamored of your fast free shipping.

And again, the data is tainted when it comes to Amazon, unless the customers order recently from someone else, they won't know what is the new reality when it comes to shipment times.

Note: at no time in this discussion entire discussion am I talking about price of items ordered.
I have always been talking about the lengthy shipment time (6 business days for preparing shipment + 1 day shipment in my recent order) without Prime.

 

[audreyh1]

Why would you as a Prime customer order from someone else?
You are enamored of your fast free shipping.

And again, the data is tainted when it comes to Amazon, unless the customers order recently from someone else, they won't know what is the new reality when it comes to shipment times.

Note: at no time in this discussion entire discussion am I talking about price of items ordered.
I have always been talking about the lengthy shipment time (6 business days for preparing shipment + 1 day shipment in my recent order) without Prime.

I order from other vendors all the time. Other vendors offer free shipping, sometimes fast, so if the total cost is better and the time acceptable and I trust the vendor, I'll order from them.

So your premise that Prime members won't order from anyone else because they are "enamored" is false.

 

[broadway]

I order from other vendors all the time. Other vendors offer free shipping, sometimes fast, so if the total cost including shipping is better and the time acceptable and I trust the vendor, I'll order from them.

So your premise that Prime members won't order from anyone else because they are "enamored" is false.

People do what they are most comfortable with.

Why would you pay $99/year and buy from someone else?

 

[audreyh1]

People do what they are most comfortable with.

Why would you pay $99/year and buy from someone else?

Easy. We order so much online that we easily make back that $99 which I consider a "convenience fee".

These days I get a lot more for that $99 - we watch a lot of Amazon Video shows, I get 5% cash back on everything I buy through Amazon, 2% of that is because I'm a Prime member, I read the occasional free Kindle book.

We don't feel any obligation to only buy from Amazon in spite of being Prime members. We know we easily buy enough each year to justify it even though we only buy from Amazon when the total price is right. It still often is.

And if that ever changes, and if we no longer value the other Prime perks, we'll drop our Prime membership like a hot potato.

 

[broadway]

Easy. We order so much online that we easily make back that $99 which I consider a "convenience fee".

These days I get a lot more for that $99 - we watch a lot of Amazon Video shows, I get 5% cash back on everything I buy through Amazon, 2% of that is because I'm a Prime member, I read the occasional free Kindle book.

We don't feel any obligation to only buy from Amazon in spite of being Prime members. We know we easily buy enough each year to justify it even though we only buy from Amazon when the total price is right. It still often is.

And if that ever changes, and if we no longer value the other Prime perks, we'll drop our Prime membership like a hot potato.

If that is the case, then why are you taking my posts about this matter so personally?

This post is about the shipment delay manipulation by Amazon. Period.

 

[ERD50]

I order from other vendors all the time. Other vendors offer free shipping, sometimes fast, so if the total cost is better and the time acceptable and I trust the vendor, I'll order from them.

So your premise that Prime members won't order from anyone else because they are "enamored" is false.

And I don't have Prime, and I do exactly as you say. Check prices (including shipping to determine total cost), check promised delivery time. Order.

I dispute the claim that Amazon sits on shipments of non-Prime orders to encourage Prime subscriptions (though the would be expected to prioritize Prime over non-Prime). There is no way to determine the reasons from the data.

Regardless, they publish the delivery date, if you don't like it, don't order from them. What the heck is the big deal?

OP is not making any sense.

Am I sensing a trend here? OP complains about something, no one really sees the issue:

http://www.early-retirement.org/forums/f27/argh-basketball-next-doors-86735.html

Kids, playing basketball in their own yard, during daylight hours - Oh, the humanity!

A company delivers a product in the time they promised - Oh, the humanity!



-ERD50

 

[broadway]

And I don't have Prime, and I do exactly as you say. Check prices (including shipping to determine total cost), check promised delivery time. Order.

I dispute the claim that Amazon sits on shipments of non-Prime orders to encourage Prime subscriptions (though the would be expected to prioritize Prime over non-Prime). There is no way to determine the reasons from the data.

Regardless, they publish the delivery date, if you don't like it, don't order from them. What the heck is the big deal?

OP is not making any sense.

Am I sensing a trend here? OP complains about something, no one really sees the issue:

http://www.early-retirement.org/forums/f27/argh-basketball-next-doors-86735.html

Kids, playing basketball in their own yard, during daylight hours - Oh, the humanity!

A company delivers a product in the time they promised - Oh, the humanity!



-ERD50

And, yet again, you are missing my point or deliberately choosing to ignore my point.
Prioritizing Prime shipments is one thing.
6 business days "preparing for shipment" is quite another.

You believe that the shipment time is not being manipulated.
I believe they are.

Too bad you feel that my posts are irrelevant.

 

[audreyh1]

If that is the case, then why are you taking my posts about this matter so personally?

This post is about the shipment delay manipulation by Amazon. Period.

I'm not taking your posts personally. I'm disagreeing with you about your thinking that Amazon Prime members don't comparison shop because they are somehow blind or enamored by "free" fast shipping (that they have essentially paid ahead for). Or that they only consider Amazon shipping times, and not shipping times from other vendors.

 

[braumeister]

I know that I accepted the 10 days.

And now I know why it is 10 days from a warehouse in NJ to a home in Staten Island just across the Hudson River.

They intentionally delay the shipment to make the delivery time look bad when it should not have been. All to force me to pay for Prime. Where I live I don't need to pay for Prime to get delivery that is fairly quick. The reason it isn't is because of deliberate footdragging by Amazon. I find that unethical.

I don't think you have any idea what was going on during those "preparing for shipment" days. You just think it was deliberate footdragging, but that's only an assumption.

Bottom line is that you were told the expected delivery time, you accepted that, and then you decided to complain about it based on a possibly spurious assumption.

 

[broadway]

I don't think you have any idea what was going on during those "preparing for shipment" days. You just think it was deliberate footdragging, but that's only an assumption.

Bottom line is that you were told the expected delivery time, you accepted that, and then you decided to complain about it based on a possibly spurious assumption.

I most definitely saw the 10 calendar days.
And as an experiment, I decided to see what was going on.
And I saw 8 calendar days of "preparing for shipment" then magically at 11 pm of the 8th calendar day,
the order went out, and the box was delivered by USPS on the 9th business day.

I am complaining about it, because I don't believe it is real.
I believe it is deliberate manipulation.
There are at least 2 others on this board who believe it.
People who have Prime won't ever see it.

 

[broadway]

I'm not taking your posts personally. I'm disagreeing with you about your thinking that Amazon Prime members don't comparison shop because they are somehow blind or enamored by "free" fast shipping (that they have essentially paid ahead for). Or that they only consider Amazon shipping times, and not shipping times from other vendors.

What I am referring to --- >

Yes, you've made it clear that you think we Amazon Prime members are being duped. You are basically insulting our intelligence.

 

[audreyh1]

What I am referring to --- >

I do think your general characterization of Prime members as foolish/blind dupes is incorrect, so I spoke up to disagree.

 

[broadway]

I do think your general characterization of Prime members as foolish/blind dupes is incorrect, so I spoke up to disagree.

Re-read what I wrote in this entire thread.

You took offence for some reason. I don't know why.
This series of post was directed at Amazon and their manipulation.
Once you are locked into Prime, what happened to me won't happen to you.
How would you know what Amazon is doing to their non-Prime customers?

 

[Bestwifeever]

I'm sure Mr. Bezos will see the error of his ways when he reads this thread.

I doubt most people here are taking a random anonymous poster personally but someone seems to be . I think some tried to help make sense of whatever issue the OP is having with Amazon, which I thought I understood but now I realize don't.

 

[broadway]

I'm sure Mr. Bezos will see the error of his ways when he reads this thread.

I doubt most people here are taking a random anonymous poster personally but someone seems to be . I think some tried to help make sense if whatever issue the OP is having with Amazon, which I thought I understood but now I don't.

I am sorry you are still confused.
I can't help that you find my timeline of this delivery delay manipulation by Amazon difficult to understand.

The simple fact of the matter is either you believe that Amazon would sit on an order for 6 business days before shipping it out or not. I do, because I saw it happen to the order I made.

 

[ERD50]

And, yet again, you are missing my point or deliberately choosing to ignore my point.
Prioritizing Prime shipments is one thing.
6 business days "preparing for shipment" is quite another.

You believe that the shipment time is not being manipulated.
I believe they are.

Too bad you feel that my posts are irrelevant.

No, I'm saying there is no way for any of us to know if the delivery date is being "manipulated" or not, and more importantly, it is irrelevant.

If they promise 10 day shipping, you can accept it or reject it. It is either a "manipulated" delivery date, or it isn't. What difference does it make? I don't care if the 10 day delivery date from a company is because they are trying to push me to pay for faster shipping, or it is because it actually takes them that much time to deliver it. 10 days is 10 days. As long as they keep their promise.

Even if Amazon is manipulating the date, they were upfront with you about the delivery date, so you have a choice. Go to a competitor and find a better deal if you don't like it. Or get Prime - people can decide if it is worth it based on these delivery dates. Again, even if they are manipulated, you have a choice - accept it, get Prime, or take your business elsewhere.

I'd feel differently if this were a monopoly, but it isn't.

This is no different than a company charging a large markup for an option that only costs them a little extra. You can call it a 'rip-off' if you want, but you have a choice to buy the option or not. So choose.

-ERD50

 

[broadway]

What difference does it make? I don't care if the 10 day delivery date from a company is because they are trying to push me to pay for faster shipping, or it is because it actually takes them that much time to deliver it. 10 days is 10 days. As long as they keep their promise.

Again, missing my point.

Why is it 10 calendar days for delivery?

The items - two of them- were all in stock.
All fulfilled by Amazon.

That was experiment.
It was my test for Amazon.
And they failed.

You don't have an inquiring mind.
I do.

I care that the 10 calendar days was deliberately manipulated.
It was artificial.

 

[Bestwifeever]

I am sorry you are still confused.
I can't help that you find my timeline of this delivery delay manipulation by Amazon difficult to understand.

The simple fact of the matter is either you believe that Amazon would sit on an order for 6 business days before shipping it out or not. I do, because I saw it happen to the order I made.

Nope, still not getting why this is such a problem for you.