Its simple math.  More USED Books = more savings.  Well Lieberman’s happens to be the #1 bookstore at UDEL for a reason.   We stock more USED books than our competition and they are all priced lower!   Sure sometimes another bookstore may try to sneak in a lower price, $.25 cents lower than ours.  Thats ok.  Let us know and we will meet our obligation.

The fact is that other bookstores spend their time watching OUR pricing because we continually price our books cheaper than the rest of the industry, as well as offering lower specially discounted books to provide you with even more savings.

WE STAND BY OUR GUARANTEE and we wholeheartedly think that if you buy all of your books at all three bookstores, you will always find a lower total price at Liebermans.  The Math is quite simple.

Don’t take our word for it!  Shop and compare.  We are hear to make you happy and earn your business.  We are a student driven bookstore who truely understands your plight and wants to offer the lowest possible prices on textbooks.

Let us know how we are doing.  If you find a price at any of our competitors that is cheaper, just let us know and we will assist.   We thank you in advance for your trust.

Dan Lieberman
Find me on facebook.  (www.facebook.com/udeltextbooks)
You can ask me any questions you have regarding textbooks, buyback and how all of this works.  For the most unbaised textbook advice, and the truth about how things really work in the book business, friend me and fire away.

Selling back your University of Delaware textbooks at Lieberman’s will get you the most money for your books!  However, one of the factors that can affect your buyback price is the damage to your textbook.  The following is a quick breakdown of some of different types of damage that can occur.

Damage is one of the factors that can decrease the value of your book.  Please be aware of some of the damage that happens to textbook, and how that will affect your buyback price:

-Normal wear and use:
We understand that you use your book on a daily basis for classes and studying so typical highlighting , writing and wear and tear should not affect your buyback prices.

-Water-damage:
If your book has any type of water damage or soiled pages, it is likely this will affect some of your textbook’s buyback value.   In severe cases we will not buy the textbook at all.   Be careful to keep your textbooks dry!

-Missing pages/ Missing covers
Books that are missing pages (especially lab manuals/workbooks that you are required to tear the pages out and turn them in) or missing covers will not be bought back.  Books that are missing parts cannot be resold, and are often thrown out because they can not be reused.

If your textbooks have any other type of damage that may limit our ability to sell the book to the next student, we will discuss it with you at the buyback counter.   If you have any questions regarding the overall condition of your books, bring them to us and we will be happy to give you our feedback and appraisal.

We understand that you often buy books that are used, but try and keep them in the best shape and you will get the most money back!

Publisher:  So her professor XYZ, we have a new bundle package for your intro book you used last semester!

Prof:  A new bundle package?  What is that?  Do I really need that?  I used the basic book last time and it seemed fine.

Publisher:  Well, the bookstores are ordering alot of the study guide and the extra software that is optional.  If we bundle it all together , we are throwing in the software as a freebie to the student and the overall price is much lower for the students.

Prof:    Well,  I suppose that might be a better deal for the students after all then, right?

Publisher:  Absolutely!  The students wont know what hit them!!!

Back to reality.   As a bookstore attempting to save our customer’s money, we attempt to buy all the components that are listed in the packages.   Fact is however, that some publishers wont even let us know what the pieces are inside the bundle package until it actually arrives.  There are countless stories of huge packages that occur at this campus and other campuses that are simply unnecessary.    You are being forced to buy something that you clearly dont value and its not fair, period.   Its a huge game of cat and mouse that the publishers are playing.   In addition to that, either some professors just need to be informed and educated a bit about these consequences or some of them simply just dont care.

Dont get me wrong,  we all know that most of all professors are good people who do care about your wellfare, but there are always going to be some that operate on their own agenda.  Thats just life and that goes for all types of people.    What is crazy is that this is one of the few industries in the world where the end consumer, and the actual store who provides the product actually have no say in the process of determing what products are to be offered for sale to the customers, and whether the customers need to buy those products or not.

Some bundle packages may actually have a value.   In defense of the bundle package,  I have seen some that are responsible and sensible as the subject material was technology or science based and had some really cool sofware that actually enhanced the learning process.  When this happens its a good thing for you.   The bottom line is that the resposibility falls on you to hold the other parties in this process to task when abuse occurs.   Its like voting.  If you dont vote, dont complain.    If you dont investigate with your professor ahead of time regarding big packages filled with software and other anxialaries, then only you can be held responsible later when you find out its worth nothing next semester and you never even used half of the items in the package.

At Lieberman’s we try as hard as we can to fight against unnecessary packages by offering you as many used copies of components that we can, when we can.

Sound off with your comments.  We would love to hear your feedback.

Posted by: Jonathan at June 1st, 2009  (www.collegecashcow.net)
At the end and beginning of every college semester I hear the same complaining: the bookstore is a monopoly – textbook prices are too high, sell back prices are too low.  It gets old.  When we as students blame the bookstore for the ridiculously high prices and inability to sell textbooks back, we display our ignorance and nothing is accomplished.  Someone IS at fault.  I’ll tell you who, and how you can make a difference.

I understand that many college campus bookstores are different from others.  Some are profit-bearing, others just try to break even; some are owned by the university, others by private companies.  However, all bookstores have something in common: they don’t select their inventory.

Then who picks it?  Bookstores don’t obey the basic laws of supply and demand we all learn in Econ 100.  We as the customers don’t determine how much of what product is sold and how much we pay.  It’s not us, it’s not the bookstore. It’s the professors!

The fact is, the bookstores aren’t the demons make them out to be. In fact, most bookstores struggle to do what they can to keep up with the growing popularity of buying or renting textbooks online; they do as much as they can to help students out so that they have loyal customers.  Unfortunately for the bookstores, they are the face of the textbook industry to students who want something to piss about, and there’s nothing they can do to change it.

Lets look at two very common situations that suck:

1. You’re going to summer school and need to only buy one textbook for a class. Somehow, the total bill for the term comes up to $150 for just that one book. The bookstore’s not at fault for the high price: they try to be as competitive as possible to internet prices without losing money.  They just got a textbook request from a professor and made sure they have enough inventory on hand.  Lets go back in time for six months.  Your professor gets a call from the publishing company, and they have some great news.  Their new version of the textbook is out, complete with a cool new multimedia CD (that we never use) and some great new examples and homework questions (just enough to make sure we can’t still use the old cheaper version).  They just can’t wait to take your professor out to lunch to seal the deal and make sure he continues using the highest-priced textbook available on the market.  Over sushi a week later, it slips the professor’s mind to consider the financial burden he’ll be placing on students by mandating the use of this book, and he fails to ask the publisher how much it will cost.  Fast forward back to present time: You’re hauled.  The real criminal is the ignorant professor.  Are you going to effect change by screaming at the poor elderly lady the bookstore hires for temp help once a semester, and then getting removed by force from the premises by university police?  Fun to watch, but not effective.  You and your fellow students can approach the professor and have a civilized talk about how much the textbook costs.  You can suggest helping him figure out how to work with older versions of the book that don’t have a couple new problems the newer one does.  You could take him a list of other comparable textbooks that are half the price and recommend he uses those instead.  Nine out of ten times, the professor will empathize with the students and work something out.  The 10th case is when it’s the professor who writes the book and just wants to extort you.  Nasty letters sent by you and your peers to department heads/deans may just do the trick.  OK, don’t be nasty, but do what you can to take that extortionist down.
2. Situation 2:  lets say you buy that $150 brand new textbook.  You get through the class, and you’re looking forward to getting at least half of its value when you go to the bookstore sell-back.  You wait in line, and are then told that unfortunately the bookstore isn’t taking that textbook anymore, it won’t be used next semester.  You were about to let the little old lady have it again, but you notice that security now tails you every time you enter the building.  She probably has mace now anyway.  Once again, the solution lies in speaking with your professor.  This situation has happened TWICE to me.  Brand new book, first time used at the university, supposed to be using that edition for 3 or 4 years, can’t sell it back.  BOTH times the solution was to go speak with the professor.  Turns out the absent-minded professor forgot to turn in that darned little textbook request slip the bookstore had e-mailed him about every week for the last two months.  Silly Professor!  Two days later, textbook is sold back for $110 cash.

I think you get the idea and this post is getting too long.  I’m not slamming professors.  I’ve never had a professor that I thought was out to get students.  They all have been willing to help.  However, they’ve got a lot on their mind, from teaching classes to doing research and publishing papers.  Don’t piss about the bookstore or evil publishers, it doesn’t do anything. The bookstore does what it’s told, and publishers don’t care what you say because the professors are the ones who make the purchase happen.  Take it to the professors.  Don’t hold their absent-mindedness against them, but be sure to point it out.