**Opinions Needed**

[ianbuchanan]

Hi all,

I have been doing some research within the books/reading industry and have stumbled upon a potential solution to some of the problems you and others may be facing! Now, I would love to hear the opinions of those deeply ingrained in this industry.

What do you think of library book delivery? That is, library books delivered to your door, even if you are not a member. Books could be sourced from local libraries and delivered to anyone interested in reading any book, at any time. Deliveries could be completed quickly, and the price would be minimal as the books are never purchased, only picked up and delivered, leaving costs very low. The only charge would be for the delivery! That way readers can reap the benefits of fast delivery, not have to pay any shipping charges, allowing them to obtain books at a very low price, quickly!

Please, I'd love to hear any and all opinions! Poke holes in my logic, ask questions, offer advice...anything is helpful! Thanks everyone for the insights!

[gali]

I love your library book delivery idea, though I am not sure it will work everywhere.

My issue is the cost. I solved it by borrowing books, buying free books (BOTDs and so on), or waiting for the prices to decrease.

[ianbuchanan]

gali,

Thanks for the insight and feedback! I too have tried to get creative when it comes to avoiding rising book prices. I almost exclusively use the local libraries around where I live to get books. While it is free, which is great, I do have to find which library in my city's system I must travel to, which can often be out of the way. However, they are free!

If you have any further pieces of advice for the idea I mentioned in the original post, such as any problems you could foresee, how to improve upon the idea, what else could be done, etc., I would love to hear them!

[Camille Turner]

My issue is living abroad and moving around as a nomad. My library grows and every year, my husband and I move to a different country to experience a new culture. As a result, our suitcases are stuffed and my library is divided up amongst friends all over the globe. It's a problem!

[kfwilson6]

Does your library not have a transfer system where they will take it from one location in the system and deliver it to whichever location is closest to you for pickup?

I don't think I would use this service. I have seen many comments on these forums about local libraries lacking and I am stunned. My library system must be really incredible because I rarely ever come across a book I can't get between the two 3-catalogues and the branches. I have never requested a transfer, but I believe my library system will take a book from any location so I can pick it up at any other location. I can also return to any location no matter which one I checked it out from.

I don't see this business model being successful. Just my opinion.

[Lenny1886]

That's definitely an interesting idea! But I feel like the cost involved would be more than you think. As others have mentioned many libraries do have a system where you can put holds on books and have them transferred to the branch that is closest to you. Also, many of them have the option to "borrow" Ebooks for free so you don't even have to leave the comfort of your bed! But if this could be possible I would love it!

[GabbiV]

What a wonderful idea! This would be great for the homebound especially, but I think that everyone would benefit from such a system!

[cozark38]

I think this would also be a great idea simply because I prefer to touch my book. It enhances my experience. I agree with the fact that cost would be an issue. It might be of benefit to talk with a large delivery company like Uber or Lyft and see what they may offer for delivery. There may be costs of the delivery drivers and hidden liabilities. It defeats the purpose, in a way, of a free public library system. What about a bookmobile? You might be able to have people sign up online for specific books and then have a bookmobile service specific areas like a UPS driver. It's still a good idea, but the cost would be a factor for many people. It is also sad to think people will not experience walking into a library. It's a great experience. Cool thought.

[ianbuchanan]

My issue is living abroad and moving around as a nomad. My library grows and every year, my husband and I move to a different country to experience a new culture. As a result, our suitcases are stuffed and my library is divided up amongst friends all over the globe. It's a problem!

Thanks for the response! In your opinion, what would be an ideal solution to this problem? It sounds like you could certainly benefit from e-readers and e-books, just to keep everything with you and organized!

[ianbuchanan]

Does your library not have a transfer system where they will take it from one location in the system and deliver it to whichever location is closest to you for pickup?

I don't think I would use this service. I have seen many comments on these forums about local libraries lacking and I am stunned. My library system must be really incredible because I rarely ever come across a book I can't get between the two 3-catalogues and the branches. I have never requested a transfer, but I believe my library system will take a book from any location so I can pick it up at any other location. I can also return to any location no matter which one I checked it out from.

I don't see this business model being successful. Just my opinion.

Thank you very much for your opinion! My library system does have inter-library loans in which someone could do exactly as you describe above...request for a transfer of the book you want to the closest library to you. The idea I came across takes this one step further and actually brings the books you want to your door. Similar to any delivery service, this would bring library books to your door, ideally reducing the cost for the reader as we, the provider, have to spend zero dollars obtaining and inventorying books. If you have any more thoughts, I would absolutely love to hear them! Thanks again for sharing!

[ianbuchanan]

That's definitely an interesting idea! But I feel like the cost involved would be more than you think. As others have mentioned many libraries do have a system where you can put holds on books and have them transferred to the branch that is closest to you. Also, many of them have the option to "borrow" Ebooks for free so you don't even have to leave the comfort of your bed! But if this could be possible I would love it!

Thanks for sharing! There certainly are costs associated with the idea. The unique part about it is that the a lot of the costs of delivery/distribution services comes from inventorying the products and obtaining them to begin with. With this idea, the library facilitates those roles already, ideally reducing our costs simply to the cost of delivery!

Yes, I love that libraries can transfer books to the libraries closest to you! This idea would simply take that one step further and bring it to your residence, or wherever you'd like.

Borrowing e-books for free from libraries is definitely the way I'd obtain books if I preferred e-readers to print books. However, something about print books is preferable to me to electronic reading. This idea would not be able to provide value for those that prefer e-books to print books as they are already able to reap the benefits this idea hopes to provide. The focus would have to be on those that choose print to electronic reading.

Thanks again for sharing, if you have anything else you'd like to mention or discuss, please do!

[ianbuchanan]

What a wonderful idea! This would be great for the homebound especially, but I think that everyone would benefit from such a system!

Thanks for sharing! If you have any other comments, questions, or would like to discuss anything else, please let me know! Glad you like the idea !

[ianbuchanan]

I think this would also be a great idea simply because I prefer to touch my book. It enhances my experience. I agree with the fact that cost would be an issue. It might be of benefit to talk with a large delivery company like Uber or Lyft and see what they may offer for delivery. There may be costs of the delivery drivers and hidden liabilities. It defeats the purpose, in a way, of a free public library system. What about a bookmobile? You might be able to have people sign up online for specific books and then have a bookmobile service specific areas like a UPS driver. It's still a good idea, but the cost would be a factor for many people. It is also sad to think people will not experience walking into a library. It's a great experience. Cool thought.

I too prefer the interaction with print books to e-readers and e-books! Unfortunately, this idea would be limited to those like us that choose print over electronic reading as we could only physically deliver print books. I agree that much information must be gathered about the ideas feasibility as an actual business and potential issues surrounding customer acquisition and retention, and thank you for offering specific advice!

The idea is to keep book prices lower than they are in popular outlets, such as Amazon and Barnes and Noble, while offering the convenience of having them brought to you. The aim is not to bypass libraries altogether, but allow libraries to reach and impact more individuals. Ideally, they end up using this service and the library in tandem and we and the libraries develop a mutually beneficial relationship. While costs are imposed for this service, and they aren't at libraries, they are not paying for the book so much as they are paying for the delivery charge. Libraries have tried and failed to do this in the past because they are tasked with providing books for free or for very little charge and they were incurring too high of costs by delivering, thus too much money was being lost. With this idea, we could fulfill this service because we would be could charge enough to make it feasible to deliver.

I like the bookmobile idea you mentioned, and find it very similar to my initial idea, but yes, it certainly could benefit from having established distributors like a UPS. And I agree that cost is always a factor, that is why the aim is to reduce the cost to just a delivery fee, when most of the time, when buying books online, you pay for the book anddelivery.

Thanks again for sharing and please feel free to ask more questions, share more advice and opinions, and discuss anything!

[Camille Turner]

My issue is living abroad and moving around as a nomad. My library grows and every year, my husband and I move to a different country to experience a new culture. As a result, our suitcases are stuffed and my library is divided up amongst friends all over the globe. It's a problem!

Thanks for the response! In your opinion, what would be an ideal solution to this problem? It sounds like you could certainly benefit from e-readers and e-books, just to keep everything with you and organized!

In the end, I broke down and started using a Kindle about a year and a half ago but it doesn't replace the excitement of buying books for me. I have tried recently to not purchase so many but last year, we were living in Paris in the 5em which is where all of the bookstores are and I ended up buying way more than I wanted to. But the way I see it, it's just a part of what I love. Even if I am not sure how or when I'll be able to get my library all in one place, the joy of visiting bookstores all over the world is worth the unsolved question of where I'll keep them when I move. And, thankfully, my husband is rather tolerant of lugging books between countries. I don't believe there is a solution in the end, but I'd rather have books all over the world than none at all.

[ianbuchanan]

My issue is living abroad and moving around as a nomad. My library grows and every year, my husband and I move to a different country to experience a new culture. As a result, our suitcases are stuffed and my library is divided up amongst friends all over the globe. It's a problem!

Thanks for the response! In your opinion, what would be an ideal solution to this problem? It sounds like you could certainly benefit from e-readers and e-books, just to keep everything with you and organized!

In the end, I broke down and started using a Kindle about a year and a half ago but it doesn't replace the excitement of buying books for me. I have tried recently to not purchase so many but last year, we were living in Paris in the 5em which is where all of the bookstores are and I ended up buying way more than I wanted to. But the way I see it, it's just a part of what I love. Even if I am not sure how or when I'll be able to get my library all in one place, the joy of visiting bookstores all over the world is worth the unsolved question of where I'll keep them when I move. And, thankfully, my husband is rather tolerant of lugging books between countries. I don't believe there is a solution in the end, but I'd rather have books all over the world than none at all.

I know exactly what you mean! I really enjoy the act of getting a new book as well! Can't say I wouldn't have gotten carried away in Paris too . I'm not sure of the best way to keep a physical library while traveling the globe, but hopefully you're able to find a solution to the problem in the future!