Not So Deep Discounts and Sloppy Operations
Ordering on the web provides instant gratification. Businesspeople agree that fax technology and Fedex distribution changed the way 1990s consumers viewed catalog ordering.
Using the web brought about a similar leap. Consumers can now often order into the evening hours and receive their items within 36 hours — sometimes with no additional shipping charges.From Dell Computers to Amazon, the largest companies dominate this marketspace with large selections, trusted privacy and information policies and smooth logistics.
Swimming In The Deep End
Ordering music online is easy and a dozen or more solid companies offer large selections, good pricing and fast (if not free) shipping. An outfit called Infinity Resources is trying to beat the Amazons, iTunes and other music companies at their own game. Their site, Deep Discount CD, offers what appears to be a huge selection, RealAudio clips and free shipping, but there is far more to creating a world class site than setting up a storefront, building databases and buying a shopping cart program.
Testing Deep Discount CD: An Ugly Chronology
I placed an order for four CDs and received an immediate confirmation. Four days later, I received a second confirmation.
CD #1: Finally, six days after the order was placed, I received another confirmation that implied my credit card was charged and the first CD (coincidentally the one most readily available) was being shipped. Six days from order to shipping is unacceptable.
CD #2: That same day, I received another email that the second CD was “discontinued”. Had an inventory system been in place, I would have known a week earlier that the company could not send the second CD.
CD #3: Two weeks later I received a shipping confirmation for the third CD, which arrived a week later. s with the first CD, my credit card was charged for the purchase on shipment. That is a fine policy and keeps the company in line with FTC regulations.
CD #4: More than three weeks after my order, I received another email informing me that CD #4 was backordered. Three days later, I received a notice that the CD would ship in 3-5 days.
Five weeks after placing my order, the backordered CD may arrive soon.
Deep Discount provided provided regular, if late, communication. My biggest complaint is that they knew days after my order that CD #2 was unavailable and that CD #4 was backordered. That is when they should have communicated with me.
Given that this is “deep discount” land, though, one should expect a lack of frills. After all, the money savings should be significant, right?
I priced all four CDs today on Amazon and learned that I saved a grand total of $4. Yes, purists will argue that I saved nearly 17%, a significant amount for high volumes, but saving four dollars and getting shoddy service is unacceptable.
Barnes and Noble would have sold me CD #1 for a dollar more and CD #4 for three dollars more. Disc two is indeed out-of-print, and disc three is available for the same price. They also would have charged shipping, so there are additional savings, but they hardly seem worth the time expenditure.
The Bottom Line, Clicks and All
Deep Discount does not charge credit cards until orders are shipped. They also have somewhat lower pricing than chains and a website that is on par with bigger companies. If I were ordering many CDs through their “Deep Deals” section, I would expect to save a few dollars. But if I were ordering that many CDs, I would also qualify for free shipping, order tracking and the other customer-friendly features at B&N.
The online music category is overcrowded. The megasites and chains hold most of the volume and most of the customer-friendly features. Others, such as GEMM.com, specialize in hard-to-find records while Amazon carries everything. And there’s always eBay for used, less expensive items, albeit through individual sellers.
But Deep Discount CD seems to only have a sprinkling of each of the features and benefits that would set them apart. Their interface is good, but their loss-leader shipping policy will crush their profitability if they continue shipping split orders and offering free shipping.
The verdict: go with one of the majors until these folks figure out their operational logistics.
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