As comfortable as most students are with the Internet, the prospect of selling one’s textbooks online is still fear inducing. It shouldn’t be. Certainly it’s a tad more involved than waiting in line at the buyback counter, but it should not induce fear. But this extra effort can be well worth your time.
Step 1- Visit Campusbooks.com and find out how much your book is worth through a direct buyback . Looking up this information is as easy as typing in the ISBN (10 or 13 digit barcode on the book cover) into a box. You might find that the buyback price doesn’t cover the cost of shipping, let alone the hassle of selling it. This is a rare discovery though. More often than not though you will find a better buyback price than you would had you just gone to your school bookstore .
Step 2- Finalize your sale. This is typically taken care of as part of the listing, but occasionally afterwards. Many online merchants have set up wireless accounts for themselves through Paypal or similar services. This is a quick and easy away to get paid. The alternatives include personal check or cashiers check. If you plan on meeting the buyer in person to finalize the sale I recommend getting cash. I would always discourage the acceptance of a personal check.
Step 3-Get rid of your books. Unless you were able to sell your books to a fellow student on campus, or if you live in Boston to someone at a nearby campus, you’ll need to go to the Post Office, UPS, or Fed Ex to ship them off to their new owner. Many online sites will actually allow you to print off a prepaid shipping label when they buy your books back. In those cases all you need to do is find a box and head off to the Post Office. Timeliness is critical here. Ship your books off as soon as possible. Just as you wouldn’t want to wait for your money the buyer doesn’t want to wait for their new books.
by: D. Russell
