Several months ago, I called Barnes & Noble regarding their "educator discount" program (20% off list price of individual items) to make certain it was valid for substitute teachers, since that is not made clear in the terms. I was told it was, and indeed THAT is not my problem.
The PROBLEM I had was with the applicability of the educator discount. The terms of the discount DO NOT MAKE CLEAR the fact that "textbooks, " A.K.A. "special orders" or "print-on-demand" titles are NOT and cannot be discounted AT ALL. I drove ~30 miles from Woodbridge to Manassas, VA since that is the closest store and it was not until I spoke with the assistant manager that I learned this since my titles did not come up discounted in my subtotal.
As a literature consumer, I do understand that small-press printing houses often have high overhead and so may have to pass that on to retailers with whom they deal. HOWEVER—the retailers DO NOT make clear the fact that the prices MUST remain fixed on these small-press titles and so they cannot be discounted. This is especially egregious when the "educator" discount cannot be applied to "textbooks"!
In short, B&N, *PLEASE* make the Educator Discount terms MUCH, MUCH clearer.
Thank you.
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