7 ms·

The "no minimum order size" statement about Prime is a bit disingenuous. Many low-cost items are now Add-On Items (http://amzn.to/1a4NFBI http://amzn.to/1a4NFB

by xn 13y ago

The "no minimum order size" statement about Prime is a bit disingenuous. Many low-cost items are now Add-On Items (http://amzn.to/1a4NFBI http://amzn.to/1a4NFBI), meaning that Amazon will only ship them in an order of at least $25. Prime has become a bit less useful over the past year due to the introduction of Add-On Items.

andrewvc 13y ago
Well, I agree that it's somewhat less useful. There is an upside though, as shipping things has an environmental impact and people probably shouldn't be wasting a box + shipping on a missing cover for a food processor.
- res0nat0r 13y ago
  I don't think I've been bitten by an add-on item since they've introduced it. A food processor would definitely get you free shipping in two days via Prime, it is small items like a 6oz bottle of lotion that costs $1.99 that you can't get by itself.
  - xn 13y ago
    You'd think the Add-On Items would ship with any Prime-eligible order. For example, I wanted to buy a staple gun for $9.50, which will ship with Prime, but the $3.59 staples are an Add-On Item, so I can't get the staples shipped with the staple gun without adding additional items to my order.
    - evandena 13y ago
      I agree, and there needs to be a mechanism to automatically save and ship add-on items when the conditions are met for free shipping. And to your point about attaching them to a prime order, I would have to imagine Amazon is aware of this limitation and I wouldn't be surprised if they add this feature soon.
    - Lewisham 13y ago
      Yeah, I'd also like to see them allow you to attach Add-On items with your Subscribe & Save order. Subscribe & Save exists because it's cheaper to send it all at once, right? So why can't an Add-On item be put in that box?
- 300bps 13y ago
  You're going to love how Walmart ships boxes of crayons then: http://imgur.com/a/g4Hi5 http://imgur.com/a/g4Hi5
  - meepmorp 13y ago
    Just. Wow.
- VLM 13y ago
  So we'd be better off environmentally shipping a whole new food processor?
atwebb 13y ago
On the flip side, Instant Video benefits seem to be getting better (as far as I can tell).
peckrob 13y ago
The thing that's really annoying about the whole "Add-On Items" bit is that they won't ship them AT ALL, even if I want to pay to have them shipped. Forget the free shipping thing - they won't even let me pay shipping and just send it to me. One of the great utilities of Prime (and Amazon in general) is that it saves me a trip to Wal-Mart for smaller items. Need a pack of Sharpies? Ship it from Amazon, because a trip to Wal-Mart is an hour of my time wasted and a level of frustration that I really could do without. I'm willing to pay money for that convenience.
- drjesusphd 13y ago
  Every time I've seen an add-on item, I've always seen a separate listing for an identical item at a higher price. Is this not universal?
  - peckrob 13y ago
    I think it's dependent on whether or not a 3rd party seller in Amazon's marketplace is offering the same item. Amazon also sometimes has a "bulk" item at a higher price.
    - oftenwrong 13y ago
      Sounds like an opportunity. Find all the add-on items that there are no 3rd party sellers for, and sell them as a 3rd party seller.
Goronmon 13y ago
While the Add-On Item thing is annoying, I have to admit, there were a few times in the past where I've ordered small items that were shipped for free and I couldn't help but think it was pretty dumb that Amazon was doing that. Such a waste of resources.
leef 13y ago
Add-On items are items that are not economical enough to be in the Prime program by themselves but can be thrown in a box already on it's way to you. Without the Add-On program they would not be Prime shippable at all. Therefore Add-On items are just an improvement to Prime.
- kenrikm 13y ago
  Not exactly, there were items I buy regularly that used to be Prime eligible and were moved to add-on items. Amazon was borderline lying about that because they removed it from being Prime eligible for 1-2 days and then made it an Add On Item.
- bskap 13y ago
  Not true. I just placed an order with two add-on items (totaling $7) and one non-add-on item ($20). The two add-on items were shipped separately. Also, I'm pretty sure everything that's actually sitting in an Amazon warehouse is prime-eligible. The stuff that isn't is the stuff going through 3rd party sellers that don't use fulfillment by Amazon.
  - leef 13y ago
    The intent is for add-ons to ship in a box with the main Prime order. This doesn't always happen due to the combination of what you order and the locations of the items across Amazon's fulfillment network. When this happens Amazon is eating the cost of those extra shipments and is considered a 'miss' by the inventory folks. Everything in the warehouse is not prime. If fact, an item can flip from prime to not prime in near real time if the most accessible inventory is used up and all that is left is the stuff in the 'reserve' areas of the warehouse. This is the area where the giant boxes of inventory stored. Grabbing inventory from there involves pulling it down, opening, pulling apart eaches, and then stowing in fast access areas.
- nanidin 13y ago
  Before the concept of add-on items, anything shipped and sold by Amazon was eligible for prime. Add-on items are actually a limitation to prime, from a consumer/user standpoint.

by xn 13y ago

andrewvc 13y ago

Well, I agree that it's somewhat less useful. There is an upside though, as shipping things has an environmental impact and people probably shouldn't be wasting a box + shipping on a missing cover for a food processor.

res0nat0r 13y ago
I don't think I've been bitten by an add-on item since they've introduced it. A food processor would definitely get you free shipping in two days via Prime, it is small items like a 6oz bottle of lotion that costs $1.99 that you can't get by itself.
- xn 13y ago
  You'd think the Add-On Items would ship with any Prime-eligible order. For example, I wanted to buy a staple gun for $9.50, which will ship with Prime, but the $3.59 staples are an Add-On Item, so I can't get the staples shipped with the staple gun without adding additional items to my order.
  - evandena 13y ago
    I agree, and there needs to be a mechanism to automatically save and ship add-on items when the conditions are met for free shipping. And to your point about attaching them to a prime order, I would have to imagine Amazon is aware of this limitation and I wouldn't be surprised if they add this feature soon.
  - Lewisham 13y ago
    Yeah, I'd also like to see them allow you to attach Add-On items with your Subscribe & Save order. Subscribe & Save exists because it's cheaper to send it all at once, right? So why can't an Add-On item be put in that box?
300bps 13y ago
You're going to love how Walmart ships boxes of crayons then: http://imgur.com/a/g4Hi5 http://imgur.com/a/g4Hi5
- meepmorp 13y ago
  Just. Wow.
VLM 13y ago
So we'd be better off environmentally shipping a whole new food processor?

atwebb 13y ago

On the flip side, Instant Video benefits seem to be getting better (as far as I can tell).

peckrob 13y ago

The thing that's really annoying about the whole "Add-On Items" bit is that they won't ship them AT ALL, even if I want to pay to have them shipped. Forget the free shipping thing - they won't even let me pay shipping and just send it to me. One of the great utilities of Prime (and Amazon in general) is that it saves me a trip to Wal-Mart for smaller items. Need a pack of Sharpies? Ship it from Amazon, because a trip to Wal-Mart is an hour of my time wasted and a level of frustration that I really could do without. I'm willing to pay money for that convenience.

drjesusphd 13y ago
Every time I've seen an add-on item, I've always seen a separate listing for an identical item at a higher price. Is this not universal?
- peckrob 13y ago
  I think it's dependent on whether or not a 3rd party seller in Amazon's marketplace is offering the same item. Amazon also sometimes has a "bulk" item at a higher price.
  - oftenwrong 13y ago
    Sounds like an opportunity. Find all the add-on items that there are no 3rd party sellers for, and sell them as a 3rd party seller.

Goronmon 13y ago

While the Add-On Item thing is annoying, I have to admit, there were a few times in the past where I've ordered small items that were shipped for free and I couldn't help but think it was pretty dumb that Amazon was doing that. Such a waste of resources.

leef 13y ago

Add-On items are items that are not economical enough to be in the Prime program by themselves but can be thrown in a box already on it's way to you. Without the Add-On program they would not be Prime shippable at all. Therefore Add-On items are just an improvement to Prime.

kenrikm 13y ago
Not exactly, there were items I buy regularly that used to be Prime eligible and were moved to add-on items. Amazon was borderline lying about that because they removed it from being Prime eligible for 1-2 days and then made it an Add On Item.
bskap 13y ago
Not true. I just placed an order with two add-on items (totaling $7) and one non-add-on item ($20). The two add-on items were shipped separately. Also, I'm pretty sure everything that's actually sitting in an Amazon warehouse is prime-eligible. The stuff that isn't is the stuff going through 3rd party sellers that don't use fulfillment by Amazon.
- leef 13y ago
  The intent is for add-ons to ship in a box with the main Prime order. This doesn't always happen due to the combination of what you order and the locations of the items across Amazon's fulfillment network. When this happens Amazon is eating the cost of those extra shipments and is considered a 'miss' by the inventory folks. Everything in the warehouse is not prime. If fact, an item can flip from prime to not prime in near real time if the most accessible inventory is used up and all that is left is the stuff in the 'reserve' areas of the warehouse. This is the area where the giant boxes of inventory stored. Grabbing inventory from there involves pulling it down, opening, pulling apart eaches, and then stowing in fast access areas.
nanidin 13y ago
Before the concept of add-on items, anything shipped and sold by Amazon was eligible for prime. Add-on items are actually a limitation to prime, from a consumer/user standpoint.