Prospecting: ValoreBooks Lowers its Prices to Acquire Customers

ValoreBooks, an online retailer that rents, sells and buys college textbooks, has declared a "price war" against its competitors (e.g., Chegg, eCampus). To gain the upper hand in the college textbook marketplace, ValoreBooks has lowered its prices and vowed not to be undersold.

In January, the company launched a low-price guarantee, as well as free shipping on any size order and a 30-day money-back guarantee. ValoreBooks can make these promises thanks to a unique supply chain system that's fueled by 14,000 book suppliers and 6.5 billion books.

"To stay ahead of the increasingly competitive college textbook marketplace, we decided to offer what our competitors cannot, and that's the absolute lowest prices for our customers," says Bobby Brannigan, CEO of ValoreBooks. "Other companies are eliminating free shipping and reducing their return policies from 30 days to 20 [days]. Meanwhile, we're in the fortunate position of enhancing our offerings this year."

It's become second nature for college students to buy/rent their textbooks from their campus bookstore — even if doing so means paying higher prices. ValoreBooks is trying to spread its message that there's a better, cheaper option: buying or renting textbooks online. To help it accomplish this goal, the bookseller has taken to social media, a smart move considering its primary demographic of college students.

"Social media is a very important way for us to engage with our college customers, especially Facebook," says Brannigan. "We currently have over 21,000 fans of our Facebook page, and we interact with them on a daily basis."

ValoreBooks is currently running a promotion on its Facebook page where its customers tell the brand — and their friends — how much money they saved that month by buying or renting their textbooks from ValoreBooks. Hundreds of students have posted their savings, a truly viral way for ValoreBooks to grow its customer base.