Price + Service = Amazon Success in good & bad times

Slate has a great testimonial to the greatness that is Amazon – especially those who take advantage of the free two-day shipping that comes with Amazon Prime:

Be warned, though, that Prime membership will alter how you think about shopping. These days, whenever I become cognizant of some need that would ordinarily require an unplanned trip to the store—when I want a bathroom hook, a shelving system for my closet, a new wireless router, or a discount pack of kitchen sponges—I check Amazon first. It’s usually faster to order the item there and get it shipped for free than to add the thing to my shopping list. With Prime, you don’t really need a shopping list.

I don’t rely on Amazon just because it’s cheap and convenient. For a store that aims to give you a bargain, it also excels at customer service. Here’s something that happens often: I’ll buy an item on Monday afternoon and be told to expect it to arrive Wednesday. Then, sometime Tuesday, the UPS guy rings my door—amazingly, Amazon has moved the product from its shipping center in Nevada to my apartment in San Francisco in less than a day, for no extra charge. The store even excels when something goes wrong. The Web abounds with stories of Amazon going above and beyond to make sure its customers are happy.

I couldn’t have said it better myself. Amazon Prime is an outstanding way to shop for everything from popcorn to pop music.

If you haven’t checked out Amazon (or the Amazon Prime membership) definitely spend some time on there. With free shipping, who needs stores?