Cengage and Verba Join to Offer Students More Pricing Options

Cengage Learning, and Verba announced they are working together to offer college students a variety of online pricing and format options for textbooks.

CengageBrain.com is Cengage's online course materials site where students have the choice to rent or purchase from the company's learning products. From the site, students can rent textbooks or purchase print textbooks, eTextbooks, individual eChapters and audio books. Verba's web comparison tool (Compare) is integrated into the college store website so that students do not need to navigate through multiple sites to see a wide range of pricing and format options.

"Students want options. Providing access to CengageBrain.com pricing within Verba's online comparison shopping tools will help students be aware of more format and price options," said Stephen Hochheiser, Vice President, College Store & Public Affairs for Cengage Learning.   The article goes on to note that by enabling the CengageBrain links, college store customers will benefit from existing affiliate programs and stores can also increase market share by satisfying more of their students through the stores' websites.

Renting and buying used textbooks cheaper than e-books

There is a perception that digital textbooks should be cheaper than printed ones.  From what I have seen and understand, not only is this not the case, but there is typically good reason.  For one, the print and distribution costs are not 50-75% of the cost of creating a book, despite expectations or perceptions.  Not that there is not room for further supply chain or production efficiencies, but frankly, just because it is electronic does not mean it will cost less.

To back up this observation, a recent study by CampusBooks.com reports that renting or buying a used textbook was cheapest for 91.6% of the top 1000 textbooks for back-to-school. The other 8.4% of the time, e-books were less expensive -- somtimes significantly so.

On a separate note, while something of a press release, the story does point out (once again) the importance of stores being a part of price comparison.  We know students engage in price comparison, and that the trend to do so is increasing.  If stores do not participate in such comparisons they are out of the equation from the perspective of purchasing decision.  

Price Comparison- Be in it to win it!

Recently Amazon announced the release of an iPhone App, Amazon Student. The app is essentially a price comparison tool aimed at college students. Other features of the app allow the user to buy and sell books as well.

Here is another reason why college stores need to be cognizant of the value of offering price comparison, with tools like Verba. As mobile apps for price comparison becomes a common tool for customers, stores need to be aware that if they are not part of the price comparison the fail to become an option for the consumer. Price comparison is as much about consumer trust and relationships as it is about transparency.  If your store is not listed in the comparison you simply do not exist for the consumer. It’s simple, you got to be in the game to at least have a chance to win it.  Providing price comparison information is an easy way to help retain market share.

Disclosure:  NACS Media Solutions does have a partnership arrangement with Verba.  We believe strongly that this type of technology should be widely adopted by the college store community.  The move of Amazon into this space further demonstrates that this technology makes sense -- and college stores were there first!  Amazon followed our industry's example almost 18 months later!