You know what would be very cool?
If Google rigged up their new Google Checkout service with something like Amazon Prime, but for multiple sites.
Amazon prime is pretty cool. I signed up for it for a while, and getting free 2-day shipping for virtually everything you buy really rocks. You can order stuff without thinking about it too much. It’s a hell of a lot more convenient than hitting the store. And I ordered a lot of stuff through Amazon while I had Prime. Mostly books, but basically it lets those impulse purchases be extremely easy to satisfy. And that’s cool with me, because if I suddenly need Pocky, then I can satisfy that urge. Pocky rules.
But what sucks is that a) it’s like $80 a year and b) it only works with Amazon.com’s stuff, not all their partner’s stuff. When you search for stuff at Amazon, and get a list of products back, you have no idea whether or not it’s sold by Amazon and thus prime eligible. So you still kinda have to pay attention to some degree.
Google’s searching for products, on the other hand, is great. Google for it, then at the top of the page you get some products and prices and such. Hit the button to show all Google Checkout results for that product, sort by price, and bam, you’re right there. Go straight to the site and buy it. Since you use Google Checkout, no account setup crap is generally involved, it’s easy and painless.
If Google Checkout had something similar to prime, where the individual vendors didn’t charge for shipping, then it would be perfect. I don’t know how that would work, as the only way Amazon can do it is because of bulk or something. Maybe Fedex would be willing to cut Google a deal for all its partners with the Checkout service. I dunno. But still, it would rock a lot more than Amazon Prime would.
Stumbled through here looking for something else, but I did want to point out that when you search for stuff on Amazon it shows me a small Prime symbol next to Amazon Prime items, and I think it did even back in April or March.
Another trick is that you put the keyword “amazon” in with your search query and Amazon will only return Amazon-sold items.
Amazon Prime does NOT rock. I paid $80 for “all you can eat” 2-day service. Most of my packages (shipped via DHL) have been late. I’m not getting what I paid for at all. If Amazon can select a reliable shipping company, then I’m not shopping with them. I used to use Amazon for all my Christmas gifts…but not anymore. If their shipping company (DHL) can’t ship on time during a slow season (September)…then why should I assume my packages will arrive on time (or at all) around Christmas when I need them the most?