Complaint Review: CBOMC - Children's Book Of The Month Club

 I have been a member of the Children's Book of the Month Club since 2004 when my son was born.  I never had a problem with emails, phone calls or orders being incorrect.  I also was able to cancel my memebership once and then reinstated it once we had moved.  I love this comapny for inexpensive books.  My children have an extensive library in our home all thanks to CBOMC!

Rachel

CBOMC sent me several books in the mail yesterday, along with an invoice (it said gift
and didn't list a payment amount). The only problem; I didn't order the
books (never been to their website). When I called their customer service number, it only gave me the option of imputing the account number and finding out if I owed them money or when my last
payment was. It told me my last payment was on June 22 for $70+. Thankfully no money has come out of our bank account as of yet.

When I hit "0" to be transferred directly to a live customer service agent, the automated
voice said "thank you for your call" and hung up.

I don't know how they got my name and address as we hardly buy anything
online except through Amazon every once in awhile. I'm thankful I'm not
on the other side of this with my debit card being charged (we don't
have credit cards)...but I have no idea if they have our bank info or
plan to charge our account in the future.

I recently joined CBOMC after getting an email advertisement through another company.  They have now done away with the monthly shipments that you had to respond to.  Now, once you join, they tell you what your commitment is, and you buy books as you wish.  I have a son who will be 4 this month and he loves books, so purchasing all of the books to fulfill the commitment won't be a problem.  Also, if you use the online club instead of through postal mail, there is a section to email them when you have a problem, or a contact page with their phone number and address.  I haven't had many problems so far, and when an issue came up, they were swift to get it corrected. 

Jen - Pittsburgh, Pa

I TRULY like to save money! I only pay full price when I absolutely have to; and then I'm kicking and screaming!
I think CBOMC is a great value. I have 4 grandbabies and I have saved sooo much money by belonging to that club! In fact my husband and I each have a membership, so we can get the maximum books for the $.
All it takes is a little attention paid to the emails you get from the club to really capitalize on the number of books you receive. When they told me I had to honor my commitment of how ever many books within the next month I found an email I had gotten that said "buy one get one free" and ended up paying club prices for I think it was 4 books and getting 8!
As far as the books being called "cheap"--these are the same darn books that Barnes and Nobles are selling for 3 times the price!
When I hear about a new book my first place to look is at CBOMC. I almost always find it there cheaper.
As far as customer service goes I have had no problems with their email system at all. I received an answer within 24-48 hours depending on the day of the week I write. If you're on the internet a lot that's a pretty good turn around.
I suspect that the "ripoff" author doesn't use the internet to transact with CBOMC, otherwise I can't imagine why she has had so many problems. I've been with them for several years, am not shy about complaining, and have gotten very satisfactory cooperation. They won't send more books if you answer the cards sent monthly. It only takes a second. Isn't that worth not receiving unsolicited books. If you've refused books and they still send them ask them for a postage-paid label to return them. I've gotten them.
You have to be assertive and fight for what you think is right.

Suz

I joined cbomc, like others, due to the inticing offer of free and low priced books. As an educator and reading teacher, I have a great deal of use for children's books and a low budget. When I joined, I read the agreement and the one I read stated that I had to purchase 4 more books in the next 2 years. All of my shipments and orders were correct. Once, I did not respond on time to the *automatic monthy selection (you need to stay on top of those responses) and I was able to return the unwanted shipment free of charge. It took about 6 weeks for them to credit my account and once they did, I called to cancel my membership. They offered me a modified membership in which I no longer have to respond to monthy selections :) I believe they call it the "Freedom Plan". I believe this is available to anyone that has fulfilled the membership requirements of 4 books in 2 years. I purchased many books with this company and I got some really great deals. I found them courteous and easy to work with. Some things take longer than I would like, but the outcomes are always in my favor. I even rejoined after they enticed me back with another 5 books for $1 each. I plan to fulfill my membership and move on to the Freedom Plan again. This really is a good deal, but you have to understand the commitment you are making when you join and respond to the monthy selections. It is very easy to respond to 3 at a time on their website. Their phone number is hard to find, and it is not toll free, but they always answer. If you need to contact them by phone, I use this number 717-918-2665. It is a bummer that some had such a bad experience, sorry to hear that, I just wanted to share my experience. I reccomend this book club to my friends, family and fellow teachers.