I'me very new here.I will receive two books soon and I just mailed one.However what if the time comes when I really want to order  books but noone is interested in ordering my books therefore I can't get any credits.Has anyone ran into this problem? Is there a way we can work out paying for the shipping if we have no credits? I mean I can't help it if my books don't sell you know? Any thoughts?

There are two options: buy credits in the Kiosk (top right drop down menu) or sign up for Box O Books.  Box O Books is $8/year, and allows Boxers to do book for book trades for no credits.  Also, you can advertise your Bookshelf in the Book Bazaar Forum. 

What Mary said.  And - you really don't have that many books on your shelf.  I get anywhere from 2-6 orders in an average  week, but I also have 325 books on my shelf.  I do usually see a flurry of orders after posting new books to my shelf.  If you have other books sitting around, you might try posting those into the system to beef up your shelf.

Sure it's fair. Also, if you use PBS postage with DC you can get your credits really quick and don't have to wait for the person to mark it received. I love too that they make it available that you can buy credits. I have had to do this a couple of times when wish list items came up and I was out of credits. You can also join the sister sites for DVDs and CDs and the credits you get from there, you can turn into PBS credits. I think this site is really well put together and gives you fabulous options.

There is almost always selling tickets in the forum Book Bazaar for less than PBS.

When I first joined PBS one of the things I did was buy 3 credits from the Kiosk. I felt it was money well spent. At the time I didn't understand about the Book Bazaar but still that money I spent on 3 credits was still cheaper than buying 3 new books.

I'd search out some books that don't have as many copies in the system to spend my credits on because chances are those will leave your shelf quickly. I spent my credits fairly quickly in the beginning and built up my bookshelf that way. I figured that it would be awhile until I got wishes granted from my wishlist.

Another option for building credits is to use Swapadvd to clean out  DVDs you don't want and then transfer the credits here (you get 3 credits  here for every 2 you transfer from Swapadvd). You can also use SwapaCD to build up credits and transfer them here.

Welcome to the club, Carrie. We like new faces (and new books) here.

Hi Carrie! Welcome to PBS! One of the things that boosts the visibility on my shelf is forum posts. There are message boards for almost every genre! For example, you can almost always find me in the Chick Lit forum, but there are also boards for Humor, History, Romance....chatting with people who are into the same things you are can give you some great ideas! Have fun!

I agree with everything the others have said.  One other thing - go to your local library's FOL sales and pick up books for really cheap.  Thrift stores, Goodwill, and other such places also offer books for cheap - sometimes. You can look at the Top 50's for most wanted books and look for those when you shop.  Also don't be afraid to post books that are "weird" or strange non-fiction.  I've found those to be the ones that go the quickest.  Travel books on Mt. Kilimanjaro were very popular as were books on horses.  You just can't tell.  Just because you don't want a book doesn't mean there aren't a lot of others on PBS who don't.  They usually do.

WELCOME!!!

Ruth

I actually think it's one of the fairest systems out there.  As long as your book meets the posting guidelines, you get it requested in exactly the order that you posted it vs. someone else.  It's not random, luck of the draw, etc.  It's basically getting in line!

I second the fact that you need to scout around and come up with a larger bookshelf to offer.  Ask friends and family if they have any books they'd be willing to part with.  Doesn't matter if it's a genre you're into or not.  Don't be discouraged about the size of the FIFO (first in, first out) line either- some move quicker than you think. 

One reminder though- it's absolutely crucial that you carefully screen those acquired books to make sure they are postable- you don't want to end up in a bunch of problem transactions and have to return the credits!  If you haven't taken the time to thoroughly review the guidelines do that now in the help docs when you've got a little down time.

Again, sometimes the oddest stuff is actually waitlisted by someone so you never know!  I also find a lot of great stuff at FOL sales- paranormal romances are often very much in demand so you can pick one up for next to nothing and post it even if it's not your thing.

Get a bigger bookshelf (I try to keep around at least 100) and then sit back and wait for some momentum- it usually takes a little bit for there to be and in and out flow.  It's really common for new members to feel your frustration, then pretty soon you've got a big pile of books to be read and the time lag thing doesn't bother you.

Welcome to PBS!

Sara

There are great tips here!  Having a profile and posting in the forums gets your shelf noticed, adding new books is a great way to increase your requests (I shop goodwill and salvation army, as well as garage sales, faithfully!). 

Also, watch the book bazaar for "sales" - 2 for 1 or 3 for 1, and you can get more for your credit that way!  Also, this gives you more books to repost when you're done.