ComplaintsforBlurb, Inc.

• Initial Complaint

  06/29/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  Hello, my account on Blurb.com is hacked. Suddenly I can't access it as it claims my emails not associated with any account even though my books are listed for sale and my accounts are active but not accessible to me - an author of the books by ************************* aka *********************************. Emails are: ************************ and ********************** They used to be connected to my paypal account, banking account. It's been very challenging to speak to anyone about it. I send emails to blurb support but get links to articles which are not helpful at all. Please advise. Thank you. This is the link to one of my accounts on ********************** ***********************************************************************

  Business response

  07/05/2024

  Hello,
  
  I'm sorry to hear that you were unable to access your Blurb account. I was able to locate your support request, and I'm sorry to say that I don't fully understand the nature of your complaint. I'm glad to see that your account was not hacked but you just needed help resetting your password. I was also able to verify that our team replied in a timely manner. From what I can see, you received a reply on the same day you contacted us, and then our team kept assisting you regularly. The reason why you received "links to articles" is that you submitted multiple new requests within a short amount of time. The first reply is always automated and it contains *********** articles that you may find useful. I'm sorry they didn't help in your case. If you need assistance in the future, my recommendation would be to submit one support request only. You can always update it if you need to add more questions or details. This way you'll only receive an automated reply and then your request will be assigned to our team. 
  I see that your support request is solved now, and I'm glad to see that you were able to access your account. If you have any further questions, please reply to your support request to reopen it and we'll be happy to help.

• Initial Complaint

  01/02/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Product Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  Blurb is making our books listed on Amazon.com, printed and distributed through Blurb *************** unavailable for purchase by our customer base, thus making them unavailable for distribution. All our Amazon.com listings are presently marked "Currently Unavailable," meaning, our books are being made unavailable for sale. This has happened several times before. Blurb always apologies, restore listings, waits few days - then marks them "Currently Unavailable" again. Blurb never notify us about their action. As a results, we are denied income from sale of our product, not to mention losing our reputation with our ***** ********** and our customer base. If ********************** cannot provide distribution services - as it promises through their website, then Blurb should not offer them. We are very unhappy with Blurb Publishing, and their dishonest Modus Operandi. Thank you

  Business response

  01/10/2024

  Hello,
  
  We're really sorry for the inconvenience caused by the temporary unavailability of your books on Amazon. This was due to the closure of production during the holiday weekend. However, this isn't a common occurrence, and we're not planning any more interruptions for the foreseeable future. If you have any further questions about this matter, please feel free to reach out to our Customer Support Team.
  
  Best regards,
  

• Initial Complaint

  11/10/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Delivery Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  Order Number: 10343454Order Date: 2023-10-10 The book has been delivered three times, always in substandard condition (poor workmanship).

  Business response

  11/17/2023

  Hello,

  I'm sorry to hear of the problem with your books. I was able to find your account and see that you've been our customer for many years, therefore I'm particularly sorry to see that we didn't meet your expectations on this occasion.
  I've read your support request and seen that the first 2 books were replaced free of charge when you contacted us. However, we were not notified about the third faulty order, and therefore we were not aware of the fact that you still needed help. I see that a colleague reached out to you again and offered a refund when you provided pictures of the defective book. 
  I hope that you're happy with this solution, and please do not hesitate to reach out again if you need further assistance. 
  
  Best,

  Customer response

  11/17/2023

  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.
  
  Sincerely,
  
  ***********************

• Initial Complaint

  09/15/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Delivery Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  This is a fraudulent company. A client placed an order with me last night and was not able to view the link I sent her which is supposed to be set up from the blurb marketplace. Therefore, I had to make the sale from my own account. Because ********************** does not have any other means of communication outside of email, they informed me today HOURS after I contacted them via email of the issue. They told me that I have my store account set to invite which they dont tell you when you set them up for sale. Even as an invite, the link should have worked for the client to make her purchase. So now blurb is refusing to give me the profit for the sale basing it on their system being automated. It is total BS. They make millions and engage in shady fraudulent practices by hiding features and giving excuses of why they cant give businesses who use their services profits for the items they create. Making a profit off my products is a copyright infrindgement and against the law. They WILL give me the profits or risk the issues of possibly being sued. Here is the order number and the date the order was placed. If they cant have any other means of contact outside of an email address when they expect people to publish through them, then it is proof that they are engaging in fraudlent and illegal practices to intentionally steal from people's profits who use their services. Order Number:9724743 Payment Type:VISA XXXXXXXXXXXX8122 Order Date:21 Aug 2023

  Business response

  09/22/2023

  Hello,
  
  I'm truly sorry to hear of your experience with your latest order. I was able to find your email exchange with our Customer Support Team and see that you were explained what happened in detail. I'll be happy to add a further note here, in case it helps. I know that you ended up purchasing your books for your client because they couldn't find your book in our bookstore. However, a purchase through your own Blurb account is not a sale, and therefore it doesn't generate any profits. This is because you only paid the base cost for those books, that is, the amount that goes to Blurb to produce your books. This is the reason why there were no profits to pay out. I know you're under the impression that we could have paid them out anyway. However, the profit payment process is highly automated, and if we don't receive an order paid at list price (which includes your profit on top of the base cost) there is no profit we could possibly pay out. Regarding the book being set to Invite Only, that is the default setting and is clearly visible in your book settings. Only the account holder can go into their book settings and set the book for public sale. Because you didn't make your book publicly available, your customer couldn't find it in our bookstore. From your email exchange, I see that you reached out on August 21 asking for a link to share with your client to let them purchase your book. We would have definitely been able to help with that. However, you reached out again 7 minutes later and before we could reply to your first message, mentioning that you had already purchased your books yourself. At that point the only thing our team could do to help was explain how to set up your book for public sale next time. Finally, while Blurb doesn't offer phone support, we do offer chat support. The chat widget is available on our website during chat hours. Please feel free to reach out to our Customer Support Team again if you have any further questions about this.
  

  Best regards,
  
  

  
  

  Customer response

  09/22/2023

  I dont care what they have explained. I get what they said. The fact is, I dont care if the payments were automated. They could still have made the payout considering they dont give you a clear way how to publish books by making them active. They have no phone support nor do they offer any kind of chat support incase something like this happens. They dont care about customers or the clients who use them. Its been obvious through their responses. This is on them and this is how they choose to do buiness. Its all about greed and burning people to make a profit off peoples products. If that is how they roll and how they do their business, it is for them to live with. It is a shame because they offer a quality product. They are just not quality people obviously. They take advantage of people by hiding certain settings so they are not real clear when they are being created. When you make your publication and you fill out all of the information for it to be published, it should be active. You should not have to search their archives of articles to figure out how to make the listing active or private. even if it was private, my client still should have been able to  make an order with a link sent to her and she was not able to. And if there was a way to contact the company outside waiting for hours for emails then maybe this issue could have been avoided. 

• Initial Complaint

  02/16/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  Blurb published my wife's book called ******************************* Journey. Blurb indicates there had been no sales in the last quarter of 2022. This is simply untrue. The book was ordered by a friend on December 16th, 2022 and he received the book the following week. The statement "there haven't been any sales since the last payment in October 2022" is verifiably wrong. I cannot tell whether if this company is willfully providing misleading information or if they are simply negligent. Either way, if it is unacceptable.

  Business response

  02/23/2023

  Hello,
  
  I'm sorry to hear that you're still confused about your profits after the explanation you've been provided by our team. Your Monthly Profit Reports in your Blurb account show any NEW sales, first as Pending, and then as Completed after a certain amount of time. The process is explained in detail here: **********************************************************************
  
  Every time a customer or retailer buys a NEW copy of your book, that is, every time Blurb needs to print and ship a new copy, a new sale will appear in your Monthly Profit Reports. However, because your book is for sale in the Global Retail Network through ******, your book may be purchased by a retailer. Retailers buy books to resell them. In that case, Blurb does not print and ship a new copy. Retailers resell a copy that we previously printed and shipped and for which you've already been paid.
  
  Because your friend purchased your book in December but you didn't see any pending sales in January, your friend must have purchased a copy that someone else was reselling, that is, a copy that we had previously printed and shipped and whose profit was recorded in a previous month in your Monthly Profit Reports. 
  
  It is common practice for Amazon and other retailers to fulfill orders from stock that they purchased in a prior month. Amazon, for instance, sometimes makes bulk purchases to get better pricing per book from ******. It's therefore possible to have Amazon sales in December that are not reported in your Blurb account because Amazon is fulfilling the December orders using copies that they ordered in previous months. 
  
  I hope this further explanation helps clarify how selling in the Global Retail Network works.
  
  Please feel free to reach out to our Customer Support team again if you have any further questions or doubts.
  
  Best regards,

  Customer response

  02/27/2023

   
  Complaint: 19416134
  
  I am rejecting this response because:At the time the December purchase of ******************************* Journey Amazon did not show any new **************.  So, any purchase made at that time Blurb would have printed the book.  Blurb is not showing any books printed.  There seems to be no way to accurately show books that were printed.  Therefore, Blurb's honesty is suspect. 
  
  Sincerely,
  
  *****************************

• Initial Complaint

  12/01/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  On November 10th I placed an order for 50 books with an updated book after finding an error in the previous draft. I checked the preview and everything looked good. The 50 books that arrived have two problems. 1. They printed the previous book version and not the updated version. Second each book shipped has a small glue dot in between the plastic covering the books and the cover causing the book cover to be slightly damaged when I try to remove the glue dot . I reach out to customer service and have not heard anything back after submitting photos and videos.This is a large and very expensive order that I need asap. This is a serious issue and problem .*************************

  Business response

  12/09/2022

  Hello *******,

  I'm really sorry to hear of the problem with your order. I was able to find your support request and see that your request has been escalated to our Quality Support Specialist team, given the nature of the problem. Our team is currently working on a resolution and you will hear back from one of our senior specialists as soon as possible. Please keep an eye on your support request, and feel free to update it if you have any further questions in the meantime.

  Best,

  Blurb Team

• Initial Complaint

  09/20/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I reached out to Blurb through their support messaging on July 18, about a month after I had submitted my book for distribution with them, waiting that time, and still not having it distributed. After going back and forth several times, they let me know that the issue seemed to be a technical one that needed the support from the technical team. It is now September 20th, and I have still not had my issue revolved; my book has still not been distributed and they have not given me any timeline. I asked for the issue to be escalated but I was told that there is no way to escalate, and that I must wait til the technical team gets back to the support assistant about the matter.I have already lost a lot of business opportunities from the networks and connections that I have made recently and not being able to sell my book. I have never left a complaint with the BBB, but I am at a point where I don't know how I can get this issue resolved. Aside from leaving a complaint, I am highly considering going with a competitor, as this issue is costing my business and has taken more than three months to resolve.

  Business response

  09/30/2022

  Hello,
  
  I'm truly sorry to hear of the problem submitting your book for distribution. I was able to find your support request and see that the technical issue you mentioned was resolved just recently. I apologize for the delay. I know you're still in contact with our team. I kindly ask you to keep working with them to get the issue fully resolved. Your books can be resubmitted for distribution now with the instructions provided by our team. Following those instructions should resolve the initial issues. Please feel free to reach out again if you have any further questions.
  
  Best regards, 

• Initial Complaint

  09/13/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  Prior to this incident I ordered two book shipments from the company. The books were printed correctly in and out. Then on August 30, I received 30 books that were incorrectly printed. I immediately reached out to the company providing them with pictures of one of the books from the previous order compared to the new shipment I had received. and was told they would look into it and do further research, then contact me through email by agent ***. The agent never got back to me nor responded when I reached out to him again via email. After 1-3 days, I reached out again via live chat. On September 12, agent ******** proceed to ask me to to take a picture of all ******************************************************************************************* conclusion, this order of books immediately needed to be sent out to the customers and the delay in response time and fixing the order has delayed my business.

  Business response

  09/20/2022

  Hello,
  
  Im truly sorry to hear that youre not happy with your latest order. I was able to find your support request and see that there was a delay in getting back to you after you left the chat. Im really sorry about that. I also see that our colleague explained the reason why we need pictures of all the affected copies. We received pictures of one book only but you requested to replace 30. In order to request a reprint, we need to send feedback and pictures of all the affected copies to the print shop to make sure the same issue wont happen again. Ive also had a look at your book file and seen that the ink coverage on the cover is a little too low. This may cause inconsistent print results. I highly recommend you keep working with our Customer Support team to get your books replaced. Well be happy to look into the print issue for you and offer some free replacements as soon as we receive a picture that shows all the affected copies. 
  
  Best regards,

• Initial Complaint

  07/24/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Customer Service Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I don't like filing complaints with BBB against small businesses, but in this case there is no other way as Blurb has no oversight over its questionable business practices that cause me loss of potential income, not to mention undermining my reputation with gallery owners, art critics, and art collectors, including my clients, fans, followers, and supporters. I have been publishing large art books with Blurb since 2015. As of today, I have published 8 books. Blurb offers option to list my books either in Blurb Bookstore or on Amazon.com. I always select Amazon.com option as Amazon has far better customer reach and overall exposure to the market, then Blurb's own bookstore All eight of my books are listed on Amazon.com - however, all eight books are marked as "Currently Unavailable / We don't know when, or if, this item will be in stock again". That means, none of my books can be sold. This situation is going on for years. Blurb is one of the businesses "hiding" behind Internet. They have no **************** number to call. All communication is over the internet or email. Filing complaints via their website get no response Over the years, I have tried to resolve this unpleasant situation directly with Blurb, but to no avail. Since Blurb makes my books "Unavailable" for sale, I have zero (zero) sales for years I have contacted Amazon and was assured this is solely and entirely Blurb's decision to make these books "Unavailable" for sale on Amazon.com. I have emailed Blurb for explanation. Blurb answers with "cut 'n' paste" generic emails that do not directly address the problem or offer a solution. But most importantly, Blurb is avoiding to say if, or when, they will make my books available for sale again This is a gross breach of contract between Blurb and its customer that results in great financial loses as well as loss of Author's reputation.. If Blurb cannot live up to its promises, than they should not be in business at all.Thank you

  Business response

  04/04/2023

  Im contacting you regarding the attached letter that you sent to my attention. A colleague received it and forwarded it to me.

   

  Thanks for reaching out about this case. Although we couldnt reply to the complaint within 10 calendar days, the issue that caused the customers books to be intermittently unavailable on Amazon was resolved last year. The customers books are currently all listed and available to purchase. We havent received any more complaints from the customer about this matter.

   

  Please let me know if you need any further information.

   

   

  Best regards,

   

   

  ***** *********

  Blurb Customer Support Manager, EU

• Initial Complaint

  05/13/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Product Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  I ordered 20 books that were misprinted, and have not received a reprint or a refund for the faulty books despite several communications with the support team and providing all the additional information they asked for to verify the misprint -- this included images of the misprinted books and the pdf files that were uploaded to Blurb.I ordered a test copy ahead of ordering 20 books as per Blurb's recommendation and the color looked great. The bulk order was misprinted and is unusable. First test print book ordered: January 17 2022 -- order number: *******. 20 books ordered: March 7 2022 -- Order number: ******* - $1349.53. First refund / reprint request sent to Blurb: Mar 17, 2022, ticket number *******. We had several communications between March 19 and April 7th which ended with the response below on April 7th. Since that time I have sent several inquiries - at least 5 follow up messages and a submitted an additional ticket with no response. To recap: Blurb was paid $1349.53 to print 20 books which were misprinted and I have yet to receive a refund or a reprint. Here is the last response from the team: "Hi Cami, Thank you for the update. I've reviewed the previous upload and do see that there was no change to the design on this page so I'm looking into this further with our operations team to see if we can determine if the misprint was your original proof copy or with this second larger printing (and get you a properly printed order as a replacement). Thank you for your patience as I continue to look into this and as soon as I have additional information I'll be in touch. Best, Padraic Blurb Technical Support"

  Business response

  05/19/2022

  Hello,
  
  I'm truly sorry to hear of the problem with your order. I was able to find your support request and see that it was escalated to our technical support team. Your case is under review and we're working to determine why our second order printed differently from your first order. I'm really sorry this is taking a while, but we need to identify the root cause or a reprint may reproduce the same defect. I just wanted to reassure you that if there was a misprint with your second order, we'll get you a properly printed order as a replacement.
  
  Best regards,

  Blurb Team

  Customer response

  05/19/2022

  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.
  
  Sincerely,
  
  *******************

*Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business. ↩