Lulu Direct

Lulu Direct is not feasible with their current setup, so I've switched to ordering in bulk and shipping out myself.

First, Lulu takes almost a week to mark orders as fulfilled with the tracking info, so I've had to inform every customer of this fact.

Second, if a customer does not enter their phone number, then Lulu Direct throws a fit and you have to add the phone number plus additional steps of updating the address and shipping info. If you require phone numbers for all orders, then maybe this won't be an issue.

Third, sometimes there's an extra payment flow in Lulu Direct which I don't understand. Orders have been delayed because this was not obvious.

I'm also switching back to shipping myself because I can bundle the books with other products and include promo material.

They have fundamentally broken this App after the recent "update", by removing mapped shipping and not implementing an equal alternative.

Essentially useless as a hands off print on demand service, where you now have to baby every single order to make sure the shipping method is correct, otherwise it defaults to a more expensive method and you lose money on the sale.

Pre update this was a very useful service that ran perfect for many years.

Not helpful. Just like my review.

I am having the hardest time getting my products properly linked / set up through Lulu Direct. All of the instructional videos are out of date, so all the information and instructions that they are giving doesn't apply to this new format, making it a huge pain to set up. If you update your entire structure, you need to update your videos too. Otherwise, you are just leaving people in the dark, which doesn't make for very happy customers / users of your platform.

Lulu has been great to work with! We print and ship around 100+ books per month. Very few issues with that volume of orders and when there have been any issues Kristen with customer support has very quickly fixed the issue (even when the error was due to customer issues and not Lulu). Highly recommend!

I've been using lulu for over a year now. The quality of books printed at lulu vs. anywhere else is exceptional. What I love most about the app is the customer service. Kristen, specifically, is my most favorite customer service rep I've ever encountered and if it wasn't for her I would not be such a loyal customer! The only problems with lulu and the app are the shipping prices, which are not competitive and not easy to translate to the customer. This is a huge problem that needs to be fixed, but I believe that it is being worked on which is good. I hope it is fixed soon. Still, it does not deter me from using the app as it is very easily integrates with shopify. Also the timing from order to delivery does take awhile too, but again, this is known and something they are working on. I appreciate the open communication and lulu's dedication to continuously self-improve.

When I press the option to associate one of my books with lulu app, the full list of books doesn't show up. If I put the whole title, the book doesn't show up. The paperback cover takes too much time to process as well, because of the size requirements. There should be a format that integrates the front image and allows to add text to the back image. This would allow a much faster process. The advantage for me with Lulu is the creation of hardcover books. Not many platforms allow me this. I wanted to sell hardcovers through this app, but it's just too complicated to create the hardcover cover, and then go through a system that doesn't work properly. I don't even really know how much I am paying per sale, because that price shown includes production only, and not shipping. P.S. I am not trying to do more with the app that it was designed for. Unless you mean accelerating what already exists and expect the full list of books to appear in the search engine. As for my last email it was meant to improve your business, and has nothing to do with this review. It's disappointing when help is transformed as a justification to nullify an argument.

Lulu is by far the best and nicest company I've ever worked with. They continuously put authors' and book-publishers' needs and concerns at the top of their list. The book quality is perfect and the process is smooth and easy. The results are great and the integration with Shopify works without a glitch. And, if you have any questions or doubts Lulu personel is the nicest, most helpful people there is, while at the same time being very good at what they do! We have never had any problems with Lulu whatsoever. The few times our customers have complained is when books have not arrived – which is never Lulu's fault (but UPS's). And even at those times, Lulu has been very helpful. I would recommend Lulu to absolutely everyone! You will not find a better company.

I use Lulu xPress for about two years now. It worked well until several months ago and it became a disaster. Apparently there is 0 quality assurance made at the printing facilities. I have numerous copies of my book delivered with pages empty of content. The support is always helpful and sends a replacement, but in last several weeks I had several clients who received faulty product even on second and THIRD attempt. Unfortunately it damages my relationship, since I really look unprofessional when customer receives a faulty product, then the replacement arrives faulty again and the next one again. It also affects my income since I have to refund such customers. I asked for clarifications when such issues can be fixed but didn't receive concrete answers. If you have an alternative consider avoiding Lulu.

LOVE IT! awesome books, great customer service, couldn't ask for a better app. been using the service for over a year now and my customers and wholesale accounts are all happy, and best of all no need for inventory any more!