Not on the Shelves
Problem: Because POD books aren't printed until consumers place their orders, the lack of availability at point-of sale (POD books rarely are on bookstore shelves) may be a drawback. In an age of instant gratification, consumers don't usually want to wait several days to get their purchases. For example, at online booksellers such as Amazon.com, there's substantially less contrast between POD books and conventional books. I recently ordered a POD title from a dot-com bookseller, and had it delivered in five days—about the same as a traditional book ordered online. While online orders for POD books aren't always fulfilled this quickly, the integration of systems for publishers, printers and retailers is steadily improving.