Alice, you're also assuming that most people do that research. If you read enough publication accounts from those who go with PA, you'll see that most don't. They're either led to PA by friends who have published with them or they do a quick Google search of "American Publishers", skipping the agent step (often not realizing it's important).
When they find that most publishers won't take submissions from writers, they're left with a list that's heavy on vanity publishers - most of whom require hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars up front. Then they get to PA, which says everything's free. That's often cited as the deciding factor to go with PA, as most of their customers haven't got the extra money to pay for anything upfront. They're hoping to make money off their book, and quickly, not pay for it. (There are numerous quotes in the old threads where a poster has mentioned fixed income, going without food, not paying their power bill, or similar situations because they hope buying their books/offers will pay off in the long run. I know there was at least one who was counting on their royalty check to pay their rent or mortgage.)
Not everyone has access to a computer at home, and if you're using a public terminal, then you're usually restricted to an hour. That's not enough time to do anything other than a quick search to make a list, and then a round of queries. Once the queries are sent, the turn around for PA is (usually) a matter of hours, maybe a day or two at most. This plays into the fantasy of being one of "those" authors who was snapped up right away because their book was so awesome. Digging deeper, or listening to the "haters" spoils that fantasy, and if the writer in question has already been rejected repeatedly by agents and/or publishers, that acceptance is a moment of perceived vindication. They don't want it to be false.
When they find that most publishers won't take submissions from writers, they're left with a list that's heavy on vanity publishers - most of whom require hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars up front. Then they get to PA, which says everything's free. That's often cited as the deciding factor to go with PA, as most of their customers haven't got the extra money to pay for anything upfront. They're hoping to make money off their book, and quickly, not pay for it. (There are numerous quotes in the old threads where a poster has mentioned fixed income, going without food, not paying their power bill, or similar situations because they hope buying their books/offers will pay off in the long run. I know there was at least one who was counting on their royalty check to pay their rent or mortgage.)
Not everyone has access to a computer at home, and if you're using a public terminal, then you're usually restricted to an hour. That's not enough time to do anything other than a quick search to make a list, and then a round of queries. Once the queries are sent, the turn around for PA is (usually) a matter of hours, maybe a day or two at most. This plays into the fantasy of being one of "those" authors who was snapped up right away because their book was so awesome. Digging deeper, or listening to the "haters" spoils that fantasy, and if the writer in question has already been rejected repeatedly by agents and/or publishers, that acceptance is a moment of perceived vindication. They don't want it to be false.
