These days you can order almost anything without ever leaving the comfort of your home. Online stores and auctions are great ways to shop for those hard to find items, and a great way to find deals in the process. As a consumer you need to be aware of the positive and negative aspects of online shopping. Below you'll find our online shopping awareness guide.
-First and for most, Know your seller and research who you are buying from. The internet is a great resource. Often you can find customer reviews of products as well as online businesses.
-Read the About Us Section of the Companies website. This often provides valuable information about the company and their customer relation policies.
-Look for a logo or endorsement seal on the company website. This is an indication, but not a guarantee, of the seller's reliability.
-Visit a website like ConsumerGuide.com. Their consumers' rate online stores and products.
-Internet auction sites usually post ratings of sellers based on comments from buyers....more
Taking the hassle out of finding your perfect and unique wedding dress.
Getting married is no longer a case having only two options, church or court house, as it used to be. These days it is possible to get married just about anywhere you like, so whether you want a fairytale wedding or something a little more unconventional, you can arrange to have your wedding just about anywhere.
You might want to step out of a horse and carriage and step through the doors of an elaborate church in order to say your vows. You may prefer to hire a room at a posh hotel and enjoy a civil ceremony to declare your love and intentions. You might even want to shout out your vows as you leap 200 feet down from a crane as part of a bungee jump ceremony - the possibilities are endless.
Designers and retailers have realized that weddings are not what they used to be, and people like to use their imagination more and do some pretty wild things as part of the ceremony. And because of this, you can now get some stunning wedding dresses and bridal gowns to suit every occasion and type of wedding....more
Location: You can shop online from almost anywhere as long as you have access to a power supply and a telephone connection. You can shop in the comfort of your own home or you can shop in your office. You can even shop while on the move, if you have a laptop connected to a mobile telephone.
Convenience: You can visit a web site almost whenever you want, you can browse through it at your own pace and you can make a purchase at any time of day or night. The internet makes it possible to shop 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
Information: The internet makes limitless amounts of product information available to the online shopper. You can access product specifications, brochures, product comparisons and all manner of other information with just a few clicks. You no longer have to wait for a brochure or a catalogue to come to you.
How do people shop online?
What are the factors that determine the buying decision?
Just like in the real world where shops are built of bricks and mortar, the online store needs to welcome the shopper and make them feel comfortable and safe.
Once a shopper arrives at your web site they need a little time and space to familiarise themselves before being bombarded with information or choices. If you put too much information on your home page then the average shopper will miss a large proportion of your content. Likewise, if you present too many choices you will overwhelm the shopper and it is very likely that they will leave straight away.
The purpose of your home page should be to simply tell the shopper where they are and to ensure that the general layout of your online store is easy to understand. Your customers need to know if they are in a vast warehouse or a small boutique! They need to know where the entrances to each department or section are located; their question is often quite simple how do I find what Im looking for?...more
Shopping on the internet can be very convenient but also very disarming. Shoppers should be aware that although they feel anonymous they may not be. Common sense is a very important characteristic to keep in mind when conducting online shopping. To put your mind back into focus, try to follow some of the basic checklist trip falls.
1. Watch your security. Users should always be sure that the site they are using is secure, but how do you know? A secure site should have a security certificate. Usually there is a link somewhere on the site that allows you to view the certificate.
If you cannot find the certificate or you are still unsure about the privacy of the site, Internet Explorer and Netscape Navigator have a built in feature that allows you to quickly check for site security and accuracy. In the lower right hand corner of both browsers is a padlock. When the padlock is opened the site is insecure or the certificate is out of date. When the padlock is closed the certificate is up to date and the site is recognized as secure.
2. Although, not despairing to your security, the issue of shipping is despairing to your wallet. Be aware of shipping costs, which occur 90 percent of the time. For example, on average, a CD cost between 1.80 to 2.00 to send through media mail. If you feel the shipping costs are outweighing the discounted price of the product then your best bet is to shop elsewhere or simply look locally for the product....more
Is shopping online becoming popular and safe enough for you and I to do the vast majority of our shopping on the Internet?
As I contemplated, when I initially set up my website: www.shopshopshop.org The first thought that came to mind was will they
come and will they spend money? Sure people are always curious and some will visit but will they stay long enough to spend some money?
Safety was the first concern of those I had spoken to, they were somewhat skeptical and therefore reluctant to make any online purchases. It is our
responsibility as online marketers to convince them to about the safety of
online shopping.
We all know about the convenience of getting on the computer and viewing the sale that retailers are using to entice the shoppers into making a commitment. But are not always as eager to go ahead and complete the purchase online.
The internet today is as safe or safer than making purchase in person, I recently read an article where BJ Wholesalers was fined by the Securities and Exchange Commission for not having sufficient security to protect Credit Card users.
Most of the buying we do today is pay for by either a credit card or a debit card. So If you think that when you purchase gas and pay for it at the pump
with your credit card or debit card that you are making a safe purchase think again.
I recently purchase gas at my favorite gas station and paid for it at the pump with my debit card, only to find out two weeks later when the bank call me to question some of purchases that were charge to my debit card.
It seems that somebody was making purchases that were very uncharacteristic for me. And the institution where I have been banking for many years was able to detect this and all my money was refunded and a new card issued....more