I live in a small town, and things can be expensive here. I have been buying a lot of things I need online from a popular online auction site. I mean, things like wool socks, sewing patterns (cheaper than W-mart), vacuum cleaner bags, craft supplies, printer ink, tools, you name it. I bought electric toothbrush refill brushes for less than half of what we would pay retail, and they were coming from England! I look for items with free shipping or lowest price including shipping.
It sure saves a lot of 30-mile trips into the nearest city, and saves time running around looking. Also, I find that if I stay out of the stores, I spend less money overall, because there are fewer impulse purchases.
By Jennifer from Gilbertsville , NY
Here are the questions asked by community members. Read on to see the answers provided by the ThriftyFun community.
I am from London. I want to know about the benefits of online shopping. Can anyone solve this question?
For me this year online shopping was a god send. I have injured my back and have 2 disks damaged. I am in a lot of pain and cannot stand for more than a couple minutes and then pain shoots down my leg. So going shopping to the mall is out. I have learned to stay at home except for going to the doctor.
I bought all my Christmas gifts online and they arrived last week. I could not have bought gifts this year without my computer. Also, there are a lot of good buys online. Amazon.com, Kohls.com, Ebay.com, shopzilla.com just to name a few. Hope this helps and merry Christmas.
I love to shop on line. All major department stores have on line shopping. So not shop in unfamilar stores on line though. My favorite are Macy's, Target on line and Zappo's.
Hiya Jessy, I'm on the north east coast of Scotland, and love online shopping because it saves me the journey and trying to find a car park with an open slot, saves me money-no impulse buys, and because often the price online is far less (even with shipping-and many times shipping is FREE even on a small purchase). Oh, and there are often special offers that are online exclusives.
There are drawbacks-you can't touch the item or try it on, but returns policies are great with all of the good online stores so you can easily return anything that isn't right. I've had especially good luck online shopping for clothing and household goods from BHS and John Lewis.
I also do all of my crafts supplies shopping online-better selection.
Shopping online is also a lot more peaceful-I can have a nice cuppa and shop, take a break when I want and come right back to the page I was viewing.
I do enjoy shopping in brick and mortar stores, too, but online shopping is wonderful!
Online shopping is great You dont have to wait in the lines you can get items that are hard to find! I love shopping in my pj's!
You don't use any gas money, you can see everything you want without digging around in a store, you don't have to deal with people, also there can be some great 'online only' deals.
We live in a rural area, and have difficulty finding things we need, either for our farm, animals, or selves. Online shopping saves much time and money in gas and driving around searching, having to go 2 hours or more out of town, etc.
When possible, I do ask local merchants if they can get specific items for us, and sometimes that works, otherwise, I order online. I also do this for birthdays, holidays, where I can have the gift sent directly to family that lives out of state.
Always consider shipping costs. Sometimes it is worth the xtra few pounds for the item if shipping is free - as compared to straight shipping costs.
I have a pair of Red Wing work boots that I purchased with other work clothes and my Carhartt jacket about 10 years ago. Believe it or not, I have finally worn out the work boots, and am ready for a new pair.
I have found Red Wing work boots at http://www.zonkshop.com at a really great price, but have never purchased a product online before. I would like to know how to purchase my work boots online since I think I can get a better price that way?
By injuncrest from Rochester, NY
Just a few pointers -- I hope they help!
Read their policies under the Customer Service Link. You'll probably want to know their return policy. And I always check shipping information.
Whenever you shop online, please DO NOT use your debit card. It's just too risky. A credit card will give you more protection. Some banks/credit unions will extend similar protection as a courtesy, but they don't have to.
When you go to check out, make sure that the http:// in the address bar changes to https:// -- that "s" stands for "secure."
And before you check out, do a quick search online to see if you can find a discount/coupon code. I just looked, and this site shows a code for 10% off all orders over $35.
www.mycoupons.com/
Sometimes these codes don't work, but sometimes they do. It can't hurt to try and save a buck or two!
I'm sure I'm forgetting something, but this is what pops into mind. My husband has a personal finance blog and website, and has written about debit card fraud. If you're interested, this might provide some helpful information. Here is an interview from his website:
www.mdmproofing.com/
and a couple of blog entries (the first refers back to the above interview):
www.mdmproofing.com/
www.mdmproofing.com/
Hope I covered most everything. And I hope it wasn't too much! :-) We do a LOT of online shopping. If I'm ever suspicous of a website, I do a search for their name and look for comments/complaints about them. Best of luck with your boots. They sound great . . . I wish I had shoes that lasted so long!
:-)
Lisa
Buying online requires a credit card. You will have to follow their instructions, but it's easy. Name, address, credit card info will be taken. Generally, the company sends you an email confirmation of your order, so I don't usually photo copy what I've ordered.
I looked at their prices. I would check out other sites before I would make a purchase. My husband has to have steel toes and found shoes locally at Sears on sale at a better price. Although, I don't believe they were Red Wing.
The only problem I have buying shoes online is that I need to try shoes on to see if they are comfortable. You may consider going to your local store and trying on a pair and if the price can't be matched, then order them online.
If you search on Google or another search engine, always put 'compare price' then the name of the item you are looking for. That way, it will give you several options. Also, before you buy, search for 'online coupons' for whichever site you want to buy from, or 'online codes'---these will be for free shipping, reduced shipping, etc that you can use when you check out.
Also, some sites accept Paypal. Visit that site to find out more about it. And you can always purchase a preloaded credit card, at Walmart, or your bank---it is similar to a gift card. Only good for the amount that you put on it, but it can have amounts added to it. Check with your bank first.
Good luck to you. I live in a fairly rural area, and do a lot of shopping online. In 10 years of buying stuff online, I have yet to have a problem.
I normally use the following techniques.
I go to sites like LL Bean or World Market, then go straight to the Clearance section. I get a lot of Christmas and birthday gifts this way. People think you spent more than you did.
Only if something I really need then maybe I'll shop either in a store or on line. With on-line I always check shipping rates, often at the bottom of the page. Some offer free shipping but pay a higher price than another who charges shipping. Some offer a good price and pay for shipping.
