Personal Insight of Online Shopping

Online stores have been around for a long time now. It first began in the 90's. Back then, people were too skeptical about buying something that they couldn't touch. Well, how could they not? After all, we have to touch a wet paint to make sure it's wet.

Or do we? I remember in the early 2000's when my friends and I were in a middle of a conversation, and one mentioned about buying a music CD online and overseas (in her defense, it was a limited edition CD not released in my country). The other chatters were doubtful of her actions, including myself back then. We were concerned over mostly the same stuff, like the condition of the item, the shipping price, the tax, the delivery time, and so on. It turned out that my friend had calculated and confirmed all of that, and that her package came just fine.

Lately, I have been having some ventures with online shopping as well. I've bought a pair of shoes from another country, another pair which was locally handmade, a pair of earphones, and a shirt. Am I satisfied?

Above average, to be honest. The shoes I bought overseas had unexpected tax upon arriving in my country, and had some problems with the soles. So those are the extra costs for not being too careful with my order. The other shoes, which were locally handmade are amazing, but they have super stiff soles that make them very rigid and hard to walk in. The earphones I bought had amazing quality at first, but busted a month later.

Thankfully the shirt is fine and it brought a great amount of satisfaction when it came to my door.

Will I be online shopping again? Yes, absolutely. Why? Even though I have to admit that there's a certain amount of relaxation that comes from window shopping, I can say that online-window shopping provides me with similar experience, sometimes even better. I don't have to spend money on gas, I don't have to dress up, I can just slouch on my desk and buy whichever suits my interest. I also can make better decisions, because I don't have to feel terrible for the salesperson waiting for me to decide which color I want for my shoes.

The drawback? It's just exactly as you think. Item doesn't look the same in real life, sizing problems, defect item, functionality, and delivery time, among many concerns.

But should our unproven (even though sometimes its proven) paranoia get in the way of the benefits we also reap? It is more comfortable to browse for items in our room after all, rather than walking or driving to the store ourselves. So, in my opinion, people who used to be concern should tear down that wall and try it. If you're disappointed, don't do it again, and if you're satisfied, do it again. Simple.

The Dilly Chic's advice: Go for it! Just remember to be smart and a little picky!








Cheers!

-The Dilly Chic-

Photo: http://www.flickr.com/photos/syvanen/7007375511/