Technology has made it possible for consumers and business owners to interact and do business with buyers being able to purchase online. Starting from the trade of goods to using currency to get the things that people need, people are now able to buy items online and with the proliferation of online stores, the choices are endless.
There are still brick and mortar stores but some businesses choose to set-up an online shop because the capital cost is just a fraction of having a physical store. They want to test the waters and see how their business will fly off. Although there are also a lot of established stores and brands that makes their presence felt by offering their products online as well.
The convenience of making a purchase online is enticing a lot of consumers to abandon the mall and even the travel to the stores and just click away and put in their card details. According to Statista.com, there are almost 200 million digital shoppers in the country. This market set up makes purchasing a lot easier and you do not even have to take a bath, put on nice clothes, drive the car all the way to the store and back just for a small item. You just open your computer or even smartphones, look for the item you need, put it in the cart, checkout, pay and you’re done! You just have to wait for the delivery and you’re all set.
But of course with everything you do, you need to weigh the pros and cons and when it comes to buying items online, you need to look past the convenience and see if this advantage has a opposite disadvantage. Apart from understanding technological hacks for your finances, people fall into the trap of feeling comfortable with their choices that they fail to realize that they are already making financial mistakes.
What not to buy online
When making a purchase online, you need to know the best things to buy and the ones that you should think through. Here are a few of the items that you need to rethink purchasing online.
- Expensive bicycles. There are a lot of people who are getting into bikes for the health benefits it brings as well as being able to visit interesting places. That being said, people are looking for the best bargains when it comes to bikes because when you are really looking for the good ones, they are a bit expensive and hard on the budget. Whether it is a regular bike, a mountain bike, fat bike or the popular road bike, you need to make sure that your investment fits. There are different sizes of bikes which takes into consideration your height and even how long your arms and legs are. You need a good fitting bike to help reduce the risk of injury and also so you can enjoy the bike for a long time. You will be able to read all the specifications of the bike but buying online will take away that opportunity to fit the bike before making an expensive buy.
- High end musical instruments. There are a lot of options when you want to get into music. You can have a nice singing voice, talent with musical instruments or even producing pieces. Sadly, to move forward with this means you will need to invest on some quality musical instruments. If you are going to buy a quality mic to start your Youtube channel or a guitar to bring your talents to the next level then you need to have a feel for these musical equipment. This is why you need to see the equipments first to see if it fits your need rather than doing it the other way around and buying them first before testing.
- Furnitures and decorations for the house. You need to remember that making a purchase online should be an informed decision and not only based on how good the item looks in your screen. If you look back on how much several companies would go the lengths to alter an image so it looks good for public consumption, the same can be done with those products online. When you are shopping for home furnitures, you need to get a feel of the fabric and material of the item before you make a decision. Those decorations might look good and colorful online but in reality lacks that contrast that you saw on the screen.
- Swimwear and other intimate apparel. These items needs to be bought in a physical store so you can check your size. One of the challenges when buying these items online is that as soon as you open the package and find out that it does not fit you, you might have a hard time exchanging it for the correct size. You are the left with the item that does not fit and you cannot return it to get a refund.
- Groceries with perishable food. Automating your groceries or at the very least ordering them online is a great money saving tip but limit it to non-perishable goods like toilet paper or cleaning detergents. This is because it is hard to trust the people packing your food to get the new ones which you can do on your own in the grocery. They might be packing the old ones and there is nothing you can do about it. Stick to buying your food yourself because once you get a near expiring food and you do not use it, you are essentially throwing money away.
- Quality mattresses. You spend a good amount of time sleeping because your body needs to rest and recuperate from the work you do in the morning. Time.com explains that adults need to get anywhere from seven to nine hourse of sleep a day. When you plan to buy a quality mattress, it will not come cheap and you need to be sure that it feels good on your body. The only way to do that is to test the mattress out before buying it and you would not be able to do that when you purchase online. You need to go the store and lie down and see if your back agrees with the comfort the mattress gives.
- Flowers for delivery. Unless you have a trusted store, you might want to re-think ordering flowers online meant to be sent to your special someone. This is because packaging and delivery might not be what you expect and those beautiful flowers you bought online might be received by your loved ones in good condition. It is also better that you be the one who will deliver the flowers to your loved ones.
- Children’s shoes and clothes. One thing you need to know when buying shoes or clothes for children is that they grow up too fast and when you get the wrong size, it will either be too small for them to wear or too big that it ends up in the drawers. Getting a good fit when it comes to children’s clothes and shoes means you need to bring to the the store to be able to check the fit of the items before you buy them.
How to save money when buying items online
There are people choosing to buy items online because they cost less. But how exactly will you be able to take advantage of it?
- Buy in bulk. There are times when bigger is not always better but when you buy a lot of things in one transaction, chances are the online shop might waive the delivery fee. Also, if there are processing fees per transaction, you get to save with buying more in a single payment. Be sure to know the payment mechanics of the online store before you checkout your items in the cart.
- Look for promo codes. These ones abound online when you know how to look. Oftentimes the online sellers will email promo codes to those that subscribed to their mailing list. This is a good idea because signing up means you get to know sales and get access to those great discounts.
- Wait for special occasions. These online shops, much like the stores in a mall take advantage of special occasions to put out enticing sale programs. This can be a good time to take advantage of those drop down prices enjoy a big discount on your purchases.
Making a purchase online is a great and convenient way to get the things that you need even without leaving the comforts of your home or office. But it is important to know some of the items that are best bought in stores.