Some naysayers way back in the 1990s
predicted that online shopping wouldn’t last. Sure, and they said
television was a passing fad, too! As we all know, just the opposite
has occurred. There’s a television in every household, and more
than likely, the homeowner bought their television online—along
with his books, cellphones, clothes, and maybe even his
home.
Internet shopping is bigger than ever. You can find
anything and everything for sale online. Many times, you can find it
cheaper online than anywhere else. Internet shopping offers so much
more than a discounted price tag, though.
Imagine a shopping
mall where there are no lines, where there are no jammed parking
lots, and no pushy sales clerks or other customers. This is no land
of make believe. It is the Internet, where you can discover
unprecedented selection, convenience, and opportunities. Online
shopping gives you the luxury of browsing hundreds of stores from
your living room, while saving on time and frustration. It provides
you the chance to compare prices to your heart’s delight on a near
limitless selection of brands and models.
For even more
benefits, try your hand at classifieds and auction Web sites. These
sites are like yard sales and flea markets rolled into one. Unlike
retail shopping sites, they offer:
Access to super secondary
markets. Take your pick of secondhand or brand-new wholesale goods
at steeply discounted prices. The vendors at classifieds sites can
get away with it because they aren’t paying high rent for a
storefront or a warehouse. And in many cases, you’re not paying
taxes.
Tools to locate unique and rare collectibles. Imagine
a classifieds site to be like a sunken pirate boat, laden with
cultural artifacts, hard-to-find heirlooms, and priceless antiques.
The Internet is your deep-sea vessel, sonar, and oxygen tank all in
one.
Reach beyond your neighborhood. Search through the
inventory of a vendor from your home town, or if you don’t find
what you’re looking for there, try that fellow in California, Texas
or Canada for that matter.
Close relationships with vendors.
You deal with real people—not big, impersonal corporations—when
you buy on classifieds sites. They can provide more details about the
product, which you can then use to bargain for a reasonable
price.
Despite this bounty of benefits, you might still be
hesitant to dive into Internet shopping. Don’t be embarrassed. You
have good reason to take your time and weigh your choices. According
to the U.S. Federal Trade Commission, Internet fraud tops the list of
the thousands of fraud cases that happen every year. In some ways,
WWW could stand for the Wild West Web, in that anything goes. Vendors
can be villains in disguise, and there aren’t any online Wyatt
Earps to protect you from these bad guys. You’re on your own.
But
give yourself some credit. You have the common sense it takes to
survive the WWW. It is the same common sense that helps you make the
most of your money on your standard shopping trips. Become familiar
and comfortable with an online vendor before jumping into a purchase.
Ask questions and do a bit of research.
After doing your
research, you’ll feel more confident in searching for your online
booty. To refine your findings and whittle your list to only the
exceptional sites, look for these additional qualities:
• A
focus on local shopping, so you can feel more confident buying from
neighbors.
• Free education and advice on safe
purchasing.
• No-cost and easy browsing through available
merchandise.
• Search tools that let you prioritize items by
category, location, and distance.
• A straightforward pricing
system that avoids the haggling and risk of auction bidding.
• Quick
price comparisons among different vendors.
Unbelievably, a few
trustworthy, practical, and exciting Web sites exist that have all of
these features. To find these websites, simply browse through Yahoo’s
directory under the classifieds category. The best of the online
classified sites offer these services free to buyers such as you.
Some of these sites can link you at no charge to your neighbor
selling the antique lamp that you’ve been hunting for or that
retiree looking to unload an incredible piece of real estate—or the
cowboy looking to sell his big-screen television.
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