The Joys of Online Shopping, The Problems, and The Issues with In Store Shopping!
I love online shopping and about 99% of my shopping is done online especially around the Holidays. Groceries, books, clothes, shoes, accessories, you name it, I shop it online. I think the selection in stores lately really blows hard! You can’t find nearly the stuff in stores that you can online. That’s a real shame because it not only forces malls and stores to close and people to lose their jobs but also, it sort of takes the spirit out of the Holiday season. I mean, do you remember the hustle and bustle in stores like ten plus years ago? The huge waiting in lines! I can’t say I miss any of that! But it felt more like Christmas when you found that perfect gift in the store and had to wait in line for 30 plus minutes to buy it for that special someone in your life.
Nowadays, it’s click, submit, stalk the mailman!
I love online shopping though! It’s faster, it’s easier, the selection is better, and I don’t have to deal with aggressive sales people. First off, I can’t checkout anywhere without being asked if I want to open a credit card account or donate to some charity. Here’s the thing, I do not have an issue with donating money to charity but that’s something I do personally as I’m selective about where I donate (I mean I had do some major research when donating to animal rescue here in California due to the fires before I gave away my cash! I’m just not trusting of some organizations). If I go to five different stores, I’ll have five different cash reps asking me to donate to five different charities. Suddenly, I feel guilty if I say no. Not to mention it can be expensive to donate to every single store upon check out plus I don’t know where exactly my donation is going to, will the charity even get it? And of course, if you go to TJ Maxx or Victoria’s Secret, Macy’s, Nordstrom, doesn’t matter which store you hit up you are almost always asked if you’d like to open a store credit card. Ugh…when did checking out at a store become such a marketing scheme? There’s also sometimes a big push to buy a tote bag or some other thing at check out. “Did you see our cute tote it’s only $10? Should I add it to your order?” I can’t go to Journey’s without them pushing no show socks on me….! “Do you need socks? How about laces? How about shoe cleaner?” I really feel like most people turn to online shopping just to avoid all this….! I know that’s one of my top reasons for avoiding stores. The sales techniques are just TOO aggressive and I’m a push over.
I do think sometimes stores have a major advantage though. There are some items I’ve seen online that I completely passed up because I felt like they looked cheap or the size looked too big or too small. Or any number of other reasons only to see that item in store and buy it because the visual just wasn’t that great online but was fabulous when I finally saw it or felt the fabric (if it was a clothes item). Even makeup is sometimes grossly wrong in promotional images and I’ll skip only to see it in store and think, “WOW! That’s beautiful! It didn’t look like that online!”
I think the thing I dislike the most about shopping shopping online is it can be hard sometimes hard to find what you’re looking for. You sometimes have to dig really deep or spend a lot more time browsing a website than you would a store to locate an item. Especially if the store’s website is difficult or clumsy to navigate. I know sometimes Sephora doesn’t always list their latest or newest items under the “new” section on their site. Sometimes you have to dig a little deeper and find gems that are hidden away!
I can spend HOURS on sites like Old Navy trying to sort through several hundred different sweatshirts. I’ll have like a hundred tabs open deciding on a simple hoodie! I feel like if I’m in store the selection isn’t always as vast so I can grab a quick hoodie and be happy with it. But online they’ll be five hundred to choose from and suddenly I’m either buying more than one (when one was all I needed) or I’m trying hard to figure out which shade I need or style…!
But sadly, stores also fail in this department in regards to selection. As sometimes I’ll see it online, decide I’ll head in store to buy it, only to be told they don’t have or “YES! Sure we have it, it’s over there!” and heading over there I realize every single one is a size extra extra extra small.
So, this is my drama with online and in-store shopping!
How do you feel about them?
Do share!