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Concerns With Online Shopping
While online shopping is undoubtedly convenient, many consumers continue to have concerns over the safety and security of their information, especially as mobile sales become more commonplace.
All of these trends raise concerns about online shopping security, whether you shop from your computer at home or your mobile device. Some of the most common concerns people express about online shopping include:
- Identity theft
- Releasing private location information, such as a home address
- Shipping costs
- Price inconsistencies
- Capturing the best online sales
- Knowing the best time to buy
- Online data storage, such as cookies
- Not having time for returns
- Returns not being accepted
- Important packages getting lost
- Data breaches
Remedies
Many of these concerns can be remedied by shopping with reputable brands on widely known websites, reviewing returns and shipping policies before checking out, and ensuring you’re using a secure payment system. If you prefer not to enter your credit card information directly into a website, you can often use third-party payment systems like PayPal, which conceal your credit card numbers from major retailers.
Customer service and chat
Along with improving mobile compatibility and other technological improvements, online shopping sites are also becoming more focused on customer service. Many of them offer online chats with customer service agents where you can clarify their policies and ensure you get the best price on whatever you’re buying. You can also check that your items will arrive on time, and find out whether you’ll get a tracking number when you check out.
Coupons
If you use online coupons, you can also ask a company’s customer service representative if they know of any current coupons or online promotions on the site that would benefit you. This would ease a common concern over whether you’re getting the best deal.
Avoid shipping costs
Want to avoid shipping costs? There are many online retailers that offer free shipping. In fact, more and more online shopping sites should, and likely will, start offering free shipping as a perk, since research shows that 88% of online customers are more likely to shop on sites that offer free shipping.
Use private browsing
If you don’t want your data stored in the form of cookies in your Web browser, remember you can use private browsing — not only on your computer, but also on your mobile devices. You can also opt out of viewing many ads if you don’t want your purchases or product searches following you around the Web as you browse from site to site.
Know your credit report
Everyone is concerned about identity theft and hacking — at least, they should be — and as high-profile data breaches at Target, Home Depot, and other major brick-and-mortar retailers have made clear, it’s not just online shoppers that need to be wary.
Benefits of Online Shopping
Although there are some risks with shopping online and many buyers have concerns over the safety of their information, there are significant tangible benefits to online shopping:
- You’ll save time and gas by not having to drive to the store.
- You can buy products outside of normal business hours.
- It’s easy to compare prices between multiple websites.
- Read user reviews of people who also purchased the product.
- You can research online coupons and sales without having to clip physical coupons.
- Receive online customer service support without the wait times associated with the phone.
- It’s fairly easy to return an item when using a reputable site.
- You’ll have an easier time buying out-of-season items, and for less money.
- No checkout lines to deal with.
- Shop sale and clearance items without flipping through large, physical sale racks in the store.
How to Return Online Purchases
Online returns and exchanges vary depending on the store. Some companies charge you for return shipping, while others don’t. Some even include a return shipping label with your purchase to make the process easier. Just like in a regular store, many sites do not offer returns on clearance or closeout items — but if that’s the case, they’ll explain that clearly next to the item.
If you want to return something you bought online, it’s usually a simple process. Within a certain amount of days (it differs by retailer), you’ll need to tell the company you want to return the item. Then, after following their guidelines, they’ll usually send you a shipping label. You can print it out, attach it over the original shipping label, and drop off the package at UPS, FedEX, or the post office. These returns usually come with tracking, and the company will typically email you a tracking number so you’ll know when your package has been safely returned.
As retailers try to better bridge the gulf between their online and brick-and-mortar divisions, you can sometimes (but not always) return an item you bought online to a physical store, just as you can often pick up an online order in the store to save on shipping costs.
Online Shopping Security Tips
Of all the online shopping concerns listed above, the most important is security. It’s certainly frustrating if you lose a package, but not nearly as life-altering as having your identity stolen. So here are some tips to ensure your information is safe and the website you’re shopping on is a reputable one:
- Look for “https” in the URL and a padlock or broken-key icon, which signals your information is secure.
- The website should clearly state its return policy and shipping costs.
- Beware of sites using pop-up ads.
- The company should have an actual address and phone number.
- Prices should be reasonable, and not too good to be true (or too high).
- The site should allow you to opt out of email promotions.
- Never use a site that asks for personal information like your social security number or your mother’s maiden name.
