Pros and Cons of Online Shopping

A lot of people nowadays prefer to shop online because it is so convenient and easy. Every consumer who has tried it will have his own views about it. With use of the Internet, more and more people are drawn towards online shopping because recent revolution has made the Internet accessible to almost all parts of the world. Shopping through online services provides several benefits to the customers. However, it has a bad side too. There are advantages and disadvantages of this kind of shopping.

Advantages:

1. The best part of online shopping is that you can shop from home. There is no need to go to the shopping centre to buy a thing you need. You just need to order and it will be available right at your doorstep.

2. It is convenient and easy! You do not need any degree to learn online shopping. All you have to do is to visit the website, to search for your product and to buy it. Your product is just a click away!

3. Shopping online gives you the privilege to shop whenever you want. The stores are never closed and you can do your shopping any time.

4. It provides variety to you. There are a lot of options available online and this is one of the best features of online shopping.

5. Shopping through websites provides comparison of products and helps in deciding which one should be bought.

6. Many websites offer special discount schemes from time to time to attract customers. You can save a lot of money.

Disadvantages:

1. The first disadvantage is that you have to wait for some time for delivering the product.

2. You can’t try out the product before buying it. Many people like to try things out before making the payment. This feature remains missing when you buy a product online.

3. High shipping costs often add up to the total cost of the product. Also, if the product is shipped from another country, you have to pay extra taxes for it.

4. The payment mode may not be secure. It is therefore important to check whether the payment gateway is secured or not.

5. Possibility of product damage while shipping cannot be nullified. If the product received is damaged, it may again take several days for replacement or the company may not provide any replacement at all.

6. The incidence of billing errors is high and if you encounter one, you will again have to follow a long procedure and wait for several days before the error gets resolved.

7. You need to have a debit or credit card to make a purchase. Very few websites give you the option of paying cash or check on delivery.

If you try online shopping for the first time, I will advise you to get some tips from your friends and relatives who have already tried it out, so that you don’t make any mistakes. Also, weigh the pros and cons and decide for yourself whether you’d like to go for it or not.